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Since I'm picking on Democratic presidential candidates . . .

So banging porn stars on the side and paying them to shut up so you can get elected isn't unholy enough for you then.
If it’s a same sex relationship then it’s unholy!
I side with Vice President Pence on this one!
 
It also attracts new voters and energizes the base.


How about a few "strategy" rules for any Democrat.

Any use of the word deplorable (singular or plural) should result in being drawn and quartered during halftime at the next Alabama football game. Cuz that's pretty much what will happen, can't ya just hear the cheers?

When you make it through the gauntlet of the primary season, be very aware of your opponents television stage acumen. One of the most disgusting and lasting image of the latest presidential debate was the looming orangeness over the shoulder of a woman trying her best to ignore him.
The Dems should demand wireless mics that allow for movement in order to keep his bulkiness out of the picture. Barring a wireless mic, with a little study of camera angles and a little practice, a cardboard head shot of Einstein with orange hair could be held up while responding to a question. Or maybe a squirt gun....
 
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I’m not sure when it happened, but to a large group of people, being smart equals being an “elite”.
No shit. And it ain't all it's cracked up to be, either. Being among the trailer park elites isn't all fun and games, lemme tell ya.
 
No shit. And it ain't all it's cracked up to be, either. Being among the trailer park elites isn't all fun and games, lemme tell ya.
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I know you think it's too early for this, but if you're going to be a negative nancy over all the candidates, eventually you're going to need to name one you actually think would be a good idea.
I'm sorry to be a negative nancy. And of course I'll take any Democrat in this field against Trump. There look like a fair number of good options to me.

But I really do think that Biden and Bernie are unnecessarily old. Democrats don't have to take that on. And why are so many of us so excited about Beto? Maybe there's a reason, but I don't yet know it. And why does all the national attention fall on three white guys? Maybe 2020 will be The Year of the White Guy in the Democratic primaries, but this isn't a conclusion that radiates from all the political reporting I've seen.
 
I'm sorry to be a negative nancy. And of course I'll take any Democrat in this field against Trump. There look like a fair number of good options to me.

But I really do think that Biden and Bernie are unnecessarily old. Democrats don't have to take that on. And why are so many of us so excited about Beto? Maybe there's a reason, but I don't yet know it. And why does all the national attention fall on three white guys? Maybe 2020 will be The Year of the White Guy in the Democratic primaries, but this isn't a conclusion that radiates from all the political reporting I've seen.
I see you deftly evaded my needling.

I generally agree on all three B's. Obviously, Bernie still speaks my language, but dude is definitely up there in years. He was already old in 2016. Beto...does not get my motor running. Besides being boringly moderate, as you pointed out, he also just seems like a flake to me. He was great for getting the state party motivated to try to oust Cruz, but I just don't see a lot of substance there.

Biden would be the Democratic party simply admitting they don't know what direction they want to move in, so they are going to kick the can down the road at least four more years.
 
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Beto...does not get my motor running. Besides being boringly moderate, as you pointed out, he also just seems like a flake to me. He was great for getting the state party motivated to try to oust Cruz, but I just don't see a lot of substance there.
Trump was right about one thing -- Beto's gesturing is out of control. It's like he's one of the crowd at some hip hop concert. After watching Trump's bizarre gesticulating for four years, I don't know if I could take four or eight years of Beto.

Can you just picture Trump and Beto in a debate? It would be the Three Stooges minus Shemp.
 
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Joe Scarborough just tweeted that the reaction he got to his interview with Mayor Pete is unlike anything he’s received in twelve years. Coincidentally, when he interviewed Barack Obama for the first time. I know he doesn’t have a shot, but it warms my heart to have so many people be inspired by this intelligent and decent man.
 
I am not sure what the Democrats best strategy is, largely because strategy doesn't determine this. People tend to vote for the candidate they like. It might be ideas, it might be charisma, it might be home state. There isn't a bunch of Democrats sitting around deciding this based on a simple logic.

Given that, the idea that the Democrats should pick a moderate is reasonably moot. They will pick the candidate that a majority of them want in the White House for a variety of reasons. The moderate wing will have a vote, and with the expected 3.2 million candidates it may be a moderate can win as the progressives split the vote. Ot it might be no one wins until the convention, and there too a moderate might have advantages.

But what is tending to happen is that conservatives are arguing the Democrats should pick someone so moderate they could fit into the GOP. I'm not sure the Democratic base is going to want to do that.

For the record, I am not sure (if it was done by some fiat) the Democrats should pick a progressive. Yes, the argument is that is where the energy is, I get that. But at the same point the energy was with McGovern until it wasn't.

Those that vote in the Democratic primary will all decide who fits their criteria. My guess is it won't be the most moderate person unless a whole lot of disaffected Republicans cross over.

I recall suggesting the GOP should run Huntsman to get moderate Democrats to slide over, and the GOP completely ignored that advice (as did the vast majority of conservatives here). I don't know that a single conservative here thought Huntsman to be a good choice.

You seem to suggest that being a progressive and being a moderate are mutually exclusive. I don’t agree. In fact I have pointed out that in my view a person can be progressive and be a conservative.

To state this another way. What do you mean by “moderate”? For example is a liberal business entrepreneur a moderate? Is a liberal who will compromise with the GOP a moderate?
 
You seem to suggest that being a progressive and being a moderate are mutually exclusive. I don’t agree. In fact I have pointed out that in my view a person can be progressive and be a conservative.

To state this another way. What do you mean by “moderate”? For example is a liberal business entrepreneur a moderate? Is a liberal who will compromise with the GOP a moderate?

I invite you to search the web and find a single self-described progressive moderate or progressive conservative.

Compromise isn't the key to being a moderate, at least not directly. Ted Kennedy always spoke of not letting the perfect become the enemy of the good, and you would not let me call him a moderate.

A think-tank polled moderates to see what they believe. They believe debt is too high and government should spend more on infrastructure and education. They like the social safety net and worry it is a disincentive to work.

Here is the thing, until Trump I was largely a moderate. I still have severe doubts any strict ideology can be close to 100% correct. Problems are too large and complex for a simple "less government" or "more fairness" to fix. But then we elected a bad caricature and it became clear sides had to be drawn. I do not know the liberal side is always more correct than the conservative, I just know there is an awesome chance Trump is flat out wrong. Like when Hogan asked Schultz which bomb white to cut, then cut the one Schultz did not name. Hogan said, "I did not know which one would be right, but I knew you would be wrong".
 
I invite you to search the web and find a single self-described progressive moderate or progressive conservative.

Compromise isn't the key to being a moderate, at least not directly. Ted Kennedy always spoke of not letting the perfect become the enemy of the good, and you would not let me call him a moderate.

A think-tank polled moderates to see what they believe. They believe debt is too high and government should spend more on infrastructure and education. They like the social safety net and worry it is a disincentive to work.

Here is the thing, until Trump I was largely a moderate. I still have severe doubts any strict ideology can be close to 100% correct. Problems are too large and complex for a simple "less government" or "more fairness" to fix. But then we elected a bad caricature and it became clear sides had to be drawn. I do not know the liberal side is always more correct than the conservative, I just know there is an awesome chance Trump is flat out wrong. Like when Hogan asked Schultz which bomb white to cut, then cut the one Schultz did not name. Hogan said, "I did not know which one would be right, but I knew you would be wrong".

Self-description isn’t informative. Take tort reform. Conservatives take a liberal position and liberals take a conservative position. Would you call me a moderate? I break with conservatives on school vouchers, abortion, gun control and tort reform. I think a conservative can take progressive positions and a progressive can take conservative positions without surrendering their core beliefs.

Being a political moderate, in my view has nothing to do with what people believe. It has to do with how strident people are in their beliefs. Those who require a politician apologize for saying “all lives matter” cannot be a moderate, the politician who says that might be. Moderation is highly situational. Being a moderate is a skill to be leaned, not a belief to cling to.

We need more people in office who have the ability to be moderate. I think Trump has shown this. His immigration compromise that the freedom caucus shot down, and his budget compromise that doesn’t establish a budget and other positions are pretty clear evidence of that.

A think tank polling moderates for what they “believe”? Are you kidding? Sheesh.

Who in the Democratic field do you see as moderate? Hickenlooper has shown he has that skill even though he holds deeply liberal beliefs. I think Booker could as well as Klobuchar. Many clearly show they can’t be, Sanders and Harris conspicuously among those.
 
In other words, you think the winning strategy is for the Democrats to appeal to you personally. I think that's nonsense. Democrats don't want your vote. They probably won't get it, anyway. If the Democrats did nominate Manchin, there's a better than 50% chance you'd walk into the voting booth, say "Yeah, but what about judges..." to yourself and vote for Trump. So get out of here with that. You want a reasonable conservative? Then nominate one. Meanwhile, the Democrats are going to nominate who they nominate, and they are going to try to win over the country to their ideas.
Democrats need the independent vote. Far left and Socialist ideas aren't going to win outside liberal states like New York, California and Illinois (mostly Chicago. My Southern Illinois Democratic family hated Hillary and many of the national leaders, but vote Democratic locally). That is why the Dem candidates want to get rid of the electoral college and allow 16 year olds to vote. They know they need to make these changes to allow their message to win.

I will vote for either party. I voted for Obama once even though I thought he would be bad for business. I didn't think McCain / Palin was a better choice. I tried to correct my mistake in the next election. I will never vote for a far left or Socialist candidate. It isn't because of their party affiliation, it is because they would make deep and hard to reverse changes that would be damaging economically.

I can support someone besides Trump. I have listed a couple of options on the Democrat side I would likely vote for. I am not aligned to ANY party. There are individuals I like on both sides.
 
To mitigate the age concerns, Team Biden is seriously considering a pledge to be a one-term President:

Mr. Biden and his top advisers are considering nodding to the rising next generation in Democratic politics — and elevating an heir — by announcing a running mate early, well before the nomination is sealed. Also under discussion is a possible pledge to serve only one term and framing Mr. Biden’s 2020 campaign as a one-time rescue mission for a beleaguered country, according to multiple party officials.
If Biden were the nominee, Stacey Abrams might well be a good running mate. But why would Democrats nominate a candidate who had to pledge to be a lame duck?

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/21/...html?action=click&module=News&pgtype=Homepage
 
To mitigate the age concerns, Team Biden is seriously considering a pledge to be a one-term President:

Mr. Biden and his top advisers are considering nodding to the rising next generation in Democratic politics — and elevating an heir — by announcing a running mate early, well before the nomination is sealed. Also under discussion is a possible pledge to serve only one term and framing Mr. Biden’s 2020 campaign as a one-time rescue mission for a beleaguered country, according to multiple party officials.
If Biden were the nominee, Stacey Abrams might well be a good running mate. But why would Democrats nominate a candidate who had to pledge to be a lame duck?

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/21/...html?action=click&module=News&pgtype=Homepage
I kind of like this, but probably could be persuaded otherwise! For me, it’s the fact that we have so very many good young candidates that might need a little more experience. Biden appoints some of them to important positions so they are ready in 2024. I have mixed feelings about Joe and he has made some bad mistakes, such as Anita Hill. But we are living in unprecedented times.
 
I kind of like this, but probably could be persuaded otherwise! For me, it’s the fact that we have so very many good young candidates that might need a little more experience. Biden appoints some of them to important positions so they are ready in 2024. I have mixed feelings about Joe and he has made some bad mistakes, such as Anita Hill. But we are living in unprecedented times.
I'm struggling with the notion that Democrats should prefer one term with a lame duck Biden over what might be two terms with another candidate. This would only make sense if Joe Biden were the only living human who could beat Trump.
 
I'm honestly surprised Cory Booker isn't getting more attention generally speaking. He's not a complete unknown, he's not a retread and he more or less espouses policies that liberals/moderates can get behind.

As an added bonus, Rosario Dawson could be his First Lady with a White House wedding (disclaimer: I've always sort of had a thing for her and am willing to admit I'm not sure what she actually brings to a Booker White House, so this is more a tongue-in-cheek reference).

Still, what am I missing about Booker? He's young enough. He potentially appeals to a large cross section of left-leaning voters without alienating moderates. Seems to have good experience that stacks up better than some of the other Democratic hopefuls.
 
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I'm honestly surprised Cory Booker isn't getting more attention generally speaking. He's not a complete unknown, he's not a retread and he more or less espouses policies that liberals/moderates can get behind.

As an added bonus, Rosario Dawson could be his First Lady with a White House wedding (disclaimer: I've always sort of had a thing for her and am willing to admit I'm not sure what she actually brings to a Booker White House, so this is more a tongue-in-cheek reference).

Still, what am I missing about Booker? He's young enough. He potentially appeals to a large cross section of left-leaning voters without alienating moderates. Seems to have good experience that stacks up better than some of the other Democratic hopefuls.

A lot of people in the Dem base think Booker is too close to Wall Street and his campaign roll-out hasn't been great. Also people distrust New Jersey politicians.

He's certainly in the second tier of contenders and has time to move up but he's got to get in front of Biden/Harris/Beto to have a lane.
 
A lot of people in the Dem base think Booker is too close to Wall Street and his campaign roll-out hasn't been great. Also people distrust New Jersey politicians.

He's certainly in the second tier of contenders and has time to move up but he's got to get in front of Biden/Harris/Beto to have a lane.
I'm not disagreeing with anything you said, I just think it's silly that Beto is looked at as a better candidate than Booker. I think that perceived deficit should be relatively easy to overcome, but then again I thought Hillary Clinton would be president right now.
 
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I'm not disagreeing with anything you said, I just think it's silly that Beto is looked at as a better candidate than Booker. I think that perceived deficit should be relatively easy to overcome, but then again I thought Hillary Clinton would be president right now.
After the 2016 elections Booker was the first person I thought might rise up as the logical next-gen candidate. His "Sparticus Moment" didn't help him.
 
I'm struggling with the notion that Democrats should prefer one term with a lame duck Biden over what might be two terms with another candidate. This would only make sense if Joe Biden were the only living human who could beat Trump.

You are a football guy. It’s the same logic as the Broncos signing Payton Manning. The idea is that Biden would be a competent place-holder while youngsters get seasoning. The problem is not the notion of a designated single termer, the problem is Biden is a dumbass and never got above single digits among Democrats the other dozen times he ran.
 
You are a football guy. It’s the same logic as the Broncos signing Payton Manning. The idea is that Biden would be a competent place-holder while youngsters get seasoning. The problem is not the notion of a designated single termer, the problem is Biden is a dumbass and never got above single digits among Democrats the other dozen times he ran.
A Trump supporter calling Biden a dumbass. Giggle.
 
If Biden were the nominee, Stacey Abrams might well be a good running mate. But why would Democrats nominate a candidate who had to pledge to be a lame duck?
Not a fan of the idea. Let's face it, as big a splash as she made, her only experience is as a state legislator. Rather than balancing the ticket, it strikes me more as tokenism.
 
I'm sorry to be a negative nancy. And of course I'll take any Democrat in this field against Trump. There look like a fair number of good options to me.

But I really do think that Biden and Bernie are unnecessarily old. Democrats don't have to take that on. And why are so many of us so excited about Beto? Maybe there's a reason, but I don't yet know it. And why does all the national attention fall on three white guys? Maybe 2020 will be The Year of the White Guy in the Democratic primaries, but this isn't a conclusion that radiates from all the political reporting I've seen.

and yet it's been Bernie pushing the new ideas the country desperately needs, and the others trying to copy Bernie's lead.

and if talking about who has the best chance in the general rather than the primary, Bernie is the one who will peel off the most of Trump's blue collar following, as Trump was the first Bernie imitator, as to his message of backing the working class.
 
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Not a fan of the idea. Let's face it, as big a splash as she made, her only experience is as a state legislator. Rather than balancing the ticket, it strikes me more as tokenism.

I think it’s a miscalculation to do this. IMO, he hands the nomination to Harris with this move, and I’d be fine with that.

The only way this is a good idea is if he’s just floating it to signal ahead of his roll out, that he’s aware of where the future of the party is going, and he’s going to be the bridge to take it there. In other words, signaling this is the type of person I’ll actually pick if I’m the nominee.
 
If you are center right or a true independent, and you are still considering re-electing Trump, the Democrats should not waste a single breath for your vote. I hope the Democrats choose wisely; however, I’m voting against Trump regardless.
 
If you are center right or a true independent, and you are still considering re-electing Trump, the Democrats should not waste a single breath for your vote. I hope the Democrats choose wisely; however, I’m voting against Trump regardless.
Did you vote for Trump in 2016?
 
I'm struggling with the notion that Democrats should prefer one term with a lame duck Biden over what might be two terms with another candidate. This would only make sense if Joe Biden were the only living human who could beat Trump.
Pieces like this ought to give Democrats pause about Biden. (In addition to the author's awkward encounter with Biden, she links to stories about numerous others.) He's long been given a pass for invading the ladies' space, but that's unlikely to continue. In a time of #MeToo, Biden seems out of step in just the sort of ways you might expect from a man of his age. Democrats can do better.
 
Pieces like this ought to give Democrats pause about Biden. (In addition to the author's awkward encounter with Biden, she links to stories about numerous others.) He's long been given a pass for invading the ladies' space, but that's unlikely to continue. In a time of #MeToo, Biden seems out of step in just the sort of ways you might expect from a man of his age. Democrats can do better.
That’s always been in the back of my mind about being an issue for him. Look where Joe’s hand is in that picture.
 
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Pieces like this ought to give Democrats pause about Biden. (In addition to the author's awkward encounter with Biden, she links to stories about numerous others.) He's long been given a pass for invading the ladies' space, but that's unlikely to continue. In a time of #MeToo, Biden seems out of step in just the sort of ways you might expect from a man of his age. Democrats can do better.
Rebecca Traister is not a fan. Agree or disagree, her essay lays out issues that will absolutely be litigated in the coming campaign.
 
Pieces like this ought to give Democrats pause about Biden. (In addition to the author's awkward encounter with Biden, she links to stories about numerous others.) He's long been given a pass for invading the ladies' space, but that's unlikely to continue. In a time of #MeToo, Biden seems out of step in just the sort of ways you might expect from a man of his age. Democrats can do better.
Front and center on Drudge. Not good. Whoever takes on Trump needs to be squeaky clean when it comes to this kind of shit. I think he could get past Anita Hill as a long time ago when things were different, but this is recent.

It's too bad, too. I've always liked Joe, and think he would be a good bridge to a new political age.
 
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