Assessing the Presidential Field

As soon as the midterm election was over, the MSM turned to the prospects for the '08 Presidential election. Here lies a humble assessment of the potential candidates. I begin with the Democratic Party and then move to the GOP.

The Democrats:
Hillary Clinton
Various media outlets and polls indicate that she's the "front runner," but I wonder how accurate that is. She certainly has name recognition, and she knows how to raise a heck of a lot of money. However, Clinton would be easy to demonize, so the Repubs would love to see her win the nomination. I think she's a major player in the field, but I don't see the US having a female president before an African-American male; African-American men typically have broken barriers in leadership positions before women.

Barack Obama
You had to see where I was going with that last sentence. Regardless of his voting record in IL and in the US Senate, Obama has created a "middle of the road" image and has used his stature to become a celebrity, with trips to Africa and frequent visits to Oprah, who publicly stated she would vote for Obama if he ran for Prez and implored him to announce on her show (shameless). The GOP should fear the "Oprah vote," and Harold Ford Jr.'s close loss in Tennessee (a Southern state that's only 18% African-American) bodes well for Obama.

John Edwards
Here we have another Oprah guest, strangely enough. He's a skilled rhetorician; his "Two Americas" stump speech and his crusade against poverty plays well to many. Like Obama, he has a good story to tell/sell. He probably will get hammered on national security issues and one would expect to hear a lot about "trial lawyers," but he's an interesting candidate--one to watch.

John Kerry
I don't see the Dems going down that road of obtuseness again. Like Gore, he had a good shot and lost.

Al Gore
See John Kerry.

Evan Bayh
He's unknown nationally and comes from a predominately "red" state that has become purple in some areas.

Tom Vilsack
Who?

Bill Richardson
Of the lesser known candidates, he could use his Latino heritage to bring an unpredictable but growing voting public under the wing of the Democratic Party. It's Machiavellian to think that way, but people do.

Joe Biden
He's not as boring as John Kerry but longer-winded.

The duos that have the best chance of winning: Obama/Richardson or Edwards/Richardson.
The duos that the GOP wants the Democratic Party to field: Kerry/Gore, Clinton/Kerry.

The Republicans:
John McCain
He has cultivated a "maverick" yet centrist image while still being very conservative on some issues. Like Obama, he's a consummate political opportunist. Centrist and independent voters seem to like him even though his voting record may show different things. He's made nice recently with the Conservative Christian wing of the party, who seems to have had a grudge against him for whatever reason. He's the clear front runner.

Mitt Romney
He seems to be the current darling of the hard right, but--it's sad to say this--I don't see Americans voting for a Mormon president.

Rudy Giuliani
He'd be a considered a "moderate" Republican, and as the last Presidential campaign showed, the GOP will shamelessly use 9/11 as a political prop.

Newt Gingrich
He's been out of the political scene after shutting down the government during the reign of Clinton (I kid, I kid), but he seems to be well liked in GOP circles. He's not a direct talker though.

Bill Frist
Did he really think Terry Schiavo and flag burning were two of the most important issues during his tenure as Senate majority leader? Yes, yes he did.

Chuck Hagel
He's a popular Senator from a midwestern state, but he has the national profile of someone like, uh-what's his name?, Viszlick?

George Allen
Stick a fork in him.

Duncan Hunter
He believes fences make better neighbors.

The duos that have the best chance of winning: McCain/Giuliani or McCain/Gingrich.
The duo that the Democrats want the GOP to field: Frist/Hunter.


To me, it seems to be advantage Republicans.