Blog Credo

The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary.

H.L. Mencken

Sunday, April 7, 2019

I'm A Touch Concerned

I've been arguing on Facebook with David Greenberg about Joe Biden.  I am not a fan of a 76 year old man running for president.  I am not a fan of someone feeling entitled to the nomination because he was VP and a running punchline under Obama.  I am not a fan of Biden's bankruptcy bill when he was in the Senate.  I loved "Uncle Joe" memes, but when it comes to taking down Trump, I don't think Biden is the guy.  For many of the same reasons, Bernie isn't the guy.  He's 77, he has almost no legislative accomplishments to his name, he's a cranky old guy whose vision of America is either vague or negative.

The problem is that Sanders and Biden have the highest name recognition of the Democratic field.  As long as the field is hopelessly crowded, high name recognition will insure a sizable portion of the vote.  Harris has demonstrated some considerable political chops.  Warren has easily the most comprehensive and important policy agenda since Lyndon Johnson.  Buttigieg and O'Rourke have tapped into considerable charisma.  But as long as the field is crowded with Yangs and Salwells and Gabbards and Inslees and Hickenloopers...there is no room for the next page to be written.  It will be 2008 and 2016 re-runs.

Hopefully, the bulk of these aspirational candidates are simply building their national profiles and donor lists.  But if they stick around past Christmas, we have a problem.

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