My Conversation with Chuck Todd

Chuck Todd has followed this presidential race as closely as anyone. As NBC News' political director, he regularly analyzes the race for the network's top news programs. I recently spoke to him about Sen. Barack Obama's pursuit of superdelegates and Bill Clinton's impact on the race.

Comments

[RonnieDebb]

He is truly a political wonderboy.

[vonryansexpress]

The "wholly unelectable" component of Sen. Obama's profile may manifest at greater levels than Mr. Todd's discussion of a forty state loss. Sen. Obama cannot win the election because he has no appeal to the great middle range of voters.

Republicans that voted for McCain over Bush in 2000 will not now repudiate a known commodity for the unknown. Democrats that supported Glenn in 1984, Gephardt in 1988 and formed the cadres of the Reagan Democrats in 1980/84 will gravitate to McCain as a vote that aligns with their lives and world views.

Sen. Obama, apart from Wright, Ayers and "bittergate" is a candidate that presents no specifics of the vaunted change he announces. What is left is his left, liberal alignment that is not unknown to the middle range of moderate voters that recognize an attempt to couch his progressive world view in language of hope and audacity.

Sen. Obama has an audience that will embrace him on Election Day. In the past that audience supported Sen. Simon, Jerry Brown and Edward Kennedy. This audience has no heft to carry a campaign to victory. It is a large "slice of a slice" but it is not a majority and cannot create a plurality of impassioned voters and the great middle needed to meld or even cobble up a victory.

It appears that singing to a choir has for the Democrats become more impressive than hearing the liet motif that repeats historically on the day the 'lever' gets pulled.

[serendipityschild]

An insightful, thoughtful consideration of what it will take for both candidates. Chuck Todd is a valuable asset to MSNBC and to our process. He and Keith Olbermann are my two reasons for watching that channel, and he acquits himself well at Charlie's table.

[jukesgrrl]

They ought to create a special Emmy award for Chuck Todd, the hardest working man in po-business.