Only John Edwards Can Beat McCain

I'll be 60 eight days before the election in November. This is a bad thing and a good thing. The bad thing is it ain't going to be a real long time before I'm dead. The good thing is I've traveled a few miles and have picked up something along the way, and that something is called "institutional memory".

As I watched news coverage of Monday night's debate, the ever-escalating "I know you are, but what am I?" fight between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton suddenly struck a memory from 28 years back. The feud between Teddy Kennedy and Jimmy Carter rushed into my mind like a horrible memory of an old girlfriend. My recollection of their self-destructive hostilities reminded me how their battles went a long ways toward giving this nation Ronald Reagan.

It was 1980, and the Democratic Party had two supposedly strong national candidates--one an incumbent president, the other a scion of America's national family. They were going up against a Republican Party that was searching for an identity and would go deep on the bench to nominate the host of "Death Valley Days".

I remember this as an election we shouldn't have lost. But as we have done so many times in the past, we Democrats figured out a way to step on our Johnson.

In that 1980 nominating battle, our two candidates went after each other like Sherman went after Georgia. The result? Unbelievably, half of Washington is now named after Ronald Reagan--though I'll still say I'm flying into National Airport until the day the Good Lord or the Devil calls me home.

Surely, I'm not the only one who can see this six-foot rabbit named Harvey. John McCain is going to be the Republican nominee. How do I know? Because "institutional memory" also reminds me that the Democratic Party I love can't count. And regardless of what you think of the Republicans, they can.

It should be clear to anybody with over a 50 IQ that my boy John Edwards, with his combination of red state electoral experience and toughness, is the only candidate who can beat John McCain. Whether you believe polls or not, polls from CNN to Rasmussen say just that.

And it should be equally as clear to anybody with over a 25 IQ that Obama and Clinton are going to render each other totally unelectable against any Republican, especially John McCain, by the time we get to the convention.

All the Republicans have to be loving this. Because the Democrat they don't want to face, John Edwards, is getting sandwiched between the coverage of this murderous cat fight between two so-called "historical" candidates who, when all is said and done, will be just that. HISTORY.

Comments

[zjr909]

We have to keep reminding ourselves: the Democratic Party IS A PARTY first and foremost. And every Party has its priorities. Right now, the Democrats' priorities are in lock step with the DLC agenda (Republican Lite). The DLC has no earthly use for a populist candidate - it's too busy courting the corporate lobbies. I would love to see John Edwards get the nomination; but if he does, you can rest assured the DLC will do everything in its power to see he doesn't get elected. I think (and the wonderful thing about blogs is I'll instantly get corrected if I'm wrong) - but I think Andrew Jackson was the last, and quite possibly the only, populist elected president (I don't consider FDR to be a genuine populist). The sad irony is that most voters don't take too kindly to populists; I guess it reminds them just how truly powerless they really are. So they'll choose a faux populist - like Obama - everytime over the real thing. The overriding question then becomes: to vote the DLC agenda, and watch the country being slowly bled to death; or just let the Republicans butcher it all at once and be done with it.

[wilso127]

I agree with you that only Edwards can beat McCain in the general election. How about an Edwards-Obama ticket that might unload the Clintons into history's dustbin...­where they could join Jimmy Carter, Walter Mondale, George H. W. Bush, Al Gore, John Kerry and Dubbayah? McCain, by the way, is too good for this group in my opinion.

[thepeoplechoose]

I can't think of a better time to elect a populist like Edwards than now. The stranglehold the establishment has on this country needs very much to be broken and Edwards represents the sole opportunity to make it happen. Even then, the Washington political elite and big business would fight tooth and nail were Edwards to take the oval office. He wants very much to slam shut the revolving door between government and big business and replace it with an impenetrable vaulted one. He would face serious opposition to this from both sides of the aisle. It is truly inarguable we need this but I really can't imagine congress attacking this with any real objectivity or honesty. Short of a president who really drags congress repeatedly and unforgivably across the coals on this he or she probably woouldn't make a dent in the status quo. And he would also be faced with the necessity of selecting a cabinet and staff of outsiders who would have a difficult time negotiating the shark infested waters of the Washington bureaucracy. The average American would love it but it would be really ugly to watch. It would be the polar opposite of the Bush presidency, but unlike Bush, Edwards would lose a lot of battles. No president can fight the entire congress and win with any regularity. He'd have to enumerate all their screwups one by one and call them scumbags on national TV, thoroughly embarrassing them, to even get their attention and get the ball rolling. And he couldn't back down or apologize even once no matter the fuss that would ensue.

[BinBaldwin]

Ask John Kerry if Edwards helped carry his own state in 2004.

[glitzqueen]

You really have a gift, Mudcat; your words made me laugh aloud about this campaign, which normally makes me mad enough to bite the ears off mice. To me, it couldn't be plainer that John Edwards is the leader whom the Americann people desperately need -- and the candidate whom the grillionaires desperately need to stop. That's why the corporate media keep trying to trivialize and marginalize him, of course, and why they block his message by refusing to focus on the issues and limiting most debate exposure to cable channels.

Their strategy is working, too. Only among those who reject MSM and seek the real truth elsewhere -- such as Thom Hartmann's Air America listeners, who "elect" Edwards in every straw poll -- is he the clear favorite.

Yes, all you say about his electability and the awful Punch-and-Judy show developing around Barack and Hillary is true. But the bigger problem is how to get Edwards' message through to those still reliant on MSM.

[PolNut]

Mr. Saunders:

Being in your 40s has its advantages and disadvantages as well. We don't suffer from senility or Alzheimer's yet - we're caught between Half-zeimer's and the truth - a very painful position, believe me.

Do you recall a stint on Tucker Carlson's MSNBC show, before the Edwards hired you? I will never forget you, because until that particular afternoon, I had thought that all southerners hated Hillary Clinton. Tucker was behaving in his usual "adolescent chronically afflicted by arrested development" manner, every time you took Sen. Clinton's name. When he had done that a few times, you began one of your fishing anecdotes, and then told him that you had approached southern men and women with uniformly negative views on Hillary Clinton, and asked them what exactly she had done to earn so much ire, and not a single person could give you a valid or legitimate answer to your question. Never having met another person who quite sounds like you and says such patently rational things, I believe we fell somewhat in love with you. Then you go and get hired by Edwards and turn on Hillary and destroy everything!

We get that you have to work for your consulting fees - but what is unnecessary is this silly ad hominem attack on Ms. Clinton that goes on ceaselessly. Just in case you have forgotten, your guy began the nastiness all the way back, during the first debate. He is the only person I know, who has won a debate (the CNN-Congressional Black Caucus sponsored one) by failing to participate, and turning out one lack luster performance after the other. Your contention, Sir, is self-serving and very baseless. Given today's environment, while the general public may be disgusted by Obama's and Clinton's demonstration of juvenile delinquency, your boy is uniformly disliked, thanks to his abrasive rhetoric, $400 haircut, a surrogate who will crush any and all opponent, and is not afraid of using her weakness to advantage, and of course his "two Americas" - have a heart, don't join the already plentifully idiotic fray.

[StillAmused]

Someone remind me... exactly how is McCain -- who acquired his 'national security' expertise at bombing altitude over the jungles of Vietnam -- such a formidable contender?

Hate to say it, but his once-legitimate POW credit has worn thin. These days, he trades noogies with Junior and bloviates about remaining in Iraq for a century.

Americans are suckers for an endlessly repeated legend.

[sparkandy]

As a Republican from a place far enough south to be suspicious to Yankees, and who hates the current administration with a passion unexceeded by any Democrat, I have to say I agree with you. And I'm not the only one. You'd be surprised at the number of Republicans in the southern half of the country who only voted for Bush because he wasn't Kerry last time, who would LOVE the chance to vote for Edwards. Only the hard core party faithful Repubs want to see him shut out, because they know McCain will easily beat Clinton or Obama. Edwards is the worst nightmare of the Republican party, because not only would he pull in Southern Democrats, he'd also attract a lot of moderate Southern Republicans and undecided voters. And no matter what the Dems are saying, they will not win an election without the votes of the South and the West. Edwards is the only hope of the Dems, if they have the brains to see it.

[DonRoberto]

Thank you, Mudcat, for saying what needs to be said.

Doesn't anyone wonder why Karl Rove is so deafeningly silent right now? Could it be that we Democrats are already playing out his scenario?

The only thing that matters a damn bit in the grand scheme of things is which party wins the general election. The only way to win the general election is to attract votes from those who are not already committed to your agenda and your values --- in our case, from the independents, the undecideds, and that indeterminate number of "crossover" Republicans who are trying to awaken from the GOP's "Matrix".

The question is, how many of THOSE people will vote for Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama in the general election? Granted, the two frontrunners do very well when preaching to the choir of Democratic­/Progressi­ve voters, but does anyone honestly believe either Clinton or Obama can pull the requisite numbers of crossover voters away from John McCain come November?

Recognizing that many of these crossover voters have racist or sexist streaks doesn't make ME racist or sexist --- just realistic. Do the math: count the number of blacks, women, and Hispanics running for the Republican nomination, for example.

I think it's great that Democrats celebrate the diversity of experience within our party, and I will happily vote in the general election for whomever our party has nominated. But I wish we Dems could realize once in a while that a lot of people --- a lot of VOTERS --- just aren't as enlightened as we are when it comes to gender and race. John Edwards has the bona fides to fight for what we Democrats represent as a party, and the crossover appeal to actually get elected in November. At this point the only thing standing between him and the Presidency is the nomination of his own party. He can use your support.

[OhPlease2007]

Mr. Saunders, thanks for another great post. I can't think of anyone who has a better grasp of Southern Democratic politics, than you do. I wish that you were a regular on all the cable T.V. news programs, so that we all could watch, listen, and learn from you, about the history of Southern Democratic politics -and- just how important the South really is to Democratic voters in this election, nationwide.

By the way, I only call it Washington National Airport too; old habits die hard!

Edwards '08!

[KevinMast]

I agree with you 100%. Edwards is the most electable candidate. I turned the news off today. I can't watch Hillary & Obama go after each other. It is embarassing. I pray they come to their senses soon & get Edward in there.

[RedWhiteandBlueState]

McCain? Are you people insane? Any of the top three Dems will crush him in the general in '08, "polls" be damned. I believe the Republicans have no idea what's in store for them. This idea of McCain riding in on his red horse is ridiculous to any serious thinker. The man is FOR the war. The man is out of his mind. He's like a wind-up toy. Please. And just as an aside - What states did Edwards pull for 'ol Kerry in the '04 General? None. Not even his home state. But I agree he would beat McCain rather easily as head of the Dem ticket in '08.

Look at the turn out numbers at these primaries. The Democrats are setting turnout records. The Republicans are staying home. Change is a coming.

This McCain re-birth is good grist for the mill and a desperate attempt by the MSM to make a coming landslide more interesting but not real.

I ask you. Who would you vote for. Really? Any of the top three Dems in any combination or McCain and the Republican of his choice?

[Herrington]

Well if you are going to get all miffed about someone insulting your candidate then you should probably not watch the proceedings. Everyone is wringing their hands about the Republican demigods of electioneering without so much as a reasoned thought as to how they go about it. What they do, the only thing they do, is get you to stay home and pout about not having the perfect candidate. They don’t care. They will sell whatever sorry piece of shit that is on hand. And, they will show up at the poll no matter what piece of shit is on the ticket because they are committed to the program.

So if you stay home on election day because Edwards or Obama or Clinton or even Kucinich did not get the nomination, you have voted Republican. If you stay home because your issue, say mandatory vegetarian school lunches, is not in the platform, you have cast a vote for Republicans. If you stay home because its too cold or you have a headache, you are voting for eight more years of Republican rule that this country and you personally may not survive.

So if the Republicans relish the infighting for the democratic nomination, hand them something that they have never seen before from a Democratic base. Show up. Show up and vote for whatever piece of shit the Democrats nominate.

None of them are perfect. None of them will redress your grievance, particularly the vegetarian’s, in the first ninety days. The world will not change overnight except that if a Democrat wins, any Democrat, the nightmare of the assault on human decency will have been given a pause. The Republicans realize they are fighting for something, ignoble, crass, even sick as it is. Democrats want perfection and it is not to be had,. To strive for perfection is the only achievable goal.

[FearlessFreep]

I remember at the 1980 Democratic convention when Ted Kennedy came on stage after losing to Jimmy Carter. Everyone expected him to take Carter's hand in a gesture of solidarity, but instead he turned his back on him. A class act, those Kennedys.

[OtayPanky]

The reality is this: Edwards is not going to be anything but a possible king/queen maker at the dem convention.

His chances of getting the nomination are ZERO...unl­ess the other two leave this earthly plane.

Assuming they remain hale and hearty - what do we do about the REAL possibilities here? Whose MOST likely to get destroyed by McCain in November?

Dave, you seem like a good guy to have a beer with - but you're spinning those fish tales again. Let's get real, or let's not play, otay?