Tuesday, April 29, 2008
The Democrats' Two-Headed Problem
Dave Oatney has some thoughts on Howard Dean's recent proclamation that one of the two Democratic Presidential Candidates needs to withdraw by June 3rd, at the latest.
Here's the problem that comes with making a political loser like Howard Dean your leader of the DNC. Why in the world would Hillary Clinton or Barrack Obama - who have traveled a long campaign road to get to where they are today and both stand at the precipice of being the ultimate winner come November - listen to a loser like Dean who has a history of psychiatric issues?
For whatever reason, the Democrats have a history of looking to losers as leaders. Harold Ford loses to Bob Corker, and the next thing you know he's the head of Democratic Leadership Council. Dean is a similar story. The Democrats got away from this follow-the-loser approach for a while under Bill Clinton's reign, when he placed his hand-picked friends in party leadership. Alas for them, they failed to keep out of the loser mentality.
This race is going down to the wire and, eventually, will be in the hands of the superdelegates. A strong peacemaker - on the Republican side, a Jim Baker would fit the mould - is needed for the Democrats to avoid a meltdown resulting from non-elected superdelegates deciding the race and "stealing" it from one of the candidates.
It's quite amazing, but the Democrats may have figured out a way to have John McCain win the White House, and the leadership void at the top of their party can do nothing to stop the downward momentum their splintering party possesses.
Here's the problem that comes with making a political loser like Howard Dean your leader of the DNC. Why in the world would Hillary Clinton or Barrack Obama - who have traveled a long campaign road to get to where they are today and both stand at the precipice of being the ultimate winner come November - listen to a loser like Dean who has a history of psychiatric issues?
For whatever reason, the Democrats have a history of looking to losers as leaders. Harold Ford loses to Bob Corker, and the next thing you know he's the head of Democratic Leadership Council. Dean is a similar story. The Democrats got away from this follow-the-loser approach for a while under Bill Clinton's reign, when he placed his hand-picked friends in party leadership. Alas for them, they failed to keep out of the loser mentality.
This race is going down to the wire and, eventually, will be in the hands of the superdelegates. A strong peacemaker - on the Republican side, a Jim Baker would fit the mould - is needed for the Democrats to avoid a meltdown resulting from non-elected superdelegates deciding the race and "stealing" it from one of the candidates.
It's quite amazing, but the Democrats may have figured out a way to have John McCain win the White House, and the leadership void at the top of their party can do nothing to stop the downward momentum their splintering party possesses.
Labels: 2008 Democratic Presidential Primary, 2008 General Election, Democrats
Permalink posted by Rob Huddleston @ 12:32 PM 
