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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Rascal who wrote (8386)	9/17/2003 5:14:13 PM
From: LindyBill	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793838

I think he is unbeatable. Why you starry-eyed Liberal you. The first guy that comes along on a white horse waving a sword gets you chasing down the road after him. :>)

To: Rascal who wrote (8386)	9/17/2003 5:18:16 PM
From: LindyBill	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793838

What does The Note know about the Wes Clark (D-CNN) phenomenon? We know that the media interest in his candidacy proves the political press is bored with the field as is. We know that the Democratic elite interest in his candidacy proves that many of them — including members of Congress — are apparently underwhelmed by the existing nine candidates and are willing to support someone about whom they know shockingly little. We know that the Dean campaign is the only one that will publicly claim to see strength in Clark's bid (Jo[e] knows Web grassroots.). We know that those of you who failed to realize that there was a lot of Clinton-Gore talent out there who hadn't signed on with any of the existing horses weren't really paying attention. If you are John Kerry, Dick Gephardt, Joe Lieberman, John Edwards, Bob Graham, or (even) Howard Dean, you have to ask yourself as you watch these officeholders, operatives, and fundraisers sign up with Clark (and, believe us, there are more eye-catching names coming), what the heck is wrong with me? Am I too weak? Do I have too much the stench of the loser? Why are they signing up with someone they don't even know, when they could have me, me, me? As for the motivations of these (largely) Clinton-Gore types — they all want to beat Bush; they all are totally turned off by Howard Dean personally and by his prospects; they have all lost respect for the rest of the field (because if they can't crush Dean, how could they beat Bush?); and they all (for whatever reasons) failed to find places in the other campaigns. Oh, and most of them are bored in their lawyer, lobbyist, PR jobs, and this Clark thing looks fun to them. We wonder how many of them have read this tip-of-the-iceberg George Will column. LINK So far, Clark has not taken a single position on domestic issues that distinguishes him from the field, and in fact, he appears to be a garden variety liberal on the gamut of party touchstones. There are no distinctive policy positions, third way or otherwise. And for an alleged straight talker, we wouldn't characterize his position on, say, the Bush tax cuts, as particularly straight or crisp. And he certainly doesn't seem to be moving toward any sort of Sister Souljah moment. Would Clark be a good president? His supporters obviously think so. Would he be a strong general election candidate? Again, his supporters cite his Southern roots, military background, and outsider status as factors that they say would make him the strongest one to go against President Bush. But to get to either of those slots, Clark first would have to win the Democratic nomination, and the existing nine aren't just going to roll over and let him take the nomination away. In his full Ginsberg of morning show appearances, Clark was his usual newsless, pacific, aw-shucks self. Said he would have a health care plan soonish. Isabel notwithstanding, we would bet that the cable nets (including the one which has paid Clark cash over the last few months and seems to have some pretty good access to him) will take his 1 pm ET announcement live from the James H. Pennick Boys and Girls Club in Little Rock. Per ABC News' Clark reporter Deborah Apton, General Clark will not take questions after his remarks. He will be introduced by former Arkansas Senator David Pryor and Arkansas Congressman Marion Berry. His wife and family will join him at the announcement. There will also be members of the Draft Wesley Clark campaign in attendance. The event is expected to be brief, most likely less than 30 minutes. Clark is already talking about maybe skipping some of the debates because of conflicts, and the scrutiny of his past is going to ramp up fast (so it's nice to have one — two? — Master(s) of Disaster around … .). This endless blather about whose support Clark cuts into makes us roll our digital eyes. Theoretically and thematically, one can make the case that he cuts into EVERYBODY, but he won't be doing any cutting until and unless he proves he can build support. While the speculation that Clark could end up on the ticket as someone's veep candidate continues, keep in mind that many untested candidates who run for president do so poorly that they end up seeming LESS attractive as prospects for the second slot than they did before they ran. On the other hand, if Clark shows some political mojo, he might raise his stock. Rest assured, all the other campaigns and candidates will have to start answering the question "What does Clark mean for your candidacy?" as opposed to "What does Dean mean for your candidacy?" (and even Dean will have days and days of answering the former … ) abcnews.go.com