Anyone got a favorite governor to nominate? Bill Richardson might be a good candidate. He’d have appeal to Hispanics as well. The Democrats would be well advised to groom him, or another governor for '08.
Elsewhere here I’ve already proposed Evan Bayh of Indiana. OK, not a governor now, but a former governor. And he was re-elected by a convincing margin in a deep-red state.
Just because a state traditionally votes one way in the Presidential elections doesn’t mean they vote the same way for Governors. California and New York are both examples of this. They both voted fairly strongly Democrat with the Presidential elections, but both have Republican Governors.
I agree- definitely a smart move for the democrats. Senators are more often than not unsuccessful in presidential bids and both parties should be wary of nominating them. Which is why I hope Frist doesn’t get the nod in 2008.
Richardson is fairly popular among Democrats and moderates and (despite failing to deliver New Mexico this time around) should be a strong candidate.
The problem is that the Democrats don’t vote with one mind in the primaries. The primary process is not good at finding somebody who would be electable, but rather someone who’s not polarizing.
How about my Governor, Dave Freudenthal - A wildly popular Democrat Governor in one of the most conservative states in the country - Wyoming. He is seen as a tough straight talker (McCain-like), has a history as a US Attorney (Strong on Law and order/ security issues), and is financially responsible (Wyoming had a relatively huge surplus, and he mostly prevented it being spent).
His downsides? he is not likely to thrill the left wing of the Democratic party (he didn’t endorse either Pres. candidate initially), he is from a small state (But neither Gore or Edwards could claim their own states, so I think a candidate’s ability to draw in their own state’s EC votes is overstated), and he isn’t the most handsome guy in the world, but other than that, he might be a winner.
How about Bill Richardson from New Mexico?? He’s got a lot of folksy charm, he’s hispanic, and I think he’d have a lot of mass appeal. They should seriously consider nominating him for the top spot next time.
Well, its difficult for me to really be objective in talking about Richardson…he’s a personal friend and a friend of the family. Like McCain. That said, I think he will have pretty good mass appeal. He’s a very personable guy. People just like the man (sort of like Bush but without all the other baggage). He will massively appeal to the Hispanic vote, and probably the minority vote in general. His positions are left of US center, but not radically so, and he has a pretty good record here in New Mexico, especially with education. He’ll do well in the debates. I think it was he that took his name off the short list of VP’s…I think he has his eye on 2008. The Democrats should seriously consider him.
