# Just on CNN: Oprah Winfrey seriously thinking about running for POTUS in 2020 **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [January 8, 2018, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148 "2018-01-08T16:24:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Lamoral](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lamoral/32/16078_2.png) [@Lamoral](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamoral)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/61 "2018-01-09T02:30:06Z")
> [@Wesley\_Clark](#): > > Polls I read a few months ago showed Biden the strongest candidate against Trump in 2020. > > [http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/342521-poll-trump-trails-behind-high-profile-dems-in-hypothetical-matchups](http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/342521-poll-trump-trails-behind-high-profile-dems-in-hypothetical-matchups) All the polls and pundits and pollsters said that Hillary would squash Trump. I no longer trust any kind of polls and political prognostication after the events of 2016. ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/62 "2018-01-09T02:40:51Z")
But everyone in the country would get a _ **NEW CAR!!!** _ Seriously, Oprah Winfrey is not a hideously greedy, racist narcissistic buffoon like Trump, but she is the world’s richest dupe. The number of times she’s been taken in or used by charlatans and phonies is troubling: James Frey, Esther and Jerry Hicks, Dr. Phil, Dr. Oz, Jenny McCarthy, and Suzanne Somers, to name a few. Combine that with the fact that she has no experience in politics (as a candidate, an office-holder, or an intellectual) makes an Oprah presidency a terrible idea. I really hope she doesn’t run. An Oprah candidacy could harm the country even if she doesn’t win. ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/63 "2018-01-09T04:11:06Z")
> [@Jacquernagy](#): > > All the polls and pundits and pollsters said that Hillary would squash Trump. I no longer trust any kind of polls and political prognostication after the events of 2016. So you’re just flailing completely blind now? Then all the polls that talk about Trump’s unpopularity are wrong too, and all his actions and policies enjoy majority support in every demographic in every state. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/64 "2018-01-09T04:19:50Z")
> [@Jacquernagy](#): > > All the polls and pundits and pollsters said that Hillary would squash Trump. I no longer trust any kind of polls and political prognostication after the events of 2016. > [@Leaper](#): > > So you’re just flailing completely blind now? Then all the polls that talk about Trump’s unpopularity are wrong too, and all his actions and policies enjoy majority support in every demographic in every state. That’s called “throwing out the baby with the bathwater.” ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/65 "2018-01-09T12:55:39Z")
Biden would be nearly 80 – nearly 80, folks. In any case, I don’t think Biden will be a factor in 2020. I don’t think there’s any way to predict who exactly will be a factor. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/66 "2018-01-09T17:25:44Z")
I would honestly like to see where she stands on the various issues before just dismissing her as it seems most have done in this thread. I think she could be a viable candidate and one that could unseat Trump. If she did ONLY that, she would be a boon for the country. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/67 "2018-01-09T17:49:48Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > She should seriously consider running for an office lower than president her first time out. Does she have any experience catching dogs? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/68 "2018-01-09T17:51:35Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Does she have any experience catching dogs? What do you think she keeps Steadman around for? ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/69 "2018-01-09T17:57:31Z")
> [@XT](#): > > I would honestly like to see where she stands on the various issues before just dismissing her as it seems most have done in this thread. I think she could be a viable candidate and one that could unseat Trump. If she did ONLY that, she would be a boon for the country. I don’t really care about a person’s political position wrt the presidency if that person has exactly 0 experience in government. If she aligned with me 100% on every issue, I’d still not vote for her assuming there was a viable alternative. ---
**Author:** ![Eonwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eonwe/32/240_2.png) [@Eonwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eonwe)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/70 "2018-01-09T18:15:07Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > Polk? > > In four short years he met his every goal. He seized the whole southwest from Mexico. Made sure the tariffs fell and made the English sell the Oregon territory. He built an independent treasury. Having done all this he sought no second term. > > So maybe you shouldn’t wanna criticize Mister James K. Polk, our eleventh president, Young Hickory, Napoleon of the Stump. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/71 "2018-01-09T19:38:13Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > I don’t really care about a person’s political position wrt the presidency if that person has exactly 0 experience in government. If she aligned with me 100% on every issue, I’d still not vote for her assuming there was a viable alternative. Except, you know, it’s going to be Trump running against her. Do you think his experience, um, trumps hers at this point? :dubious: I do admit it would be better to have someone with at least some experience in how the government works, but in this particular election I’d be fine with Oprah, depending on where she stands on the various issues that interest me…and whether or not I think she is going to build a good team, unlike the current clusterfuck administration. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/72 "2018-01-09T19:46:04Z")
> [@XT](#): > > Except, you know, it’s going to be Trump running against her. Do you think his experience, um, trumps hers at this point? :dubious: > > I do admit it would be better to have someone with at least some experience in how the government works, but in this particular election I’d be fine with Oprah, depending on where she stands on the various issues that interest me…and whether or not I think she is going to build a good team, unlike the current clusterfuck administration. Honestly, if it was Trump v Oprah, I might just sit that one out. And move to Canada! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/73 "2018-01-09T19:50:51Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Honestly, if it was Trump v Oprah, I might just sit that one out. And move to Canada! 😉 I’m already making my Canada plans… 😉 ---
**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/74 "2018-01-09T20:03:39Z")
But…but…she _has_ to run! Aaron McGruder said so! She is the stone that the builder refused She is the visual, the inspiration That made Lady sing the blues She’s the spark that makes our ideas bright The same spark that lights the dark So that we can know our left from our right She is the ballot in the box, the bullet in the gun (okay, maybe not that one) The inner glow that lets us know to call our brother son The story that just begun, the promise of what’s to come And she’ll remain a soldier till the war is won Then again, I think Lex Luthor said it best in a _Justice League_ episode: “Do you know how much power I would have to give up in order to be President?” ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/75 "2018-01-09T20:04:52Z")
> [@XT](#): > > I’m already making my Canada plans… So are the Canadians. They’re going to put up a wall, and make the Americans pay for it. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/76 "2018-01-09T20:53:06Z")
> [@XT](#): > > Except, you know, it’s going to be Trump running against her. … If Trump is still President in November 2020, then he will go on being President. Because that will mean that free and fair elections no longer exist in the USA (at least at the national level). It really doesn’t matter whether or not Oprah runs. The entire question is a distraction from the real issues: the Mueller investigation, and the composition of Congress post-November 2018. If the GOP retains both houses of Congress, then the results of the Mueller investigation will be ‘nothing to see here,’ and Trump will “win” in November 2020. Because the GOP will have had all that time, possibly with Russian help, to make sure that the November 2020 election results are what they want them to be. This won’t require subversion of each and every state’s electoral process; just a few tweaks in a few states will do the job. Let Oprah pour her considerable oratorical skills, charisma, name recognition, and wealth into support for Democrats in 2018. If Democrats are able to re-take at least one half of Congress, then it will be time to worry about 2020. ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/77 "2018-01-09T21:25:15Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > If Trump is still President in November 2020, then he will go on being President. Because that will mean that free and fair elections no longer exist in the USA (at least at the national level). > > It really doesn’t matter whether or not Oprah runs. The entire question is a distraction from the real issues: the Mueller investigation, and the composition of Congress post-November 2018. > > If the GOP retains both houses of Congress, then the results of the Mueller investigation will be ‘nothing to see here,’ and Trump will “win” in November 2020. Because the GOP will have had all that time, possibly with Russian help, to make sure that the November 2020 election results are what they want them to be. This won’t require subversion of each and every state’s electoral process; just a few tweaks in a few states will do the job. > > Let Oprah pour her considerable oratorical skills, charisma, name recognition, and wealth into support for Democrats in 2018. If Democrats are able to re-take at least one half of Congress, then it will be time to worry about 2020. You should switch to decaf, or something. I’m not really sure what the cure for this level of delusion is. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/78 "2018-01-09T21:32:57Z")
Not coincidentally, when Trump first started running, he said he wanted Oprah as his running mate. She’d be a ridiculously unqualified candidate, but good luck to any Republican trying to make that argument with the current moron in charge. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/79 "2018-01-09T21:44:59Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > … > Let Oprah pour her considerable oratorical skills, charisma, name recognition, and wealth into support for Democrats in 2018. If Democrats are able to re-take at least one half of Congress, then it will be time to worry about 2020. This is where she can do the most good. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2018, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148/80 "2018-01-09T21:50:55Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > You should switch to decaf, or something. I’m not really sure what the cure for this level of delusion is. A hit! A very palpable hit! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-on-cnn-oprah-winfrey-seriously-thinking-about-running-for-potus-in-2020/806148.md?page=5)