# Omnibus thread for pointless campaigns by Presidential candidates who won't get the nomination **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [April 9, 2019, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259 "2019-04-09T03:20:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Thing\_Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecb155/32.png) [@Thing\_Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing_Fish)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2019, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/41 "2019-04-11T20:53:14Z")
Weird to see all this handwringing about the Party being hostile to white men when the two frontrunners are both white men! ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2019, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/42 "2019-04-11T21:13:29Z")
> [@Thing\_Fish](#): > > Weird to see all this handwringing about the Party being hostile to white men when the two frontrunners are both white men! “All this handwringing” is mostly just septimus and Slackerinc. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2019, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/43 "2019-04-11T21:40:48Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > Yes. Look at the front-runners: A (non-observant) Jew, aging and socialist; a black man; a blackish Tamil-Jamaican woman; a youthful Catholic Irishman with a Spanish nickname; and a woman whose Cherokee ties may be a campaign item. Even the second tier features a gay, an Hispanic and an ethnic Chinese. (Do we have a lesbian yet?) _Where’s the W.A.S.P. male?_ (Even Biden is a Catholic, not that that matters anymore.) > > I’m not saying we need a W.A.S.P. male specifically. But it almost seems like W.A.S.P. males are disqualified, lacking a politically correct identity! Absurd, but it almost seems that way. Hell, couldn’t you say the same thing about the 2016 Republican Primary? Trump is German descent. Cruz is Cuban. Kasich is Czech & Croat. Rubio is Hispanic. You have to go all the way to down to Huckabee (who got 0.16% of primary votes) to get a W.A.S.P. male. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2019, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/44 "2019-04-12T04:52:00Z")
> [@Thing\_Fish](#): > > Weird to see all this handwringing about the Party being hostile to white men when the two frontrunners are both white men! Well, watch carefully just who is doing the hand-wringing. Because they sure ain’t anywhere near a significant percentage of Democrats. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2019, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/45 "2019-04-14T00:56:34Z")
Wayne Messam is running for president: > **[Longshot 2020 presidential candidate has a radical plan to solve the student...](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/student-debt-cancel-wayne-messam-124020955.html)** > > “Americans are not going to have the same opportunity to achieve the American dream,” Wayne Messam, mayor of Florida’s Miramar City and a longshot 2020 candidate, told Yahoo Finance. ---
**Author:** ![Heffalump\_and\_Roo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heffalump_and_roo/32/7691_2.png) [@Heffalump\_and\_Roo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heffalump_and_Roo)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2019, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/46 "2019-04-14T01:26:15Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > Wayne Messam is running for president: I saw his [interview](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kocuUapStTw) with TYT yesterday. He’s the mayor of Miramar, Florida. His big plan is student loan forgiveness by repealing the Trump tax plan. Aren’t others already espousing that? People are making it seem like it’s an audacious idea. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2019, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/47 "2019-04-14T01:39:44Z")
> [@Heffalump\_and\_Roo](#): > > I saw his [interview](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kocuUapStTw) with TYT yesterday. > > He’s the mayor of Miramar, Florida. His big plan is student loan forgiveness by repealing the Trump tax plan. Aren’t others already espousing that? People are making it seem like it’s an audacious idea. Forgiving student debt would also piss off a lot of voters who paid off their debts the old-fashioned way, especially those who \*\*\*just \*\*\*finished paying it off. Doesn’t mean it’s necessarily a bad idea, just that it could piss off people who missed out on the forgiveness. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2019, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/48 "2019-04-14T20:43:07Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > Forgiving student debt would also piss off a lot of voters who paid off their debts the old-fashioned way, especially those who \*\*\*just \*\*\*finished paying it off. > > Doesn’t mean it’s necessarily a bad idea, just that it could piss off people who missed out on the forgiveness. Being pissy because people got something you didn’t get may be the American Right’s way of life, but it isn’t necessarily a sympathetic position. ---
**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:** [April 15, 2019, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/49 "2019-04-15T01:59:56Z")
At the risk of sounding like a republican, I think the reality that any real progressive is going to run into is that they’re going to have to fix the budget first and restore some fiscal responsibility before getting too ambitious about Medicare-for-All. That’s one reason why, as much as I like Bernie Sanders’ rhetoric, I question whether he can really achieve even a fraction of what he wants. I question whether anyone can, frankly. I would settle for just getting a bipartisan tax agreement and ensuring the financial health of programs we already have, like Medicare, Medicaid, SS, and Obamacare subsidies. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2019, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/50 "2019-04-15T04:51:28Z")
> [@Chimera](#): > > Being pissy because people got something you didn’t get may be the American Right’s way of life, but it isn’t necessarily a sympathetic position. Life is unfair. We can accept that when fate or luck is against us, but not so much when the unfairness is due to capricious changes in government policy. Suppose there were a general gun ban with confiscation. Law-abiding citizens turn in their guns, watching prized and expensive collections being destroyed with no compensation. Criminals and rednecks hide their guns in the cellar. A new government comes in with “Changed our minds! Keep your guns (or any you’ve got left); no problem!” _Do you think some people might be annoyed?_ Mr. A and Mr. B graduate from an expensive college and get jobs. Mr. A spends his salary on cocaine and a sports-car, while his debt becomes more and more delinquent. Mr. B scrimps and scrimps and finally gets his debt paid off early. Just then, the government agrees to pay off all student debt — though not Mr. B’s debt of course; it’s already paid off. Do you have no sympathy when Mr. B asks “Where’s my sports-car?” ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2019, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/51 "2019-04-15T06:03:12Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > But it’s been 20 years since we nominated a WASP man, and 16 since we nominated any white man. That doesn’t mean, as you say, that it’s got to be a white guy again this time; but it does strike me that they should now be back in the mix again. Joe Biden was VP for eight of those years. Bernie Sanders is broadly seen as white. The fact that Beto and Buttigieg are even being taken seriously looks a lot like an attempt to elevate an underqualified white male as an advertising gimmick, to excite voters who want another Jack Kennedy. Meanwhile, women have been dismissed and overlooked as candidates for most of the last century. Apparently getting the vote didn’t mean women got to run. Well, you can stop whinging about the fact that Democrats run something other than white men now. Maybe you’ll live to see a race wherein both the GOP and the Democrats run tickets with two women. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2019, 11:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/52 "2019-04-15T11:32:38Z")
The #1 pointless candidacy with a bullet is Kristen Gillibrand’s. She’s got fewer donors than Yang or Gabbard, who have qualified for the debates while she has not. She can’t even get past 1% in the polls, despite plenty of name recognition(relative to lesser known candidates outperforming her), and despite pretty decent coverage and a CNN town hall. Hopefully her humiliation is a lesson to all future candidates that in the internet age it’s impossible to win when your political positions are based on the job you’re running for rather than principles. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2019, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/53 "2019-04-15T21:14:08Z")
I actually like that Gillibrand is as adaptable as she is. A willingness to admit previous error and change course is a good thing in a chief executive. Even FDR started a bit more conservative, and then moved left and left again. ---
**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:** [April 16, 2019, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/54 "2019-04-16T02:14:01Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > The #1 pointless candidacy with a bullet is Kristen Gillibrand’s. She’s got fewer donors than Yang or Gabbard, who have qualified for the debates while she has not. She can’t even get past 1% in the polls, despite plenty of name recognition(relative to lesser known candidates outperforming her), and despite pretty decent coverage and a CNN town hall. Hopefully her humiliation is a lesson to all future candidates that in the internet age it’s impossible to win when your political positions are based on the job you’re running for rather than principles. The race isn’t big enough for Gillibrand and Warren, and it’s not big enough for Gillibrand and Klobuchar. I suspect Gillibrand loses to both. She’ll be done after the first debate or two. ---
**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:** [April 16, 2019, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/55 "2019-04-16T20:40:43Z")
> [@That\_Don\_Guy](#): > > According to the Delegate Selection Rules, each state gets the choice of one of four methods to decide how many delegates go to each of its districts: > > 1. Half are divided based on the district’s population, and the other half based on the average of the votes for Obama in 2012 and Clinton in 2016; > 2. Half are divided based on the votes for Clinton in 2016, and the other half based on the votes for the Democratic candidate(s) in the state’s most recent Gubernatorial election; > 3. Half are divided based on the number of registered Democratic voters on 1/1/2020, and the other half based on the average of the votes for Obama in 2012 and Clinton in 2016; > 4. 1/3 of the delegates based on the method 1 result, 1/3 based on the method 2 result, and 1/3 based on the method 3 result. Based on the draft proposals I have seen so far (and ignoring any from single-district states): **Method 1:** Connecticut, Georgia, Maine, Nevada, Rhode Island **Method 2:** Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Wisconsin **Method 3:** Nebraska, Utah **Method 4:** Illinois, Maryland Also, of the ones I have seen, Michigan, Montana, Ohio, and South Carolina are “apparently” using the “10% rule” (where if nobody gets 15%, everybody within 10% of the winner gets delegates) - I say “apparently” because the DNC may not allow states to use anything other than the “50% of the winner” rule called for in its rules. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2019, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/56 "2019-04-18T02:57:22Z")
One to remove from the OP’s list: > [@](#): > > Former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe announced Wednesday that he would not be running for president in 2020, quelling speculation that he would join an already sizable group of Democratic hopefuls vying to push President Donald Trump out of office. [https://www.politico.com/story/2019/04/17/terry-mcauliffe-not-running-for-president-1280594](https://www.politico.com/story/2019/04/17/terry-mcauliffe-not-running-for-president-1280594) ---
**Author:** ![SOJA](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@SOJA](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SOJA)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2019, 9:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/57 "2019-04-18T09:34:01Z")
How is Kloubacher still a viable candidate and not included in the OP’s list? Add Booker to that, too. He fizzled out hard outside of his state. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2019, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/58 "2019-04-18T13:59:04Z")
Ok, proving he’s not top tier, Inslee wants to meet with me, obviously to ask for money. (I gave him a lot of money in the last governor’s race. Not that I love him, but we needed to avoid Republican control of the position.) Now that I can be part of the smokey back room of national politics, how do I best parlay this into something exciting and profitable for me? I told his guy I like the Governor just fine, but I haven’t picked a favorite for 2020. Assuming I get in a room with a guy polling 1%, what should I ask him? What advice should I offer? And, is it wrong to ask for a seat on the Supreme Court if he goes all the way? ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2019, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/59 "2019-04-18T14:50:39Z")
Inslee seems qualified and might make a fine President. Tell him he’s got to emphasize more than just climate change. That single issue will not win a campaign. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2019, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259/60 "2019-04-18T15:18:11Z")
Agreed. Tell him single-issue candidates can sometimes alter the discussion but they don’t win. Look up Boss Tweed’s remarks about reform politicians for further guidance. As for how it benefits you? Skip the SCOTUS, dude. Play for a cushy ambassadorship someplace fun. That’s where major donors end up and you don’t have to wait for someone to die to get the job. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-thread-for-pointless-campaigns-by-presidential-candidates-who-wont-get-the-nomination/832259.md?page=4)