# The 2016 Democratic Candidates **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [January 20, 2015, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400 "2015-01-20T18:50:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/161 "2015-03-01T02:06:08Z")
> [@Pashnish\_Ewing](#): > > This hits directly on why I couldn’t fully support Hillary in 2008, and why I’m not fully supporting for 2016. She could have been president, but once she voted in favor of the Iraq war resolution in October 2002 it sealed her fate for the 2008 primary. It was a pass/fail test of political courage, and she (much like the invasion itself) failed. I don’t tend to hold that vote against her. There’s plenty of other stuff, though, like Procrustus says, if she’s the nominee I won’t have a problem voting for her. I’m not filled with hatred; I’m just not a huge fan. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/162 "2015-03-01T14:20:25Z")
Here’s the thing though. I find it strange that after all the complaints about running Democrats who weren’t fully committed to being Democrats not four months ago, that most of you seem resigned to following that same strategy in the 2016 Presidential race. Are we going to be hearing the same type of after-action analysis in November 2016? “She lost because she wasn’t fully committed to our values. We should have nominated a real Democrat.” ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/163 "2015-03-01T15:44:06Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Here’s the thing though. I find it strange that after all the complaints about running Democrats who weren’t fully committed to being Democrats not four months ago, that most of you seem resigned to following that same strategy in the 2016 Presidential race. No we don’t. If you disagree, show some posts in which we say this. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/164 "2015-03-01T19:14:08Z")
Is Hillary Clinton closer to Barbra Boxer or Allison Lundergan Grimes politically? If she’s closer to the latter, then is that not the same strategy or Democrat lite, soft pedal your way around the issues, avoid taking stands, distance yourself from Obama? ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/165 "2015-03-01T19:43:21Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Is Hillary Clinton closer to Barbra Boxer or Allison Lundergan Grimes politically? If she’s closer to the latter, then is that not the same strategy or Democrat lite, soft pedal your way around the issues, avoid taking stands, distance yourself from Obama? She’s right smack in the middle of the Democratic party. If you think she’s “avoiding taking stands”, or “distancing herself” from Obama, then you’ll have to provide cites (not that I doubt that, at times, she’s done this). What some losing 2014 candidates did (which went up to the point of heavily criticizing Obama) is far beyond anything Hillary has done recently. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/166 "2015-03-01T19:53:10Z")
If I was Larry Wilmore I’d be throwing teabags at you right now. Very weak tea. Supporting the Iraq war and a flag burning amendment and being cozy with Wall Street places here right in the middle of the party? What are her offsetting positions that pull her leftward so she gets back into the middle? ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/167 "2015-03-01T20:45:02Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > If I was Larry Wilmore I’d be throwing teabags at you right now. Very weak tea. Supporting the Iraq war and a flag burning amendment and being cozy with Wall Street places here right in the middle of the party? What are her offsetting positions that pull her leftward so she gets back into the middle? She doesn’t support the Iraq war. She may have ten years ago, but now she admits it was wrong. And yes, being cozy with Wall Street is “right in the middle of the party”. Most of her positions are right in the middle of the party. You’ve shown poor understanding of what rank-and-file Democrats actually believe and support. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/168 "2015-03-01T21:00:14Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > She doesn’t support the Iraq war. She may have ten years ago, but now she admits it was wrong. And yes, being cozy with Wall Street is “right in the middle of the party”. Most of her positions are right in the middle of the party. Well, you know that by the time of the election, if she’s the candidate, she will have been portrayed by some on the right as the MOST LIBERAL CANDIDATE EVER! But yeah, she’s very mainstream. ---
**Author:** ![Pashnish\_Ewing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8797f3/32.png) [@Pashnish\_Ewing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pashnish_Ewing)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/169 "2015-03-01T22:22:20Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > She doesn’t support the Iraq war. She may have ten years ago, but now she admits it was wrong. Does she? My cite is from 2004, so I’m willing to be corrected by something more recent. [http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/04/21/iraq.hillary/](http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/04/21/iraq.hillary/) And, if you can’t tell already, I didn’t buy that non-admission in 2004 and I don’t buy it now. Back then, Dopers (other than those blinded by 9/11 PTSD and/or pure partisanship) knew the deal, so it’s fair to assume Hillary did as well. But she still voted ‘Aye’ and later blamed it all on GWB. Clintonian Triangulation at its best/worst. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2015, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/170 "2015-03-02T01:52:28Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > Well, you know that by the time of the election, if she’s the candidate, she will have been portrayed by some on the right as the MOST LIBERAL CANDIDATE EVER! > > But yeah, she’s very mainstream. That would be foolish. A better approach is to highlight the fact that she’s a waffler, avoids taking firm stands on anything, will say anything to get elected. John Kerry 2.0. ---
**Author:** ![Pashnish\_Ewing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8797f3/32.png) [@Pashnish\_Ewing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pashnish_Ewing)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2015, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/171 "2015-03-02T02:07:22Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > A better approach is to highlight the fact that she’s a waffler, avoids taking firm stands on anything, will say anything to get elected. John Kerry 2.0. …But you may remember him as THE MOST LIBERAL CANDIDATE EVER! ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2015, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/172 "2015-03-02T02:11:32Z")
He was one of the most liberal members of the Senate. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2015, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/173 "2015-03-02T13:29:30Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > she’s a waffler, avoids taking firm stands on anything, will say anything to get elected. John Kerry 2.0. More of your revisionism. The knocks your people had against Kerry were that he was too smart and didn’t despise the French. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2015, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/174 "2015-03-02T15:25:47Z")
I think I’ve figured out how every Democratic candidate is THE MOST LIBERAL. You start by dividing the country into two parties, a liberal party and a conservative party (i.e., the Democrats and Republicans). You then measure how liberal a candidate is by how often they agree with the liberal party. But how do you establish what positions are held by the party as a whole? Well, you look at who they nominate s their presidential candidate: What the candidate stands for is assumed to be what the party stands for. Presto, you now have that the Democratic nominee is 100% liberal. On the other hand, though, this does not work in reverse. The Republican candidate is not the most conservative Republican, because often, the Republican candidate doesn’t agree with the Republican candidate. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2015, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/175 "2015-03-03T16:52:04Z")
Barbara Mikulski has surprised many by saying she won’t run for reelection to the U.S. Senate from Maryland; Martin O’Malley may decide to run for her seat rather than the Presidency: [Sen. Barbara Mikulski retiring: Will Martin O'Malley run? - CSMonitor.com](http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/DC-Decoder/Decoder-Buzz/2015/0302/Sen.-Barbara-Mikulski-retiring-Will-Martin-O-Malley-run-video) ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2015, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/176 "2015-03-04T01:10:54Z")
O’Malley says he won’t go for Mikulski’s seat: [Martin O'Malley won't seek Mikulski's Senate seat](http://www.wbaltv.com/politics/martin-omalley-wont-seek-mikulskis-senate-seat/31581494?absolute=true?par=nbcnews&site=nbcnews.com&cm_ven=nbcnews&cm_cat=Article) ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2015, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/177 "2015-03-04T19:17:17Z")
Looks like he’s pretty confident of being the next Vice President, then. ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2015, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/178 "2015-03-04T19:26:21Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > Looks like he’s pretty confident of being the next Vice President, then. Possibly, but so many things could go wrong with an HRC candidacy. A _real_ scandal, non-manufactured by the republicans, hitting Hillary _or_ Bill. A health problem. She will be 69 on election day, after all. Being positioned as the second strongest candidate in democratic primaries could pay off handsomely for Martin O’Malley. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2015, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/179 "2015-03-04T19:40:02Z")
That’s what I think. Being the leading un-Hillary Democrat in this election cycle might be a very good thing indeed. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2015, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400/180 "2015-03-05T04:44:30Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > Looks like he’s pretty confident of being the next Vice President, then. I don’t think that’s likely to happen. The VP nominee will be a friend of the Clintons, like Tom Vilsack. I think it’s more likely that O’Malley sees himself as the most viable alternative to Clinton. Whether as her opponent from the left or in a Clinton-less race, O’Malley has the most upside. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-2016-democratic-candidates/710400.md?page=10)