Still pretty burned that our nation was willing to accept Bush's b.s and reelect him, but I'm glad Dean hasn't been put out to pasture. There's much more to him than just that screaming incident.

That's all I got. Discuss Dean.

(<---retreats to apolitical snarkiness)

Gazillions of dollars and armies of genii work for 20 years to get us the internet, and you used it to post this??????

As had been said at the time all Dean was tying to do that day was fire up his "troops" who had just had their asses handed to them.

Sad that it was his passion that proved to be his downfall.

I'm glad that not everybody is buying the line that he is a walking timebomb.

Steve

Yep.

I like Dean. Always have.

Chew my assfat, if'n' you don't like it. What little is left, anyway.

The REASON I posted this, by the way, smart obdudes and obdettes, is because Dean is going to be DNC chair. That's what I mean by "discuss." I think he'll be damn good for the party.

Kinky's running for governor. Nothing else in politics is worthy of discussion.

Mr. Jewlicious, ma'am. Pleezed t'meetcha

With a Gov. Kinky, we would have a chance to see an ONION side-bar photo and caption come to life. Namely, the Texas Jews Commemorate Holocaust Texas-style (photo shows Hasidim, in big black Jew (not cowboy) hats and locks, plus aprons featuring the Lone Star, barbacueing steak).

Never 'Gin, Y' Hear?

Quotes: On the record with gubernatorial hopeful Kinky Friedman
San Antonio Express-News

On his life: Some people would say I've been missing for many years.

On homelessness: How you react to strays is really important-the homeless, the hungry, the strays that cross your path. It's the closest you're going to get to God.

On religion: I'd be a Buddhist if it weren't for Richard Gere.

On facing Gov. Rick Perry: I'm totally prepared to win and demand a recount.

On outlawing gay marriage: I'm for gay marriage. They have every right to be as miserable as the rest of us.

On California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger: Arnold said he wanted to clear out the career politicians. That's what I want to do. After that, I want to clear out the Californians.

On the death penalty: Two thousand years ago, we executed an innocent man named Jesus Christ. We've had 2000 years to think about it, factor in where we went wrong on that one. Have we done it again or are we going to do it again? What would Jesus do?

On running as an independent: The question is exactly the same question posed by Arnold; do you want to take a chance on a newcomer?

On Schwarzenegger as a candidate: I liked something about Arnold. He never addressed an issue. He dodged every issue that was.

On visiting presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush in the White House: It doesn't hurt to have friends in the White House and to have slept under two presidents.

On travel: I'm more Hawaii and (Las) Vegas than Mexico.

On his campaign: We're gypsies on a pirate ship and we're sailing to the Governor's Mansion.

On homelessness II: I'm a man of the people, not to be confused with a working man. If I'm governor, one of the advantages will be one less homeless person on the street.

On alcohol: Being Jewish, I've never had a problem with alcohol.

On addiction: My only addiction is probably the slot machines.

On debating Gov. Perry: I don't want a debate with this governor, I want a rebate.

On transcending politics: There's a place above politics that all of us would like to be. I think I can take us there and I know that the current governor can't. I really see him as a Gray Davis (the California governor replaced by Schwarzenegger) without the personality.

On being wrong: I'm always right, you'll see that.

Me in 2004.

Best Choice: Kucinich
Rooted For: Dean
Satisfied With: Kerry
Enjoyed Listening To: Sharpton
Not Impressed With: Lieberman
See Potential In: Clark
Have Boy Crush On: Edwards
Really Boring: Gephardt
Sexy Mama: Braun

The shame about Sharpton is if he wasn't such a jackass and had played it a bit straighter since his first foray into the public eye, he could have been a hell of a politician.

Of course, then he wouldn't be Al Sharpton, I guess.

Steve

It won't be a "disaster," but it ain't gonna be good, neither. Dude didn't win any primaries, mostly because he had a ton of support, but no ORGANIZATION, and now they want him to organize the party. There's a reson Trippi was for one of the other candidates, and it ain't sour grapes.

No matter what You or I think of him, he will be a lightning rod for criticism, and another reason that people around my parts will continue to bolt to the GOP.

If the Democratic Party is going down, we should at least go down with someone who represents our values. The problem is that people only look at Dean's personality and not what he stands for, just like with George Bush. If the general public really analyzed Dean's positions, I think he'd be very popular and if they did the same with Bush, our current president wouldn't be in office right now.

I honestly believe most people in the country are moderates with some swinging slightly left and some swinging slightly right. I understand why some people don't vote for my candidate Kucinich on the national level because he's on the far left, but I don't understand why people keep voting for Bush, who is on the far right. It has to be marketing because there is no other reasonable explanation.

Or maybe they have a different idea of the better of two worthless candidates, whether it be Bush/Gore or Bush/Kerry.

When you look at it though, Bush hasn't really beaten anyone of formidable strength. He ran unopposed in the 2004 primaries. John Kerry, war medals and all, is about as inspiring as a fern.

In 2000, who was going to get the party's backing?

Alan Keyes? What the hell does he do for a living? He's some sort of bizarro Jesse Jackson.
Gary Bauer? He plays Felix Unger to Dennis Kucinich's Oscar Madison.
Orrin Hatch? Another Senator apparently bored with unlimited debate in need of some excitement--until Iowa at least.
Steve Forbes? Abe Lincoln weren't no underwear model, but Forbes looked like the Toxic Avenger trying to yank away your mortgage interest deduction.
And didn't Bob Smith, the Brobdingnagian Senator from New Hampshire pull a Bob Graham by announcing a bid then dropping out before the first primary ballots had dropped?

We all know who is remaining. John Sidney McCain, III. But McCain had two things against him. Number one, his own mouth. Read The Nightingale's Song by Robert Timberg. Even at USNA, McCain was a brash, arrogant hotshot who could walk the walk and definitely talk the talk. Thing is, as successful as he has been as a Senator, he makes some of the more powerhungry partywhores more than a bit nervous.

Also add in the 8 years of fermenting bile in the GOP after Clinton defeated GHW Bush after record high approval numbers. What better story than to have the Governor son of the vanquished father defeat Clinton's Vice-President? And it would not only to derail the hopes of a sustained Clinton legacy, but it would also set the cornerstone for a political dynasty that would rival or even surpass the Kennedys?

I don't think clever marketing has a whole lot to do with it. It is more likely that an overwhelming percentage of the American electorate only sees a choice between two candidates from two parties. Bush or Gore. Bush or Kerry. For a number of years now, it seems the only candidates really stepping up to the plate are rather lackluster and not particularly appealing. I think this is also evidenced by a combination of lack of decent voter turnout and lack of substantial victories in Presidential elections. Even Clinton was pulling under 50% with low voter turnout.

I don't think it's any real reason for concern either. It will correct itself. We are just in a rut. How about this stretch: Hayes - Garfield - Arthur - Cleveland - Harrison - Cleveland - McKinley? To be fair, Garfield and McKinley were shot. The same could be said of Presidents Van Buren through Buchanan. Just by statistical impossibility, not every President can be great or even above average. Let's just hope we get the Lincolns when we need them and everything should work out just fine.

Kung Fu says the kinda things I'd like to, if I made sense and weren't such a spazzcadet.