Reply #95: I think it is too early to know if Clark is our knight in shining armour [View All]

[CMT]

he just got into the race last week. He has barely spoken out on any positions. Yes we know some things such as he is pro-choice (so are all the candidate), He supports affirmative action (like everyone else running), wants to roll back the tax cuts (just like everyone else to a certain degree, Gep and Dean want to roll back the whole thing), Fix the nonsence of the Patriot Act (several of our candidates notably Kucinich and Dean have spoken out on this), "whatever his prior stance" on the war he is now a savage critic now--Good, because I was worried last week when he said he would "probably" have voted for the resolution.

The mentality that we need a modestly successful General turned tv commentator who was a Republican up until a few years ago says alot about where we are in this country. Yes, Bush has been a disaster and he needs to be replaced, but I'm not convinced that Gen. Clark is our best choice to be president from the group we have. I tend to agree with John Kerry who has questioned Clark's political past saying that while he (Kerry) was fighting Nixon and Reagan Clark was voting for them. Yes, Reagan Dems are important, but Reagan Dems are more concerned about pocketbook issues than if someone spent there life in the military (for instance, Clinton won a great many "Reagan Dems" back without any military experience because he campaigned on issues all Democrats could relate to--"It's the economy studid--and don't forget health care.")Frankly Clark is Howard Dean with medals--(but Dean is also a physician and with health care going to be a major issue next year I think he will bring more credibility with his background to this issue than would the General).

My feeling as of right now is that if we get Gen. Clark we will probably get a president who is much more conservative than he currently lets on, given the political make up of Democratic primary voters. Will he get my vote vs. Bush, yes, but he has a long way to go before convincing me that he deserves a Democratic presidential nomination against a stellar list of life-long Democrats who are opposing him for that nomination.