Reply #139: As long as we're doing the whole guilt by association thing... [View All]

[NobleCynic]

You like Dave Barry?

Nothing you say can be taken seriously. Ever.

Sadly, at this point, we have to consider which of the two remaining is less damaging in the general.

You have Clinton with 16 years of irrational right wing hatred that will drive up Republican turnout, her middling position on the war, the nepotism factor (i.e. she wouldn't be where she is without Bill Clinton. Regardless of the truth of that statement, it is widely believed.), all of the Bill Clinton scandals hanging over her head still, her abrasive personality, and the still strong sexism in this country.

Then you have Obama, who has a mediocre record to run on, a Muslim middle name (and yes many people are dumb enough to vote against him on that alone), the fishy looking (regardless of the truth of the matter) Rezko dealings, a crazy pastor, and the still strong racism in this country.

Then you have each candidate's high points.

You know exactly what you're going to get with Clinton, and that comforts many people. It won't be a visionary administration that changes the country in any scary or frightening manner. Or any meaningful manner. People know exactly what they're getting, and that will help turnout. A centrist placeholder administration.

Obama on the other hand will likely bring record turnout among young voters and African American voters. He has run a very optimistic campaign and is relatively unscarred by the media thus far. On the issues he is fundamentally the same as Clinton.

My take is that even with this Wright thing, Obama is still the better candidate in the general. People seem willing to give religion a by when it comes to crazy, so I don't see this Wright thing sticking.

I feel that our turnout would be better with Obama at the head of the ticket, and the Republican's turnout would be better with Clinton atop the ticket. There is just too much cumulative damage on Clinton. Policy wise they have run campaigns that are extremely similar, so my stance on only based on electability.