sailingaway
01-29-2011, 12:45 PM
h xxp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/28/mike-pence-2012-smart-decision_n_815486.html
You see, any time you get a crowded slate of residential nominees, the field breaks down into three categories. First, you have the de facto frontrunners, men and women of significant stature with a legit shot at the office. Second, you have one or two fringe candidates who lack the stature and the shot, but who can be reliably counted on to say interesting and provocative things that can rattle the frontrunners and inspire some voters to do some outside-the-box thinking. This latter group may never succeed in their presidential ambitions, but they can grow some mindgrapes of a different variety and thus influence the debate in a significant way (e.g. Ron Paul).
But then, you get this middling group of dudes who have amassed a certain stature in their party that kinda-sorta makes them feel compelled to run for President, but who neither challenge the primacy of the frontrunners nor say anything even remotely interesting. These guys fade in the face of the frontrunners and steal time from the dark horses. Think about all those Democratic primary debates you watched where you saw Chris Dodd standing there and you thought, "I understand how this is happening, but I'll be damned if I can tell you why this is happening."
(Occasionally you get someone running for president who's doesn't have stature or anything interesting to say. This is a condition I call "being Jim Gilmore.")....
amusing article.....
You see, any time you get a crowded slate of residential nominees, the field breaks down into three categories. First, you have the de facto frontrunners, men and women of significant stature with a legit shot at the office. Second, you have one or two fringe candidates who lack the stature and the shot, but who can be reliably counted on to say interesting and provocative things that can rattle the frontrunners and inspire some voters to do some outside-the-box thinking. This latter group may never succeed in their presidential ambitions, but they can grow some mindgrapes of a different variety and thus influence the debate in a significant way (e.g. Ron Paul).
But then, you get this middling group of dudes who have amassed a certain stature in their party that kinda-sorta makes them feel compelled to run for President, but who neither challenge the primacy of the frontrunners nor say anything even remotely interesting. These guys fade in the face of the frontrunners and steal time from the dark horses. Think about all those Democratic primary debates you watched where you saw Chris Dodd standing there and you thought, "I understand how this is happening, but I'll be damned if I can tell you why this is happening."
(Occasionally you get someone running for president who's doesn't have stature or anything interesting to say. This is a condition I call "being Jim Gilmore.")....
amusing article.....