At this point, who are the candidates that can truly challenge Bush?

[Composed Thinker]

Leave your personal preferences at the door and tell me who you think can really defeat Bush.

[Darranar]

1. Kerry or Dean

Kucinich is too far left

Sharpton is widely attributed to be crazy

Mosely Braun is not well known

Leiberman is too far right

Not sure about the others, but Kerry and Dean certainly have the most appeal among mainstream Democrats.

[Maple]

2. Given all the possible events

between now and then...Dean, Clark...maybe Graham although he's a long shot at the moment.

[Composed Thinker]

3. I'm starting to believe that having Clark is the only way...

that the Democrats have a very good shot at taking back the White House. After that, the chances seem a lot more slim.

[Maple]

6. Well given all the military events

going on...he may look like a safe alternative if the US needs to switch presidents..'in mid-stream'....something people generally don't like doing.

[Composed Thinker]

10. Do you really think Bush is a wartime president?

[Maple]

14. A good or properly elected one? No.

But he is 'president' and there is a 'war' on. Therefore people will see him as such.

[MattNC]

22. no

not in the traditional sense. fighting a war on terror we'll always have a war time president.

[poskonig]

4. Dean is ambushing Bush in Texas during his vacation next week.

Kerry, Edwards, Gephardt, Graham, and Lieberman can also challenge Bush.

[PurityOfEssence]

15. Gephardt hasn't got a chance; Lieberman doesn't have a prayer

Neither of these guys is remotely electable. The only reason they have any numbers is from name recognition.

Gephardt is absolutely hated by the right and the extreme left. Many of the swing voters in this country are traditionally anti-union. That's a death-blow to him; he's more identified with unions than any candidate. He's also stiffer than a board and has a history of waffling. He is simply not an executive.

Lieberman will split the left; he's the most conservative of the bunch. He'll be a wet blanket on turnout and he'll deflect support to the Greens and others. His religion is also a problem. Sadly, this country is still not adult enough to get over anti-semitism, and when facing a world where the biggest powder keg is an unrestrained and decidedly unpleasant regime in Israel, that's not going to change. Jews are 2% of the U.S. population, and many of THEM don't even like him. The real issue with his religion is not the religion itself but the extremity of it: he's a fundamentalist, and that will really send lots of the swing voters packing. He also comes off as smug and weasely. Many of us also remember him as the Quisling who turned on Clinton. I haven't even talked about the accounting industry and Enron.

[unfrigginreal]

5. Clark, Dean or Graham

In my opinion the other Democrats that might have a chance have hurt themselves with their war vote.

[lcordero]

7. Kucinich or Dean are the best so far but

I would prefer to have them be more vocal and incendiary. We need full-fledged bombthrowers.
Kucinich and Dean need to start targetting the front pages of web sites like:
http://www.migente.com
http://www.blackplanet.com

and see if there are any "high page hit" sites for women, middle class people and unionized workers.

[philosophie_en_rose]

8. In an election?

Kerry and Dean. Maybe Graham or Clark.

As human beings? any one of them.

[Booberdawg]

9. Kerry or Dean

[seventhson]

11. Gore or Hillary

That's my belief and that is why we need to convince Gore to run and that we (here at DU) will support him

[Jackson4Gore]

17. You are one smart fellow

People say Gore would be too far behind in fundraising, which is wrong. He already has $7 million if he decides to run. He is the strongest candidate with name reconition and people like him. He can appeal to alot of voters, not just one section. Gore is the man!

[NicRic]

23. KICK!!!!!!

RE-ELECT GORE 2004 !!!!!!

[maha]

28. Not Hillary

No way. Fair or unfair, she's a lightning rod for right wing paranoia. And even here in New York, lots of Dems are still pissed at her for voting for the Iraq War Resolution last fall.

[tpub]

12. Kerry, Clark, Dean

in that order. I would like to be able to add Graham to that list. But I don't think I can. He'd make a great VP, though.

[PurityOfEssence]

13. Edwards, then a tie between Kerry and Dean

Edwards is an original, and he's got the touch. He's by far the warmer of the three and comes across well, especially in a shirtsleeves kind of setting.

He's very progressive, yet his plans make sense.

On the charisma issue, he's got everyone beat.

I dream of him debating Junior...

[waggawagga]

16. My picks

Kerry, Dean, Gore, and Hillary Clinton. What we're looking at now is a race between Kerry and Dean. If Gore got in I think he'd win the nomination and would be the strongest candidate (but he's not going to do it). Hillary Clinton won't get in either but if she ran and won I think she'd have a chance to win the whole thing.

Here's my prediction about the 2004 presidential race. Whom the Democratic candidate is probably won't matter all that much. The election will be a referendum on the Bush presidency up until now. Independents will either back him or they won't. My hunch, the whole thing will turn on how these independents perceive the situation in Iraq and the "war on terrorism" a year from now.

So, my opinion, Democrats shouldn't beat themselves up trying to find the ideal candidate. Support the person you like. And then support whomever is nominated. And lastly, and most importantly, SUPPORT THIS PERSON THROUGH NOVEMBER (because this will be one presidential race where it's not over until it's over, the whole situation could turn during the last month).

[waggawagga]

19. oh...

The Democrats are going to split between Kerry and Dean. All signs point to this. And not just because of the numbers in New Hampshire. This is the DLC vs. the progressives (the two "wings" of the Democratic party). Each "wing" is not going to get more than one candidate (or if this happens that will hand off victory to the other wing). It's just the nature of politics that after one or two primaries people will swing behind the candidate who has some chance of winning.

So at this point I think it's pretty easy to see who it won't be. Lieberman, Edwards, Graham, and Gebhart are essentially DLC-ers who will lose to Kerry (he has the highest profile among this group). Kuscinich will lose to Dean. Clark, Braun, and Sharpton don't have a base. Gore and Hillary Clinton are the only two non-declared candidates who have the stature to knock out Dean and Kerry at this point. Have no idea who would win a Dean vs. Kerry face off.

[Stan Davis]

18. Clark

Gen. Clark is the only one out of the (hopefully) 10 who can stand toe-to-toe with Dumbya on national security and national defense, and his left-of-center social vision appeals to all except the extremes on either side. Clark's VP should be someone like Kerry whose main role would be congressional liaison and legislation. Clark is the visionary; his VP needs to be the implementer.

[Poiuyt]

27. I agree

They say that people vote with their pocketbooks and that the economy will be the main issue, but I still see national security as being so important...that's the issue that Bush will run on. Clark (if he runs) would best be able to make the country feel comfortable voting Democrat.

[Imajika]

20. I would say..

..Kerry or Edwards. Kerry has credentials, Edwards has the charisma.

Dean, I increasingly believe, has a chance at winning the nomination. He is certainly running the best campaign. I am afraid though that an antiwar candidate will be crushed in the general election. I just don't see Dean having a prayer against Bush.

Gephardt I have always liked, but he just doesn't have the kind of appeal I think is needed to beat Bush.

Graham just doesn't have the charisma to win on a national level in my opinion. The Senator seems very qualified, but he is just so dull. He is one candidate who's vote againt the Iraq war probably wouldn't hurt him since he is still basically a hawk when it comes to defense issues and has expoused attacking terrorist training camps in other places - but he just isn't very inspiring.

Lieberman has all kinds of problems. The base of the our party won't like his conservative leaning image which hurts his shot at the nomination. The rest of the country probably wouldn't like him much simply because his speaking style is monotone and boring. I think he could give Bush a good challenge if he were the nominee - but I don't think he will get that chance.

Kucinich, though popular on DU, has abolutely no chance of winning either the nomination or a general election against Bush. Kucinich is just too far to the left, and though it sounds shallow - he just looks like an oddball.

Sharpton is too divisive and has way too much baggage.

Carol Mosley Braun is an afterthought candidate. Actually, there is something about her I've always liked - I think it's her smile and seemingly pleasant demeanor. Saying that, she's still got no chance whatsoever and I doubt she will even be able to stay in the race much longer.

Imajika

[DemocratSinceBirth]

24. "he just looks like an oddball"

ROTFLMFAO

[knight_of_the_star]

21. I would say

Either Kerry or Clark mostly due to the fact that both men are smart, articulate, and have service backgrounds that shame those of Bush. They can both beat him on the Security issue and either one can unite the party in time for the campaign. Dean is good, but there are things that can be too easily poked at, like why he sealed all records involving his time in office in Vermont for 10 years, it may be nothing but expect Rove to spin that for all its worth, and he lacks experience in military and foreign policy arenas that both Kerry and Clark possess, Clark moreso than Kerry. Kuicinich (I think that's how you spell it) would do well if he was running in Germany or the UK, but not America, the American people won't accept someone as liberal as he is, it would be another Mondale. Liberman just won't get the nomination because he is too far right for the party base to nominate him. Mosely-Braun hasn't done much of anything for campaigning and making herself known, she'll sink. Graham is not charismatic enough, he doesn't present enough of a platform. Edwards is too green, that's all I need to say. And Sharpton, as many others have said, is widely considered to be a nut.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

25. Kucinich Is So Far To The Left

that he makes Mondale look like a Republican.

I knew Walter Mondale. I voted for Walter Mondale three times, and Dennis Kucinich is no Walter Mondale.

Walter Mondale is a garden variety liberal like John Kerry. Cept John Kerry has medals.

[maha]

26. Right now?

I think a Kerry-Clark ticket is most electable. But it's possible that by next year the Dems could have a winning ticket with pond scum + toe jam.

Ya never know.