What the candidates need to do to win the Presidency.

[Thomas Jefferson]

This is probably not going to make me any friends but, the way I see it, the Democratic candidates all have to fix their campaigns if they want to win the Presidency. Whoever wins needs to be able to appeal to the broadest number of voters possible and each of the candidates has weaknesses. This is not meant as an attack on any candidate but as suggestions on how each can win. Sorry if anyone takes it otherwise.

John Kerry has a good shot at winning if he gets the nomination. His problem will be getting the nomination and then convincing the activist crowd to join him. Kerry’s first problem is that he blew three votes: USA-PATRIOT, the IWR and Homeland Security. His position on the war was almost identical to Dean’s but Dean has done a very convincing job of telling people otherwise. Kerry is a strong environmentalist but most environmentalists are mad at him because of his vote on the IWR. It’s the same group of people. Kerry should be able to pull California away from Dean by simply making an issue of Yucca Mountain, which Dean supported and Kerry, Gephardt, Kucinich and Lieberman opposed. Kerry needs to push the environmental issue and the fact that he opposed the $87 billion while Dean clearly said, in the CNN debate, that he would give this to Bush.

Kerry’s second problem is that he has no visible campaign in places like California, the state with the most delegates to the Democratic Convention. Art Torres and most of the local party leaders are supposedly supporting him but that support has been pretty invisible. Also, Kerry should check out the paid members of his staff. He might find that some are Dean loyalists.

Kerry’s third problem, one he shares with other candidates, is that Dean has become popular with people who have no idea what Dean’s position is and would oppose Dean if they knew. George Bush and the news media will make sure the truth comes out after, but only after, the primaries, thereby crushing any chance Dean and the Democrats have of winning the general election. The only way that Kerry or any of the other candidates can take the nomination is to educate the public. The Dean campaign will claim that stating Dean’s position and record is negative but reality is not negative. It just is. First, Kerry needs to run ads show the extent to which Dean raided public service funds to give breaks to corporations. Then he should run the piece of the CNN debate where Dean clearly stated his position on the $87 billion dollars. In California, he should run ads about the dangers of nuclear waste in the drinking water. In Texas, Kerry should run ads about Dean’s plans to send his toxic waste to a poor Hispanic community in that state. It is better if the people learn the truth before the primaries rather than after it.

Edwards may actually have the best chance of all the candidates. He had the same three bad votes as Kerry. Like Dean, Edwards also supported Yucca Mountain. To win California, Edwards will have to apologize for that vote and agree to actively oppose the project. Defending his vote will not work. The factors Edwards has going in his favor are his vote against the $87 billion dollars and his repeated expression of concern for those who are being detained without charges. He might realize that it’s okay to make mistakes and learn from them. He doesn’t need to defend his mistakes. Another factor Edwards has going for him is that he won in North Carolina at a time when Democrats were not doing so well in Congress. Despite the fact that he is relatively liberal, he has done very well in the South. His background is a plus as is his support of labor and his knowledge of law and his respect for the Constitution. Also, I think a lot of Republican women will vote for him.

He also has the problem of no visible campaign in California. He has the potential to win over the state if he tries. Like Kerry, he will also need to have an active campaign educating the public about Dean.

Like Dean, Clark has the advantage of not being in Congress when the IWR was voted on. Therefore Clark can say anything he wants about where he stood on the issue. The fact that he showed some opposition helps give him an anti-war appearance and he could spin any other comments as patriotic.

Clarks first problem is that people are uncertain about his past party affiliation. This might actually help in the general election. With all the declines to state and third party people who have left the Democratic Party and all the dissatisfaction within the Party itself, this might not be a major problem. He needs to just portray himself as a person of conscience.

Clark’s worst problem is that he was seen as bloodthirsty in Kosovo. Eisenhower, towards the end of his Presidency, expressed concern about the military industrial complex. So Americans have had an example of a general who learned. He could speak about how Kosovo was a learning experience. Since he is coming off as anti-war, this would flow. It would greatly help his cause if he came out against use of depleted uranium.

Lieberman has the same three bad votes as Kerry and Edwards and worse, he is seen as a hawk and he voted for the $87 billion. His best bet would be to run on his domestic record. He is a strong environmentalist and, in most ways, is much more liberal than Dean.

Sharpton’s main problem is his lack of government experience. But at least he can argue he didn’t have any bad votes and that he didn’t give concealed weapons to sixteen year olds or cut their education funding. His main asset is that he is currently the best speaker of all the candidates.

If the nomination goes to Kucinich, the Democrats will be guaranteed the Presidency. Dennis has nothing to hide and the best record on the issues of all the candidates. He has the best track record of all the candidates when it comes to getting the Republicans to back him against Republican incumbents. His problem is getting the nomination. The media, which wants to give the nomination to Dean, refuses to cover even major events with thousands of people that involve Kucinich. The vast majority of Americans have no idea who he is. So, unless a miracle happens, he’ll be the candidate most people, after the nomination, will wish they had known about in time to vote for the right guy. However, if he does win the nomination, the public will find out who he is and where he stands and that’s all he needs to win the general election.

Kucinich’s problems are in part due to a campaign of lies from the Dean campaign. But the problem is more serious than that. There is a widening gap between his volunteers and his official staff. Over the last month, many active volunteers have decided to sit back feeling a complete lack of respect and support from the official staff. Those volunteers still remain loyal to Kucinich. Many volunteers feel the staff has thrown away major endorsements and doesn’t seem to realize the importance of maintaining support among the groups that Kucinich has helped over the years. One official staff member has made comments indicating that the goal is not the presidency. However, anyone seeing Kucinich is fully aware that his goal IS to WIN the Presidency. If he is to win, he needs to fix the way his campaign is being run. This is something he can do.

Carol Moseley-Braun needs to work on her presentation. Whenever she speaks, what I get is that I should vote for her because she’s a black woman. I need a stronger reason to support a candidate. Also, from the way she’s speaking, it sounds like she supports the occupation. Most of those who might consider voting for her do not support the occupation and so she may need to re-think that position.

Howard Dean could easily get the nomination. Conceivably the way the delegates work, he could get the most delegates without being the most popular candidate. All he needs to do to get the nomination is make sure no one knows his record. He’s already sealed his governor’s records and that will help him. The news media has already picked him as their nominee. So unless some surprises come up, he very well could be the nominee.

Dean’s real problem is the general election. Many of those Democrats who are not supporting him now will not support him in the general election.. While a few African-Americans may try to bridge the gap, the majority of the African-American community will probably not forgive him for the flag comment. Like 2002, they will stay home in 2004. Those concerned about due process will probably not be among his supporter either. To gain their support, he would probably have to agree to make Miranda v. Arizona, Mapp v. Ohio and Gideon v. Wainwright litmus tests for court appointments. He would also need to agree to equal funding for prosecution and defense in federal cases. Because of his under-funding of programs for the disabled, he would probably need to work out a deal to get their support. The middle class won’t vote for him if he intends to raise their taxes. So he has a lot to iron out with the Democrats he would need to pick up in order to win the general election.

The other problem he has is that he has been so inconsistent. The Republicans own the news media and would probably portray him as the worst liar in history. By the time they are through with him, lying would be synonymous with his name. He will have to come up with an approach and a probably very costly ad campaign to combat this.

Gephardt voted against Homeland Security and against Yucca. However, he has three bad votes since he voted for the $87 billion. I simply think Gephardt is badly informed on the issues. I had a conversation with his office a while back and could not believe the misconceptions about Iraq his people had. Gephardt does have name recognition and this may help him. There was nothing he could have done about the SEIU and AFSCME endorsements. Those were behind-closed-door deals. If Andy Stern had thought Steve Burd would be popular among Democrats, the two groups would have endorsed the head of Vons.

[La_Serpiente]

1. I'll be waiting for the flames

[Thomas Jefferson]

2. I"m waiting for them too. A lot of people don't like hearing what

their candidate needs to work on and I got everyone.

[helleborient]

13. And smeared a number of them innacurately

Which is what offends people.

[JohnKleeb]

14. I dont think those advertisements are "tokens" for the record

Mighty good ones I may add. Just saying if anyone tries to judge all of us like this, I am saying now clear that I dont think it was right. Now heres my view on the comments on the flag, I think you know em, mine is that I think Dean meant well but it came out not so good, good intentions I have no doubt. I also despise the confederate flag. Sorry for kicking this thread.

[CMT]

3. regarding Dean

"Dean has become popular with people who have no idea what his position is and would oppose him if they knew." yet another slap at Dean's supporters as somehow not intelligent enough to know Dean's overall record and views on issues.

It is obvious in your comments that you are hostile towards Dean. "All he (Dean) needs to do is to win the nomination is to make sure nobody knows his record." And you point out as proof of this his sealed governor records which every governor has had done. Besides there is a wealth of information about Dean's record as governor enough for people to find fault with it or to find much praise in his work. I think the ultimate verdict is that he was elected governor five times in a left of center state.

Many of those now supporting Dean will not support him in the General election? what do you use to prove this point? most polls have been showing Dean doing as well as most of the other Dems against Bush. In some states a bit worse, in others a bit better. For instance a poll out of Connecticut today (Quinnipiac) had Dean down by four-points (but within the moe) and Clark down six points. Gep down six points and Kerry up one point and Lieberman up six points in his home state vs. Bush.

As for African-Americans--I have noticed no huge outcry against Dean on this issue. In fact, I think most African-Americans understand what he meant and what is in his heart and that he dares to speak out about racial healing and bringing people together. I think Dean will do quite well with African-Americans--especially vs. Bush who has run a distinctly anti-minority group administration and loves to tout the word "quota" to divide whites from blacks.

As far as SEIU and AFMCE being "back behind closed door deals" these two organizations did quite a lot of polling of members and found that Dean was very popular with the rank and file. Other independent polls show Dean doing well with union households even against Gep in Iowa.

by the way, this isn't flames it is just a response to what you wrote.

[a_lil_wall_fly]

19. Dr Dean margin of victory in the Governorship of VT

Declined from 96-98-00. The amount of more registered Republican voters that voted went up and other parties had a nice growth rate in the state of those years as well. As well the registered Democratic voters that voted went down.
Yes there is a chance of population influxes but not at the margins that polls would show.

Dr. Dean has some issues on keeping Democratic voters as members of the Democratic party.


http://vermont-elections.org/elections1/electionsresults.html

[MercutioATC]

31. You DO realize that this refutes some of our more rabid Dean bashers...

THEY claim that Dean's policies were SO far to the right that he only won re-election in Vermont (toward the end) because many of his votes came from Republicans. If Repub numbers in Vermont declined from 96-98-00 as you claim, it would seem to refute this claim, no?

THIS is what I love about the anti-Dean people. Half of them say he's too liberal. Half say he's too conservative. Half say his supporters are stupid/Republicans/sheep for supporting his positions and half say that they have no idea what his positions are. Lemme set you straight...

All of the Dean supporters that I know (or have spoken to) DO have an accurate picture of his positions and actively support the fact that he's a centrist. I haven't met ONE "kool-aid-drinking sheep" or ONE person who only likes him for his "fire" and not his positions.

Don't like Dean? That's cool. That's why we have elections...the whole "different strokes for different folks" thing. I'd bet that you're seriously underestimating his candidacy if you're betting that Dems don't understand what he stands for, though.

[MrPeepers]

47. Answer me this...

Would Dean really be where he is now in the polls if you took away the issue of Iraq? If he hadn't been clearly and vehemently opposed to the war, would he have even a fraction of his current support? I think not. The vast majority of his supporters support him on that point, and everything beyond that is just falling in step.

Peepers

[MercutioATC]

51. Iraq definitely launched the campaign, but there are many other

important issues that his supporters see as just as, if not more, important. Truthfully, if I was a single-issue anti-war voter, I'd be supporting Kucinich, not Dean. Yes, he got the early press on the issue by being very vocal about not supporting a war that had a 70% approval rating among voters, but he's hardly an "anti-war" candidate. I think it's fair to say that his supporters know this.

[helleborient]

4. One big ole hole in your argument...

When Dean receives the endorsement of Sheila Jackson Lee, Jesse Jackson, Jr., AND the chair of the Congressional black caucus Elijah Cummings...why do you expect the majority of the African-American community won't support him?

Major African-American leaders are supporting him over 2 African-American candidates for president and the rest of the field.

[Thomas Jefferson]

7. African Americans think for themselves. Clarence Thomas didn't

have the backing of the African-American community even though he was black. African-Americans are aware that white people often try to use a few token blacks to divert attention from racist policies. It's common practice. Bush had the backing of Rice and Powell. Sharpton is not impressed with Dean or Dean's comments about the flag and I have a lot more repect for him than for the two individuals you mentioned. Dean needs more than some token endorsements. He needs to retract his comments and make it clear that his policies will be less prejudicial than those in Vermont. If he's sincere, he can find a way.

[helleborient]

9. Token blacks?

Sheila Jackson Lee?

Elijah Cummings?

Jesse Jackson, Jr.?

How incredibly offensive!

Al Sharpton has never won elected office...all of these have and are well-respected leaders in the African-American community.

Your uneducated slams don't make it otherwise.

[helleborient]

11. Comparing Sheila Jackson Lee to Clarence Thomas - WOW!!! (n/t)

[helleborient]

12. By the way, I mentioned 3 esteemed African-Americans you call token blacks

If you ask Dennis Kucinich what he thinks of them....I would be happy to hear.

I would expect "token black" would not be among the words.

I'm aghast at the offensiveness of your comparing these esteemed progressive members of congress to Clarence Thomas.

[genius]

16. You are misquoting Thomas. He referred to Rice and Powell as token

blacks and made the point that blacks often don't follow what a few blacks do but rather think for themselves. When a white guy makes a wrong decision do you support him just because he's white? To assume the blacks will follow a few blacks who have made a wrong decison is to put down the thinking ability of the African-American race. If you are going to take offense to what someone has posted, you ought to read it first. I think you're mad because he thinks Dean has some faults.

[helleborient]

23. I'm annoyed that there are so many factual errors...

I'm not sure why anyone would take it seriously.

And I responded to the comment that white people often surround themselves with token blacks...which was a response to me mentioning the endorsements for Howard Dean.

[helleborient]

30. And that white people often use token blacks to mask racist policies

This is not a question of "some faults" - it's an accusation that Howard Dean is racist and his African-American supporters in Congress are "token blacks."

Incredibly offensive.

[helleborient]

29. Let's sincerely identify Gov. Dean's racist policies....

Hmmmmm?????

"He needs to retract his comments and make it clear that his policies will be less prejudicial than those in Vermont."

What are these prejudicial policies??

"African-Americans are aware that white people often try to use a few token blacks to divert attention from racist policies. It's common practice."

This is the clear indication Dean's endorsements are considered token blacks used by a man who has racist policies.

Why mention it at all if it's not referring to Howard Dean???

[helleborient]

5. Your notions on Kucinich are badly skewed as well...

The "best record" on the issues of all the candidates...

Hmmm...I like Dennis a lot but stating he's unequivocally the best I wouldn't say.

Plus, there is absolutely no empirical evidence whatsoever to support that he would certainly win the presidency if nominated...in fact, a number of his positions are not supported by the majority of the American public.

These critiques are not flames..they are examination of serious flaws in the arguments stated...arguments that are not backed up by other sources.

[Thomas Jefferson]

8. Half of the Republicans in his district say he's mainstream

Remember that, in addition to Democratic votes, he normally gets half of all Republicans in his district to vote for him.

[helleborient]

10. Do you have a reference for this?

I'd be happy to see an independent analysis of that.

[genius]

15. How about if you look up election results

It seems like someone posting here has a lot of sour grapes because they don't like the idea that someone thinks their candidate is not perfect and needs to improve. It is intersting that only the Dean people seem to be upset.

[helleborient]

24. Election results I can find do not list the party affiliation of the voter

This claim of 50% of Republicans supporting Dennis Kucinich is vapor...unless the person posting really has exit polling.

[genius]

33. Do the math. If half of the district is Republican and Kucinich

gets 74% of the vote, what does that tell you?

[MercutioATC]

34. It tells me that more Dems turned out to vote. What does it tell you?

I don't care if the district is 90% Republican. A Democratic candidate could win with not a single Republican vote...it all depends who actually votes.

[genius]

35. The Republicans always vote. It's the Democrats who usually stay home

If half of the district is Republican and he wins by 74%, based on voting patterns, it tells me that probably well over half of the Republicans voted for him.

[MercutioATC]

37. Not tha being popular across party lines is in any way a bad thing, but

your position, based on "Republicans always vote" is weak.

Actually, if he got 74% of the vote in a 50/50 district, most would attribute it to higher Dem voter turnout with reasonable (not necesarily majority) Repub support.

It's one thing to suppose that maybe over 50% of the Repup vote went to him. It's another thing entirely to suggest that your statement is a foregone conclusion based solely on these numbers.

[9119495]

38. What? No Independents?

Not everyone registers by party, right? I would like to know where you get the data--and that is for info purposes, not an allegation of lying.

[helleborient]

6. Ummm...and John Edwards is from NORTH Carolina...

He's never won anything in SOUTH Carolina.

[helleborient]

28. Thanks for the edit here...

It's nice to see the post list North Carolina now.

[Padme Amidala]

17. What an excellent post.

I think that it is great that we have people trying to make the candidates aware of their faults. It is also great to point out how these candidates can correct them.

[helleborient]

25. I appreciate critiques when the facts stated are correct...

There are unsubstantiated slams against the knowledge of Richard Gephardt, mis-identification of John Edwards home state, over-inflated notions of Dennis Kucinich that are not backed up with anything factual, and highly questionable comments about African-American support for Howard Dean.

If you want to live in the world of factual innacuracy...enjoy it.

[genius]

36. It sounded to me as if he were making excuses for Gephardt's voting record

He also said some good things about Gephardt. It is interesting that a Dean person is the one taking offense to the comments about Gephardt.

[helleborient]

41. I take issue at willful misrepresentation of any candidate and factual

Errors used to promote candidates then disguising it all as faux unbiased analysis.

I do admit it works well for the Faux News Network...why not try it here?

[genius]

46. Why are you mischaracterizing Thomas's comments? Or you're for Dean.

That explains your ability to twist reality. Thomas discussed a conversation he had had with Gephardt's office. Thomas's information provided insight into why Gephardt had some bad votes. Thomas's belief that Gephardt voted that way because he was simply misinformed makes Gephardt look a lot better than if Gephardt had known the facts and had still voted for the Iraq war and for the $87 billion dollars. It means that the constituents did not do their job in giving Gephardt the information he needed and if he had been better informed, he might have voted in a way we liked.

Good work Thomas. Sorry there are people like this on the board.

[helleborient]

49. I'm taking issue with branding candidates racist, stupid, etc.

And using Thomas' words to do so.

It's fine if you want to blame these accusations on my support for Howard Dean. This thread is far far from being neutral.

[genius]

50. Stupid is your word, helleborient. Stop trying to create wars.

However, your guy has worked hard for the racist label. I saw a fightening article about Dean today. But then I'm sure you've seen it all before and ignored it.

It is interesting that you are defending other candidates from non-existent attacks. I notice the Gephardt people aren't buying that nonsense you've posted. From the looks of the article, Thomas appears to be trying to put Gephardt's voting record in a good light.

[helleborient]

52. Quoting you..."your guy has worked hard for the racist label"

This starts nothing????

Thanks for telling me that.

Give the link...I've done more to promote peaceful non-accusational dialogue here than you by far.

I'll stand by the esteemed African-American leaders supporting Dean over your attempts to divide by race any day.

[genius]

53. Dean's the one who wants to be the candidate for guys with Confederate

battle flags on their pick-up trucks. No one forced him to say that.

[no name no slogan]

18. Can't argue with your assessment, really

I think you nailed everyone pretty well. Even my candidate you assessed fairly, and provided valid criticism too.

I think the DK campaign is aware of the issues you brought up-- as a matter of fact I've had similar discussions with a number of supporters about some of the things you mention. Also, I think the campaign is now listening closer to the campaign volunteers and is acting upon the suggestions it's getting. In MN we had a person from national come in just this week to listen to our opinions, and clearly took what we were saying seriously.

Nice work TJ. I always look forward to your far too infrequent posts as they are always thought-provoking and a good read. :)

[helleborient]

26. Yes, this fits well with the American Spectator slams

supported by Kucinich folk a while back. Geez, at least get the facts straight first.

[Upfront]

20. Total Crap

Looks like another attack Dean thread. Good luck. lol

[kalashnikov]

21. Clark was seen as bloodthirsty?

That is difficult to belive; if you stop genocide you are now bloodthirsty?

[genius]

32. A lot of the peaceniks also protested Kosovo. I think Thomas's suggestion

for handling this issue is a good one. I myself have spoken to these people. We are not going to convince them they are wrong about Kosovo. However, they might be convinced to vote for Clark.

[Tom Rinaldo]

48. I broke with a lot of far left friends over Kosovo

with absolutely no regrets. Still, only a small minority of them would remotely consider someone like Clark "bloodthirsty". I'm sorry, but Clark dowesn't need the votes of those who thought he was bloodthirsty in Kosovo. A much biggger and more significant group is highly skeptical of trusting any military man. Clark does need votes from that group.

[poskonig]

22. Too much emphasis on votes and issues.

Organization, fundraising, appearance, message, et cetera, are also drivers for the overall strategy.

Take Dean, for instance. Winning Iowa and NH is an integral part of the game plan. Kerry needs to win NH and Gephardt needs to win Iowa. Edwards and Clark need to win SC, and the other candidates, to be brutally honest, are not in play.

I agree that issue distinctions are a problem specific to Kerry. He didn't bring out his liberal credentials at the beginning of the campaign, and sat passively while the DLC labelled Dean as a liberal, which, in conjunction with Dean's vocal Iraq position, worked in Dean's favor. If Kerry can demonstrate that he is a reliable liberal that will stomp Bush easily, he may be able to get NH from Dean. Getting the word out about the environment and foreign policy experience is a must for Kerry. I'm also not a fan of making Kerry look like a regular guy; I believe packaging him as a statesman of excellence is a more convincing strategy. Anyway, without NH, I'm not certain how Kerry's campaign grows. In the general election Kerry would emphasize his experience on the economy and war. Kerry is his best when he is clear and decisive; this Kerry should have no problem with Bush.

If Gephardt wins Iowa, he may run away with the election, being poised to win at least in Missouri, Oklahoma, Michigan, North Dakota, in the first week of February. If he becomes the establishment's anti-Dean candidate and rallies their entire support, Gephardt can stop Dean. Demographically, when we look at the map state-by-state, Gephardt does the best head-to-head against Bush, though he needs to be more prepped and fluid during interviews.

Perhaps I'll expand on Dean, Clark, and Edwards tomorrow when I have more energy.

[helleborient]

27. Unsubstantiated gossip slam against Gephardt...

I simply think Gephardt is badly informed on the issues. I had a conversation with his office a while back and could not believe the misconceptions about Iraq his people had.

Why don't we point them out and give more detail of the conversation?

Maybe, because you can't support the post?

In debates, Richard Gephardt seems well informed to me.

[ajacobson]

39. Masel Tov

Now everybody is mad at you.

Party unity at last...

;)

[TXvote]

40. Get Real

In order to win a broad multi partisan vote, the candidate is going to have to GET REAL. America wants to find a leader that relates to them as a human being.

Aside from the emotional needs, the opposition to Biff and Co. needs to be on the ground running with the mechanism to address not only campaigning but election system intergrity strategies as well. They will have to beat the man AND the machine.

It would be really nice to know that a newly eleted president also had a well organized game plan for review and repair of the extensive number of executive orders issued from this White House. One of the Clinton/Gore missteps was not being prepared for the infastructure left behind in the intellignece community. I personally will be weighing which campaign is considering the post-election supercleanup that will be necessary to begin to heal this nation.

Peace,
Teresa
www.votervirgin.com

[no name no slogan]

43. o/t but cool site

I'm a bit of a standards wonk myself and really appreciate the XHTML/CSS use and validation. I'm also quite involved in web accessiblity, too, and have taught seminars on it, and the site looks very good from where I stand. And welcome to DU!

:D

[helleborient]

44. Yes, beautiful site work!

I'm redoing a site with CSS2 and JavaScript...and it really does do wonders over just standard HTML.

[TXvote]

45. Pretty Work From Austin

All the V V prettiness is credited to Action Figure in Austin. They took my idea of loveliness and made it real.....

www.actionfigure.com

[DakotaDemocrat]

42. Clark...

Your analysis regarding Clark's bloodthirstiness (sp? - is that even a word? - sorry) brings a major point into play. My wife made it crystal clear to me that a) people haven't been paying attention and b) military people are classified as "bloodthirsty" by non-military people...

...To Clark's credit, he has found his voice on the topic and seems to be thinking about his duties there. He tells how Rwanda forced him to take a hard look at himself in regards to using the force option in Kosovo. He tells stories about negotiations and getting the face of Milosovich, but ultimately had to take them out with force. He also mentions the number of PEOPLE saved from genocide and how many US troops died becuase of their actions - ZERO.

...He has pressed the pictures of the genocide and saying how he couldn't just sit there and watch PEOPLE die. When he said something of that effect on 60 Minutes II, my wife was caught off-guard and changed her mind. Doesn't mistake the fact that innocents probably died, but his justification, when displayed with the time taken to negotiate and press for a peaceful solution, is a passionate one.

Overall, excellent analysis - you put your time in. Not one of the candidates is 100% perfect, that's why there are still 9 candidates in the field, which I think is a good thing. Kucinch keeps the field to keep playing the base, Sharpton is a barometer for soundbytes (which attracts younger voters) and Mosely-Braun not only keeps them thinking about all people, but also larger world view.