A head-fake, or another attempt to pander?
::YAWN:: Today is supposed to be the big day when Barack Obama announces his running mate. The idea, no doubt, is to get a bounce in the polls, and get wall-to-wall coverage over the weekend on the talking heads' shows. The rumor is that it'll be Rep. Chet Edwards. Edwards is a moderate Democrat from the same district where President Bush's ranch is located. The problem is that if Obama picks him, Edwards will have to flip-flop on a lot of positions because he seems more like the polar opposite of Obama. Geraghty the Indispensable explains:
A disastrous pick, if accurate. He may be a perfectly nice guy, but he's a complete unknown. It's very difficult to see this one guy who represents communities near Waco putting Obama over the top in Texas, and it's hard to see him having the pull and sway to put many other red states or districts in play. He's been on budget and appropriations - classic bring-home-the-pork guy, with the Pig Book listing 73 projects worth $128,414,403. The outsider bringing change to Washington is going with a guy who's been in the House since 1991.
He's named "Chet" and was a junior golf champion. Voted for the Balanced Budget Amendment and line-item veto. He supports oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and for the constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage.
National Journal: "In 2002 Farley ran again and national Republicans ran ads against Edwards arguing that he had the voting record of a Northeastern liberal. Edwards argued that he supported Bush on terrorism, education, welfare, energy and the Iraq war resolution."
His ACU rating for 2006 was 68, for 2005 (a non-election year) it was 36. He voted to extend the Patriot Act, and to build a border fence. He opposed an Iraq withdrawal proposal in the 109th Congress. He supports a Constitutional amendment to ban flag-burning, and increasing fines for "indecent" broadcasting.
He voted against raising corporate average fuel economy standards.
He supports limiting attorney's fees in class action lawsuits.
See, he's not even close to Obama. So if this is his pick, the thinking is likely that he can appeal to moderates and independents because he has a moderate on his ticket. And if this is his decision, it may have something to do with the Zogby poll released this week showing that he's losing support from moderates and independents. Obama isn't stupid and he knows the base he currently has isn't going to win him the presidency. So if Edwards is his pick, this is a clear pander. Geraghty adds:
A Chet Edwards pick would make the Netroots furious, and justifiably, for once: Chris Bowers notes, "Edwards is ranked outside the top 200 most progressive members of Congress on virtually every single issue."
Of course the nutroots will be ticked. They're ticked already because he's moved to the center, and even tried to make inroads with conservatives. They didn't like it then, and if Obama chooses Edwards, Jim Geraghty is correct: It'll be a disaster for the Obama campaign.
Publius II
A disastrous pick, if accurate. He may be a perfectly nice guy, but he's a complete unknown. It's very difficult to see this one guy who represents communities near Waco putting Obama over the top in Texas, and it's hard to see him having the pull and sway to put many other red states or districts in play. He's been on budget and appropriations - classic bring-home-the-pork guy, with the Pig Book listing 73 projects worth $128,414,403. The outsider bringing change to Washington is going with a guy who's been in the House since 1991.
He's named "Chet" and was a junior golf champion. Voted for the Balanced Budget Amendment and line-item veto. He supports oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and for the constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage.
National Journal: "In 2002 Farley ran again and national Republicans ran ads against Edwards arguing that he had the voting record of a Northeastern liberal. Edwards argued that he supported Bush on terrorism, education, welfare, energy and the Iraq war resolution."
His ACU rating for 2006 was 68, for 2005 (a non-election year) it was 36. He voted to extend the Patriot Act, and to build a border fence. He opposed an Iraq withdrawal proposal in the 109th Congress. He supports a Constitutional amendment to ban flag-burning, and increasing fines for "indecent" broadcasting.
He voted against raising corporate average fuel economy standards.
He supports limiting attorney's fees in class action lawsuits.
See, he's not even close to Obama. So if this is his pick, the thinking is likely that he can appeal to moderates and independents because he has a moderate on his ticket. And if this is his decision, it may have something to do with the Zogby poll released this week showing that he's losing support from moderates and independents. Obama isn't stupid and he knows the base he currently has isn't going to win him the presidency. So if Edwards is his pick, this is a clear pander. Geraghty adds:
A Chet Edwards pick would make the Netroots furious, and justifiably, for once: Chris Bowers notes, "Edwards is ranked outside the top 200 most progressive members of Congress on virtually every single issue."
Of course the nutroots will be ticked. They're ticked already because he's moved to the center, and even tried to make inroads with conservatives. They didn't like it then, and if Obama chooses Edwards, Jim Geraghty is correct: It'll be a disaster for the Obama campaign.
Publius II
posted by Syd And Vaughn | 11:42 AM
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