The Mud
I do find it mildly amusing to see the headlines about the mud-slinging going on in the primary season. To read the headlines, it's an all out brawl. To read the stories, the back and forth is non-consequential. If nothing else, the few eye-catching headlines seem to be an effort to allow Obama to get out in front of stories that could potentially be damaging during the general election. As far as Hillary is concerned, the discourse has made it plain and clear that if she moves forward, she'll be following the old Clinton "say anything" mantra - seemingly not caring whether her words hurt her or help her.This means to me that she's poising herself for another senate term. She lacks the smoothness in her words that Bill had, and if anything New Yorkers like tough politicians. I don't know that this is really a surprise for those in the know because it would be a tough loss for the Democratic party to lose one of their best ear-markers to the oval office. (Hillary is in the top 10 overall for 2007 tagging over $800 Million in funds for democratic supporters all by herself).
Health Care
Health Care? Are you f#$king kidding me? Yeah, I'm as bent out of shape as the next guy about my absurd insurance costs, but is this really the issue that should be highlighted during the presidential election? Let me lay down a little bit of reality for all those people out there with pipe dreams that government paid health insurance is a good thing:- Medicare
- VA Hospitals
The thing that steams me most about this subject is the fact that every democratic candidate has touted "their" health care plan as the one that works - the one that's going to be the one that will satisfy you, yet none of them has published anything more than fluff as far as the details of their plans.
What we could really use is a set of laws governing the fair pricing of medical care. Insured people should be paying the same price as uninsured people for services and treatment - and it should be something that we can decipher up front.
Super Delegates
CNN gave Hillary the lead using uncommitted super delegate votes to sway the election in her direction for as long as they possibly could. Frankly, I'm not sure what to think about the Democratic party's chosen delegation system. The idea is that the delegates will be move involved and make a more intelligent decision when it comes time to hold the actual election, but it truly feels like the "super delegate" vote is swayed much more by politics than informed decision making.The Economy
So which of these candidates will ensure that our economy will be strong? That workers will remain employed and that small business owners will be able to compete? This should be the primary issue in any presidential election - whether the existing economy is strong or weak. This issue seems to be taking a back burner for the primary cycle, and that does not bode well for us citizens. Hillary has mentioned a "stimulus package" which amounts to tax rebates and emergency funding for people in rough situations. Obama is equally vague, but promises to fight for net neutrality and sees a strong future in widespread broadband access. Both good, but they are such minor bullet points in the campaign that I don't know if we can trust that there will be much action from him once in the White House.Frankly, with the major campaign hot button being a strong shift towards communism (and that's exactly what socialized health care is), I'm concerned about the nation's economy through at least 2010. In the Bill Clinton days, we enjoyed a very strong economy. I really don't see anything that says that this year's democratic candidate will follow in his footsteps.
Our Rights
There are two driving factors that led me to believe a Democratic President was the inevitable choice in 2008. The unpopular war being the first, and the erosion of our rights and liberties during the Bush presidency being the second. This being the primary season, I find it not very surprising that these issues haven't truly been highlighted thus far. I would think these issues will take center stage during the regular election cycle and Democrats don't want to bicker over how much they despise or es espouse the Bush policies publicly.Who to vote for
This election is already decided folks. Obama wins the primary, and Obama wins the election. Here's another easy-to-predict tidbit - neither Hillary, nor John Edwards will be chosen as the Vice Presidential candidate. Hillary's senate seat is entirely too comfortable and John Edwards is just a little bit too crazy.Hillary vs. Obama Interaction
