Vanity - Analysis Of Recent Democrat Presidents

[connor_in]

Please look carefully at the most recent democrat presidents:

*** Clinton - Bill Clinton won in 1992 because of a couple of reasons...he ran to the center (see the DLC) of the road against a president weakened by a recession at the end 12 straight years of republican administrations. He never got a majority of the vote (only in the 40's thanks to Perot). He also won re-election due to his adoption of many things on the republican agenda (welfare reform, balanced budgets,...) thereby angering many in his own party.

*** Carter - Jimmy Carter took office in the first election following a very major scandal in a republican administration (the public was angry with republicans and showed it).

*** Johnson - Lyndon Johnson followed up a president raised to mythic heights due to his assasination and the turbulent times over which he presided. Note Johnson in today's world would be very much like Zell Miller (a southern democrat that the party has now left behind).

*** Kennedy - JFK was elevated to mythic status by untimely horrific assasination. Many experts believe he would have had a difficult time gaining re-election based on his record (grand-cuban missle crisis; unseemly-bay of pigs fiasco). Even still, he beilieved the the modern republican mantra of tax cuts in order to stimulate the economy.

Simply by looking at the views held by these men (versus those of the modern democratic candidates Kerry, Gore, Dukakis, and even Mondale) or their timing, it is easy to see why they would be elected when the others were not.

I will also give away a little bit of advice to the Dems (don't worry red stater's, more than likely any lurking Dems stopped reading this already or will simply dismiss it):

Please do not talk down to the public. It is condesending and frustrating. Also, if you feel you are correct, explain why and explain how you will do the things you want to do. (Didn't even the democrats get tired of "I have a plan" ? Also, did you ever go to his website to look up the plan it was so general "I will train the Iraqi troops better and faster" - how?; "I will improve education" - how?; "I will safeguard social security" - how?)

If they really want to be a viable party of the people again, they have to stop these God awful diatribes against those that they want the votes of next time around, especially the series of essays on "why democrats lost" over on Slate.com. I mean seriously, I was over there all day just laughing my butt off.

[connor_in]

anyway, that's my 2 cents...and my first real vanity post (which I waited til late in the evening on a friday so as not to interupt the normal flow)

[RightWingNut]

I would go one step more.

I doubt if John Kennedy could win the Democratic nomination for president in today's Democratic Party.

Considered very liberal in his day, but now ?? Perhaps moderate ??!!

[lainde]

Great analysis!

[Huntress]

The recent democrat presidents you mentioned also all had oafish, embarrassing brothers. JFK had Teddy, LBJ had Sam, Jimmy Carter had Billy, and Bill Clinton had Roger. I've always wondered if that was a coincidence, or an indication of something more.