[Dan from Michigan]

John Kerry
Positives
Served in armed forces
Experience
Few personal known negatives offhand.

Negatives
Massachusetts Liberal
Senators don't become presidents
EXTREMELY Weak on Communists in 80's.
Hardline pro-abort, 100% anti-gun Wildcard - Irish Catholic

My guess - Strong candidate on paper with military background, but doesn't have IT.

Joe Lieberman
Positives
Nice guy image
Dem senate leader(could be viewed as negative too)
Viewed as Strong(at least talks) on moral issues
Maverick image

Negatives
Maverick image
Northeast
more liberal than image he has
pro-abort and anti-gun, regardless of what he says
Senators don't become president. Wildcard - Jewish, will it help or hurt him?

My guess - He'll lose bad in the primary. Liberals don't like him much.

Tom Daschale

Positives
Leadership position
From a conservative state

Negatives
Senators don't become president
Abrasaive in the extreme
Not well known.

My guess - He's done in the primary

Dick Gephart
Positives
Experience
Comes from Swing State that almost always decides presidency

Negatives
Morphed from Blue Dog dem to major left winger
How many times has he ran for president?

My guess - Loses in primary. Al Sharpton - JOKE

John Edwards
Positives
Charismatic
From South where last two dems won
"Outsider"
"Clinton without some of the baggage"

Negatives
Ran as mod/conservative and turned left
Trial Lawyer
Inexperienced
Senators don't become presidents

My guess - He could win it all.

Howard Dean
Positives
GOVERNOR
Moderately Pro-gun(States should decide gun laws, and Vermont's gun laws are good)
Experienced
Outsider of Washington

Negatives
Gay Marriage bill.
My guess - One to watch. If Bush isn't pro-gun enough, Dean could win, especially with a shaky economy.

[ErnBatavia]

Joe Lieberman

Dumb as a rock, it turns out - unqualified due to lack of knowledge of the U.S. Constitution.....thought, until corrected today, that Trent Lott was third in succession to the office of President.

[GRRRRR]

It doesn't matter who they run...they all have the same stale message and will not win. It is the WITCH Hillary that bothers me the most, however, since her first two reigns of terror created so much hatred and divisiveness in this country. If "SHE" were to hoist her pennant and start making noises soon enough, the 51 million GORE VOTERS will rise up from the dead and start supporting her...every single one of those SoreLosermen is a Hitliary voter....scary isn't it???

GRRRRRollin'

[Verginius Rufus]

Dave Barry explained a long time ago that Gephardt doesn't have a chance of becoming President--the American people will never elect someone with no eyebrows.

[gramho12]

And none of these people have had "real" jobs - all on the government dole. Except maybe Edwards, and he steals money from big business for ludicrous law suits so that our costs for those goods and services go up.

What a disgraceful group of parasites!

Am I venting yet?

[JohnnyZ]

From a liberal point of view (it's an out-of-body thing):

Kerry: liberals like him, passes for extreme hawk (ha!) because served in military but was also a Vietnam protester. Seen as credible challenger to Bush. Boston Globe has taken to calling him John F. Kerry (his middle initial IS F, but wasn't used in the media much until now) to invoke the Kennedy mystique. Good odds of being the nominee. Elitist.

Edwards: D's like him at first, but not after meeting him. Time after time, he meets D activists who are eager for this fresh-faced Bubba Jr. and they go away disappointed. Seen as having no substance. Questions about his popularity in NC, but overall being Southern is a big plus. Can appeal to liberals and moderates.

Dean: hasn't made much headway, even with lots of favorable press. I think a lot of people say Governor of Vermont is like . . . nothing.

Lieberman: Will appeal to the center AND some Gore supporters -- main competitor is Edwards.

Daschle: seen as the national leader of the D's, but has never really developed a strong personal following. Seen as soothing while also the major Bush attacker, always a big plus.

Gephardt: Labor. Blue collar appeal.

My take is that Kerry, Lieberman, and Gephardt will be the big boys in the nomination fight.