Senator Kennedy: "Who will inspire those not only in our party but also in other parties?"

[jefferson_dem]

When asked by ABC's Georgie Steph about who he will endorse, if anyone, for president, he replied with this:

"Who will inspire those not only in our party but also in other parties? That's what i'm looking for in a candidate, one who will inspire."

I wonder who best fits that bill... :shrug:

... Unless he means a candidate who might inspire some support in our party and *inspire* much opposition in the other. That one's obvious.

[frazzled]

1. That's the $64,000 Question

I think it supersedes most others ... because without being able to inspire and lead the majority of Americans and legislators of both parties, specific policies will not come to fruition.

Kennedy sums it up in a nutshell. Now the problem is deciding which of the candidates that is.

[xkenx]

2. Wes Clark flips red states

2008 is all about flipping a few red states into our column. Wes Clark is a progressive wolf in military uniform sheep's clothing. Many Republicans who didn't care for Bush, still couldn't vote for Kerry. Clark was the only Dem. they could consider. Clark has had more EXECUTIVE leadership roles than any Senator by virtue of his military commands where he had responsibility for the lives of hundreds of thousands of servicepeople and their dependents--the whole range of housing, education, training, healthcare, social services, sometimes in a dangerous spot. When Clark was Supreme Allied Commander Europe (Eisenhower's last military position), he had "Head-of-State" status, meaning that he dealt directly with prime ministers/presidents, not underlings. And Clark was virtually the only voice urging help for Rwanda. And Clark and Madeleine Albright were the ones who convinced Clinton to take action against the ethnic cleansing in the Balkans, where Clark carried out the military action w/o the loss of a single American life. In this he stood up to the Pentagon brass who wanted nothing to do with "saving Albanians." And it was Clark who served for more than 30 years AFTER getting shot up and winning hero medals in Vietnam, when he could have gone for the big bucks in private industry. Try Swift Boating this guy--the smackdown will be heard around the world. Clark is all about duty, honor, country. When Clark's American Dream/American Hero story gets out to middle America, watch how many red states flip. And the beauty of Wes Clark is that HE IS A REAL LIVE D-E-M-O-C-R-A-T, with a progressive agenda equal to anyone. And if Wes Clark debates a Rethug, he can say, "You supported giving Bush a blank check to go to war with Iraq; you supported that misguided adventure, but I knew what was going on beforehand and testified to Congress before the IWR against such a blank check. In fact I was chastised by neocons for being so cautious. My whole professional life has been about a multi-faceted approach to international relations, with war only, only, only as a last resort." THIS, FOLKS, IS THE DEMOCRAT WHO CAN TAKE IT TO THE RETHUGS ON THEIR TURF, AND WHUP THEIR ASSES.

[jenmarie]

3. Yup. Clark's the one

If he wasn't going to run, he would have told us that. He said again just a couple days ago, he hasn't said he isn't running and it's still an option. I am not inspired by any of the current candidates, but if this ends up being it, I'll support Kucinich.

[Independent Democrat]

11. Clark can win the GE election.....

and that's why our party won't nominate him. We need to nominate people who lose, after all, it's a tradition.

[xkenx]

14. I believe we can nominate Wes Clark if we get the word out to enough people,

and shake them until they notice to one person who CAN win the GE, regardless of who the Rs put up. Or, as i always say, "To know Wes Clark is to become a dedicated Clarkie."

[StudentsMustUniteNow]

4. Wonder if it's Hillary Clinton that he's talking about.

Could be?

[jefferson_dem]

5. Could be...

...

Then again, could (not) be.

[karynnj]

6. I would imagine if he wanted to signal it was Hillary

he would have said "experienced" in addition to what he said. In the past, when asked specifically about Hillary, he has said vague positive things - as befits a Democratic leader - then turned the subject to Kerry, who he then praised and spoke of very warmly.

He did say that he liked all of them.

[jefferson_dem]

9. Every informed and honest observer knows that.

I suspect the one above who suggested it "could be Hillary" was having a bit of "tongue-in-cheek" fun.

[jefferson_dem]

13. A email and a banner on the Obama site may provide clues...

An email landed in my inbox this morning, from the Obama campaign, with this subject line --

From: "Barack Obama" <[e-mail]>
Subject: What inspires you?

The link takes you to a page on his site with this banner --



Hmmm...

[venable]

7. this is a no-brainer - Edwards

and given their relationship, one of respect and friendship, I expect that's who he is referring to (sorry to end the sentence with a preposition, the alternative was too pompous)

[illinoisprogressive]

8. I saw that, too. and I thought the very same thing...we know.

[snowbear]

10. Who fits that bill?

Edwards, Obama, Richardson, and Clark definitely have the ability to reach across party lines and inspire people of all political persuasions.

Biden could possibly even be included in that category too..

Some of the others .. .. not so much on the "inspiring the other side" though.

[Common Sense Party]

12. No contest: Joe Biden.

He inspires people in both parties to change the channel when they see him bloviate on TV.