We can't afford to have the White House as a training ground for an inexperienced man

[denem]

"I say we can't afford to have the White House as a training ground for an inexperienced man who is rash and impulsive." Richard Nixon on JFK, October 1960.

If the outcome of the nominations is McCain v Obama, there is a wealth of material to be found in the 1960 campaign.

[skipos]

1. McCain is Dole part II. The only one McCain could beat is Hillary

with the help of Nader and Bloomberg.

[denem]

2. McCain could campaign on experience.

And he is the only Republican with any credibility on that score.

[skipos]

6. Nixon, Dole and Bush I did the same thing and lost

Experience is low on voter's priorities right now. We all have seen the experience of Cheney and Rumsfeld in action.

[Bread and Circus]

3. None of them really have relevant executive experience...

Clinton: law school, failed d.c. bar exam, passed arkansas bar exam, corparate lawyer, did many social work projects for children, wife of POTUS (not a cabinet position FYI), senator.

NO executive experience! None. Nada. Zip.

Obama: law school, president of harvard law review (a student journal), did some social work projects for inner city issues, senator.

NO executive experience! None. Nada. Zip.

Edwards: law school, trial lawyer, senator

NO executive experience! None. Nada. Zip.

Business, military, and government executive experience is a far cry from legislative, legal, and social project experience.

Do we have that straight?

now... let's proceed.

[Adelante]

5. failed d.c. bar exam

Is that true? Just curious, I never heard that before.

[denem]

7. Yes, I understand it is true

and was instrumental to her decision to move to Arkansas and practice law there.

[Anouka]

9. regarding that,

did she get political help to pass the Arkansas bar; or was it fair and square, on the up and up?

(I'm reminded of John John and his failure of the bar.... people love John John, but how many people really believe he finally passed the bar on his own the third time and not without a little help? I'm sure they do exist, I just don't know how many if it's many.)

[Girlieman]

11. That confuses me

I've read that too, but it confuses me, because when I graduated from law school (a few years after HRC), the only requirement to the DC bar was graduation from an accredited law school. Something of a joke, really.

Perhaps I've remembered it incorrectly. Maybe somebody else knows.

[Girlieman]

12. Unconfused

I looked it up. Admission into DC bar is automatic if you're admitted anywhere else.

[Bread and Circus]

10. It is true. What I've read is that it incidentally slipped out in a private

conversation between her and a friend. But is in the public now and a confirmed fact. Granted, 50% of people who take the D.C. bar fail the first time.

However, she decided not to try again and instead passed the bar in Arkansas and got a corporate law position there.

The big picture issue is that Clinton touts her experience, but it's not necessarily the right kind of experience for the times nor is it tangibly more impressive than Edwards or Obama.

It's mostly just smoke and mirrors.

Granted though, Obama and Edwards are really in the same boat experience wise, Edwards probably the least of the three.

[Anouka]

8. they're running on the (non?)fiction of Hillary being co-president

yeah, a woman with no security clearance was co-president for 8 years.

but the argument is offensive in several other ways, because no one has experience with being president until they are president.... and such an argument actually argues against members of minority groups being allowed a shot at the presidency since those groups are going to have less experience with higher office because those groups have less people making of the majority of higher office in this nation.

might as well argue that white men can be expected to have the most experience. that's what it reads like beneath everything.

for trying to make history as the first elected female president, Hillary sure does shoot equality in the foot in her quest for herself and not the nation ... in my opinion.

[wtmusic]

4. Does anyone really think America will elect a Catholic president? nt

[BootinUp]

13. That was a pretty close election

if memory serves.