Time For Unity?
His view: independent thinkers have a (good) shot at winning these days. The uberpartisan climate is frustrating to a lot of Americans: independent thinkers might be able to get votes from both traditionally Democratic voters and traditionally Republican voters. America needs someone to bring all sides together. Independent candidates might be (the only) ones able of doing so.
Some of the people he mentions that might have a chance of succeeding – according to him that is – if they run:
From the Republican party: John McCain, Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney.
From the Democratic party: Hillary Clinton, Tom Vilsack and Mark Warner.
He concludes:
The tide is turning against dogmatism — and toward political independence.
That would be nice, wouldn’t it? Many Americans I talk with, seem to be completely fed up with before mentioned uberpartisan climate. Dividing the people of a country might work in the short run, but will backfire in the long run.
In the end, people do not want to be confronted and think about the differences with some of their fellow countrymen all the time, instead, they want to share a common goal.
As I see it, from the perspective of an outsider, America desperately needs someone who will bring the country (and the two parties) together. Before mentioned persons might, indeed, be able to do so.
7 Responses to “Time For Unity?”
I agree that the ability to unify is going to be a key ingredient for a successful presidential bid in ’08. I also think that the candidate needs to have the ability to project positive policy proposals instead of campaigning strictly against the incumbent.
I think we need to put our house in order first and that means getting out from under one party rule.
My perdiction is that none of the poeple you have photos of will end up being canidates.
I think everybody sane wants bi-partisanship, but we have some reckoning thats due. And those sane people don’t include a lot of people that are already in office.
And we need canidates who dont put corperate intrest over whats good for America.
You missed a true maveric and Moderate on the Republican side – Chuck Hagel. He is a real centrist, not Mitt Romney. As a Democrat I would vote for Hagel over Hillary, maybe even McCain if he stops his comprimising with Bush and Fawell.
Unfortunately Broder is losing it like most journalists who are running scared from the Republican attacks on anyone who criticizes them. No matter what the Republicans do in terms of vindictiveness, personal attacks, etc. Broder and other “journalists” will say the Democrats are the same even if it is something that they haven’t even come close to doing.
Look at the paeans to McCain. Did he stand his ground in the latest brouhaha? No, for the sake of party unity in the face of mid-term elections he and his fellow Senators gave more than they got and what they gave away is largely the most important issues they were supposedly standing up for. And McCain has been spending this entire past year burnishing his credentials with the most fanatically right wing segments of the party. McCain has also never been as moderate as some have mistakenly painted him.
As a Democrat I would vote for Hagel over Hillary, maybe even McCain if he stops his comprimising with Bush and Fawell.
Yep, I likes Hagel. I would indeed vote for him over Hillary if he would break cleanly.
But he would never survive the Republican primary.
Hello- George W. Bush ran as a moderate, and as a uniter, not a divider. He promised a humble foreign policy, and criticized the Clinton administration for overuse of the military in global initiatives.
Has any of that come true yet? BTW, I agree McCain is no moderate. He is posturing as an independent who has defied the president on important issues, is a man of integrity, and one who has been able to work with the opposition -McCain-Feingold, McCain-Obama, McCain-Kennedy, at one of the most partisan moments in our history. How can he run as a moderate after mending fences with Falwell?
What about getting out from under any sort of party system whatsoever? Check out my blog for ideas on how that could be done.
(I know I’ve posted this twice today on this blog but the topic has been relevant and I don’t feel like retyping what’s in my blog.)