John Edwards - He Should Have Said He Was Biracial

The race for the Democratic nomination is an interesting case study to me.  The candidates, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have their strengths and weaknesses.  Both candidates have their ardent supporters, but I cannot count myself among them.  Clinton's campaign staff and advisor's should never be allowed to work on another campaign.  They have run one of the worst campaigns in recent memory.  For her to be on the verge of losing to Obama is ridiculous. 

Speaking of Obama, he seems like a nice guy who is a great speaker.  I just do not trust him.  I'm a pretty good judge of character, but there is something about Obama that I do not trust.  Is it his much talked about membership at his church and its relationship with the Nation of Islam?  Is it his empty rhetoric?  Is it his voting record?  My answer to these questions is - maybe, but I just don't know.  I know who Clinton is and is not.  I know where her skeletons are and what they look like.  Can you say the same thing about Obama?  I don't know who this guy is, but I have a feeling I will know more when he wins the nomination and I'm not going to like what I hear.

Every time I see Clinton and Obama, I think of Al Gore and President Bush during their presidential race. I thought that Gore would be the better President, but he was never depicted in a positive manner by the media. Gore didn't help with his exaggerated statements or missteps.  Then on the other side, you had Bush who carried the mantle of "change".  What ever mistakes he made, the majority of people saw it as "human error" or an innocent mistake any one could have made.  People accused Gore's campaign of running a negative campaign against Bush.  All Bush had to do was smile and keep playing it safe with his campaign speeches.  You remember the speeches that talked about his ability to work across the aisles with the other party to get things done?  How about the speeches that talked about his ability to bring change to Washington?  Sounds eerily familiar doesn't it?  The same game plan that worked for Bush is now working for Obama.

I then wondered how did John Edwards lose to these two people.  He seemed like a good candidate.  Edwards was definitely the only candidate who wanted to find a way to lift up the people in our country who have been economically and socially left behind.  How did he lose?  Then it hit me - Edwards got caught in the perfect political storm. The biggest reason Edwards lost the race was for something he had no control over - he was a White male. 

Edwards was caught in the middle of a party and its constituents trying to make history by electing the first woman or minority to be president.  The media refused to give him the same attention it gave to Clinton and Obama.  Edwards got more attention the day he left the campaign trail than any other time he was running for office. He may have been the best overall candidate, but with the media and donors all but ignoring him, the only people who heard his message was his loyal band of supporters.  I know he and his wife will continue their public service.  Unfortunately for Edwards, 2008 was the wrong year to be a White male running for the Democratic nomination.