The decision of Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown to forego an opportunity to run for President as a Midwesterner in a time when the Midwest is clearly the battleground in the Electoral College in 2020 is a open opportunity for Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar to be the “Midwest” candidate.
Klobuchar is the only Midwesterner likely to run, although Ohio Congressman Tim Ryan, a fellow moderate, has hinted at running, but being a United States Senator is an edge over being a House member.
The main point against Klobuchar is the report that she is a nasty, unpleasant person to work for, but even if that is true, the record shows many others also have that reputation, including Presidents ranging from Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, Bill Clinton, to Donald Trump in the last half century.
Also, it is said she is too ‘moderate” in that she does not believe that everything promoted and promised by Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, and others is possible in the next term, and that she will not promise what she sees as campaign propaganda, leading to disillusionment when it is not possible to accomplish these massive pledges.
This seems perfectly reasonable to this author and blogger, and Klobuchar has a solid record of accomplishment, and of “crossing the aisle” to gain bipartisan support on legislation. She is in the DFL (Democratic Farmer Labor Party) tradition in Minnesota, the heir of Hubert Humphrey, Eugene McCarthy, Walter Mondale, Paul Wellstone, and even Al Franken (unfairly forced out of the Senate) by bullying over unproved charges of sexual harassment promoted aggressively by New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, for whom this author and blogger lost all respect.
Klobuchar will be 60 in 2020, close to the ideal average age of most Presidents taking office, and she would bring to the Presidency a sensible commitment to social justice, avoiding extreme statements that would only assist Donald Trump and Mike Pence in their reelection campaign.
She would also bring a reasonable woman into the Presidency, more cautious and sensible in her rhetoric than the alternative female candidates.
And if she chose Julian Castro of Texas, we would have a Democratic ticket of a woman and a Latino, overcoming two barriers at once, and leaving Castro, who would be age 46 in 2020, open to a future run for President after two terms of President Klobuchar, and be the precise average age of Presidents, mid 50s, in 2028.
Iowa polling – Democrats strengths and weaknesses. https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/10/politics/cnn-poll-iowa-democrats-strengths-weaknesses/index.html
CNN having town halls tonight with John Delaney, Tulsi Gabbard, and Pete Buttigieg.
https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/sxsw-town-hall-delaney-gabbard-buttigieg/index.html
Takeaways from the CNN town halls.
https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/10/politics/cnn-town-hall-takeaways-buttigieg-gabbard-delaney/index.html
Democratic National Convention will be in Wisconsin.
https://washingtonmonthly.com/2019/03/11/the-dnc-doesnt-want-to-repeat-its-wisconsin-mistake/
To hold the 2020 Democratic National Convention in Milwaukee is a pretty easy decision.
In 2016, Wisconsin was the tipping point state for 2016 Republican presidential pickup winner Donald Trump. It was his No. 28 best state, with a margin of +0.76, and his 270th electoral vote. It was followed by Pennsylvania (his No. 29 best state, with a margin of +0.72, and his 290th electoral vote) and Michigan (his No. 30 best state, of a carried 30 states, with a margin of +0.22, and his original 306th electoral vote).
Holding the national convention in Wisconsin, in case the Democrats flip the presidency in 2020, rather than having to wait for 2024, is a logical choice.