Joe Biden

Donald Trump Impeachment Trial Could Affect Democratic Presidential Contest,With So Many Senators Unable To Campaign During Trial

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The upcoming Donald Trump impeachment trial is likely to have an effect on the race for the Democratic Presidential nomination.

Since it is likely to be held in January, a month before the Iowa Caucuses, New Hampshire Primary, South Carolina Primary, and Nevada Caucuses, the six Senators (Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Amy Klobuchar, Cory Booker, Kamala Harris, Michael Bennet) who are candidates for President will be unable to campaign, on days of the trial.

They are required to sit in their Senate seats and listen to the testimony, without speaking, and cannot choose to do otherwise, as it would be against protocol.

If it stretches through the whole month of February, they will not be able to campaign in the 14 states scheduled to vote on Super Tuesday, including California, Texas, Virginia, Colorado, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, and Tennessee, among others.

That should help such candidates as Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, Julian Castro, Steve Bullock, Tulsi Gabbard, Tom Steyer, Michael Bloomberg, and Deval Patrick.

Whether the impeachment trial will ultimately change the dynamics long term of the race will be interesting to see if it evolves.

The Battle For The Moderate Center Among Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, Michael Bloomberg

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It is becoming clear that the battle for the Moderate Center in the Democratic Party looks as if it is down to Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, and Michael Bloomberg.

So two old guys who would hit 80 in their second year in office or a guy who would reach age 40 in his second year of office!

The trend seems toward Pete, who is gaining nationally, and in Iowa and New Hampshire, while Joe will probably not triumph until at least South Carolina, and Bloomberg is expecting his media advertising to insure he will do well on Super Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the women in the race, particularly Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris, have slipped, while Amy Klobuchar is gaining slightly, but still not a major factor at this point.

Of course, trying to predict what will happen in February and March in late November-early December is not reliable, but it is all part of the fun of watching a Presidential race!

5th Democratic Presidential Debate In Atlanta: Mayor Pete Is The Winner, But Kamala Harris And Cory Booker Also Improved Their Position

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The fifth Democratic Presidential debate in Atlanta on Wednesday solidified Pete Buttigieg, Mayor of South Bend, Indiana, as the most impressive person on the stage, defending himself in a professional manner.

Kamala Harris and Cory Booker also improved their position relative to the others, while Elizabeth Warren held her own.

Joe Biden,unfortunately, flubbed and hesitated, and just seemed “old”, not improving his position, and not raising large amounts of money, but still a front runner in many polls.

Tom Steyer is clearly going nowhere, and the most disturbing candidate was Tulsi Gabbard, who seems too close to Fox News propaganda, and just comes across as totally unacceptable, and being a Congresswoman from Hawaii is, if anything, less significant, than dealing with urban problems, as Mayor Pete has for the past seven plus years.

The fact that Gabbard has been in the military is overshadowed by the fact that Mayor Pete also has, and Gabbard has no chance to be the nominee.

Neither, ultimately, does Andrew Yang or Bernie Sanders, who has been co opted by Warren, while Amy Klobuchar chugs along, looking more like a potential Vice Presidential choice.

Demagogic Right Wing Talk Show Hosts Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Dennis Prager, Hugh Hewitt All Distorting Truth About Trump

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Damagogic right wing talk show hosts, including most notably Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Dennis Prager, and Hugh Hewitt are all distorting the truth about Donald Trump in the impeachment hearings.

This has led to the outrage that conservative talk show host Craig Silverman in Denver, Colorado, was fired in mid show last week, when he leveled some criticism of Trump, someone he had voted for in 2016, but had become disillusioned recently with the vast amount of evidence that Trump bullied Ukraine’s President, and tried to tie aid to that president against Russian intrusion, to an investigating of Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden.

These despicable talk show hosts, and Fox News Channel’s Laura Ingraham and Tucker Carlson, along with Hannity, and Fox Business Channel’s Lou Dobbs, have no scruples, ethics, or morals, and are willing to destroy the reputation of good public servants who have done their duty in reporting the impeachable behavior of Donald Trump.

Does The Ukraine Scandal Help Or Hurt Joe Biden’s Presidential Candidacy?

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The Ukraine Scandal, which has led finally to the impeachment move against President Donald Trump, with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi terming it “bribery”, a specific impeachment charge contained in the Constitution, may help or hurt Joe Biden’s Presidential candidacy.

It seems clear that Hunter Biden, Joe Biden’s younger son, was not engaged in any corruption, and neither was his father, but of course, subject to potential revelations in the future.

If there is a real scandal, then Biden’s potential to be the Democratic Presidential nominee and have a chance to win the Presidency, will be harmed. It also becomes another burden, no matter what else is going on, for Biden to have to answer questions and deal with this for the next year if he gains the nomination.

But also, Biden could be harmed by just the image of illegality, and it could weaken the case that he is the best person to challenge Donald Trump.

The next few months will tell the story if Joe Biden is unable to overcome the attempt by Trump to damage his candidacy.

And with two more moderates suddenly entering the Presidential race belatedly–former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and former Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick–Biden will certainly have more competition in the caucuses and primaries beginning in just the next two and a half months.

Pete Buttigieg Soars To First In Iowa Caucus Poll

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South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg has surged to first place in a new Iowa Caucus poll, the Monmouth University poll, an amazing rise for a mayor of a small sized city in a red state. He has gained 14 points since the summer, rising from 8 percent to 22 percent, three points ahead of Joe Biden.

It is time to start seeing Mayor Pete as a serious contender, rather than as a curiosity.

His major negative is that he has almost no support in the African American community, which right now is smitten with Joe Biden, a surprise when one thinks that either Kamala Harris or Cory Booker would have a strong support in that community, and yet does not do so.

Mayor Pete being gay and having a husband will alienate evangelical Christians, who, however, would never vote Democratic in any case.

One might say that having an urban executive government record of 8 years in South Bend, Indiana, is not a plus, but actually, being a mayor is often more on the front lines of what is America than being a Governor of a Southern state, such as Arkansas (Bill Clinton); or as Georgia one term of four years (Jimmy Carter); or two years as Governor (Woodrow Wilson in New Jersey); or four years as Governor (Franklin D. Roosevelt in New York); or no government experience (Donald Trump); or a much shorter one year mayoralty as Grover Cleveland in Buffalo, New York, or Calvin Coolidge in Northampton, Massachusetts, or Andrew Johnson in Greeneville, Tennessee.

American history is full of surprises, so do not write Mayor Pete off, as he might very well be the Democratic Presidential nominee and the 46th President of the United States!

Is Kamala Harris Indeed “The Female Barack Obama”? The Hype Seems Not To Be Happening For 2020

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California Senator Kamala Harris seemed to be on the road to becoming “The Female Barack Obama”, a person of mixed race, attractive appearance, and the potential to be the Democratic Presidential nominee in 2020.

But, surprisingly, Harris has languished in the background, seemingly faltering, while Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Indiana, has surged to number four among Democratic candidates, replacing Harris.

While it is too early to write Harris off, the feeling is developing that she will not win any early state in February, and might have trouble even in California on Super Tuesday, by the power of Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, and Pete Buttigieg.

In theory, Harris could be a Vice Presidential running mate, but more likely, she will simply have a long career in the US Senate, and maybe pursue the Presidency in a later time in the mid to late 2020s.

No Thanks, Michael Bloomberg! We Do Not Need Another Aging Billionaire Muddying Up The Democratic Presidential Competition!

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The rumors have been around for months, but no thanks, Michael Bloomberg!

We do not need another aging billionaire muddying up the Democratic Presidential competition.

Bloomberg would have great trouble winning the White House, with his controversial record as New York City Mayor, and antisemitism would rear its ugly head, and the nation is not about to elect a New York City former Mayor, as most of the nation hates New York City, for no good reasons, but reality that hatred does exist.

The possibility of a brokered and divided Democratic National Convention is alarming, and would only help Donald Trump and the Republican Party.

It is time for narrowing of candidates, not broadening of the candidate pool.

If a moderate in place of Joe Biden is desired, it should not be Bloomberg, but more likely Mayor Pete Buttigieg, or Senator Amy Klobuchar.

Right now, a moderate ticket of Pete and Amy seems more likely, with their Midwest background, to have the opportunity to win the White House, certainly better than aging candidates reaching their 80s in a first term.

There will be plenty of time to evaluate Bloomberg over time, but first thoughts are, as stated above, no thanks!

The Democratic Presidential Race Thins As Tim Ryan And Beto O’Rourke Withdraw From Race

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The Democratic Presidential race is thinning as Ohio Congressman Tim Ryan and former Texas Congressman Beto O’Rourke have withdrawn from the competition in the past week.

Both were considered moderates, and some thought O’Rourke had a real chance to move ahead, but both candidacies floundered without much public support in polls and in fund raising.

Both Ryan and O’Rourke were the rare white men running for the nomination, with the only serious such candidates left being Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, and Pete Buttigieg.

There is also Michael Bennet, Steve Bullock, and Tom Steyer, but the most competitive white men are Biden, Sanders, and Buttigieg.

The odds of a woman or a minority person being the nominee seems more possible, which is fine, but if that happens, it will mean the Democratic Party has not nominated a white man for President since 2004.

Alternative Candidates Who Might Enter The Democratic Presidential Race

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Hard to believe, but rumors are spreading that there could be alternative candidates who might enter the Democratic Presidential race.

These would include:

2016 Presidential nominee Hillary Clinton

Former First Lady Michelle Obama

Former 2004 Presidential nominee John Kerry

Former NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg

Former Attorney General Eric Holder

Former Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick

Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown

Most of these ideas are totally preposterous.

It is time for Hillary Clinton to pass the torch finally, and make an unequivocal statement she will not run, as she would divide the party and the nation in such a way that would be totally destructive.

Michelle Obama is not going to run, too smart to consider it.

John Kerry is another too old nominee, who is from the distant past, 2004 as a Presidential candidate, and would be 77 when taking the oath, and the last thing we need is another old candidate.

The same goes for Michael Bloomberg, who would five months younger than Bernie Sanders and nine months older than Joe Biden, and would be one month short of 79 in January 2021, too old, and really too divisive with his record as NYC Mayor, and not loyal to the Democratic Party.

Eric Holder and Deval Patrick would only create more racial division, with Cory Booker and Kamala Harris and Julian Castro already in the race, and Holder highly controversial and being 70 the day after the inauguration, and Deval Patrick just another Massachusetts politician, but with no real constituency to run.

If any candidate deciding to run makes sense, it just might be Sherrod Brown, who considered running, and would be a strong competitor from Ohio, but if he is to run, time is of the essence. He would be 68 at the time of the inauguration, and might be a good Vice Presidential choice instead of for the Presidency.

But except for Brown, really, the next Democratic Presidential nominee needs to come from the present, rapidly dwindling list, and dreaming of alternatives needs to end!