Not a Normal Political Year
By Tom Shoop | Tuesday, July 15, 2008 | 09:43 AM
By Tom Shoop | Tuesday, July 15, 2008 | 09:43 AM
I'm at our Excellence in Government conference today, where CNN political analyst Bill Schneider got us off to a great start with a breakdown of this year's presidential election.
"This is not a normal political year," he noted, with both John McCain and Barack Obama running as independent-minded candidates who can bring an end to longstanding partisan divisions in Washington. In the upcoming political conventions, Schneider noted, "what we'll be witnessing is the remaking of the Republican and Democratic parties." Obama, he said, will be seeking to translate his movement for change into an electoral coalition, while McCain seeks to limit the influence of "movement conservatives" in the GOP and take the party toward the center.
But both candidates have serious challenges ahead of them. Given President Bush's low approval ratings, "this election should be a lost cause for Republicans," Schneider said. So McCain must try to win as a "Harry Truman Republican." Obama, on the other hand, is a "very difficult candidate to elect," Schneider said -- not because of his race, but because of his relative lack of political experience.
We'll be profiling each of the candidates in upcominng issues of Government Executive -- McCain in September and Obama in October.
Comments
I hear in comments elsewhere that we really need to set term limits in Congress and often for most elected officials.
Now I hear you have to have years and years of political or executive experience (and it doesn't matter if you were a good executive apparently) in order to be worthy of election.
Before, it wasn't experience at all, but "character" that mattered.
Seems the old adage "whatever gets my candidate elected" is more appropriate. And name calling is apparently the best criticism on all sides.
And these are government executive comments?
Mr. Gravitas | Friday, July 18, 2008 | 09:51 AMThis is for "Finance Guy" - You better check out how both the state of Texas and the Texas Rangers (Bush's ML baseball team) fared during his tenure. If my memory serves me correctly, they both sort of went into the toilet financially. (And he sold his share of the team for millions of dollars more than he paid for it.)
Michelle | Thursday, July 17, 2008 | 10:04 AMWhere is the gravitas? This guy has ZERO experience both as a state legislature and in congress. The more the public will leave as the election unfolds the more they will understand that he brings nothing to the table.
His signature bill Global Poverty relief isn't even covered in the media. His bill will require $1 per gallon added gas tax to fund it. Are you ready??
Rooster, I do believe the "Shrubster" as you call him had a helluva lot more experience than Osama Obama. Seems to me he was a governor of Texas and also involved in running a major league baseball team. If that's not major executive experience, I don't know what. What has Osama...errr, I mean Obama done in the way of executive management? C'mon...let's hear it.
Finance Guy | Wednesday, July 16, 2008 | 10:34 AMRooster, you beat me to it, 1st thing I thought of was "that's an oxymoron if I ever heard it" LOL!!
Sorry I'm a Fed | Tuesday, July 15, 2008 | 08:16 PM"Excellence in Government" an oxymoron if I ever heard one!!
""".....who can bring an end to longstanding partisan divisions in Washington.""" Impossible at best!
"""......Obama, on the other hand, is a "very difficult candidate to elect," Schneider said -- not because of his race, but because of his relative lack of political experience.
And just how much more experienced was the Shrubster when he got selected!
Rooster | Tuesday, July 15, 2008 | 01:45 PMABOUT THIS BLOG
Government Executive Editor Tom Shoop takes a look at news and events affecting the federal bureaucracy, from the perspective of a longtime observer of government.
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