November 06, 2004
PRETTY FACE/EMPTY HEAD:
Analysts See Edwards as a Strong Contender in 2008: The retiring senator will need to stay in the public eye after dealing with his wife's illness, they say. (Maria L. La Ganga, November 6, 2004, LA Times)
What can Edwards do to remain politically viable as a private citizen until it's time to run again?"He somehow has to stay relevant and add to his credentials and not fade away," said Stuart Rothenberg, publisher of a nonpartisan political newsletter in Washington. "Over the next two years, other politicians will be in the news; they'll be offering their own agendas. If you're out of government, who cares about yours?"
History is both a bane and a comfort to Edwards, whose populist message and optimistic attitude won him notice during his unsuccessful bid for the Democratic presidential nomination. His unexpectedly strong showing in the primaries paved the way for Kerry to select him as his running mate.
On the one hand, since the advent of the modern two-party system, no losing vice presidential candidate other than Franklin D. Roosevelt has come back to occupy the Oval Office. The list of those who have fallen short includes Democrats Edmund Muskie, Walter F. Mondale and Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut and Republicans Dan Quayle and Bob Dole.
But there have been politicians who have left office, managed to stay in the spotlight and gone on to become their party's standard-bearer. In recent times, the most obvious example is Ronald Reagan.
After his second term as California's governor ended in 1974 and his 1976 bid for the GOP presidential nomination fell short, Reagan traveled the country extensively, giving speeches and campaigning on behalf of other Republican candidates. He kept his name in the newspapers and on television and piled up chits for later use.
"His movement forward was unmistakable," said Jeffrey Berry, professor of political science at Tufts University in Medford, Mass.
And in 1980, he won the GOP's presidential nomination.
Berry said Edwards' biggest challenge would be adding to his relatively short resume (one term as senator) and bulking up his foreign policy experience.
Rothenberg suggested Edward chair the Democratic National Committee: "It wouldn't be bad to try to emerge as the Democratic spokesman criticizing the Republican agenda."
Mr. Edwards had to leave the Senate because he couldn't have won re-election this year and was such a featherweight on the campaign trail that Senator Kerry basically locked him in a closet--the idea that he can be the Party's spokesman is hilarious. Posted by Orrin Judd at November 6, 2004 10:07 AM
Hilarious ... but I hope they're serious. However, they're not a serious party, therefore Kerry.
Posted by: genecis at November 6, 2004 10:22 AMMaybe if they give Edwards a script which uses words of two syllables or less, they can get away with it.
Posted by: Bart at November 6, 2004 10:32 AMYeah, apart from the great head of hair I don't really think "Reaganesque" when I think of John Edwards.
Posted by: Governor Breck at November 6, 2004 10:49 AMHe's also being put in the dread "frontrunner" position along with Hillary. Those types generally have problems. Somehow it just isn't a stretch to see Edwards standing in the snow in front of the Manchester Union Leader with tears in his eyes.
Posted by: Jeff at November 6, 2004 11:20 AMI agree. A lightweight. His performance in that late-night, "Let's keep fighting." speech was terrible. You could tell that he knew it was all over and that he was p.o.'d. This guy was supposed to have been a trial lawyer. If you ever let a jury know that you think your client's case is down the drain, it's down the drain.
Posted by: Lou Gots at November 6, 2004 12:28 PMIt's hard for me to see much future in Edwards. He escaped a lot of examination as VP, but that'll be much harder as a presidential candidate. Once the country knows he made millions suing doctors based on the junk science idea that "errors" by obstetricians cause cerebral palsy, and that the subsequent jump in C-sections has not changed cerebral palsy rates, I doubt he'll have a national political future.
Posted by: PapayaSF at November 6, 2004 01:28 PM"Berry said Edwards' biggest challenge would be adding to his relatively short resume (one term as senator) and bulking up his foreign policy experience."
As a private citizen, how exactly does Democrat Edwards get "foreign policy experience" during a GOP adminstration? By tagging along on one of Jim McDermott's Foreign Tyrant Suckup Excursions?
Posted by: Raoul Ortega at November 6, 2004 02:41 PMRaoul - He can start Litigators for Peace and sue Osama bin Laden.
Posted by: pj at November 6, 2004 03:52 PMA colleague of mine told me of a friend of his, a lifelong Democrat, who voted for GWB for one reason -- the presence of Edwards on the Demo ticket. As I understand it (and I agree), this demonstrated for that voter the fundamental unseriousness of John Kerry. I strongly suspect that this Democratic voter was not alone. That being the case, the notion that Edwards can be a serious candidate for the presidency, particular after his showing during this past campaign, is almost laughable.
Posted by: Morrie at November 6, 2004 08:04 PMAnd Terry McAuliffe has been a heavyweight?
Posted by: jim hamlen at November 6, 2004 09:53 PMHuh? And why isn't a lightweight the perfect spokesman for a party that doesn't stand for much of anything?
Posted by: at November 7, 2004 02:22 AM