The question of John Edwards’ seeming under-performance in the Democratic nomination race has become a proxy for media dismissal of the Netroots.
In fact, the problem for Edwards is his under-performance with those same activists. While Edwards leads the regular DailyKos straw polls, Barack Obama still gets a substantial number of votes, and there are even 9% who go for Bill Richardson.
What’s behind the problems of Edwards with the Netroots? Some theories:
- Edwards ran with Kerry. Kerry wrecked Dean. Dean is God.
- Kerry-Edwards lost. We’re tired of losing. We want to win.
- Edwards fired his first bloggers at the first sign of trouble from the right.
- When John Edwards was "just" a lawyer he got rich representing poor people. When Barack Obama was "just" a lawyer he did not get rich quick. (Actually he did what Bill Clinton had done and went straight into politics.)
- Money. Netroots activists want ABH (Anybody But Hillary) as badly as Sean Hannity and Obama has more money than Edwards.
And yet. And yet.
Edwards says what the Netroots wants to hear. Elizabeth Edwards is
an inspiration. Edwards is more forthright on Iraq than either Obama or
Clinton. His health care proposal is more comprehensive. He has more
experience fighting the powerful, and winning, which is why he’s
wealthy. Edwards has as good a chance to win Iowa as anyone, and losing
Iowa killed Dean, despite his enormous cash advantage at the time.
Edwards does just as well as Obama and Clinton in head-to-head matchups
with the Republicans. Edwards would be a Netroots President.
Thus the conflict. It’s head and heart. All the crap about Edwards’
hair is proof the right is scared of the man. They wouldn’t bother with
that crap if he weren’t a a real threat.
And yet. And yet.
Edwards challenges the Nixon-Reagan-Bush Thesis of Conflict directly. He doesn’t lean against it, as Clinton does, or ignore it, as Obama does. He attacks it, head-on. This is a big part of his charm as a candidate. It can also be his great weakness. Because attacking a Thesis which has died is like attacking a ghost — it’s exorcising the past, not exercising the present.
And yet. And yet.
It is a puzzlement.
Don’t you think the real problem with Edwards is that he is Just Another White Guy. Hard to capture the spirit of the liberal voter when you’re JAWG, especially if you are running against a woman and a black guy who are both as well known as you and better funded. Edwards needs to find some personal tie-in to an underrepresented constituency. Being white bread might help him in a Presidential race, but it is the main thing stopping him from much hope of a Democratic nomination.
Don’t you think the real problem with Edwards is that he is Just Another White Guy. Hard to capture the spirit of the liberal voter when you’re JAWG, especially if you are running against a woman and a black guy who are both as well known as you and better funded. Edwards needs to find some personal tie-in to an underrepresented constituency. Being white bread might help him in a Presidential race, but it is the main thing stopping him from much hope of a Democratic nomination.