That is how it always begins. It isn't about strength, it is about fantasy vs. reality and the fact that no matter how much you spend on the curtain, it can still be pulled back.
Is that how it began with Kerry? No. Is that how it began with Gore? No. The reality, as much as we might like to believe differently, is that the presidency ultimately comes down to abstract notions of trust and likability. People vote from their guts.
Kerry never had that appeal. Gore only has that appeal when he knows that nothing is on the line (though I'd give him a chance in 2008 if he can bring the real Al Gore to the stage). Obama has that appeal just as Clinton did. They are rock stars. They are the kind of people others want to be near just to say they were near them. THAT is what gets you elected.
Because it worked for Bush, doesn't mean we should try it.
It didn't work for Bush. First of all, if we want to get real technical he didn't win at all. But beyond that, the bar for him was pretty low. He only had to be more appealing than a chronically stiff Gore. How hard was that really?
You can't compare the Bush family name to a Barack Obama.
Bush's run in 2000 was the exception to the rule.
Any other candidate, Dem or Rep with the Thin Resume, short public experience, & reputation for grammatically ineptness would have never made it past the primary.
Bush's family name carried him all the way. You & I, and millions of Democrats may not have found anything positive about the Bush family name- but we do not get to decide general elections.
Its the millions of non-partisan moderate Independent voters who always make the difference in a general election.
For many of these people, the Bush name was still an honorable political family. ( Until Dubya really damaged it in the last 6 years ) Of course rank & file repubs respect & admire the Bush legacy ( back then)
Watch in 2012 or 2016, if indeed Jeb Bush runs- he will still be a favored candidate due in part to being a Bush.
Just like Hillary is getting lots of mileage for being a Mrs. Clinton.
Barack Obama cannot be compared to the Bush run.
