2020 Presidential Election

[OldPhiKap]

Can we nominate someone for VP on a "Launch this 'I'm a real wanker for saying this' into space" platform?

Elon Musk for VP. (Sorry, Kyrie).

[wilson]

VP also traditionally oversees NASA. I don’t want to see someone run for VP on a flat Earth platform.

Elon Musk for VP. (Sorry, Kyrie).

Not the wanker I'm looking for, but will accept and consider the nomination.

[OldPhiKap]

Not the wanker I'm looking for

Unfortunately, Hunter S. Thompson and Frank Zappa are no longer with us.

[JasonEvans]

I'd be interested to see Tulsi's numbers here...

Not as bad as you might think. Because her name is somewhat unique, she is in a better place than Seth Moulton.

Here is the bottom half of the field...

[dudog84]

Ten percent of the voters probably wonder why Sanders is also Trump's press secretary.

Only 10%? You have a higher opinion of our populace than I do.

Or are you saying a higher percentage equates them, but only 10% actually wonders about it?

[bundabergdevil]

Only 10%? You have a higher opinion of our populace than I do.

Or are you saying a higher percentage equates them, but only 10% actually wonders about it?

According to recent polling, people believe that 60% of the time, it works every time.

[OldPhiKap]

"They say that three percent of people
Use five to six percent of their brain
Ninety-seven percent use just three percent
And the rest goes down the drain
I'll never know which one I am
But I'll bet you my last dime
Ninety-nine percent think we're three percent
One-hundred percent of the time"

-- Todd Snider

[Acymetric]

"They say that three percent of people
Use five to six percent of their brain
Ninety-seven percent use just three percent
And the rest goes down the drain
I'll never know which one I am
But I'll bet you my last dime
Ninety-nine percent think we're three percent
One-hundred percent of the time"

-- Todd Snider

Someone spork OPK for me.

[Highlander]

Someone spork OPK for me.

Done

[left_hook_lacey]

Nah, he made his fortune as the GOAT NFL corner. Trump is awarding him the Presidential Medal of Freedom next week.

In which case, it's totally deserved.

[OldPhiKap]

Info on how the first round of Democratic primary debates will work (and some of the inevitable complaints);

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaig...bate-minefield

No way to please everyone, and FWIW I think the DNC has handled this first hurdle well. But it seems that the DNC is going to have to find a way to winnow the number of debate participants over the course of the summer and fall if this is to be a meaningful exercise. I agree with the commentator who notes that with ten folks on a stage, and only a random chance of interaction between stronger candidates, this is really more of a sound bite and gaffe avoidance exercise.

Necessary, but not terribly helpful as a long-term exercise.

[Acymetric]

Info on how the first round of Democratic primary debates will work (and some of the inevitable complaints);

https://thehill.com/homenews/campaig...bate-minefield

No way to please everyone, and FWIW I think the DNC has handled this first hurdle well. But it seems that the DNC is going to have to find a way to winnow the number of debate participants over the course of the summer and fall if this is to be a meaningful exercise. I agree with the commentator who notes that with ten folks on a stage, and only a random chance of interaction between stronger candidates, this is really more of a sound bite and gaffe avoidance exercise.

Necessary, but not terribly helpful as a long-term exercise.

Rather than having an undercard debate of low-polling candidates, like the Republicans had during the 2016 campaign, the DNC will randomly draw to determine which night the candidates appear on stage, injecting uncertainty into a process that will be closely scrutinized by the campaigns.

The DNC should probably have taken a lesson from the NBA and learned that "randomizing" the selections for the two nights is going to encourage, not quell, suggestions of intentional suppression of various candidates (frozen envelopes and all that). The undercard strategy may seem "less fair" but is also less prone to accusations of manipulation which the DNC already suffers from.

1% is probably too low a bar as well, it should have been higher.

[dudog84]

The DNC should probably have taken a lesson from the NBA and learned that "randomizing" the selections for the two nights is going to encourage, not quell, suggestions of intentional suppression of various candidates (frozen envelopes and all that). The undercard strategy may seem "less fair" but is also less prone to accusations of manipulation which the DNC already suffers from.

1% is probably too low a bar as well, it should have been higher.

I REALLY agree with that, and hope it's for this first debate only. Let everyone have their say (in this way it makes sense), but if you don't get a bump (I would suggest to 5%) with your ideas, get the heck out. You're just screwing donors out of money (though a fool and his money are soon parted) for your ego exercise.

[OldPhiKap]

The DNC should probably have taken a lesson from the NBA and learned that "randomizing" the selections for the two nights is going to encourage, not quell, suggestions of intentional suppression of various candidates (frozen envelopes and all that). The undercard strategy may seem "less fair" but is also less prone to accusations of manipulation which the DNC already suffers from.

1% is probably too low a bar as well, it should have been higher.

I REALLY agree with that, and hope it's for this first debate only. Let everyone have their say (in this way it makes sense), but if you don't get a bump (I would suggest to 5%) with your ideas, get the heck out. You're just screwing donors out of money (though a fool and his money are soon parted) for your ego exercise.

I take it that the second debates at the end of July in Detroit have the same criteria, although perhaps it is capped at up to 20 participants. (Relying on https://variety.com/2019/politics/ne...nn-1203178797/ ) I have not heard of any criteria beyond that point.

[Acymetric]

I take it that the second debates at the end of July in Detroit have the same criteria, although perhaps it is capped at up to 20 participants. (Relying on https://variety.com/2019/politics/ne...nn-1203178797/ ) I have not heard of any criteria beyond that point.

I think the first debate is also capped at 20 (using tiebreakers if more than 20 meet one of the criteria), although maybe I'm confusing information about the two debates.

[Acymetric]

I REALLY agree with that, and hope it's for this first debate only. Let everyone have their say (in this way it makes sense), but if you don't get a bump (I would suggest to 5%) with your ideas, get the heck out. You're just screwing donors out of money (though a fool and his money are soon parted) for your ego exercise.

Without checking the numbers (because I can't find a source that consolidates it and I don't feel like looking at a ton of polls to aggregate it myself) I think raising the threshold to even 3% would cut out quite a few (Booker, Gillibrand, Inslee, Hickenlooper, Delaney, Ryan, Swalwell, Gabbard appear the likely candidates to be cut out). Of those, the only one I would have hoped might be included would be Booker. Hard to see the others making any real waves when the primaries roll around (I don't really think Booker will either but he seems like he would have the best chance out of that group).

[OldPhiKap]

Without checking the numbers (because I can't find a source that consolidates it and I don't feel like looking at a ton of polls to aggregate it myself) I think raising the threshold to even 3% would cut out quite a few (Booker, Gillibrand, Inslee, Hickenlooper, Delaney, Ryan, Swalwell, Gabbard appear the likely candidates to be cut out). Of those, the only one I would have hoped might be included would be Booker. Hard to see the others making any real waves when the primaries roll around (I don't really think Booker will either but he seems like he would have the best chance out of that group).

Agree with this.

FWIW, Booker has been working neighboring South Carolina pretty hard. I do not expect much out of him in Iowa or New Hampshire, so I think SC will be his make noise or go home state. (Have no sense of the Nevada caucus)

BTW, just came across the Wiki covering the Democratic primary, a good central place to find info:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2020_D...tial_primaries

[budwom]

Only 10%? You have a higher opinion of our populace than I do.

Or are you saying a higher percentage equates them, but only 10% actually wonders about it?

I was in a magnanimous mood when I wrote that. Spring, flowers, mulching almost done. Get me on sodium pentothol and I'd probably raise my assessment to 30% or so.

[mattman91]

I was in a magnanimous mood when I wrote that. Spring, flowers, mulching almost done. Get me on sodium pentothol and I'd probably raise my assessment to 30% or so.

What is Spring?

[OldPhiKap]

What is Spring?

Here, it is a week in early March where everything is covered in pine pollen.