except for a select, well financed few, all other voices being drowned out so far...
I don't know about you, but in my opinion, the media coverage of the 2008 "hopefuls" has been plain awful. Out of the 20 some candidates for 08, seems like 6 get all the attention. If you are sold on Rudy, Hillary, Barack, John E, John M or Mitt, that's probably suits you just fine. But i'm not. I'm not saying that I wouldn't vote for any of the "rock star" candidates, but i'm simply not sold on any of em. And I want to know more about the rest of the field.
I would like to see some more time and attention given to the backrounds, views and ideas of the rest of the pack, on both sides. I also want to know more about what some of the larger "3rd parties" and such have up their sleeves. And since no one else seems to want to, I've taken it upon myself to introduce ya'll to the rest of the 2008 Presidential hopefuls. Maybe if some of their ideas can get out, perhaps we can make some better informed, if not just plain better choices about our future leadership.
On the GOP side, i'd like to see more about real conservative candidates, not the ones that the media, from MSNBC to Fox keeps telling us "can win the right." From what I can tell, Sam Brownback seems to be popular amongst the christian right. As does Mike Huckabee, Duncan Hunter and tom Tancredo. The 2 latter having strong hardline immigration stances which will appeal to their base. If they ever get to hear their messages being drowned out by Mitt's flip flopping, McCain's seemingly diliberate derailment of his "straight talk express" and rudy trying to get everyone to focus on "America's mayor" circa 9/11 and beyond and forget everything else about him previously, except that he cleaned up Times Square..sort of.
Is Chuck Hagel running? How bout Newt Gingrich? I don't think i've seen Libertarian Ron Paul mentioned once by anyone on television concerning the 2008 race. It would be nice if people knew that the anti war sentiment didn't only rest with people like Dennis Kucinich and those to his left.
And for the democratic line-up, I want to hear more response to the Iraq plans of Joe Biden. It is constantly argued that 'democrats have no plan" for Iraq, yet, his plan, which has been published for some time now, and continues to get raves and support from circles across the spectrum, gets almost no mention from the major media outlets. When republican pundits spout the "democrats have no plan" rhetoric, the hosts just nod and move to the next question. How sad.
Bill Richardson has a ton of experience in foreign affairs, as does Chris Dodd. do we hear about it? No. it seems Tom Vilsack can't even get press in Iowa. The media is more wrapped up in exactly how Hillary phrased her Iraq position today. reminding us that John Edwards regrets his vote in 2002 for the war and that everybody loves Barack.
And then there's the 3rd parties, which, I believe, could play at least some spoiler roles in the next election cycle. I believe the Libertarians, the Greens and other independents have much to contribute to the debate. But the way things are going, their voices, which represent millions of Americans collectively, will never be heard.
And it's not only about Iraq. Of course, that is "the issue" but there are many issues that are important as well. We need to hear what these candidates have to say about our future direction on the overall "war on terror." We need to hear about their views on issues like health care, the environment, renewable energy, social issues, constitutional issues, retirement issues, entilement issues and so much more. As our world grows more complex and "nuanced", our leaders need to have the muster to deal with that world. And Americans deserve to hear what all these fine candidates, and the others who seek to lead this nation, have to say.
It seems this election cycle, that the race for the 08 nominations has begun much earlier. And i'm afraid, that unless we get a fair look at more of the contenders, we will get shortchanged in our leadership even moreso than we may have in the past. Whereas some can argue about the merits of "free speech" in not controlling election spending, I doubt that many would endorse the "buying" of a nomination or election. The money will eventually flow like a raging river to whomever gets each respective nomination, that is inevitable. But it would be a shame for a select few candidates to be able to "Wal-Mart" the competition before the primaries even begin.
I wish the "MSM" would stop acting like "6 year olds playing soccer" for once and actually send some reporters out to cover some of the other speeches, campaigns and candidates. Now, more than ever, Americans deserve a fair look at the people and ideas that will be at the forefront of our nation's future instead of an American Idol style beauty contest."