Don't like the idea of working with evil nasty terrorist Republicans?? :D

Michale

Look into the job description of the Speaker.
You may discover the reason nobody is getting behind this "good" idea.

A

Have a BI-PARTISAN coalition select the new Speaker...

Ya'all said you would get behind a Republican if they had a good idea..

Now'se yer chance to prove it.. :D

Michale

Oh snap!! :D

Michale

Bernie has as much chance of being POTUS as Trump has being POTUS..

Yea, it COULD happen, but the odds are astronomical..

It's really a toss-up as to what guarantees a GOP POTUS more...

Hillary as the candidate or Sanders as the candidate...

The only real question about the debate is how bad Hillary is going to do. She has proven beyond ANY doubt that, in a venue she doesn't have absolute control over, she implodes.. She can't think on her feet... Any public appearance MUST be completely scripted...

"Spontaneous?? Yea.. We can plan that!!"
-Clinton

So, yea.. It's going to be an interesting debate.. I can't wait for the Clintonistas to spin her dismal performance into something transmacfantastogorical... :D

Michale

I think the main thing to look for will be if Hillary can be convincing in her positions... she has tacked to the left because of Bernie, but she doesn't come across as believable when she discusses those topics. TPP, Keystone, gay marriage... sure Hill.
And her position on the minimum wage is downright regressive given all the states and cities that have acted on it when Congress refused.
If foreign policy comes up, her gung-ho mentality to try to look tough may also hurt her with the Dem base. Obama's Iran deal is the diplomatic exception rather than the rule for his stretch in the drivers seat, and all his wars and bombings and drones are among those issues many Dems haven't been happy about.

I bet the moderators, Lessig and O'Malley will try really hard to make Bernie appear radical... and will fail miserably. Lessig in particular seems to have a grudge against Bernie for some reason... maybe because his whole campaign is undermining his political science experiment on campaign finance.

I think you're right that O'Malley will act as an attack dog for the establishment against Bernie, but I really don't see how any of the "should be in a separate kids table debate" gang thinks they even stand a chance of being chosen as VP.

O'Malley is from safely blue Maryland and doesn't attract any needed demographic. Chafee from Rhode Island is in the same boat with the added former Repub baggage that Hillary doesn't need anybody to be reminded about. Webb is from what will likely be a crucial swing state, Virginia, and he's a nice guy but he's such a stick in the mud with little draw in his home state. I don't know where Lessig is from, and he may draw the crucial vest wearing demographic, but not much else.

If Biden jumps in, we have Hillary's threat about their opposition research and "being ready for war" to consider... which I frankly think was a stupid thing to announce. Not only is "war" a bit extreme for an intraparty contest, but it also reminds everybody they both supported the war in Iraq and the war on drugs. And if she goes after Joe, she has plenty of baggage for him to unpack as well. Plus, it's more likely to goad him to jump into the campaign when it was meant to scare him off... a tactic that isn't exactly endearing to begin with anyway.

I have heard that Bernie is tough in debates, so I'm looking forward to seeing if his salesmanship is as good as his message.

A