And the Next President Is...

My college roomies and I got together last weekend for games and conversation. The same day, I received a brochure from John Cox, a self-described "conservative Republican" from Illinois who is running for President. The fact that I live in the first-in-the-nation-caucus state of Iowa and have never heard of John Cox is probably a good barometer of his chances of winning.

But I digress. As we passed his brochure around, my friend Greg offered his view of the 2008 race -- McCain-Guiliani for the elephants and Clinton-Obama for the donkeys. I think that's a pretty safe guess.

Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney (R) has entered the race this past week. Ex-Iowa Gov Tom Vilsack (D) was one of the first to declare. Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D) is in, too. I'm sure there are others that are declared, and some that are "all but" officially in.

I've commented before that I used to enjoy politics, at least the political process. I'm not so much a fan anymore, but more of a skeptic. Dems and Pubs seem to treasure their posturing more than they do problem solving. Issues like Social Security and national security are huge, yet little joint work is seemingly being done to accomplish the needs of the People.

As for Greg's presidential prognostication ... not much to get excited about there. McCain has run and lost before. Probably not much different about him now than before. Tough on defense, weak on social issues (I'm not sure he even knows his own convictions). Guiliani is all about name recognition and Sept. 11 fame. Once Republicans start asking questions about his three marriages and voting records, he won't look so shiny. Then there's Clinton-Obama. The Clinton name has been restored to popularity, Obama is a media star with very little political experience. The chance of me voting for this pair is unmeasurable, because I don't agree with their politics. For some in this country, it might be a decision of how they feel about a woman president and a black, Muslim VP.

The Dems are the media darlings, the stars of the show. The two Republicans have their work cut out for them, and will receive no positive assistance from the current president. As for all the other names in the race (and not yet in the race) ... don't see much likelihood of gaining attention from the media and the populace. Unfortunately, people don't vote from their hearts anymore -- they vote by responding to the headlines.