2004 without John Kerry.

This is sort of a corollary to my thread on a 2008 campaign that lacked John McCain. I remember reading that early in the preprimary period, in spite of Teresa Kerry's fortune, Kerry was running into fund raising trouble, I distinctly remember the possibility of Kerry dropping out being raised. Now, I could be remembering things incorrectly and I don't have a source, but let's play a thought experiment. Let's say Kerry either drops out, or doesn't run for President in 2004. Who is the Democratic Nominee? John Edwards?





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I'm not so sure Dean gets the nomination even without Kerry. Remember, Kerry's primary victory was more due to the coalition of the "anti-Dean" voters rather than Kerry's own popularity.


Dean was increasingly seen as a potential disaster in the making by very late '03 due to a bunch of factors since he'd been getting frontrunner media status for a while at that point due to him being the main anti-war candidate.


to sum up, I'm saying that the same forces will just band together under another candidate's banner, most likely Edwards, but Clark is a remote possibility.

Dean just had too many flaws noticeable by the beginning of the primary season for a presidential candidate.
 
IIRC, the large primary fight in 2004 before Kerry emerged was between Dean and Gephardt. The two killed each other pretty effectively in Iowa which let Kerry come out of nowhere to win the primary there. So maybe without that, the Kerry voters go for Edwards instead?

If Edwards wins the nomination, he'll need a midwestern or Northern Vice Presidential pick. Carrying the northeast is a given for Democrats, so I figure he'll probably go with Gephardt for the veepspot, like Kerry originally wanted to.
 

JoeMulk

Banned
Dean v. Edwards, which becomes urban liberals v. WWC, somewhat like Obama v. Hillary 2008.

Nah, Howard Dean could appeal to WWC also. I mean before 2004 and the Iraq war he was never particularly known as a liberal and had even been endorsed by the NRA in the past.
 
Dean was a New Democratic, pro-gun governor but ran as the left's candidate. Edwards was as close to a centrist candidate as you got in the 2004 Dem field, but in 2008 he was the left's candidate.
 
Dean was a New Democratic, pro-gun governor but ran as the left's candidate. Edwards was as close to a centrist candidate as you got in the 2004 Dem field, but in 2008 he was the left's candidate.

Yup. Dean's original theme was balanced budget and health care reform. Of course he also happened to be one of the few candidates who really opposed the Iraq War. That issue resonated with the left and he became their candidate. Dean and Gephardt went at it in Iowa, with Dean representing the progressive left and Gephardt the old New Deal liberals. Kerry emerged victorious because he fit into the right mold for the Democrats at the time. If he doesn't run perhaps Edwards wins the nomination. It's quite possible he even wins the White House!
 
POTUS Edwards makes me nauseous, but hey, you get President Romney/McCain/Huckabee in 2008. If Edwards doesn't get impeached first.
 
POTUS Edwards makes me nauseous, but hey, you get President Romney/McCain/Huckabee in 2008. If Edwards doesn't get impeached first.

His affair began in 2006, so by this time he's still looks rather favorable. Though would he be stupid enough to have an affair while President...?
 
He's Southern, male, a Baby Boomer, and not an evangelical. It would be practically ASB not to. ;) Then there's the Rule of Reckless, otherwise known as the Ted Kennedy/Mark Sanford Rule: the more narrow escapes you have, the bigger risks you take until inevitably you're caught with increasingly high stakes and consequences.
 
He's Southern, male, a Baby Boomer, and not an evangelical. It would be practically ASB not to. ;) Then there's the Rule of Reckless, otherwise known as the Ted Kennedy/Mark Sanford Rule: the more narrow escapes you have, the bigger risks you take until inevitably you're caught with increasingly high stakes and consequences.

If Edwards becomes President, and I don't think he would, I think we have to admit to a currently somewhat distasteful possibility. I apologize if to mention this is too soon, or if by chance any poster here was close to Mrs. Edwards, but she had cancer as early as 2004. In my mind, in a world where John Edwards is President, there is a chance, however remote, that the pressures involved in that could lead to an earlier death. If she passes away in 2005 or 2006, there's a very narrow time frame for the President to be "caught in a affair"

After the mourning period, John Edwards becomes "The Widower President" and he becomes free to pursue relationships with other women. If Edwards is dumb enough to get someone pregnant, that's a horse of a different color, but probably nothing that would lead to impeachment, though honestly I don't know how such a situation would play out.

Again I'm sorry if it's too soon to bring the scenario up, and I hope I don't sound like an unrepentant Edwards supporter.
 
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