Sarah Palin
It’s never too soon to start talking about the next presidential election — and never too soon to start parsing possible candidates. Let’s face it: There are some folks, regardless of their credentials or suitability, who will never be the leader of the free world, for various reasons. Let’s begin with the most obvious. The former governor of Alaska is unelectable on many levels, first and foremost being that she has given up on elected office in order to be a right-wing pin-up girl and reality TV show star. More money in that, anyway.
Sen. Ron Paul
Sure, everybody with an axe to grind loves Ron Paul, the most consistent Libertarian in government. His ideas are great… in theory. But when you put the Ron Paul philosophy into action the country basically turns into The Road Warrior, every man for himself, with unregulated business run amok and civil wrongs addressed in the Thunderdome.
Ralph Nader
It is technically Ralph Nader’s fault that George Bush won* the 2000 presidential election, as he siphoned votes away from Al Gore that led to W’s tenure in the White House. But Nader is a great American who has been fighting corporate malfeasance and championing consumers’ rights for more than 50 years. But get serious, man. No way is Nader ever gonna be president based on his wardrobe alone.
Rep. Dennis Kucinich
When the national political framework shifted to the right, Dennis Kucinich stayed put. The one-time youngest mayor of a major city in US history (Cleveland, 1977-79) and possibly the smallest high school quarterback ever (4-foot-9 and 97 pounds when he was third string at St. John Canitius High) will not budge on his liberal principles. Ironically, these days Kucinich doesn’t play ball, politically speaking, and his far-left positions make him unelectable.
Herman Cain
Seriously? Herman Cain is a self-hating, loudmouthed, uninformed pitchman whose backstory is just now coming to light. And mark my words, if he becomes president of the United States, I will crap in my hat.
Elizabeth Warren
Sure, she’s looking pretty good in the Massachusetts US Senate race right now, but Elizabeth Warren, former head of the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is unelectable because she scares the bejeezus out of anyone interested in continuing the economic oppression of the American worker. Were she to run for president, corporations would stand in line to cut six-figure checks to whomever she would be running against, and the propaganda war against her would make the current GOP efforts against President Obama look like schoolyard taunts.
Frank Zappa
Zappa can’t be president because he died in 1993, but not after giving his children very unusual names, crafting one of the most intriguing catalogs in American music and, oddly enough, running for president. Sort of. Zappa was as political as musicians get. A conservative, he testified before the Senate against the Parents Music Resource Center, Tipper Gore’s effort to censor records, in 1985. Planks on his platform included strict enforcement of the First Amendment and a national sales tax. Unfortunately, prostate cancer took him too soon.
Willie Nelson
Outspoken, political and very much alive, Willie Nelson can’t be president because of his many drug arrests. And also because of that duet he did with Julio Iglesias, for which I will never forgive him.
Cornel West
The Princeton professor, activist and sometime hip-hop collaborator blows my mind almost every time he opens his mouth by pointing out a different perspective, a new idea, a forgotten piece of history. But it’s never gonna happen. He’s too smart, too fearless, too right. And you can’t speak truth to power when you are the one in power.
Brian Clarey
Yeah, that’s never gonna happen either. Not that I couldn’t do it — hell, I couldn’t possibly do as bad a job as George W. Bush did — but I’ve got skeletons in my closet, disdain for both major political parties and a miles-long internet trail documenting my disrespect for authority.
It’s never too soon to start talking about the next presidential election — and never too soon to start parsing possible candidates. Let’s face it: There are some folks, regardless of their credentials or suitability, who will never be the leader of the free world, for various reasons. Let’s begin with the most obvious. The former governor of Alaska is unelectable on many levels, first and foremost being that she has given up on elected office in order to be a right-wing pin-up girl and reality TV show star. More money in that, anyway.
Sen. Ron Paul
Sure, everybody with an axe to grind loves Ron Paul, the most consistent Libertarian in government. His ideas are great… in theory. But when you put the Ron Paul philosophy into action the country basically turns into The Road Warrior, every man for himself, with unregulated business run amok and civil wrongs addressed in the Thunderdome.
Ralph Nader
It is technically Ralph Nader’s fault that George Bush won* the 2000 presidential election, as he siphoned votes away from Al Gore that led to W’s tenure in the White House. But Nader is a great American who has been fighting corporate malfeasance and championing consumers’ rights for more than 50 years. But get serious, man. No way is Nader ever gonna be president based on his wardrobe alone.
Rep. Dennis Kucinich
When the national political framework shifted to the right, Dennis Kucinich stayed put. The one-time youngest mayor of a major city in US history (Cleveland, 1977-79) and possibly the smallest high school quarterback ever (4-foot-9 and 97 pounds when he was third string at St. John Canitius High) will not budge on his liberal principles. Ironically, these days Kucinich doesn’t play ball, politically speaking, and his far-left positions make him unelectable.
Herman Cain
Seriously? Herman Cain is a self-hating, loudmouthed, uninformed pitchman whose backstory is just now coming to light. And mark my words, if he becomes president of the United States, I will crap in my hat.
Elizabeth Warren
Sure, she’s looking pretty good in the Massachusetts US Senate race right now, but Elizabeth Warren, former head of the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is unelectable because she scares the bejeezus out of anyone interested in continuing the economic oppression of the American worker. Were she to run for president, corporations would stand in line to cut six-figure checks to whomever she would be running against, and the propaganda war against her would make the current GOP efforts against President Obama look like schoolyard taunts.
Frank Zappa
Zappa can’t be president because he died in 1993, but not after giving his children very unusual names, crafting one of the most intriguing catalogs in American music and, oddly enough, running for president. Sort of. Zappa was as political as musicians get. A conservative, he testified before the Senate against the Parents Music Resource Center, Tipper Gore’s effort to censor records, in 1985. Planks on his platform included strict enforcement of the First Amendment and a national sales tax. Unfortunately, prostate cancer took him too soon.
Willie Nelson
Outspoken, political and very much alive, Willie Nelson can’t be president because of his many drug arrests. And also because of that duet he did with Julio Iglesias, for which I will never forgive him.
Cornel West
The Princeton professor, activist and sometime hip-hop collaborator blows my mind almost every time he opens his mouth by pointing out a different perspective, a new idea, a forgotten piece of history. But it’s never gonna happen. He’s too smart, too fearless, too right. And you can’t speak truth to power when you are the one in power.
Brian Clarey
Yeah, that’s never gonna happen either. Not that I couldn’t do it — hell, I couldn’t possibly do as bad a job as George W. Bush did — but I’ve got skeletons in my closet, disdain for both major political parties and a miles-long internet trail documenting my disrespect for authority.
It isn't even draconian. If people want a real solution, they need to pick a leader who honestly cares about solutions, not just special interest support.
Vote for Ron Paul in the GOP primary; change registration if you have to. Deadlines for that are coming up in many states, so do it soon, if you are going to.