From the Senate to the White House

hardingMany questions remain about the identity of the nation’s 44th president. As of Thursday, one was answered: When will the United States again elect a sitting U.S. to be president? That would be this year, unless Mike Huckabee or Ron Paul pulls off a miracle. Since John F. Kennedy’s election in 1960, only four senators have even won their party’s nominations — Barry Goldwater, Bob Dole, George McGovern and John Kerry. During the entire 20th century, the only senators to win the presidency were Kennedy and Warren G. Harding (in photo). The conventional wisdom is that a Senate voting record is too big a target for opponents, and that voters like the executive experience that ex-governors provide. What’s different this time, when Sens. John McCain, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have moved to the front?

6 Comments

  1. Regular
    Posted February 8, 2008 at 7:34 am | Permalink

    You are what you eat or vote on. :D

  2. ksfarmgrrl
    Posted February 8, 2008 at 9:13 am | Permalink

    Reminds me of a John Prine song.

    “Pretty good, not bad, I cant complain. But actually, all them gods are just about the same”.

  3. SolDevVB
    Posted February 8, 2008 at 10:08 am | Permalink

    The conventional wisdom is that a Senate voting record is too big a target for opponents

    Only if you vote the way the wind (polls) blow. Seems to me there is a candidate with a very strong voting record.

  4. Rage
    Posted February 8, 2008 at 10:28 am | Permalink

    Absent any reasoning as to why this is so, such a tweezed stat is meaningless. The old correlation/causation thing.

  5. Rage
    Posted February 8, 2008 at 10:29 am | Permalink

    P.S. Other pols having voting records, too. :)

  6. WSClark
    Posted February 8, 2008 at 1:35 pm | Permalink

    America learned what happens when you elect an idiot Governor when George W Bush took office.

    (squeaky voice)

    “Don’t kill me, please.”

    He did.