Braun out, Gep out. Are Unions and Fem Organizations losing relevance?

[RUexperienced]

The backbone organizations of our party (big unions and women's rights groups) overwhelmingly backed the first two Democrats to drop out of the race.

How much weight do these traditional liberal powerhouses carry anymore?

[Skidmore]

1. Who's asking?

This sounds like a Tweety, Novak, or Tucker question.

[RUexperienced]

5. You don't find it odd that the first two candidates who quit

were the ones backed by the most powerful Democratic organizations?

[imhotep]

2. There is no room for anyone

but white rich guys in American politics.
They want the rest of us to sit down and shut up.

[The Backlash Cometh]

6. It would be interesting to study the way the right-wingers destroy

strong female politicians. Especially when they have some powerful women in their own ranks. How do you destroy one, without destroying the other?

BTW, Braun would not have only been the first female president, she would have been the first black president.

As for Gephardt, his track record was so meek & mild, that any endorsement would have looked like a political promise for favoritism. The unions need to work on their image in order to take their rightful place as a protector of worker's rights. Unfortunately, I've seen some shoddy collective bargaining which makes me wonder who is controlling those unions.

[WhoCountsTheVotes]

3. totally wrong

The unions were split and Moseley-Braun never had much support. No Democrat can win *anything* without unions and women's groups. That's not going to change anytime soon.

[Paragon]

4. A + B = C

Wouldn't it be nice if everything was that cut and dried?

[REP]

7. Both Candidates Had "Problems"

Gephardt was widely regarded as a man whose time had passed. His Union support may have bolstered that perception, but that doesn't mean labor is irrelevant.

Braun had the baggage of allegations of ethical problems in her past. Whether these allegations were true or not, those allegations, along with her failure to win re-election, tainted her reputation and never allowed her to be taken seriously. Additionally, a black woman even with an excellent reputation may find running for President to be a difficult proposition, even in the 21st century.

[Lady President]

8. They needed different candidates to back

I don't think these organizations are irrelevant, but they needed stronger candidates.

I found CMB charming and intelligent, but there was a buzz that her past behavior wasn't always admirable. People thought she was running merely to revive her own career. Also, she was deemed a vanity candidate by the media which meant she wasn't going to get many donations. I think the role of women's group would have been maintained if H. Clinton had run.

I've liked and admired Gephardt for years, but too many people felt he was past his prime. The firefighters union appears to have stood firmly behind Kerry and really helped.

I agree that unions aren't as important as they once were. The union members clearly don't vote for a candidate just because their union endorses him. They will all stand behind the nominee and make a difference

[DemBones DemBones]

9. Union voters didn't turn out for Dean or Gephardt.

There were rank and file complaints that they had no voice in choosing Dean. Perhaps that was a problem with Gep, too.

Wait a minute, didn't Kerry have support from firefighters' and police unions? Perhaps there is some union strength shown by the caucuses?

NOW naturally endorsed the ONLY woman in the race, but CMB dropped out before Iowa. I doubt she would have gotten many votes, though, because the voters want to beat Bush and they seemed to figure it will take a white man to do that. Of course it's unfair. "Life is unfair" -- John F. Kennedy

[alexwcovington]

10. Not much, I guess

When unions become "socialist" and women with a sense of their rights become "feminazis" to the ultracon media --- They lose their street cred no matter what the truth is.