What are your 2004 Dream tickets?

[mndemocrat_29]

Had Jimmie Lou Fisher won the governor's race (she came close) against Mike Huckabee in 2002, Blanche Lincoln would be at the top of my list. However, I am taking that into account for the following tickets:

John Kerry/John Edwards
Kerry's experience and Edwards's youth are a terrific combination. Both would win in their debates, and the sharp contrast between Cheney and Edwards in particular would be amazing.
Senate Problems-None, Edwards is retiring and Erskine Bowles is running 2004.

Howard Dean/Jay Rockefeller
Rockefeller's nomination would bring some strong Washington experience to the Dean campaign. He's currently serving his fourth term in the Senate and comes from a must win state. Plus, he's a former governor. He also has a strong background in defense and would be a fine debator against Cheney.
Senate Problems-Possibly. Bob Wise is retiring, but he could possibly appoint the followup senator, especially if there is a Republican governor-elect. However, Joe Manchin looks likely to win the election. Rep. Alan Mollohan would surely be the appointee.

Wesley Clark/Mary Landrieu
Clark's a Southerner who could quite easily carry a female on the ticket. Lanrdieu is a Southerner, a moderate, but I have a feeling would be far more liberal if she was a senator from say, Connecticut instead of Louisiana. She'd completely defeat Cheney in the primary, and would have immense appeal among moderate females.
Senate Problems-Landrieu's replacement would be appointed by Gov. Blanco (D). She probably would appoint Treasurer John Kennedy, Lt. Gov. Mitch Landrieu or For. Atty. Gen. Richard Ieyoub, all Democrats.

John Edwards/Blanche Lincoln
While at first I'd try to pick a longtime senator (someone like Joe Biden or Tom Harkin. However, I think that the youth and passion this ticket would inspire could be a winning combination. This would definitely appeal to mainstream, swing voters, and I think that it really would appeal to the left wing of the party, though neither of them are the most liberal member of the Senate.
Senate Problems-Here we run into several. First off, Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) would appoint a replacement candidate (I'd guess Lt. Gov. Rockefeller or For. Rep. Asa Hutchison). There is a possibility that if Edwards chose Lincoln before June 1, Rep. Mike Ross (D) would certainly run for the Senate and would probably pull off a win.

Joe Lieberman/Gary Locke
Gov. Locke would be able to counter Lieberman's campaigning problems. An incredibly likeable governor, Locke comes from a liberal Pacific coast, is I believe fairly liberal, and relates well with the general public. He also has an outsider appeal as a governor (though he does have a lot of experience in Washington, har har)
Governor Problems-Locke isn't running in 2004, and would likely help push Gregoire into the governor's mansion on coattails, though Gregoire would likely be elected with or without his help.

Dennis Kucinich/Dick Gephardt
Dennis, a young liberal, would need a member of the establishment to be successful in this race. Gephardt certainly would fit this bill. Plus, Gephardt would have a lot of labor backers and easy access to many donors.
House Problems-None, Gephardt's retiring.

Al Sharpton/Claudia Kennedy
Kennedy's military experience could only help Al Sharpton. She's the female equivalent of Wesley Clark and would be an inspiration to the ticket. She's considered jumping into politics in the past and could possibly consider running for VP.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

1. Dean/Murray Dean/Boxer Dean/Clark

Or, as a less than happy coupling but still votable:

Clark/Murray Clark/Boxer Clark/Dean.

The rest don't count. Sharpton or Kucinich have no chance of getting nominated. If Kerry or Edwards get I'll be voting Green.

[UrbScotty]

2. If Kerry wins, Mitt Romney (R) will appoint his successor

[mndemocrat_29]

5. Sorry, I completely forgot about that Senate outlook

So here goes:

Romney would appoint either For. Gov. Paul Celluci, For. Gov. William Weld (though he might live in New York), his Lt. Gov. Kerry Murphy Healey, or, if he's anticipating a run for president in 2008, he might choose Andrew Card to get the support of Bush/Cheney. Whoever is appointed would likely lose to Reps. Barney Frank or Marty Meehan in 2006, or possibly For. Rep. Joe Kennedy.

[GreenArrow]

3. Never mind

.

[rpf113]

4. Clark/Kerry or Kerry/Clark

Which could be very likely.

[Ishoutandscream]

20. Right there with you

Another option that's appealing to me is Kerry/Edwards. Hoping for a Clark/Kerry ticket.

[Justice]

6. Please Don't Take This The Wrong Way

This is not the year for democrats to put a woman on the ticket.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

8. Why is that?

Just curious why you think so.

[Justice]

11. We need to win, and I don't think some people are ready

for a woman.

It is too important to win than to risk introducing another element into the race.

[jsw_81]

7. Kerry/Clark or Kerry/Graham

[GumboYaYa]

9. Durbin/Levin

Unfortunately neither is in the race.

[Bad Thoughts]

10. Good list

I am not a big fan of whom-should-be-whose running mate lists. However, you did a really good job thinking the issues through and including possible VPs outside of the cast of candidates.

[TexasPatriot]

12. mine's an odd one

it's not a dem ticket either - but it's a wonderful Dream

Bush / Ken Lay

That's my dream... David Lee Roth could beat that.

[Hippo_Tron]

14. Are you kidding me?

Ken Lay/Chenney, now that's the dream ticket.

[THUNDER HANDS]

13. the best VP's for all different candidates

John Kerry - John Edwards

Howard Dean - Wesley Clark

Wesley Clark - John Edwards

John Edwards - Bob Graham

[GreenPartyVoter]

15. I have two

Kucinich / Mckinney (dem)

Camejo / Gonzales (green)

[uconnyc]

16. Edwards/Clark

God bless JRE

[DjTj]

21. Bush/Cheney is Edwards/Clark-lite...

...Edwards is the real authentic Southern working man.

...Clark is the real foreign-policy and defense guru.

Edwards v. Bush and Clark v. Cheney would be the best debates ever!

[webkev]

17. Clark/Edwards

[UrbScotty]

18. Any combination of Northeasterner/Southerner

Or Feingold or Boxer as VP for anyone.

[WhoCountsTheVotes]

19. Kucinich/Lee

!

[one9jnm]

22. Another Possibility?

I have heard some rumblings about the possibility of Gov. Bill Richardson from New Mexico being an attractive VP candidate. If what "they" say is true about California beginning to lean to the right, it certainly would make sense to appeal to the wealth of Hispanic voters in this country (especially California, Arizona, New Mexico)with an Hispanic VP candidate who has presided over a pretty healthy state.
In the past year, 12,000 new jobs were created, legislation was passed to secure lower prescription drug costs for seniors (see below), teacher salaries were increased, bold, new ideas were presented for public education and the role of the arts in public education, and has set forth an aggressive agenda to open up the use of clean, renewable energy in a state that has some of the best oil, gas, and coal reserves in the country.

Here is a snippet of what Gov. Richardson sees for health care in NM:
"I have two defining goals in health-care reform: decrease the number of uninsured New
Mexicans - and increase access to affordable health care for all. Health care is a shared
responsibility of governments, employers and individuals and their families.
There is no single global fix for the health-care problems facing New Mexico. I have four
specific proposals, all of which have been endorsed by my Health Care Coverage and
Access Steering Committee and the Legislative Health and Human Services Committee,
chaired by Sen. Dede Feldman:
--A Comprehensive Statewide Strategic Health Plan to address obesity, hepatitis C, and
diabetes.
--A Health Care Purchasing Authority for existing public employee and retiree health
care. I am talking about a consolidation of the administrative functions of public health care
purchasing - not putting all publicly insured persons into a single health plan to
maximize our leverage.
--Our third proposal is a state oversight reporting requirement for hospitals and long-term
care facilities when they close or change their status.
--And lastly, I want to create a new way to consolidate mental health and substance abuse
into a single comprehensive advisory structure."

I personally think that our nominee, whomever he may be, should strongly consider Gov. Richardson. He could be the key to taking our first step toward taking our country back.

[mndemocrat_29]

23. Gov. Richardson would be a good choice

But he's said that he won't run.

[Mobius]

24. CLARK / DEAN 2004 !

YEEEEAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

[NewHampster]

25. Dean - Moseley Braun

And he should announce it today.