There is ONE other living Democrat that could've done close to what Obama did today

[scheming daemons]

Howard Dean.


That's it.


Short list.


No other Democrat would've had the policy chops to stare them down, and the confidence to not buckle .... and I don't think even the good doctor would've been able to maintain being cool and calm like the President did.


But he could've come close.


Every other prominent Democrat we have would've melted.

[denbot]

1. The Big Dawg would have ate them up..

They knew it and would have never gave him a chance to interact with them directly, and with cameras present. The GOP leadership is dominated by shitstain racists, and they just assumed that Obama could not match them mano e cluster-fucko.

You can bet this will never happen again.

[avaistheone1]

7. True. The Republicans hated/loved the Big Dawg because of it.

[quaker bill]

16. Not with the relaxed smile

I agree that the repugs were probably a bit more sure that they would be in for a whipping with Bill Clinton, as underestimating Barack Obama is a hobby of theirs and far more than it was for Clinton.

Clinton would have appeared to have taken the challenge much more seriously. Barack Obama did it with a loose and relaxed humor, this is something that Clinton was never particularly good at, and which in the hands of President Obama was both disarming and very effective.

There are plenty of articulate democrats, but none who could have done this and seemed remotely as comfortable and relaxed doing it.

The repugs threw what they thought were their best punches, and all they got was another Bobby Jindal moment.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

25. One of the most sorrowful evenings of my life....

Watching Bill Clinton and James Carville doing a college gig. Two big leather chairs on the stage and two handheld microphones. Students standing up to ask these really complex questions and Clinton answering them so casually, so effortlessly. All the facts at his fingertips.

This was 2002. Complete gibbering idiot in the White House.

God, I felt awful for my country that night.

[DoBotherMe]

2. The Clintons

AlGore, John Kerry, Nancy Pelosi, Al Franken, Eliot Spitzer, Charlie Rangle come to mind. Dana ; )

[napi21]

3. BX probably could have, but not the rest of them. nt

[avaistheone1]

9. I think they are all strong choices.

We definitely have the brain power on the Dem side of the aisle. I believe your selections are good skilled fighers, and handle them selves really well in the ring for the most part.

[avaistheone1]

10. The Republicans were so in awe of the Clintons.

They really blew their minds.

It really tickles me what the Clintons could do the Pukes.

[DrToast]

4. Dean wouldn't have the temperament

Within 5 minutes he would have leaned over and started choking the shit out of Boehner.

Not that that's a bad thing...

[tblue]

5. I'd pay good money to see that.

I swear I would.

[avaistheone1]

8. What's wrong with that?

Dean should be Commander and Chief of the Galaxy as a result.

lol

[WonderGrunion]

14. Yes, but that is what makes me a Deaniac.

I like that Howard has a temper.

[karynnj]

20. I agree - and think Bill Clinton has the same problem

The only person other than Obama I can think of with the policy knowledge, eloquence and temperament is John Kerry, who was after all has always been highly skilled in debating.

[CTyankee]

21. Agreed. Dean is prone to that Ivy League smirk, which Obama NEVER has.

It isn't bad on Dean because of who he is usually directing it to. But I think it can be off putting to folks who didn't go to prep school and an Ivy League school...

[avaistheone1]

6. Alan Grayson and Bernie Sanders could and

so could Marcy Captor. We do have at least a handful of fiery, articulate and brilliant Democrats.

:kick:

[calimary]

32. And Barbara Boxer.

She gets some really good "Barbara BARBS" in every interview I've ever seen.

One thing pleasantly obvious in this thread: beyond Obama, the Dems have some bigtime bench strength.

[Think82]

11. Biden, too. There's a reason Obama picked him as VP

nt.

[BluegrassDem]

12. The problem with Dean and Clinton is that they can come off as pissed or acerbic

Bill Clinton especially did not like to be challenged to his face. He was real easy to get steamed and get red and start wagging that finger. However, I do agree that on capabilities, they both could've went in there and pawned the GOP. Obama comes off more cool and has a way of disarming talking points with a grin that just eats at Repugs. He smiles while putting them in their place, which is the best way to do it.

[impik]

13. Howard Dean is not as half as knowledgeable as Obama

Definitely when it comes to details and controlling the material.

[WonderGrunion]

15. Have you seen any of Howard Dean's Canadian roundtables?

Back when he was governor of Vermont, Howard Dean was a frequent guest on Canadian roundtable discussions of politics and current events. I assure you he has a vast knowledge of all parts of the political landscape.

[cali]

26. on that you're flat wrong.

his delivery isn't as smooth but his grasp of details is widely known.

[Berry Cool]

17. I think Sherrod Brown could do it.

And he'd do it in the rope-a-dope manner that became famous on "Columbo"...first he'd trick 'em into thinking "Ah, we got nothing to fear from this guy, he's just a rumpled-up, scruffy rube from Ohio. We can eat him for lunch." Then he'd shock the hell out of 'em by unloading a ton of questions and facts on them that would leave them gasping and running for the exits.

"Just one more thing..." he'd say, and lure them right into the trap of saying things that conflict with each other factually, admitting their own shortcomings, confessing to their own guilt. Then he'd smile that rumply smile, and they'd be caught red-handed. Put the cuffs on 'em, it's over.

[CTyankee]

22. I just love Sherrod Brown. Very attractive guy. No snores with him!

He's very, very cool...

[donheld]

18. Now if we could only get Obama and Dean to work together

Instead of Dean being kept at more than an arms length from Obama it be great.

[karynnj]

19. Actually John Kerry, who was able to take on anyone as a surrogate

and who showed the same policy chaps could - especially if he were President. Remember his debates.

I disagree on Dean and Clinton, they have the intelligence and the knowledge, but unlike Obama - their anger would have shown.

The fact though is that Obama did this - and it is an unprecedented thing for a President to do.

[CTyankee]

23. The problem with Kerry is that he almost flaunts his smarts and lots of people resent it.

I don't. But there's a swath of Americans who can't stand that "type." It's misguided, but it makes it difficult to win a presidential campaign...

[karynnj]

29. Nonsense, he nearly pulled off an upset in a year the Democrats were not likely to win

- in spite of an extremely hostile media that condoned character assassination. Even then, had there been an adequate number of voting machines in Ohio - he would have won.

Not to mention this was speaking to the House. One comparable thing - Kerry this year has taken to the floor of the Senate to politely explain in concise, well thought out statements to stop various foreign policy amendments that, if passed, could make things more difficult for the President. These are the type of "feel good" resolutions against Iran, Hamas etc that routinely passed in the pass. They all failed - and failed with a bipartisan Nos.

[CTyankee]

31. Please don't get me wrong. I love the guy. My SIL worked for him as a political consultant.

I believed in him and voted for him. I just see a kind of Brahman-ism that existed in him and, unfortunately, in Teresa, who my SIL said polled really badly in Wisconsin when he was conducting focus groups there during the campaign. I'm sorry, Kerry didn't measure up. It was a bad, bad way to measure him and I certainly didn't measure him that way, but there it is.

[karynnj]

33. Kerry won Wisconsin in the primary and general election

Not to mention, as I said NO ONE was speaking of people running for President - and many are mentioning Dean, who Kerry soundly defeated.

The other think is that polls measure PERCEPTION. The fact is that the media played a role in setting that perception. Here's an interesting snippet from 2004. First, remember how the stereotypes of the Edwards and the Kerrys. Then watch this short dual interview. How many people who saw this watched closely enough to see that the Kerrys interacted more naturally with each other, visibly responding to what the other said and it is Teresa, who unobtrusively reached to hold her husband's hand. http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=628737n&tag=related

Look at what happened in 2008. Michelle, now seen for the good person she is, was demonized the same way Teresa was. It is easy for the media to do this. The fact is that, just like your SIL's polling, Michelle polled as negative.

[CTyankee]

34. Well, Kerry lost. That's the proof of the pudding. And I am one who is willing to

entertain BBV to a certain extent.

I think Kerry is very good, if a distant, spokesperson. I think he would have been a fine president, but I don't think he would have communicated well with the people. Certainly, not the way President Obama has doen and did on Friday...

[karynnj]

35. Why did Obama have Kerry as his lead (or one of the lead) surrogates?

No one was as good on the talk shows vs the Republicans as Kerry was. In addition, I have watched many town halls that Kerry has done and I watched both Obama and Kerry on the Foreign relations Committee. This is about speaking to elected officials, not winning elections. However, the fact is that 2004 was not 2008. Obama would have lost 2004 and if Kerry were the 2008 nominee he would have won. The two years were that different.

You are lifting the bar on the question. I am not saying that he would have been better than Obama, but I do think that Kerry, who is an extremely skilled debater would have done a very good job - just as Obama did.

[CTyankee]

38. Oh, a lot of it was cosmetics. And Kerry of course is a superb communicator

to elected officials and a fine surrogate for Obama when speaking to crowds of Democrats. In fact, during the 04 campaign I had a couple of interesting dreams (ahem) about the guy! I wonder how he did with Independents, tho (I haven't checked so I truly don't know). We know the story with them and Obama...by 2008 the Indies had had enough and I don't think they were there at 2004. There was a stunning set of circumstances that we never could imagine happening but did happen in the fall of 2008 (I thought Bush might blow up the middle east but I didn't expect him to blow up the world's economy). Also, you had the young, vibrant guy running against an old guy who didn't know that Czechoslovakia no longer existed and a crazy loon from Alaska...

[freddie mertz]

24. It would be hard to top Obama's performance yesterday.

Dean or former pres Clinton are the only two I can think of.

Perhaps Sherrod Brown or Al Franken, among the newer ones/

[Sebastian Doyle]

27. I see the Message Discipline LLC trolls have unrecced the Hell out of this thread.

Just as with their boss, they have an automatic negative response to anything remotely positive being said about Howard Dean.

As for Obama's ability to remain "cool and calm", I honestly don't know how the Hell he does it. If I didn't know better, I'd think he was keeping a bong under his desk in the Oval office. And wouldn't blame him if he did.

[southernyankeebelle]

28. Good one. But I think Clinton and John F. Kennedy

[bigwillq]

30. JFK is no longer living (nt)

[Hansel]

36. Temperament is the key and Howard Dean doesn't have it.

But I do have great respect for him.

There are very very few people who have a temperament like Obama does.

[BeyondGeography]

37. Dean would have stuck the knife in too deep

He can't resist.

Clinton had the temperament and the brains to do what Obama did. He wouldn't have come off as authentic, however.

[Beetwasher]

39. Franken Could Do It