Practice for November 2008

Ron v. Hill

2008: Hillary Clinton vs. Ron Paul?

In 1992, Independent Ross Perot upset the election, bringing in 19% of the vote to Bill Clinton’s 43% and George H.W. Bush’s 37%. He did this on a populist, Washington-outsider campaign, at one point leading in the polls (which being an incredible flake he promptly lost). Then, as now, Americans were sick to death of electoral pablum. But now, unlike then, thanks to the netroots, we commoners not only have a voice in the polls, we have a voice in the debate. We have questions, we expect answers, and we are not putting up with the usual B.S. Hunter S. Thompson may be dead but his spirit is alive and kicking.

This growing influence has given me pause to consider the unthinkable – what if a real grassroots, Washington-outsider candidate could get on the ballot? It’s not just exciting to consider – in this stretched out campaign, a grassroots campaign might actually be able to find fertile soil.

But there’s a catch to that sentiment for the Democrats. Because in this election, the strongest Democrat is Hillary Clinton, arguably the biggest insider to run for office in years. And the candidate with the most vibrant netroots backing is a Republican, Ron Paul.

What if?

Don’t forget to vote!

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10:11 pm on August 6, 2007