Thinking about 2012 and what we're likely to face.

[MineralMan]

One question is who the GOP will nominate for President. I dismiss all the Palin nonsense, quite frankly, although lots of people seem fixated on her. Looking at the rest of the possible field, I see just one person who seems poised to get this nomination: Mitt Romney. And here's the other thing I see. I see a very difficult race in 2012 for President Obama against Romney.

On the Democratic side, it doesn't appear that any strong candidate is positioning him/herself to run against President Obama in the primaries. I see lots of people suggesting the usual suspects, like Kucinich, and Dean, etc., along with some really wacky suggestions. Dean won't run, I'm certain, and the also-rans from previous elections won't get any more support from the general run of Democratic voters than they have in the past. I'm just not seeing any serious challenge, and when the question gets raised here on DU, the same names keep popping up, including Bernie Sanders, who I like a lot, but who can't possible be the Democratic candidate for President.

So, what to do? Some have suggested a third-party challenge. Down that road lies a Republican in the White House, and anyone who argues otherwise seems to me to be completely ignoring reality. So, if that happens, it'll be a welcome mat for Mitt Romney or another strong, moderate Republican.

I don't find that option acceptable at all. Yes, President Obama has dealt us all some disappointments. Most have been due to a shitty Senate that can't find its ass with both hands. Some has been due to the really, really lousy burning bag of dog crap waiting at the White House door for President Obama when he took office.

So, what do we do? I'm thinking what we'd better do is to support Obama for that second term and give him a full eight years to get things moving. It seems to me he's been trying, and not succeeding, but trying. I can't see another path that leads anywhere but to a Republican like Romney sitting in the President's chair beginning in 2013. Maybe someone else can, but I can't. If you have another path that has an actual chance of working, I'd love to hear it.

We're in a tight spot. It has the potential to become even tighter. What we all do, as Democrats, is going to help determine the outcome. If we make a mistake and move the wrong way, the consequences are going to be nasty as all getout. That's how I'm seeing things right now.