Who were some of the greatest people that were never president?

[cry baby]

My opinion:

Bobby Kennedy
Martin L. King, Jr.
Ben Franklin
Eleanor Roosevelt


DUers, give me some other ideas!

[goclark]

1. Al Gore

[havocmom]

2. In recent years: Gary Hart would have been a good leader

Bimbos on 'Monkey Business' - bad. AWOL & failed businesses - good. P. T. Barnum had America pegged.

[SunDrop23]

3. My grandmother.

[cry baby]

7. awwww

that is so nice...my grandmother would have been a great vp to your grandmother!

[cry baby]

4. this is a bit off the wall, but...

how about Carl Sagan?!?!

[lastliberalintexas]

110. I like the idea of Sagan

I'd like to see some creative people go into public service, someone other than another lawyer, doctor or business owner. One of the reasons I named Emily Dickinson.


And how the heck could I have forgotten Mother Jones?!

[soleft]

5. Mario Cuomo

Or a Supreme Court Justice.

[wisteria]

6. Sen. John Kerry! n/t

[karynnj]

40. Senator Kerry, Al Gore, Gary Hart, Robert andTed Kennedy,

George McGovern

[bottomofthehill]

112. Tip O'Neill would have been a great President

[Glorfindel]

Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, Gore Vidal

Adlai Stephenson, Hubert Humphrey, George McGovern

[tonkatoy57]

32. Another vote for Adlai Stephenson

Supposedly, when he was campaigning a woman told him that, "all intelligent and informed people" would vote for him. To which Stephenson replied, "Madam, i'll need more votes than that".

[mtnsnake]

8. Ted K, Mario Cuomo

[SaveElmer]

9. Hubert Humphrey...by far IMO...

Even Barry Goldwater says it was a damn shame he didn't beat Nixon in 1968...

[SoFlaJet]

10. John Kerry

if only the idiot occupying the White House now was held to the same standards when it comes to speaking he might have had a second chance in '08.One more reason I can't stand Hillary and McCain for jumping all over his botched joke.You hear Bush trying to be "folksy" and funny yesterday?Double standards baby

[cry baby]

18. American politics is turned upside down...nt

[mtnsnake]

23. That's the right answer, but not for this question.

Now if the OP'er asked who's the only Democrat to ever lose to an imbecile, then you might be right.

[blm]

42. This nation would be in its 2nd decade of New World Order by now if it wasn't for Kerry.

if it wasn't for John Kerry how much about the BFEE would ANY of us know today?

There would never have been an interruption of the Bush reign in 1993 if Kerry hadn't kept pummeling Bush throughout his term with IranContra and BCCI.

[AtomicKitten]

52. plus he can windsurf like a mo-fo

[karynnj]

69. Gee, finally saying something true about Senator Kerry

One of the top windsurfers did say that the Senator was excellent, especially given how infrequently he had been able to windsurf. He went on to say that it was a sport requiring atletic skill and the ability to focus.

So, while Senator Kerry's brilliance, character, eloquence, and accomplishments are more important, it is true he is also an athlete, able to participate in a demanding sport in his 60s. He also is a pretty good guitarist - though the reason Kerry was given a guitar by Bono was for work he did as a legislator.

Looking at the people who have liked and respected him and those who dislike him, I feel honored to be with the good guys. (The Kerry haters get Nixon and his thugs, O'Neil, Corsi, Bush and his thugs, Oliver North, Reagan and his RW nun and priest killing Contra thugs) Take your choice.

He's not running for President, so your continued negativity can't be based on concern that he could somehow have the strength to win the nomination then lose.

[AtomicKitten]

70. Truth can be inconvenient sometimes

to those with stars in their eyes and, yes, most Democrats are THRILLED he isn't mucking up the process by running again. We want to win this time.

[mtnsnake]

54. If it wasn't for Kerry, Bush would be enjoying his 3rd year of retirement by now. nt

[blm]

59. Nope. DNC gave up on 2002 and 2004 on Sept 12, 2001 and focused all their attention

on DC-centric issues for the party while the party infrastructures were being collapsed in red and swing states all over the country.

If DNC had done ITS job and strengthened the party infrastructure and worked on securing the election process for the four years it was charged with doing so, Kerry would have taken office in Jan 2005, because he earned more votes than Bush did and beat Bush at every one of their man to man matchups. How did the DNC do? How did the Left Media do against RW media machine?


And no matter what image you PREFER Kerry have - as an empty suit that deserves scorn - the HISTORIC RECORD proves otherwise. But then, you never were big on National Security Archives or congressional record or caring about corruption and open government issues. It's all a popularity contest and gameplaying to you while you attack those who have done the REAL heavylifting for democracy in this country.

[mtnsnake]

62. There is nothing you can do or say

that will ever make John Kerry a convincing contender as a presidential candidate. Yes, he's accomplished nice things as a senator, but as a presidential candidate, fuhgeddaboutit.

Thus, my previous post stands as correct. :smoke:

[blm]

68. So you want nominee to go in with the EXACT SAME DNC strategy and infrastructure that was

in place in 2002 and 2004? Hillary and any other Democrat of your choosing would have won in 2004 with the exact same circumstances and party infrastructure as Kerry had then?

Gee....then why has Howard Dean had to oversee so much infrastructure reconstruction the last two years and with plenty more work ahead in so many states? All he had to do was sit in DC, collect donations and just change the head of the ticket.

[mtnsnake]

72. The reason "Dean had to oversee so much infrastructure reconstruction the last 2 years"

is because Kerry botched it so bad in 2004 that it set us back light years. You don't go losing an election to a moron and then expect that there won't be any work to be done within our infrastructure.

Hillary and any other Democrat of your choosing would have won in 2004 with the exact same circumstances and party infrastructure as Kerry had then?

I can say this: Hillary wouldn't have sat there and whistled Dixie when the Swifties were attacking her for endless months on end. She also would've handed Bush's ass to him on a silver platter in all three of the debates instead of just two. How you can lose one debate to a moron is beyond belief.

[blm]

75. Kerry defended Bill on draft dodging attacks in 92. Hillary DID sit by while Kerry was attacked

by swifts. She also sat by and would not back Kerry up on Tora Bora, Abu Ghraib, or Rumsfeld's firing when he was the nominee. Neither did Bill.

And you are completely wrong on the party infrastructure - the party infrastructure had been operating under the targeted state strategy for many years BEFORE 2004. THAT is what collapsed the party infrastructure in all those red and swing states. You know it, but have too much invested in blaming Kerry for everything. Collapsed party infrastructure made sure that Gore's votes couldn't get counted in 2000, get Cleland's and other Dems' votes counted in 2002, and Kerry's votes counted in 2004.

Party infrastructure is built in the YEARS before a vote. Only a fool would think it is built after the Dem presidential nominee becomes known.

[mtnsnake]

77. If Kerry wasn't going to say anything on his own behalf, why should Hillary?

Before one sticks up for someone, one needs to know where one stands. In regards to the Swifties, Kerry's silence is what did him in, not Hillary's.

[blm]

82. He did defend himself as you have seen in Research Forum, but BACK UP from party is always

crucial as the candidate can't go on the shows every night to defend himself - did you see Bush doing it? Nope. He had Giuliani, McCain and Dole - bigname GOPs doing it almost every night.

Bill Clinton didn't show up to defend himself on draft-dodging charges - but Kerry showed up to do it for him.

[mtnsnake]

85. That's the only place I've ever heard any mention of him defending himself

If he defended himself, he sure didn't do it through any of the more conventional avenues where Joe Blow voter could see it, that's for certain.

[blm]

89. Yeah - who thought after 9-11 that news cameras would show up at Firefighters Convention

speech on Aug 19, 2004. It's not like what firefighters were thinking and who they were supporting for president was important enough for newscameras, eh? Especially with that presidential nominee speaking and attacking the swiftliars and Bush WH and inviting Bush to debate their service records. No news there.

No - the media is definitely not complicit.

[Nedsdag]

126. Please!

Even his own daughters have said Kerry didn't fight hard enough during the 2004 campaign.

[karynnj]

71. Did he re- enter the race?

Given the climate of fear and terror in 2004 and the biased press, Kerry did well to do as well as he did. If there were stronger candidates, they should have run in 2004 - rather than waiting till an easier year.

[AtomicKitten]

65. again I will inform you election reform must be legislated

and you win the prize for the most excuses offered for a failed candidacy ...

In addition to EVM fraud (see above), Kerry lost because he did not stand up to the Swift Boat Liars, he insisted on happy talk at the Dem Convention, and he did not fight for the vote as he promised.

That is a fact.

I realize your need to cling to past accomplishments in order to bolster your unrealistic view of this politician, but when that spills over into blaming others for his shortcomings, that's where you will butt up against some inconvenient truth.

[blm]

73. So, DNC's Office of Voter Integrity had NO JOB TO DO countering vote suppression tactics

and purged voter rolls or securing the voting machine software BEFORE the vote?

Your excuses for the DNC and McAuliffe are laughable because the one area that FAILED in 2004 was the election PROCESS that was never secured on too many levels for the voters AND the candidates.

Kerry wasn't the only candidate who went unserved by the party - and 2002 was a crucial election, too, that had nothing to do with Kerry as president, but people like you need Kerry as the scapegoat.

Protect Terry McAuliffe at all costs - Attack Kerry - the corruption wing of the Democratic party supports you in that quest.

[AtomicKitten]

74. the only thing that is laughable in a pathetic sort of way

is the fact that you coddle Kerry like he is your retarded 6-year-old child and offer up excuse after excuse, with a straight face and strident tone no less, for his shortcomings

[blm]

76. McAuliffe screwed over Dem party for YEARS and all his apologists point fingers at Kerry.

.

[mtnsnake]

79. Does that include while 1 of the greatest presidents ever, Bill Clinton, was in office?

[AtomicKitten]

81. if you didn't view your world in such stark black & white terms

you would realize how melodramatic that statement is

[blm]

83. If you weren't so invested in protecting the coverup wing of the Dem party

you might have me interested in what you think.

[AtomicKitten]

86. I'm sorry you view opposing POVs

as being "invested in protecting the coverup wing of the Dem party" but that is your misinterpretation of the status quo, as convenient as that may be for you.

Best of luck on your campaign here at DU.

[catgirl]

98. I'm with you bro (or sis)

First of all, why should anyone HAVE to deal with swift boat ass-holes?
Terry McAuliffe should have shot them down. Of course, we know that
Karl Rove was behind it. He's brought down many a good candidates.

Kerry would have been a great president. Howard Dean would have
helped him with the attacks. And no, Hillary didn't stand up for him then,
nor did she stand up for him with the overblown "joke". In fact, she did
the opposite. She reprimanded him! She lost my vote then and there.

[AtomicKitten]

113. you have some wrong information

Terry McAullife begged Kerry to respond to the Swift Boat Liars, and Kerry did not and chose to handle it in the way he did. Kerry, in fact, edited McAuliffe's speech before the Dem Convention in 2004, insisting on only happy talk and not attacking Bush.

To suggest McAuliffe should have thrown himself on Kerry and forced him to do what he wanted is absurd, and saying that Dean would have done so regardless is equally absurd. Kerry is a grown man and made some bad decisions in his own campaign. This incessant blaming is not only misplaced, it is really detrimental to the party.

Regardless of what you think of Hillary, IMO any candidate up for re-election had the right to get out from under Kerry's fumble during the 2006 election that brought it to a screeching halt; at any other time it would have probably been no big deal. And she probably never had your vote anyway, so no net loss there.

[catgirl]

122. Re-read my post

"wrong information"? I was expressing my opinion-that Kerry
shouldn't have had to deal with the swift boat BS. The aim
was to put him on the defensive. This is where McAullife should
have personally stepped in & handled it. I'm the first to agree that
Kerry's campaign stumbled (several times).

McAullife, in my opinion, is no shining star in this party. And I
won't go on and throw insults at you, like you do to everyone
who isn't enthralled with Hillary Clinton, or Terry McAulife.

Btw, Hillary may have had my vote if only she could answer
questions to reporters, like what she would do about Iraq.
Her answer that it's Bushs' war (gee thanks for the info) and
he better take care of it. That infuriated me so much that I
will not vote for her in the primaries. Sorry that I can actually
back up my reasoning for it.

[Missy M]

11. My opinion:

William Jennings Bryan
Sojourner Truth

[cry baby]

15. very interesting choice...

good one

[Uben]

12. Lloyd Benson

I liked him.

[mtnsnake]

20. He's the younger brother of Lloyd Bridges, is he not?

[Uben]

21. John Hanson

Who the heck is John Hanson? He was the first man to serve a full term as President of the Continental Congress under the Articles of Confederation in 1781 and 1782.

[cry baby]

22. didn't know that! thanks...

[mtnsnake]

28. Hey cry baby

Did you ever see the movie "Cry Baby" with Johnny Depp? Very cool movie in case you haven't seen it yet.

[cry baby]

30. No, I haven't seen it...but love J. Depp. I'll look it up and watch..

thanks for the tip!

[mtnsnake]

31. I just saw it recently

Depp is great but wait until you see Kim McGuire who plays the role of "Hatchet-Face". You'll love it. It's kind of a spoof on "Grease".

[AtomicKitten]

45. a demented "Grease"

I worship Johnny Depp.

[mtnsnake]

46. You worship Johnny Depp? Hey, that's better

than worshiping Johnny Kerry. Remember him? He once co-starred in "Windsurfers of the Caribbean".

[AtomicKitten]

50. **

[cry baby]

13. How about Molly Ivins...I loved her outlook

on life and politics.

[oasis]

14. Eugene McCarthy.

[montieg]

37. Second that!!

[Imalittleteapot]

102. I'll 3rd that.

[no_hypocrisy]

16. Arguably William Jennings Bryan.

I know, I know. Fundamentalist, populist, etc. But he may have been able to stand up to the Trusts earlier than TR did.

Next controversial would-be president: Eugene Victor Debs. Even socialists have a shot at correcting the errors inherent in a republic employing democratic principles.

[no_hypocrisy]

64. Adding Millicent Fenwick. She would've straightened out the

republicans wholesale. I saw her debate Frank Lautenberg in 1980 for Senate. She won my vote that night.

[nuxvomica]

105. I for one consider Bryan and Debs excellent choices

My hat's off to you.

[POAS]

17. Shirley Chisholm

[cry baby]

19. Totally!!! nt

[wicket]

26. Amen to that!

She was UNBOUGHT & UNBOSSED!!!!

[UnyieldingHierophant]

24. Colin Powell*

[Bjorn Against]

114. What? The man who sat in front of the UN and lied about WMDs?

Powell is not even close to a great American, he is a war criminal who needs to be sent to the Hague along with Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld and the rest.

[demnan]

25. George McGovern

He would have made a great president. This thoughtfull pragmatic man was nothing like the extreme liberal he was made out to be. And at a time when his country was embroiled in an unnecessary war - TWICE! he stood up to try and help, most recently with a plan to get us out of Iraq.

George, I'm glad I could campaign for you even though I was too young to vote then. I'll always respect you!

[pdxmike]

97. another vote for the prairie populist!

A great American, who is still fighting the good fight

[Poll_Blind]

27. Spaulding Gray, Kurt Vonnetgut.... n/t

PB

[jakem]

101. Now THAT is a ticket!!!

Surreal, liberal, and full of bizarre introspection. nice.

[Poll_Blind]

107. .

;-)

PB

[fuzzyball]

29. Hillary R Clinton would be a great president...eom

[mainegreen]

33. Margaret Chase Smith

That would have been great.

[MaineDem]

60. But a Republican. n/t

[mainegreen]

95. True that, but then given what Republicans once were in Maine,

that does not mean she is in any way like modern Repukes. The way she stood up to McCarty illustrated that.

:shrug:

[MaineDem]

120. Very true

I was actually at an anti-war rally at Colby back in 1970 (I think.) Both she and Muskie spoke. It was cool!

[bluescribbler]

34. Here are a few additions

Thurgood Marshall
William O. Douglas
Daniel Webster
John Marshall
George Marshall
Eleanor Roosevelt
Clara Barton
Upton Sinclair
Walter Reed
George McGovern
Walter Cronkite
Thomas Paine
Bob Dylan

[lastliberalintexas]

111. I'll 2d Paine

Even though he probably didn't have the temperament for it.

[NYCGirl]

35. I'll add another vote for Mario Cuomo. NT

[Rageneau]

36. Robert E. Lee

IMHO, this man is one of the greatest Americans of all time. And he certainly WOULD have been President had he not sacraficed everything he had in order to be loyal to his "country", Virginia. There WERE many honorable men on the side of the South in the Civil War, and Lee was, by every account, the most honorable of them all.

[oasis]

43. Benedict Arnold: Another brilliant general turned traitor. (eom)

[k_jerome]

53. is this for real?nt

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

63. It was a different world...

People identified with their home state more strongly than with the national government. The previous poster called Lee a traitor, but in the context of the times, his remaining loyal to the federal government and making war on Virginia would have been consider more treacherous.

[k_jerome]

67. a little background...

i was born in Stonewall Jackson Hospital, about 4 blocks from where Lee is buried. I am well aware of his story and history of the conflict.

Having said that, suggesting he would make a good President is a little beyond what I would do.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

87. Don't think Lee would have done it anyway...

From what I've read, he was a soldier first and really didn't care for politicians. Even if the Civil War had never happened, I don't think he would have even been tempted.

[k_jerome]

88. i would agree. nt.

[montieg]

38. Barbara Jordan and Sen. George Norris (Neb.)

[Parche]

39. PRESIDENTS

ADMIRAL NIMITZ






ADMIRAL SPRUANCE

[cherokeeprogressive]

41. Will Rogers

[Sequoia]

44. Eugene V. Debs

Eugene Victor Debs (November 5, 1855-October 20, 1926) labor leader, socialist agitator and five time candidate for President of the United States.

“The master class has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles. The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject class has had nothing to gain and all to lose—especially their lives.”

Among the thousands in the audience was a stenographer for the U. S. Attorney’s office, who recorded—fortunately for worker historians—Debs’ attack on “our plutocracy, our Junkers.” Although Debs placed his opposition to the war within the protection of the U.S, Constitution, the text of the speech was the basis for a 10-count indictment for violation of the Espionage Law of 1917. In his defense, he claimed to be part of a tradition that began with “Washington, Paine, Adams” but was convicted and sentenced to ten years in federal prison. In court, Debs delivered one of his most memorable statements:”While there is a lower class, I am in it; while there is a criminal element, I am of it; while there is a soul in prison, I am not free.”

While serving his sentence in the Atlanta federal prison, Deb was once again a candidate of the Socialist Party for President in the 1920 election. The slogan “From the jail house to the White House,” and references to the candidate as “#9653,” his prison identification, made the campaign—in which Debs drew almost one million votes, or about 3% of the total—unique. Even as Debs ran, his socialist supporters were breaking up into competing parties in the wake of the Russian Revolution.

On December 23, 1921, President Warren Harding announced that Debs and 23 other political prisoners would have their sentences commuted to time served, and would be released on Christmas Day. He returned to Terre Haute in frail health to confront the various factions of the left and to resume friendships with his middle-west friends, Sinclair Lewis and Carl Sandburg. In 1923, he became the National Chairman of the Socialist Party, but conceded that a working-class party had no chance in the 1924 elections. Instead Debs supported Robert M. “Fighting Bob” LaFollette’s new Progressive Party so that “socialists could keep the red flag flying,” a decision denounced by the new Communist Party, whose paper once accused Debs of sinking “into the swamp of social-democratic reform.”

Debs never really recovered his health after the release from the Atlanta penitentiary. He spent time in a sanitarium near Chicago, and surveyed the virtual collapse by 1925 of the Socialist Party amidst the reactionary politics of “the roaring 20’s.” Debs died on October 20, 1926, the same day that a letter to him, urging “courage” and expressing a desire “to see you, kiss you” was written by Nicola Sacco, himself standing in the shadow of the gallows.

http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache:ocrGE3QEhSsJ:student.ccbcmd.edu/~wbarry/publications/Eugene%2520Victor%2520Debs.doc+labor+leader+eugene&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=6&gl=us

[PassingFair]

57. Thank you, we MUST NOT EVER forget Eugene Debs!

[LostInAnomie]

125. Beat me to it!

One of the best human beings to ever come out of Indiana.

[Sequoia]

47. Johnny Cash

'Cause he was for the downtrodden and underdog.

[saltpoint]

92. Had Johnny Cash lived, I would have paid a great deal to hear a debate

between him and Newt Gingrich.

[sampsonblk]

48. Malcolm X

A man of far greater integrity than most presidents.

[k_jerome]

51. Second! nt.

[AtomicKitten]

49. John F. Kennedy, Jr.

Such untapped promise.

[PassingFair]

55. Benjamin Franklin -- Elizabeth Cady Stanton -- Thomas Paine .. n/t

[JaneQPublic]

56. Adlai Stevenson III, Paul Wellstone, Barbara Jordon, and of course

Al Gore.

I might throw Howard Dean in there, too, but I'm actually very glad he is where he is right now.

[mtnsnake]

58. Joe Tex

Few people even come close.

[MaineDem]

61. Edmund S Muskie

Damn you, William Loeb!

[Mass]

66. A lot of totally anonymous people who shaped this country.

We can probably think of a hundred names of famous people who we admire, but for each of them, how many people that history will not remind, but who have had individual contributions as important as them.

I propose a tribute to the Anonymous American Human Being.

[Radical Activist]

78. Most of the really important people were never President.

People on the front lines pushing for change are always too radical in their time to become President.

Jane Addams (of Hull House, not John's wife)
William Jennings Bryan
John L. Lewis (Founder of CIO, UMWA President)
Emma Goldman
Senator Paul Simon
Pete Seeger
A. Philip Randolph
WEB DuBois
Eugene Debbs
Upton Sinclair
Howard Zinn
Elijah Lovejoy

[k_jerome]

80. truth! nt.

[Hippo_Tron]

116. Interesting point

Really, the President is never on the forefront of change the people outside of government are and they push those who are in power to change.

I wonder if that's an advantage to our system or a flaw.

[Debs]

84. How about

Noam Chomsky (I know he wouldnt really want to be pres)
Adalia Stevenson
Ted Kennedy
Eugene Debs

[saltpoint]

90. I'm with soleft and mtnsnake -- Mario Cuomo.

Huge mind, true heart, historical genius.

And Jesus can that man give a speech.

A ways back, I'd throw in names like Morris Udall, Birch Bayh, and Paul Simon. On Paul Simon, I mean Illinois Senator Paul Simon, although I'd probably vote for musician Paul Simon, too.

Fred Harris (D-OK) was a populists' populist.

And Lowell Weicker. He stood his ground against Nixon's flunkies during the Senate Watergate investigation and hearings, and all but threw Chuck Colson's sorry ass out of his Senate office when Colson tried to curry favor to win Weicker's vote on the Committee. He's a feisty, rough-and-tumble independent, though a former Republican, but I think he'd have made a far better president than any Republican in my lifetime.

[ripple]

91. Edward R. Murrow would have made an excellent pres.

Bono would be great, too, but he isn't American.

I agree with your picks, as well. ;-)

[manic expression]

93. John Reed

Eugene V. Debs, Malcolm X, etc...

I would add Emma Goldman, but she was born in Russia IIRC.

[cry baby]

94. Paul Wellstone...as JaneQPublic stated earlier...good choice nt

[Madspirit]

96. Ann Richards! n/t

[catgirl]

99. Governor Ann Richards!

Awesome lady.

[EndElectoral]

100. Al Gore

[PresidentObama]

103. Even if the snakes come out to bite, I'll say Senator Kerry.

Vice President Al Gore and Ted Kennedy.

[sandnsea]

104. Any Kennedy, John Kerry, Eleanor Roosevelt n/t

[rhino47]

106. Paul Wellstone.

I still mourn him.

[zulchzulu]

108. Samuel Langhorne Clemens

...otherwise known as Mark Twain



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Twain

[lastliberalintexas]

109. Without reading the rest of the thread first, I'd say

Adlai Stevenson and Barbara Jordan. Also Emily Dickinson- though I really don't know why I say that. Just a hunch.

[LeftishBrit]

124. I don't think she'd have wanted to; she was pretty much of a recluse

Martin Luther King?

Not sure whether they'd have been great presidents or not, but I think the world would be a better place if McGovern had beaten Nixon, Dukakis had beaten Bush 1, Gore's election had been authorized, etc.

[IndianaGreen]

115. George Marshall (according to FDR and many historians)

Eugene Debs

Eleanor Roosevelt

Adlai Stevenson

Bobby Kennedy

George McGovern

Al Gore

[Mz Pip]

117. Me

Hey, I could do better than Bush and with only 42 other people who've ever made it to the presidency - most of us here n DU could do a better job.

Mz Pip
:dem:

[The Anti-Neo Con]

118. A couple...

Ted Kennedy
Rev. Jesse Jackson

[Joe Bacon]

119. Eugene Debs, Norman Thomas or Upton Sinclair

Debs in 1912 or Norman Thomas in 1932 would have shattered the status quo.

As for Upton Sinclair, he laid the groundwork for the modern Democratic Party in California. It would have been fascinating to see him implement "I, Governor"...

[SCDem]

121. RFK, Marian Wright Edelman

[Thothmes]

123. Never President

General George C. Marshall