I, as well as many others, am currently sitting on the sidelines in this primary. I look for diaries to tell me why I should vote for this or that candidate, but too often I find either "hit diaries", or diaries that promote a candidate by telling me how bad all the other candidates are in comparison.
This is a primary, not the general. I don't vote against a candidate in the primary, only for a candidate. For this reason, I view "hit diaries" as non-productive. I know the bad things about all of them. If I want to hear them, I can turn on Faux Lies. Tell me the good things.
Follow me down for a taste of what I want to hear.
Perhaps it is due to my odd hours of board activity, but I don't see much from the supporters of candidates besides the "big three". I know there are other supporters out there, if the polls are accurate. Kucinch, Biden, Dodd, Gravel, and Richardson supporters; tell me why I need to support your candidate.
Leadership
This is the most important quality, in my mind. Tell me why your candidate is a leader. I am voting for a President, not a politician. Tell me why your candidate is willing to step in front of the parade, not drift with the crowd. On what issue has your candidate taken a leadership position?
Military
What is your candidates view on the military? How does your candidate view the role of the military in foreign policy? How will they fix the broken mess that is our Veteran's Affairs? What do they think is owed the military both before, during, and after, a conflict?
Religion
How does your candidate view the role of religion in the government? I don't care what religion they are, or if they attend services. I want to know how they view things like the Faith Based Initiative. Will they keep it as part of the government? Will they expand it to include religions other than Christianity, or do away with it as incompatible with the workings of the government?
Constitution
Is it a quaint document? Will they seek to hold on to the power that has been usurped by the Bush administration? Will they roll back the powers that have accrued, or seek to use them, but in a different way? How do they plan to deal with the secrecy that has surrounded the workings of the government for the past 7 years? Are they willing to hold anybody accountable, or will they want to let bygones be bygones, and move forward with their own agenda?
Domestic Policy
Jobs, immigration, equal rights, off-shore corporate tax shelters; what are the views of your candidate. How will they restore the middle class, which is the engine of the economy?
Foreign Policy
How do they plan to regain the trust of the world? Do they view treaties as laws, or guidelines?
Space Program
How do they view the future of NASA? Do they plan to restore it to its manned spaceflight mission, or go the cheaper unmanned exploration route? Do they think it is needed at all, or would the money be better spent in other places?
Education
How will they restore learning to the classrooms? Do they think that NCLB would work if funded properly, or is it fatally flawed?
These are some of the questions to which I would like answers. I don't want to hear that Candidate X is great because s/he sucks less than the others. Every candidate has flaws. If you don't see the flaws in yours, it's because you aren't looking. There is no "perfect" candidate. I am tired of being told not to support Candidate Y because they are an out of touch, too old, unelectable, divisive, corporate, naive, warmonger.
Give me a reason to leave the sidelines.