I didn't write this, but the writer (Michael Conrad) gave me permission to post it here. It's got a lot of great information and analysis for Dem voters.
Follow me below the fold.
Check out the updated Rasmussen favorables.
Favorable / Unfavorable
Hillary Clinton - 51 / 47
Barack Obama - 50 / 44
John Edwards - 52 / 41
The year - long pattern continues.
With a deadlocked convention looking like a real possibility, and the Clintons and Obama engaging in a scorched - earth fight to the death, as Democrats we need to ask ourselves two very important questions.
Which candidate's nomination would best demonstrate to the country what our party stands for?
If Governor Crist is as popular as all kinds of polling says he is, McCain should win the Florida primary, or at least place a close second. With Giuliani officially deflated, McCain will take California and the winner take all states in the Northeast. So, who can beat John McCain?
The answer to both questions - John Edwards.
As Democrats, we need to remember what is on the line in this election...
The lives and limbs of American soldiers and Iraqi civilians.
The Supreme Court and a Woman's Right to Choose.
The future of the Middle Class, Organized Labor, and the millions of Americans living in poverty.
The Environment.
Health Care for people who desperately need it.
I could go on and on.
Sending one of two damaged candidates into a general election with a fractured party behind them against a VERY formidable Republican ticket is sheer lunacy. McCain / Pawlenty was scary enough, but with Governor Crist's VP aspirations well known, the possibility of a McCain / Crist ticket gives me nightmares.
If that ticket faces Clinton or Obama, Florida becomes extremely difficult to win. Even if Florida's Democratic Senator Bill Nelson (a recent Clinton endorser whose VP aspirations are also very well known) was Clinton's veep candidate, McCain / Crist would be very hard to beat in Florida. Both Clinton and Obama do poorly against McCain in Ohio, and the Southwest would be very friendly territory for McCain as well. Where would Clinton or Obama beat him? Iowa could flip, but Missouri would be problematic for either of them. And this is without even mentioning the more moderate blue states that McCain could threaten them in.
Is the task ahead of us daunting? You bet your ass it is. But continuing to fight is both the right thing to do, and the smart thing to do. Considering all that is on the line, and that every day the sniping between the celebrity candidates continues the more divided our party becomes, we really don't have a choice.
Oh... and just so you know, every time Senator Edwards is heard he surges in the national numbers. There is a very important debate coming up, and Edwards has won the focus groups in the last 4 debates. The Clintons vs. Obama sniping is really turning people off. One more moment like this, and Super Duper Double Secret Tsunami Earthquake Atomic Wedgie Tuesday will send Edwards into friendly territory (think Texas and Ohio) with a head of steam.
Denver is starting to look like the perfect place to take our party back.