Tom Vilsack

This is my first political post on Fulham USA, but I read an op-ed about Tom Vilsack in the Washington Post today by David Broder, and Vilsack really impressed me. He is the outgoing Democratic governor of Iowa and he's running for President. Here's a link to the article:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/co ... 01960.html

I then went to his web site and viewed a video on him about how he's going to use the Internet and videoblogging. It isn't as much about what he said but how he said it that really attracted him to me. He seems like a very homespun, down to earth guy. He obviously has enough of an ego to run for President but he also seems to not think too much of himself. His big issues are education and alternative energy to try to move us to energy independence, and fiscal responsibility, and he has a reputation for working well across the aisle, something we need right now.

Most of the other contenders are Senators, but I'm more comfortable with a Governor because Governors have actually run something in their lives and bring a non-Washington perspective to the White House. Yes, he's at 1% right now, but it's a little too early to winnow out candidates. That's one of Broder's big points, that the media focuses on the big guys and doesn't give the less famous candidates a chance.

If you're interested in viewing his video and his website, here's a link:

http://www.tomvilsack08.com/

I know he won't be getting pettyfog's support, :wink: but maybe some others of you might be interested.

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I'm not Tom Vilsack, but I'm sure he would approve this message.

 

I'll try again..

He certainly has a better in-state record than a late GOP guv in Ohio... who we registered Republicans thought so little of his approval rating dropped to 13%.
But his allegations of Blackwell 'cheating' in Ohio disturb me.. how does he know?
We dont and even the Dem oriented papres dont.

Sorry to baptise you in the fire, but dont let that stop you from posting... go out there and prove me wrong.

 

Well, I don't know if Blackwell cheated. From what I read on a survey methodology listserve right after the elections, there were explanations for the differences in the exit polls and the election results. However, there were some things done that seemed to be unethical (like not having enough machines in Democratic areas).

My main point is if that is the worst thing Tom Vilsack has ever done, then he's a better candidate than I thought he was.

BTW, did anybody else catch him on The Daily Show. He was hilarious but he made some good points on serious issues too. What I got out of it as much as anything is that he is a person who is very comfortable with himself, but not in the overly egotistical way most politicians are. On Iraq, he talked about we've created a culture of dependency over there and it's time for the Iraqis to take over, and he is against McCain's proposal to add troops.

Go ahead and watch some of his video blogs and his appearance on The Daily Show, available at www.tomvilsack08.com, and see what you think...

 

Well.. I saw a 'politician'

- AGAIN... and I'm REALLLY tired of pointing this out...
The Secretary of State ONLY puts out guidelines on how to how to hold the elections, and oversees the processes of the count.
The county board of elections actually RUNS the elections and along with that, puts the machines where it feels they serve best.

the fracas over the location of the voting machines was in Franklin County.

And the political power in Franklin County, thus the BoE, is with which party?

Yep! The SAME party as ran the 'hanging chad' elections in Palm Beach County, FL in '00. Because the mind seems to play tricks, sometimes... that was the Dems.

So... unless Iowa is REALLY radically different from Ohio, or Vilsack is just mouthing what he heard.. {why would he do that?} then he's either dumb or lying.

BTW: What Blackwell got out of the election is really not fair. He was anything BUT a Taft crony. No one has even seriously charged him with anything, though there's been innuendo in the net and speeches... he's a good guy who did a good job in his held offices but he paid the price for others' sins.
- What he did wrong was running for office while Republican and Black.


Hey, I just thought of a good twist...

"Figures lie.... and Liars go into politics"

 

Well, AGAIN, if that is the worst thing Tom Vilsack has ever done, then he'll make a great President. My guess is that few people other than Pettyfog will be judging Vilsack's competency for the White House on his positions on Ohio politics.

I know you, Pettyfog, would see a politician--he's a Democrat. He is a politician, but there are different kinds of politicians. There are the people who give politicians a bad name, like George Allen and Jim Webb, part slimy and part not too bright. (What a choice we had in VA this fall!) There are also politicians who are good people, loyal to their party, who believe in what they believe, but are also good people, like Sen. John Warner and former Gov. Mark Warner. That's what I saw in Tom Vilsack. I welcome everyone else to go up to the web site and make up their own mind--don't take my word or Pettyfog's word for it.

I'm not saying Tom Vilsack is perfect, or that I am guaranteeing I will be supporting him a year from now--once I learn more about him and the other candidates, I may support someone else. I just think he deserves an honest chance to go up against the media heavyweights like Clinton and Obama (who don't impress me that much), like people like Sen. Brownback of Kansas (whom I disagree with a lot) deserves the same chance on the GOP side if they run. The media should not be winnowing out the candidates more than a year before the first primary, telling us which ones they've decided have no chance and therefore we cannot give serious consideration to.

 

Good post!

Now here's my point on that. The days of the national politician... or the local one for that matter.. being able to just put in throw-away lines are gone.

Like me, there are bloggers -on both sides- who will pick them up and run with them. That was previously the venue and privilege of the 'National Commentators' and there wasnt much recourse, but a letter to the editor...
but now the debate will be ongoing, the silly comment will be added to a stack somewhere and trotted out again the NEXT time the guy makes a silly comment.

Before you lament this, think about the citizen having on-going dialogue in the politcal process for the first time ever.. or at least since the early 1800's and the invention of the cheap 'broadsheet'.
And YES... the MSM REALLY hates this.. even some on the WSJ are moaning that the blogosphere is intruding on their turf.

The problem is the MSM all have Lexis-Nexis {Proud to say I am employee # 525}. And we dont. But they are apparently too lazy, or cheap, to use it.
If we all had it... some politicians would hang up their public career forthwith.