I've been doing some thinking about Christie and 2016. [View all]

[Savannahmann]

First, let me begin by admitting publicly that I was wrong. I believed that the RWM protective Society would have brushed the entire Christie thing under the rug, or bridge by now. When it began that was my assumption, and I am happy that my estimation was incorrect.

So I've spent the last couple days doing some consideration of 2016, and who the Repukes have to put up and the answer is that the cupboard is bare. There aren't any Governor's who have the image of competence or the national recognition needed to make the jump to the National Stage. Walker has too much baggage to be taken seriously, Jindal was a non starter in 2012 and I don't see that going anywhere. Nikki Haley is barely competent enough to dress herself in the morning, the GOP in South Carolina hates her almost as much as the Democratic Party does.

So who does that leave? Trump, which is laughable. Romney take two, which is almost as funny. Cruz, Rubio, and the Paul's, Rand and Ron. Not one of them has a snowball's chance in hell of winning nationally, if they were to get the nomination. With Christie out of the picture (another reason I assumed the RWM would move to protect him) There isn't anybody left to make a serious run at the White House.

OK, so what does that mean for 2016 on our side? It means we don't have to settle for Better than. It means we don't have to debate electability versus some Rethug in a perpetually insane fantasy football game. It means that we can and should go for the gold when we are nominating the Democratic Party Candidate.

One of the reasons I've always been kind of lukewarm on Warren, Sanders, Grayson, or any other is because I knew that "electability" would end up being the only debating point starting about eighteen months from now. By the time the Primaries began, who was really electable versus the presumptive Rethug would be the focus of hundreds of editorials and thousands of news segments. That has all changed. That entire mode of thought has just been destroyed.

We don't have to accept Hillary as the continuation of President Obama, or President Obama's third term. We can push and get the big win. It's not a question of who can beat Christie and the love affair that he has with the RWM, it's a question of who we really want deep down to lead this nation. We don't have to settle for the least of our hopes, we can go for the win and forget hoping that our ideals at least place firmly in the middle of the pack.

So the question is who do I like now that the field has been opened up like never before? Honestly, Hillary is not my first choice, not when this once in a lifetime opportunity exists. Never again will the party be able to run a truly progressive candidate with the knowledge that just about anyone we put up there will get the win. So the important race in reality is the primary, because that will decide the direction of the nation, and potentially demonstrate the value of Liberal idealism.

The election of 2016 has changed from "I like Hillary better than..." To "I like this person best of all" It's as your team is the only one on the last mile of the marathon, because the only runner not of that team is out of the race. We know we're going to win, so the question is what Democrat do we want? I'm rather pleasantly surprised to have this opportunity at this point in my life, while I am still young enough to enjoy it.