Reply #43: You make an assumption

[HFishbine]

So now back to the pragmatics, and that swing 5% to 10%. Clark's military career is a huge advantage with most moderate, centrist, and Independent voters.

Thanks for the well-reasoned post. I'm not dismissing your other observations by focusing on one, but I think your conclusions are based largely on this assumption, so allow me to focus on your speculation that Clark has some appeal that Dean doesn't.

It's simply not being shown to be true.

According to the latest poll that examined independents and miliatry voters, Clark enjoys no advantage.

Military veterans and current members of the armed forces are no more likely than other Americans to support Clark, a retired U.S. Army general. Among this military subgroup, Bush receives 53 percent to Clark’s 36 percent. Furthermore, the military subgroup would vote strikingly similar to other Americans on all the vote questions.

Furthermore, among independents, Dean is favored by 16% while Clark garners 10%.

It may seem resonable to assume that a former general would have greater appeal to miliatry voters and independent voters, but that is simply not the case and one cannot build a case on assumptions that are demonstrably incorrect.

(source: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,103674,00.html)