Why has Edwards decided not to run for Senate re-election?

[West Coast Democrat]

This has me concerned. That Senate seat will be probably be lost now, won't it? Might he change his mind if he doesn't do well in the Presidential primaries?

[Renew Deal]

1. I was disappointed by this.

He wants to look serious, but he didn't need to do it. There was enough time. Maybe he wants to leave elected politics if he loses.

[West Coast Democrat]

2. Would it be possible for him to change his mind

later next year, or would that be too late to decide on a Senate run?

[mlawson]

8. Doubt it. The media whores would crucify him for

being 'indecisive'. He has been promised something good, not to worry!

[leyton]

35. probably too late

Since Erskine Bowles is probably going to announce a campaign soon if he hasn't already.

[DoveTurnedHawk]

3. He Wants to Be Either President, VP or AG, IMO

And IMO he's got a good chance at VP or AG, if he plays his cards right.

DTH

[West Coast Democrat]

4. But what about the Senate seat?

It's important for us to keep it.

[Yupster]

5. Too hard to run for both

To win the Democratic nomination, you have to run to the left.

The further left you go, the less likely you are to be reelected in North Carolina. It would have taken quite a gymnast to run to the left in Iowa and run to the center in North carolina at the same time. It wasn't worth the try.

[surfermaw]

7. Yupster...you got it!

[surfermaw]

6. Political chang in North Carolina

The political picture is changing in North Carolina, It is about even steven now leaning democrat I think, after massive lay off in the state, North Carolina is hurting, some of the old rednecks with fairly good jobs , have lost them and the old rednecks are worried about their sons and daughters loosing every thing they have...Jesse Helms is gone, and Elizabeth Dole who connected her wagon behind The Bush Administration, spouting the words of her connection at ever place she spoke...Bush administsration hasn't been too good for North Caroliana...Bowl's, campaign was held up by state lines being drawn or argued over, if he had a few more weeks, I think he would have won the seat. Edwards' knows Bowl's has a good chance at the seat, Edwards is seriously going after the Presidency. I still say he knows what he is doing.

[mlawson]

10. I don't disagree with your analysis.

NC is becoming even more cosmopolitan, and its political tastes will change with it. The baptists are still a locked-in repuke group, but they could be outnumbered if EVERYone else (who is aware of the issues) would vote!!

IMO, Dole won because her personality and looks were considered superior to that of Bowles, by voters who are not political. That election was probably more like one for class president. Otherwise how can it be explained that NC has had a Dem governor for several terms, and has a Dem senator?? Many of the *same* people voted for Edwards AND Dole. But I can't imagine Bowles winning, and I hope he will not run again; he just isn't LIKABLE, and tragically that really does matter.

[BikeDeck]

14. State lines being redrawn?

What state lines were being redrawn that "held up" Bowles campaign? He was running for the Senate, not a House seat. redistricting has no effect on a Senate campaign.

And Edwards has been a failure as a Senator in my opinion. And many, if not most voters in NC see him the same way. What he should do is resign his seat and have Easley appoint Bowles, giving him a big head start on the 2004 election and a senate track record to run on. The power of incumbancy is a powerful tool.

[West Coast Democrat]

16. If Edwards is such a "failure" as a Senator

why do you think he should even continue in the presidential primaries?

[BikeDeck]

19. Failure

I think he is a failure as senator because he has ignored NC about as much as one could during his campaign for and because of his campaign for the presidency.

He goes around holding town hall meetings in various states for his campaign and personally attends them. But when he held some town hall meetings for his presidential campaign here in NC he DIDNT attend them! He had campaign aides representing him. That pissed off a lot of NC voters. He couldnt even be bothered to attend his own town hall meetings in the state he represents in the Senate! But has no problem attending them in other states. That is unacceptable.

[West Coast Democrat]

22. So would he win N. Carolina for us?

If he's disliked in N Carolina, why should he run for President to win us the South?

[BikeDeck]

23. Not sure

I don't think he has a snow balls chance in hell of winning the nomination. I think some back room deals have been made for him to be the VP or AG nominee and thats why he has backed out of the Senate race, assuring a realistic shot of a dem retaining the seat and not risking a fluke happening and a republican being elected Gov, him being re-elected, getting the VP or AG nod and then a republican Gov appointing his replacement.

NC voters can get wacky from time to time. He seems to have taken the path of least resistence for both himself and the dem candidate to replace him.

Will he win the south for us if he gets the nomination? Doubtful. Al Gore was from the South, Bill Clinton was from the South, and Gore couldn't muster a single win in the south, including his home state of Tenn. If he won Tenn., Florida would have not been even a footnote.

[West Coast Democrat]

26. I don't expect him to get past a VP Nomination

but would his being on that ticket help win N. Carolina?

[BikeDeck]

25. Outta here

I'm outta here for a few hours at a minimum. If I don't respond for a while, thats why.

[BlackVelvetElvis]

37. This is what I'm hating about Edwards right now

When I look in my paper to see how our Congress voted in DC, I keep seeing "not voting" beside his name. I resent that like hell because he promised he'd do his DAMN JOB and represent our state, not USE the citizens of NC as a stepping stone into a more powerful office. He's so damn transparent. We are hurting here and he doesn't even bother to VOTE. Can you tell I'm not sugar-coating it?

[AP]

17. Everybody's so in love with the outsider these days.

Has it occured to anyone that Edwards is probably the biggest outsider running? Sharpton, although never elected to anything, is more of an insider, and Kucinich, whose politics are basically the hold-no-prisoners version of the same populism that Edwards has embraced, has been in politics since he was kid.

As far as I can tell most NCians love Edwards and many of those who don't really don't like him because he's not doing the insider NC politics BS.

[leyton]

36. disagree...

I don't think most North Carolinians like Edwards, not because he's a bad politician or anything but because he began his campaign for Senate four years into his first term. A lot of people feel that he hasn't paid his dues, and that he ran for Senate just so he could run for President.

[AP]

9. Because he'll probably get the nomination and win and bring Dem sen's in

on his coattails, not only in NC, but all over the country (or, even if NC loses his seat, he'll offset that by bringing some in on his coattails elsewhere).

Does anyone have a list of states with competitive, likely-to-be contested races in 04?

Let's take a look and see which races we think which candidates will have the longest coattails to help win for Democrats.

For example, do you think Kerry is going be able to go down to Alabama or Arkansas and bring in a Dem senate victory? I certainly don't. But I think Edwards could.

[West Coast Democrat]

11. I worry because of all the Dem seats up for grabs

Someone posted this RNC plan a few days ago (see page 2):

http://www.nrsc.org/nrscweb/roadmap/2004roadmap.pdf

Besides Edwards, there are Hollings in SC, Miller in GA (a DINO, but still helps with the number balance), Breaux in LA (didn't he say he wouldn't run again?)

There are only 2 open Republican seats, Illinois (our best shot) and now Oklahoma.

Where do we have but one shot to pick up an open seat?

(Plus, there was a rumor that Giulliani might run against Schumer in NY.)

If we don't win the White House in 2004, we will most likely be stuck with worse numbers in the Senate than before.

[AP]

12. 18 Dems are up for grab and 2 Republicans?

So, which of the candidates is going to have coattails for Illinois, OK, NC (to add two) and who's going to hold the line for Democrats in GA, SC, LA?

I'll tell you who. Edwards.

[West Coast Democrat]

13. But if we don't win the Presidency

we will lose a lot of senate seats.

[AP]

15. Edwards has the best chance of winning that too. That's why he'll have the

longest and broadest coattails.

[mlawson]

20. He has the best chance of winning the general election, but

probably not a good chance of winning the Dem nomination, I fear. Again, I suspect that the DNC has other ideas.

But he *might* have been promised VP. That would do...

[AP]

27. He's doesn't need to be promissed. He's the only logical choice for VP.

Anybody with sense can see that.

But, I think he'll follow Clinton's arc in '92. He's going to come in second in IA, maybe third or fourt in NH, first in SC, and they'll he'll roll on and get the nomination.

If he doesn't, he'll be VP.

And whoever wins NH, when you hear his name in 10 years, you'll feel the same way you feel today when you hear the name of the 92 winner -- "Tsongas."

How does that name make you feel today?

[mlawson]

29. How would Kerry feel about that??

I am still convinced that he will be the nominee, no matter what, for reasons that I have posted here many times. Would he pick Edwards for VP??? Or would it be his decision, in reality??

[AP]

31. Kerry can pick whomever he choses, and he'd be mad not to pick Edwards.

They seem to get along too.

Over at the Edwards campaign blog, Elizabeth Edwards wrote about walking to a restaurant for dinner. Kerry was driving by (notice who walks and who drives). Kerry pulled over, jumped out of his car, and talked to Edwards for a while as passersby's gathered around to get a look at the two of them.

That's the kind of story that leads to two guys being on the same ticket together.

[West Coast Democrat]

32. If Dean wins the nomination, who would he pick?

Maybe Clark can do well in the South. It's possible.

[AP]

33. I think Dean has the biggest problem picking VP

he's characterized himself as an outsider and criticized the other candidates so much that it probably would nauseate his supporters if he picked someone who's either an insider or has been criticized by him, which rules out Kerry, Clark, Edwards, Gephardt, and DLC member, anyone who was in Congress when healthcare didn't pass, anyone who ever talked about race in front of a black audience but not white audiences in the way that Dean thinks race should be talked about, etc. etc.

He's going to have a problem.

But, again, he'd be mad not to pick Edwards if he got nominated.

[West Coast Democrat]

34. Edwards!

Anything to stimulate the Women's Vote! :-)

[West Coast Democrat]

21. I have to say I really like Edwards

I'm undecided for the primaries, but Edwards is one I like. However, I live in Oregon, so I have no idea how Edwards is viewed in the South. Is he well-liked? I ask because Clinton and Gore are both from the South, yet they didn't win the Deep South aside from Louisiana. And if Edwards is unpopular as a Senator in NC, how can he win the state for us?

[Yupster]

28. Troubling open seats

N Carolina
S Carolina
Georgia
Florida

Right down the coast. They all may hold or fall depending on who the presidential nominee is.

If the nominee gives up on the south at some point, and pulls his campaign out, it could cost the party four senate seats.

Breaux is fine as long as he runs, and I haven't heard him withdraw his name.

If Bush were smart, he'd offer him better and better jobs.

[West Coast Democrat]

30. Well, Florida isn't open unless Graham gets a VP Nod

But the others are troubling.

Maybe there's a third Southerner out there who is VP material, but not from an up-for-grabs Senate seat? Any ideas?

[DemocratSinceBirth]

18. The Last Dem To Carry Alabama

was Jimmy Carter in 76.....


If a Dem is carrying Alabama we're talking landslide.....

[blm]

24. Because he either gets VP or Attorney General, imo.

.