Rock is right...

The Republicans are "together" early in the process with probably the best candidate they had. But like all the others (except Ron Paul), McCain has pledged to continue all the policies of Dubya's including the never-ending war, making tax cuts for the rich permanent, and fixing the economy by not doing anything to help average people, that the American public is against.

Assuming it's all over and Hillary is the nominee (I can dream can't I--really Barack would get my full support) by July 1 (and it will be over by July 1), that will give the Democrats and the majority of independents sick of Republican rule 4 months to get over their candidate not winning.

The other thing people keep forgetting here, is that in primary politics, there's often been no clear choice by April 1. This primary season was incredibly frontloaded this time around.

Four months to show how incredibly awful President McCain will be is PLENTY of time.

You forgot to mention that Gore won the popular vote, and only lost the electorial college because he lost his home state. That is not going to happen with McCain.

Having lived all over this country, I think Hillary could beat McCain. (I am a McCain supporter).  I thought Barack could beat McCain a month ago, but the public hates the liberal media, and that they have so coddled Obama, the preferential treatment will cause a backlash.  There is so much out there on Barack, that even guilty white liberals might take a second look.

You may or may not be right.  Time will tell.  But let me point out a few things that might be different this time.

 First, unlike Gore, McCain has alot of independant cred.  My brother, for instance, is torn between Obama and McCain.  Policy-wise, the two men could not be more different, and my brother is much closer to obama politically than mccain.  But he just likes him as a person.

 Second, this dem fight is nasty in a way that the mccain-Bush fight never was.  Jeremiah Wright is an out-and-out racist and Obama's association with him is damning.  And meanwhile, if Hillary takes it, then you will have many black people feeling that the racist dem party stole the nod from obama.

 I guess what i am getting there is that there is an identity politics component here that is deepening the poison.  i am not sure both sides in the dem primary would see a victory by the other as fair and acceptable.  Further, we are very likely not to see a consession until the convention, and therefore, there is a good chance the other candidate will not give a show of party unity, as needed.  for instance, if hillary convinces the super delegates to give it to her, will obama be in any mood to endorse her?  And Hillary is rightfully called the terminator, in the sense that she doesn't give up, ever.  And besides you have to understand that there is a bargain in the clinton marriage: she puts up with his sh*t in return for political gain.  If she loses this, then it will mean she went through all that public humiliaion for nothing.  That's gotta be a bitter pill to swallow.

 No, there is a deeper nastiness here in this fight than you saw in 2000 between Bush and McCain.

Anonymous talks about how there is "so much out there on Barack" that it will derail his general election effort.

If that is the case, how come it has not derailed him in the primary campaign? 

As to my own political affiliation: I am a Republican who supported Romney as the best of a poor lot, but I am so horrified at the prospect of a McCain Presidency that I will be enthusiastically voting for Obama in November.

 By the way: To get a more complete picture of John McCain, don't just wallow in the media love affair with the guy but read the book "McCain, the Myth of a Maverick".

I've always been an Independent, and I've almost always voted for Democrats.  This time around, I started out with a favorable impression of Obama, but the more time has gone on the less I like him. 

In fact, if I were voting Dem this time I'd definitely go with Hillary.  Sure she's a liar, but it turns out that he is too.  Sure she's had sleazy friends, but it turns out he is too.  Sure she's done influence peddling and real estate deals that should be (or are) illegal, but it turns out he has too.  Sure her philandering husband can't keep his pants shut, but then his hateful corporate welfare queen wife can't keep her mouth shut.

Thank god the Republicans (despite their most valiant efforts) to cough up a likable candidate who'll be easy to vote for.  Now I can just watch the rich political pageant of the Dems and enjoy the show.

Why are we all so intently focused on picking apart the candidates' comments and personal affiliations? The only thing that should matter in choosing a leader is whether or not they will make a good one.

We need someone in the Oval Office who will run this country with compassion, courage, and wisdom. Unfortunately, the only things anyone wants to talk about are banal, trivial, and downright insulting to the average American's intelligence. Can we at least try to focus on the important issues? The economy, health care, and the war in the Middle East top the list of concerns for most voters. In spite of that, these three issues have been all but ignored by the pundits for at least the last month. Everyone is yammering on about who Obama's pastor is and where Clinton's real estate interests are.

All politicians have skeletons in the closet. All of them have lied to someone at some time. And each and every one of them proves to have at least one really big wart. What matters is the direction the U.S. is taking, and will take in the next four years.