With food, there are some combinations that one might not expect to work out well – chili peppers and chocolate, for example – but actually taste pretty darned good. Other food combinations sound disgusting, and well… they actually are. Consider Sardines and blueberry yogurt.
There’s an equivalent in presidential politics: Selection of running mates. It’s not just the individual politicians that pleases or disgusts, but the combination that strikes up a particular flavor.
I ran across a very interesting political flavor combination this morning: Ron Paul plus Dennis Kucinich. So far, the Paul-Kucinich presidential campaign is extremely unofficial, existing only as a YouTube channel. Still, it does give one pause, or maybe even a couple of pauses.
How does the idea of Ron Paul and Dennis Kucinich joining together for a White House campaign in 2012 strike you?
Can you think of any other odd couple tickets for 2012 that merit consideration?
Grayson should definitely run.
Why?
Do you support Grayson’s vote in favor of extending the Patriot Act without reforming it?
Roll call here: http://irregulartimes.com/index.php/archives/2010/02/25/patriot-act-without-reforms-passes-house-roll-call-included/
peanut butter and bacon are a surprisingly good combination. pretzels go good with just about everything, even sardines. ron and dennis? not so good. dennis and ron? maybe.
here’s a good one: palin and pawlenty. not pawlenty and palin. pawlenty is such a pussy, you need balls to be on top of the ticket. oh, i guess dennis wouldn’t make it either. just kidding! i would love to see dennis make ron his bitch.
nightmare scenario: Lieberman/Palin 2012. (shudder)
more like comic scenario… those two couldn’t handle each other’s outsized egos. They’d be spatting before the ink on the news hit the paper. Cue SNL.
During the last presidential primary, Ron Paul said, during one of the few debates that he was invited to, that the opponent that he agreed most with was Dennis Kucinich. So I think it makes a lot of sense. Do I think it will happen? Not a chance.
I don’t think that fits well since they’re ideological opposites.
Maybe if Kucinich ran, and then made Paul the Secretary of State or Defense or something since they agree on foreign policy issues.
@ Fitzer: He’s the only one going after Wall Street’s corruption. Look, i don’t believe this whole process even works any longer, i’m just sayin’ if we’re gonna nominate people who at least LOOK like they’re doin’ something for us, he should be on the list of possible candidates. Politics is so corrupt now, it doesn’t even matter who’s in office – we’re fuckin’ toast during the next 20 years or so, due to our ignorance, greed, and policies keeping the status quo going at all costs.
Have you seen the parody sight for Grayson: MycongressmanIsNuts (like My congressman has guts.)
I’m a Ron Paul supporter who also likes and respects Dennis Kucinich, even though I disagree with him about the role of government. A Paul/Kucinich ticket would turn off the establishment voters of both parties, but would probably be viewed with curiosity and interest by everybody else. I think Paul and Kucinich could say something like: “Look, we agree that we don’t agree on a whole lot. But we also agree that the things we DO agree on are of paramount importance to this country. Bring the troops home. Stop the Funny Money. Restore our Civil Liberties. Those three things alone will take two to three years. The problem is the Kucinich supporters would want RP to be Kucinich’s VP and vice versa. I would say the likelihood is that if Paul were to become President, Kucinich would most likely be the Secretary of State, and if Kucinich were to become President, Paul would likely be either the Secretary of State or the Secretary of the Treasury.
Dennis Kucinich has no spine. He is a PUSSY. A plane ride changed his vote. Also the mere fact that he RETURNED campaign money to his supporters is evidence that he is NOT A REPRESENTATIVE OF THE PEOPLE THAT HE CLAIMED TO SERVE.
There have been a mixed executive office in the past. In fact it use to be
the second runner up would become Vice President (ie. In last election it would be Obama/McCain)
Obama has shown he has more in common with McCain than Kucinich or Paul.
They would have been the corporate moderate ticket (genuinly concerned about
common American plight but Always appealing to the corporations first)
There is obvious common ground between true progress Dems/Greens and true Libertarian Repubs
my advice is vote the corporatists out of office whether Democrat or Republican. Obama created a
health care bill that subsidized pharma and insurance corporations, extended a war that is in the interest
of oil companies, gave billions to the banks, and then panders to the people.
I would rather have Ron Paul or Dennis K as president.
I would vote for either Paul or Kucinch as President. and what I hope is
that we really do weed out the corporate party agendas. And agree with Dan above. The issues
of restoring civil liberties, auditing the Fed, ending the wars, dismantling half the miltary complex, are of
paramount importance. And Obama has repeatedly revealed through his actions where he stands: in the pocket
of Pharma, Insurance Companies, Banking Industry,etc. Let’s end this crap.
paul/kucinich 2012 is a great idea. it’s not about the ideologies. it’s about having sincere people who want to curtail the corruption. i’d rather have an honest person with whom i disagree than someone who talks a good talk but won’t walk the good walk. that having been said, their political differences are of minor significance in the grand scheme.
I’m not American. I do keep up with these discussions and sincerely endorse your wise thoughts.
Unfortunately, Dennis Kucinich just reiterated that he won’t be running for President in 2012, although he says someone should challenge Obama in the Democratic primary season.
Paul and Kucinch have worked together for years, often times siding together on issues which placed them as sole opposing votes.
Kucinich is a lovely man, but he really doesn’t have the charisma necessary to be president. That said, I could see him as Ron Paul’s vice president.
A Paul, Kucinch ticket makes a lot of sense to me.
I agree with Dwight C above. I think that a Paul/ Kucinich ticket would be great. And when you really look at the political stances of either of the two, they really aren’t all that different. Both support putting a short lease on the Fed and support ending the war. I don’t think that Kucinich is a Socialist at all, but I have found that Socialism has become a catch all for anyone who believes in healthcare for all, but that’s a debate for another forum. Either way, I don’t see why a Paul/ Kucinich ticket wouldn’t work, and I’d have no problem supporting it, and I consider myself a staunch Democrat.
I wrote them in in 2008– and I will again in 2012 if I need to.
This needs to happen now. unfortunately sectarian progressives and libertarians are unable to get out of their purity straight jackets long enough to see the wisdom of and the need for a transitional alliance. a coalition of libertarians and progressives like this is the only way we will ever slay the two-headed corporate beast which forever wants war. The military industrial catastrophe has to be ended now.
Progressives can’t do it alone. Libertarians can’t do it alone. The GOP is not going to nominate Ron Paul. Dennis Kucinich has been shafted and will not be in office next year.
We need to build a peaceful green economy but Obama is not going to do it, regardless of his intentions. Epic fail if this does not happen. For more on how and why, click on my name and visit my blog where I have been trying with little success to make this happen for the past 13 months.