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ELECTABILITY. Ben Smith asks:
Well, two questions, really:Is John Edwards allowed to suggest he's more electable than Hillary and Obama because he's a Southern white guy?And -- is it true?What Edwards said is "It's not just a question of whose vision you are impressed with. It's also a question of who is most likely to win the general election. It's a pretty simple thing. Who will be a stronger candidate in the general election here in the State of Iowa? Who can go to other parts of the country when we have swing candidates running for the Congress and the Senate? Is the candidate going to have to say, 'Don't come here. Don't come here and campaign with me. I can't win if you campaign with me.'" I'm both unsure that he's wrong, and unsure that it's wise for him to tread this ground. What is true, and what I argued in my profile a few months back, is that Edward's Southern accent and manners are critical in his ability to project a much more combative, sharp form of liberalism than the others are offering. What would sound like Marxism from the mouth of Howard Dean or Hillary Clinton sounds like good, old-fashioned, American populism from Edwards. It's a genuine advantage. But whether he's right that a white male is more electable -- and it sure hasn't proven an infallible strategy for the Democrats recently -- it's a dangerous argument to engage.--Ezra Klein
