Below, I argued that "going forward, transparency is the best policy, and we'd all be well-served by a willingness to calmly accept (and even respond to) speculation about the thought processes driving our commentary." It occurs to me that I should probably take my own advice. So, while I haven't settled on -- and am not endorsing -- any presidential candidates, here's how I basically feel about the current lineup, in order:
Favorable:
1) Al Gore, if he runs.
2) John Edwards
3) Wesley Clark
4) Tom Daschle (he's talking too much and too sensibly about health care for me to be a hater)
Neutral:
5) Hillary Clinton
6) Russ Feingold
7) Tom Vilsack
8) Mark Warner
9) Evan Bayh
10) Chris Dodd
Leaning Negative:
11) Bill Richardson
12) John Kerry
13) Joe Biden
All ratings are, obviously, subject to change, and I'm sure they will change as time goes on. But for now, that's how I see the race, ad I'm sure it creeps into my commentary.
