Reply #22: "This is not a popularity contest" [View All]

Please tell that to Jimmy Carter, Walter Mondale, Michael Dukakis and Al Gore. All of them lost to candidates despite the fact that polls shows that voters favored their positions on the issues.

Sorry, but Democrats need to realize that elections are very much popularity contests, and that simply "being right" on the issues isn't enough. Not only is Edwards right on the issues, but he's able to connect with voters in a way Kerry never could. Moreover, he's the only candidate right now who can clearly articulate just why it is voters should replace Bush. Every other stump speech I've heard from other candidates is just a laundry list of policy proposals interspersed with a few personal anecdotes and some focus-group tested catch phrases. Edwards, on the other hand, has treated his stump speech the way he would a closing argument before a jury. And it's a very forceful argument.