2028 US Presidential Election

[Buck_Mulligan]

It's never too early...... to take your mind off the orange fella.
I had kinda hoped the political class would at least wait until the 2026 elections were over before turning to 2028. The first 2026 primaries are only about a year away. No such luck, (I didn't really expect it).

Speculation about candidates on both sides is well underway. This ballotpedia article provides a good overview of 20 potential candidates from each side (mostly Governors or former, who have a better track record than Senators etc.) but leaves out an important D, who would be my pick. (Lexi, please forgive me). Rahm Emmanuel. He's a fighter, not afraid to pick fights, and he knows how to win. He's got a great track record.

My dream ticket, Emmanuel/Buttigieg. Butti made it clear last week that he will not run for senator or Governor in Michigan his new home state.

The Ballotpedia article just lists people who might run, without any comment on popularity. Many of them if they do run will likely not make it to the first primary.

https://ballotpedia.org/Presidential_election,_2028

Here's a Politico column on Rahm, by JMart,(as he's affectionately known). I think Politico is now deliberately making their scrolling difficult in an effort to get people to subscribe. If you have difficulty I can post the whole thing.

https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2025/03/12/rahm-emmanuel-president-2028-column-00224241

[SGR]

I think it's a little too early for this kind of thread, but what the heck.

I'd be curious to hear more on why Emmanuel/Buttigieg is your 'dream ticket'. While Emmanuel has plenty of political experience and also has good political instincts, I think he'd alienate different parts of the Democratic base. The other problem, as I see it, superficial though it may seem, it does matter: he's 5'7'' in height. For perspective, the last president who was less than 6' in height was Jimmy Carter. The last president who was 5'7'' was William McKinley (and he was elected in the 1800s) - all presidents after him were taller. McKinley was also the last US president who was shorter than the average height of US Army servicemen at the time. The Economist has an interesting article about this from a few years back.

[Trollheart]

Why "Forgive me, Lexi"
And are you guys seriously ranking presidential candidates on their height? What's next: dick size? I believe Nixon was rather short, and don't forget Cheney. Who could?

[SGR]

And are you guys seriously ranking presidential candidates on their height? What's next: dick size?

Ever heard of "Jumbo" before?

Having named his penis "Jumbo," Johnson was known to open up his trousers on a regular basis and wag his dick at others. There are numerous reports of this, from incidents when he seemed to do it as a (bad) joke, to times when he did it to intimidate people. Unfortunately for the historical record, there seems to be no photographic evidence of LBJ's member, nor do we have any reliable size estimates or vivid descriptions of its appearance (like those of Bill Clinton's smaller-than-average penis). We can, however, infer quite a bit from all the different stories about Johnson's hog, which never seems to have been whipped out without a vulgar remark accompanying it.

LBJ also was able to push a lot of very important and impactful Democratic legislation through congress. You can say these things had no relation of course, but...I'm not so sure. 



Trump in 2016 of course set precedent for dispelling voters' fears about dick size...so there's that. 

I believe Nixon was rather short, and don't forget Cheney. Who could?

Nixon was actually 6' tall (and Cheney was only vice president - most Americans don't really care about the vice president). Though that Economist article I linked in my post above may explain why you might remember him being rather short - which seems to only further confirm that height bias works in both directions:

Causality also seems to run in the opposite direction: popularity can influence perceptions of height. Americans polled in January 1978 estimated that Richard Nixon, who had resigned the presidency in disgrace more than three years earlier, was shorter than Jimmy Carter, who had been elected in 1976. In reality, Nixon was two inches taller.

[Trollheart]

Is there another reason then why it's LBJ??

[SGR]

Is there another reason then why it's LBJ??

It's not for pleasure, Trolls, it's for practicality and political expediency.

LBJ = Let's Bust out Jumbo

[Jwb]

LBJ seems like he was hilarious from everything I've learned about him recently lol. 

In one of his more bizarre Oval Office confidences, Lyndon Johnson said that he didn't want to "follow Hitler" but that Hitler had the right idea: "Just take a simple thing and repeat it often enough, even if it wasn't true, why, people accept it." Johnson was speaking by telephone to Martin Luther King, Jr., in Selma, Alabama, about how to convince Southern whites that Southern blacks deserved the franchise.

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2006/01/23/martin-luther-king-jr-lyndon-b-johnson

I would have really loved to be able to watch MLK's expression when Johnson was making this point

I honestly thought about posting this in your American president's thread but all I have to contribute is funny quotes and clips and stories about him,  I know very little about him as a politician other than what I learned from this episode of the rest is history:

[SGR]

LBJ seems like he was hilarious from everything I've learned about him recently lol. 

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2006/01/23/martin-luther-king-jr-lyndon-b-johnson

I would have really loved to be able to watch MLK's expression when Johnson was making this point

I honestly thought about posting this in your American president's thread but all I have to contribute is funny quotes and clips and stories about him,  I know very little about him as a politician other than what I learned from this episode of the rest is history:

I've heard that call with LBJ and the tailor before - absolutely hilarious. Talking about his nuts and his bunghole, while he occasionally belches between his precise instructions and desired measurements. 

Politically, the guy was an absolute force of nature. He spent so many years in the house and the senate, that by the time he was president, he knew everybody. He knew all their flaws, and their strengths, and he knew how to push their buttons to get what he wanted. Robert Caro has, since the early '80s, been writing and releasing a multi-volume biography on LBJ called The Years of Lyndon Johnson. It's a monumental piece of work - I've read the first volume and have the currently released other three volumes waiting for me on my shelves. Problem is, I've been waiting for Robert Caro's long awaited fifth and final volume before I decide to properly dive in and finish them all. It's been 13 years since he released volume 4.

In terms of his personality, I think he's a little bit too uncouth to be widely accepted in the Democratic party of today, but if that wasn't the case, I have no doubt that if he was in Schumer's position (tying back to Trump thread) and was in his prime, LBJ would've bullied the rest of the Democratic senators into line and held the line, and shut down the government until he got meaningful concessions from the Republicans.

One of my favorite LBJ stories is the pranks he used to play with his Amphicar - it was a car that could operate on land and in water - many of his passengers at the time didn't know it could do this though and LBJ took advantage of that fact for a good laugh:

One of the most famous owners of the Aphicar was President Lyndon Johnson. Those leisurely rides created the opportunity for a clever prank that Johnson enjoyed playing on his passengers.

It involved barrelling the vehicle down a hill into a lake and exclaiming to his passengers that the brakes had malfunctioned, while they had no idea the car was designed to float in water.

Joseph A. Califano, Jr., the president's special assistant for domestic affairs at the time, recalled his experience as a victim of his boss's prank: The President, with [White House secretary] Vicky McCammon in the seat alongside him and me in the back, was now driving around in a small blue car with the top down. We reached a steep incline at the edge of the lake and the car started rolling rapidly toward the water.

The President shouted, "The brakes don't work! The brakes won't hold! We're going in! We're going under!" The car splashed into the water. I started to get out. Just then the car leveled and I realized we were in an Amphicar. The President laughed.

As we putted along the lake then (and throughout the evening), he teased me. "Vicky, did you see what Joe did? He didn't give a damn about his President. He just wanted to save his own skin and get out of the car." Then he'd roar.

[Buck_Mulligan]

I think it's a little too early for this kind of thread, but what the heck.

I'd be curious to hear more on why Emmanuel/Buttigieg is your 'dream ticket'. While Emmanuel has plenty of political experience and also has good political instincts, I think he'd alienate different parts of the Democratic base. The other problem, as I see it, superficial though it may seem, it does matter: he's 5'7'' in height. For perspective, the last president who was less than 6' in height was Jimmy Carter. The last president who was 5'7'' was William McKinley (and he was elected in the 1800s) - all presidents after him were taller. McKinley was also the last US president who was shorter than the average height of US Army servicemen at the time. The Economist has an interesting article about this from a few years back.

I agree it's too early, and I expect this thread will go dark long before the primaries. I was "Inspired" to start it by your post referencing AOC at 9%. I give her zero chance in 2028, and probably beyond that too.

My first mistake was to say Ballotpedia left Emmanuel off their list. They didn't.

My reasons for favoring an E/B or ( R/P if you prefer) ticket is that unlike the governors they are both experienced at the Federal level and understand that the level of scrutiny is much tougher. Both have strong policy chops. Both have shown an ability to hold their own and think fast, either on the debate stage or in interviews. From that list of 20 I think there are at most 8 who have a realistic chance, and I put E/B at the top because of their willingness to take the fight to the other side.

While he was Transport Sec. PB was a frequent face on Fox. Both would avoid the culture war stuff and focus on the issues that matter to most people. No doubt E would alienate part of the progressive base, but they're always alienated unless it's Sanders or AOC, neither of whom are likely to capture the independents.

All other things being equal height might be an issue, but I think they have the best chance of making all other things not equal.

[Buck_Mulligan]

Why "Forgive me, Lexi"
And are you guys seriously ranking presidential candidates on their height? What's next: dick size? I believe Nixon was rather short, and don't forget Cheney. Who could?

Emmanual has made it clear he's not intersted in culture war issues such as LGBT or abortion. He wants to fix the schools etc.

[Buck_Mulligan]

LBJ was a master tactician who also played hardball with the Rs.
He told MLK that if he (MLK) wanted to achieve his goals he needed to go to the country and raise hell so that he (LBJ) would have little choice but to concede. Make me do it.

[Lexi Darling]

Emmanual has made it clear he's not intersted in culture war issues such as LGBT or abortion. He wants to fix the schools etc.

I appreciate the gesture; I'm not sure what Emanuel's policies on those issues entail exactly, but like, at this point, assuming "not interested" means in an apathetic sense, I'll still take that over "actively hellbent on doing us harm" a la the current administration. Biden wasn't a hero to LGBT people either but he wasn't trying to fuck us over at every turn.

I will say though that LGBT issues such as trans and intersex healthcare, as well as abortion, are not just "culture" issues, they are issues of healthcare and more broadly human rights. I get that you mean in a sense of political optics, but I think it's better to focus on the tangible effects and policies rather than give any credence to the idea that attacks on human rights and bodily autonomy are a "culture war". Not knocking you specifically, just the application of that term in general.

[Trollheart]

I would agree here. It's almost like saying "all that trans stuff" or even substitute "stuff" for "nonsense". While apathy is preferably to hatred, for evil to triumph etc etc etc.

[Trollheart]

In other news, William Hill, Ladbrokes and Paddy Power have this surprise candidate at 1000/1

[Buck_Mulligan]

I appreciate the gesture; I'm not sure what Emanuel's policies on those issues entail exactly, but like, at this point, assuming "not interested" means in an apathetic sense, I'll still take that over "actively hellbent on doing us harm" a la the current administration. Biden wasn't a hero to LGBT people either but he wasn't trying to fuck us over at every turn.

I will say though that LGBT issues such as trans and intersex healthcare, as well as abortion, are not just "culture" issues, they are issues of healthcare and more broadly human rights. I get that you mean in a sense of political optics, but I think it's better to focus on the tangible effects and policies rather than give any credence to the idea that attacks on human rights and bodily autonomy are a "culture war". Not knocking you specifically, just the application of that term in general.

Thanks Lexi, I could have phrased that better. I think his view is that LBGT, DEI, Pronoun and other "woke"issues are not significant vote winners for the Ds. People want focus on bread & butter. I shouldn't have included abortion as a "culture war" issue