Window shopping for new president

News about the presidential caucuses are flooding America this month as we inch closer to Super Tuesday. Not that many years ago, there was a Super Sunday, but not a Super Tuesday. On Tuesday, Feb. 5, a plethora of caucuses will be held as states decide who will represent the Republican and Democratic parties in the primary election — including Montana. When I was a young man, there was campaigning geared toward the primary in August. We're seven months ahead of that pace now.

I watched some of Monday's night's televised Democratic debate involving prospective nominees Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards. It was almost like a debate between Clinton and Obama, as Obama said Edwards was not being given much of an opportunity to speak about his platform and issues our country is facing.

It appears Clinton, Obama and Edwards support relief to American taxpayers to use a defibrillator to rejuvenate the sluggish U.S. economy. They all agree that what President Bush is proposing is not enough, dollarwise. The figure of $650 per taxpayer was brought up. Part of the discussion was an emphasis on the need to include senior citizens in the cash flow, and even to increase what those people on fixed incomes receive on a monthly basis. All the candidates are also concerned about the health care situation in our country.

During the debate, there wasn't much support for what President Bush is doing with the war in Iraq. It was no surprise to hear that the U.S. should not have gotten involved in the Middle East anguish in the first place. Of course, we want to wage a battle against terrorism, but look how many American lives have been lost, not to mention countless helpless civilians in Iraq and Afghanistan.

It appears that Clinton's campaign is based on women. Women do make up a majority in the electorate and primary electorate, according to a report I've seen. Clinton has a slim lead over Obama in the national polls. Obama is targeting college-educated young people, and they could swing the primary his way. Clinton has said that we have to hold the bureaucracy accountable. Obama said there is a capacity to tap into the hopes and dreams of American people. When speaking of votes to be had in the south, in states like South Carolina, the choice of African Americans will be critical for the candidates.

The Democratic candidates are echoing one word in unison: Change. I believe we all realize changes are necessary when the new president takes over on this week next year.

What has many political experts puzzled is that there is no clear-cut front-runner for the Republican nominee for president. From one state caucus to another, several candidates are taking turns coming out on top. Mike Huckabee finished first in Iowa. Mitt Romney took New Hampshire. Rudy Giuliani has some key state caucuses coming up. Ron Paul fared well in Nevada, finishing second in that caucus. A recent charge by John McCain, who won in South Carolina, is ahead by a nose nationally. But a lot can happen during Super Tuesday.

In an opinion submission by Montana State Sen. Jim Elliott of Trout Creek, he spoke about primary elections. He said, "To me, it's like having a government financed selection process for leadership of the Mystic Knights of the Sea." Elliott said that in Canada, there are no primary elections. There, the leaders of political parties decide who will run for national office in a "riding," or electoral district. The party that elects the most members to Parliament chooses the nation's leader. The downside is that only well behaved party members will be chosen, according to Elliott.

Elliott said that U.S. primaries were not widespread until the debacle of the 1968 Democratic Convention led to the opening of the selection process. Federal law dictates when and how federal general elections will be held, but state law controls the primaries. In Elliott's opinion, states that have the earliest primary can have an enormous influence in who wins each party's nomination. That has been the case in recent years. With the close competition among candidates in the Democratic and Republican parties, Super Tuesday will play a huge role.

Stay tuned. There are more politics to come.

Joe Sova is the editor of the Hungry Horse News.