Speed It Up

Dick Meyer: Let's Move The Election To November 2007 And Save Voters The Agony Of A Lengthy Campaign

(CBS)  This commentary was written by CBSNews.com's Dick Meyer.

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Here’s a simple thing we can all do to make our planet a better place right now: have the presidential election in November. November 2007, I mean.

I can see no good reason to wait until November 2008 and plenty of good reasons to get it over with sooner rather than later.

First of all, it would be the kind and gentle thing to do to President Bush. He seems pretty tuckered out. His Justice Department is falling apart, the war is going all wrong and he’s not going to get anything out of this Congress. Letting him wander off into sunset a year early is the humanitarian course.

Besides, we’re already in campaign mode. Big time. We’ve had a couple debates. There’s no reason we need to hear a whole lot more from Tom Tancredo and Dennis Kucinich. Some candidates are even running TV ads already. We’ve had some smear campaigns, gaffes and temper tantrums. What more do you need from a primary season? Are you really and truly looking forward to another 10 months of primary campaigning and then 11 more months of a general campaign? Didn’t think so.

Campaigning brings out the worst in the system. That is a bad thing because campaigning has replaced governing as the special thing politicians do for a living. Campaigns attract politicians to microphones and cameras and that’s not something we should encourage. And presidential campaigns in full swing (and that’s where we’ve been for four months) are the most egregious periods of Politicians Acting Out. We need less PAO, not more.

Moving up the election would also save the country about a billion dollars. That’s perfectly good American money that could be better spent marketing beer or botox instead of politicians.

Some will say there are practical obstacles to my well-thought out proposal. I say: obstacles schmobstacles.

This is the United States of America and we can do what we want. A constitutional amendment here, some new state laws there and we can elect a president in ’07. Come on kids, we can do it!

Here’s how I see it playing out:

We’ll have a couple more big debates with all the fringe players. We’ll get all the primary ads out of the way in June and July when no one watches TV.

And then on the last Tuesday of July, we’ll have a jumbo-primary called Vendetta Tuesday; all the states except Iowa and New Hampshire will have primaries. If there’s a tie, Iowa and New Hampshire can have primaries on the next two Tuesday’s and still feel very special.

Right after the primaries, Mayor Bloomberg and Senator Hagel can announce their third party, bipartisan ticket under the banner of Unity ’08 (Bloomberg can be the Democrat, by the way).

The parties can then have their conventions in August, when it’s hot and Americans are on vacation. That would still leave a couple weeks to speculate about who the vice presidential nominees will be, which is the most fun part of the campaign anyway.

I would suggest the conventions be held for one day each, not four. Long conventions are sooooooooo 20th century. This way the conventions can be held on back-to-back days and they can even use the same facility. I know it’s hard to get a big facility on short notice. But I believe the Princess Chateau banquet facility in Paramus, New Jersey is available on the Wednesday and Thursday before Labor Day and, according to the Web site, it has an “ambiance of elegance and grandeur.”

Under my plan, the final surge, the general election, can begin on Labor Day as usual, just a year early. Staged and choreographed debates, negative ads, dirty tricks, phony-baloney controversies and character assassinations can all revert to the normal pace.

Next thing you know, it’s November 7, 2007 and we’re either picking a Cabinet or counting chads. Either way, we won’t be in for another year of political yada yada.

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[adventurepa]

One can dream, Mr Myers.
"Mayor Bloomberg and Senator Hagel can announce their third party, bipartisan ticket"
We could use a third party in America.

Hopefully some no name regular uncorupt americans will finally get into the race.
Help take back America and restore the rights we have been robbed of.

[terrapin78]

Or the AGONY of another 365 days of BU$H and co-conspirators!

[beanerman4]

From what I heard in school, in Alaska an elderly eskimo would simply walk north when no longer a "useful" member of society.

I think we should plant Bush and Co in Alaska and point them in the same direction.
1.20.09 seems so far away..........

[guysdigdirt]

Or the AGONY of another 365 days of BU$H and co-conspirators!
Posted by Terrapin78

I think we should plant Bush and Co in Alaska and point them in the same direction.
1.20.09 seems so far away..........
Posted by beanerman4
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So Einsteins, in your own words, not the media's, what have Bush and company done that is so wrong?

Why dont you grow up and get into politics and do it better since you know it all?

[guysdigdirt]

Hopefully some no name regular uncorupt american will finally get into the race.
Help take back America and restore the rights we have been robbed of.
Posted by Adventurepa
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Looking into what is out there, how is Romney not this person? Do your due-dillegence research, then tell me.


Mayor Bloomberg is a self-important a$$. He is unethical, dis-honest, and a$$ is the best word I can use to describe him.

[clestes-2009]

Christ, what a depressing thought. Another 20 months before we finally get rid of Bonzo and his corrupt, incomptetent, disaster of an admin!

I can hardly wait. The earlier, the better.

[tejasdemo]

Christ, what a depressing thought. Another 20 months before we finally get rid of Bonzo and his corrupt, incomptetent, disaster of an admin!

I can hardly wait. The earlier, the better.

**************

You said it !!!

[beanerman4]

So Einsteins, in your own words, not the media's, what have Bush and company done that is so wrong?
Posted by guysdigdirt at 12:49 PM : May 17, 2007

Where are you living? Northern Alaska?

The list of lies, scandals, deceit and incompetancy is too long to list here. Someone tried that on another post and ran out of room.

[mcvet]

The list of lies, scandals, deceit and incompetancy is too long to list here. Someone tried that on another post and ran out of room.

Posted by beanerman4 at 02:10 PM : May 17, 2007

LOL You are so right. Any list would be incomplete because of the lack of space and were do you start? Iraq? FEMA? Justice Department? So many choices it's impossible.

[jsl45]

I say have the elections tomorrow and get rid of Shrub the Dumbnificent and Darth Cheney, then let's ship both of them to Darfur where there really is a crisis.

[BlueInWI]

Sounds good to me. Then we don't have to hear about John Edwards $400 haircuts, when GW had $300 makeup jobs before (even non-TV) public appearances in 2000 and it wasn't news then...

Or the fact that Rudy G disses a farming couple in Iowa because they aren't wealthy enough that they have to worry about the Estate Tax... but that isn't as important as $400 haircuts.

The corporate mainstream media is diversionary and worthless, otherwise the Chimp wouldn't be President right now and this country would be so much better off...

Also, watch the MSM go after John Edwards - they are out to destroy him because he is the biggest threat to their corporate welfare and the aristocracy in this country. Of course, he is also the best candidate for the country as a whole...

[hawksprings]

Liberals are the biggest bunch of whiners you'll ever see. You guys are like 3 year olds when you don't get your way.

All this talk about lies and scandals, are you sure you don't mean the Clinton Administration?

Any "lies" you claim Bush told about Iraq were FIRST told by Slick Willy before Bush was ever elected. But the CBSMSNBCABCCNN Propoganda Machine will never point that out.

[bm6005]

OK let's look to other countries for a clue. Most of them restrict campaigns to around 3 mos. prior to the election. What in the world is wrong with that? These two year campaigns are really pissing me off! Forget party affiliation on this one. I AM SICK AND FRICKIN' TIRED OF THESE CONTINUAL CAMPAIGNS!!!!!!! Am I the only one for christ's sake?

[bm6005]

Liberals are the biggest bunch of whiners you'll ever see. You guys are like 3 year olds when you don't get your way.
Posted by hawksprings

I've been reading your WHINING here for at least 3 months. You've got to be *******' me on this one. YOU ARE A RIGHT WING WHINER!!! That goes for whether or not you get your way!

[guysdigdirt]

The list of lies, scandals, deceit and incompetancy is too long to list here. Someone tried that on another post and ran out of room.

Posted by beanerman4
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More excuses but no list, I get your point.

[guysdigdirt]

The corporate mainstream media is diversionary and worthless, otherwise the Chimp wouldn't be President right now and this country would be so much better off...

Also, watch the MSM go after John Edwards - they are out to destroy him because he is the biggest threat to their corporate welfare and the aristocracy in this country. Of course, he is also the best candidate for the country as a whole...

Posted by bflong
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I agree with you here, the media has their agenda or there never would have been such close results in the last 2 elections. The Dems have the media in their back pocket.

As far as the country being better off, of course we are better off without having Gore or Mr. Fancy Pants Kerry. If either of them had gotten into the office we would be speaking Afgahni right now. All the Dems want us to bend over and kiss the a$$ of Osama and Sadam!!

Edwards is a better option than Hillary though.

[guysdigdirt]

I AM SICK AND FRICKIN' TIRED OF THESE CONTINUAL CAMPAIGNS!!!!!!! Am I the only one for christ's sake?
Posted by bm6005
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I agree and limit them all to $1 million campaign spending. That will cut out a lot of the conflict of interest and bring it down to the real issues, not who can get the biggest donations. Will also show us how fiscally smart they are.

[sparks224]

We all know the Republcians can't win a fair election.

Why don't we just give them a few points so they won't have to cheat so much.

Some political charity for their bankrupt philosophy.

Poor ***.

[sparks224]

We all know the Republicans can't win a fair election.

Why don't we just give them a few points so they won't have to cheat so much.

Some political charity for their bankrupt philosophy.

Poor b@stards.

[horse3farm]

I have a better idea....Impeach Bush now and let Nancy Pelosi be pres for the remaining term. Then she can lock Cheney up somewhere in the Capitol and feed him with a slingshot.

[Razzl]

Bush should be impeached by now, but that can't happen for the remainder of his term because of his Republican allies in the senate. So the bottom line is this public which put Bush back in the White House and Republicans back in Congress deserve the feel the pain for their choice. There is absolutely nobody who could not see the character of Bush in 2004 and anybody who voted for him and his party then deserves what they're stuck with now. The rest of us don't, of course, but that's how our democratic system (which Bush doesn't believe in) works...

[usawarrior]

Bush impeached???? I can go for that... but Dems don't have the backbone to do it. That's precisely why I don't vote. Nor Reps or Dems can be trusted. Oh well... I'll just pay my taxes and let the fanatics and the idiots elect the next decider. It can't get any worser!

[toddpw01]

It's pretty pathetic that the voting record of the GOP minority shows that they are the real obstructionists now. But the national news keeps giving them a pass. Something about Media Conglomerates, I think.

So the Dems are stuck doing the one thing they do have control over -- investigations. We now have mounds of evidence of election rule manipulation to give the GOP an edge, violations of the Hatch Act in the GSA and dozens of other government agencies, and plenty of trails leading to the White House, who of course refuses to let anyone important testify under oath and for weak reasons.

Meanwhile we see Ron Paul and Mike Gravel ruffling feathers at the debates, raising the questions that Americans have been carefully conditioned by the media to never ask.

I say let the campaign schedule play itself out. We're learning a lot about how the media tailors debate questions and moderation to make the candidates look better or worse. It's fascinating!