There has been a fair amount of discussion recently as to whether the Democrats should emphasize electability during the 2020 primaries. The clear answer to the question is . . . yes! Does GM deliberately build cars that no one wants to buy?
In reality, the better question is, what constitutes electability in 2020? Here is my view of it:
1. Relevant experience is important. You can’t make a compelling case on competence if you run a, say, real estate developer against Trump in 2020.
2. Limit the number of skeletons in the closet. As I noted yesterday, the GOP will be playing the false equivalence game for all it’s worth no matter who the candidate is, but there is no reason to make their lives easier.
3. Don’t let Trump rerun the 2016 campaign. Trump has limited skills and imagination, but there are two things he knows how to do: feed his base; and beat Hillary Clinton. Selecting a candidate that looks and sounds like Clintton would be a mistake.
4. Charisma counts. No further elaboration is necessary.
5. Play the identity game more shrewdly. Given the nature of its component parts, the Democratic Party cannot avoid identity politics altogether. What the nominee can do is put identity in a broader context that doesn’t threaten the interests of white people in general, and white working men in particular.
And so, the perfect candidate would be a young, conspicuously intelligent and vibrant, senator or governor with a record of accomplishment, no skeletons in his closet, and the ability to appeal to both the base and the white working class. Alas! Barack Obama won’t be running in 2020.