The Perfect Democratic Candidate

What would a perfect Democratic candidate for president look like? Here are the obvious criteria:

  1. IT WOULD BE A MAN: There are plenty of male swing voters, and some women, who simply won’t vote for a woman for president. That may not be fair, and it isn’t impossible for the right woman to win, but we’re trying to appeal to the maximum number of people in this hypothetical exercise. Sorry.
  2. HE WOULD BE YOUNG: The Democrats traditionally have done better with fresh faces, and they need someone to appeal to millennials.
  3. HE WOULD BE CHARISMATIC: Think Obama, JFK, and Clinton here. The Democrats want a savior, not a businessman.
  4. HE WOULD COME FROM A RED OR PURPLE STATE: The better to appeal to swing voters.
  5. HE WOULD BE A MODERATE: Extreme lefties turn off those swing voters who are motivated primarily by ideology.

The list leads you to two conclusions:

  1. It’s deeply unfortunate that Beto isn’t a more plausible candidate. He meets all of the standards.
  2. Warren fails every single one of them. That illustrates the risk the Democrats are running if they nominate her next year. Even Bernie at least meets the man test; from a purely identity perspective, he’s a more plausible winner than Warren, although he would make a far worse president.