Jeff Merkely?

[Sherrod Brown Shill]

I haven't gotten much exposure to Jeff Merkley, does anyone think he's charismatic enough to win in the primaries or GE? Could he continue the Bernie/Left Wing Populist movement?

[GoTfan]

I like Jeff. I really do. He's progressive enough to please the Bernie backers, and he has some credentials with the establishment over his filibuster of Neil Gorsuch.

I like him, and I do think he'd be a great candidate. Problem is, he's up for re-election in 2020 as well. However, if he's willing to go all or nothing, then I can see him either winning or giving the others a serious run for their money.

[Kingpoleon]

Ron Wyden would be a stronger candidate.

[NOVA Green]

Ron Wyden would be a stronger candidate.

Potentially Wyden might be a stronger candidate, but he doesn't have the same type of working-class small-town/rural background that Merkley does when it comes to telling a personal story that voters in the MidWest, South, and parts of the NorthEast/Central Atlantic might be able to relate to on a personal level....

Sure, Wyden would likely do better in the 'burbs of NoVA, Atlanta, etc.... but if the 2016 Presidential Election showed us anything, it is that the Dem gains in the wealthy 'burbs were more than offset in most states in the country by Obama voters that defected to Trump.

Not convinced Wyden is the dude to challenge Trump in 2020, although he's a heck of a lot better than many of the other options being mooted....

Regardless, I am firmly convinced that Dems need to look towards a Western (NOT Californian) or Midwestern candidate in 2020, rather than someone from places like NY/MD/MA, where in most of Middle America are viewed with automatic suspicion and considered "part of the establishment"....

Bench looks a bit lacking from Southern States in 2020, but it's difficult to see a Southern Democrat doing well in the Dem primaries at this time....

To NerdFighers original question--- there is no doubt that he could continue the Bernie Wing of the Dem Party (Plus he doesn't have the "Socialist" hate label that so many have unfairly thrown at Bernie). 

Is he charismatic enough? Well, look whom the Dem's nominated in '16 and '04, and '88, and I think he'll do just fine and better on the charisma factor....

It's a stealth thing, the more you get to know him, the more you like him....

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

Ron Wyden would be a stronger candidate.

Too economically conservative. He supported fast track.

I like him, and I do think he'd be a great candidate. Problem is, he's up for re-election in 2020 as well. However, if he's willing to go all or nothing, then I can see him either winning or giving the others a serious run for their money.

The filing deadline last year was March 8, so he could wait until then to decide.

[NOVA Green]

Ron Wyden would be a stronger candidate.

Too economically conservative. He supported fast track.

I like him, and I do think he'd be a great candidate. Problem is, he's up for re-election in 2020 as well. However, if he's willing to go all or nothing, then I can see him either winning or giving the others a serious run for their money.

The filing deadline last year was March 8, so he could wait until then to decide.

Point....

Plus to the OP you accidentally misspelled Merkley's name on the thread title... Not quite sure how one corrects that easily, as have run into the same issue before, but wanted to correct for the record.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Merkley

[MarkD]

He seems about as charismatic as Merkin Muffley.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VEB-OoUrNuk

[Liberalrocks]

LoL No just No....

[GoTfan]

LoL No just No....

Why? Because he's not a centrist third wayer?

[SoLongAtlas]

Lack of name id, not enough exposure on the issues on the natl stage

[Mr. Morden]

Lack of name id

Virtually all of the likely 2020 Dems have almost no national name ID, yet many of them will manage to break out and become well known once the race actually starts.  Do you think (for example) the average voter had any clue who John Edwards or Howard Dean or Wesley Clark or even John Kerry were before they ran for president in 2004?

[Chief Justice Keef]

Lack of name id

Virtually all of the likely 2020 Dems have almost no national name ID, yet many of them will manage to break out and become well known once the race actually starts.  Do you think (for example) the average voter had any clue who John Edwards or Howard Dean or Wesley Clark or even John Kerry were before they ran for president in 2004?

Or Bernie Sanders, for that matter?

Personally, I'd like to see him give it a go. Being the only Senate backer of Sanders's campaign is great for progressive appeal and he seems entirely uncontroversial with the Democratic establishment. If there's a good compromise candidate it's Merkley.

[#gravelgang #lessiglad]

Personally and politically, I like Merkley. I do, however, think that he's too "plain" to succeed. He's soft spoken and strikes me as an honest to goodness introvert. It's hard to see him standing out in the primary or against Trump.

[publicunofficial]

I could get behind it.

Lack of name id

Virtually all of the likely 2020 Dems have almost no national name ID, yet many of them will manage to break out and become well known once the race actually starts.  Do you think (for example) the average voter had any clue who John Edwards or Howard Dean or Wesley Clark or even John Kerry were before they ran for president in 2004?

Or Bernie Sanders, for that matter?

Personally, I'd like to see him give it a go. Being the only Senate backer of Sanders's campaign is great for progressive appeal and he seems entirely uncontroversial with the Democratic establishment. If there's a good compromise candidate it's Merkley.

Bernie was already the compromise candidate

[OSR stands with Israel]

The 2008 Oregon senate race was a disaster , Gordon Smith deserved reelection , and now we can have president Merkley (that will suck ).

[Beet]

Jeff Merkley would be a top tier candidate.

[GoTfan]

Jeff Merkley would be a top tier candidate.

I imagine him as sort of a Trojan Horse. Non-threatening at first, but turns out to be more than bargained for

[NOVA Green]

The 2008 Oregon senate race was a disaster , Gordon Smith deserved reelection , and now we can have president Merkley (that will suck ).

In my personal opinion it was Gordon Smith's support for the Iraq War that caused his loss in '08, and Merkley's strong opposition to the Iraq War that put him over the finish line, in what was an extremely close election.

Voters had long since forgiven Gordon Smith for his previous support for the anti LGBT Oregon Citizen's Alliance (OCA), and the economy in Oregon hadn't fully collapsed by 11/08, since there is always a lag historically during Recessions because of the Timber industry, as well as other manufacturing related activities in the State.

That said, Merkley has some pretty solid foreign policy chops going into 2020 because of that opposition to the War, which not only fits the current mood of the Democratic Base, but arguably the American electorate at large, where even Donald Trump tried to run as an "Anti-War" candidate during the Republican primaries.

Merkley's progressive economic policies generally fit within much of the American mainstream, where support for increasing the minimum wage dramatically is fairly popular, even in Republican states like Missouri, and the whole Main Street vs Wall Street style of economic populism tends to play well.

We can quibble about items like expanding government funding for college tuition, and how exactly to fix the current Health Care system, but by and large a decent majority of Americans actually support the fundamental goals, but disagree on the exact solutions required.

On Culture War items, Merkley is definitely solidly in the Progressive Camp, but is a bit more subtle in his approach than several of the recent Democratic Party Pres nominees, and isn't someone that can be easily accused of "demonizing" the Religious Right elements, or solely "representing SF/NYC/MA Liberal Coastal Elite Values" (Standard Republican playbook)

[Shadows]

Merkley says he was always in favour of a Single Payer, Medicare-for-all instead of ACA which is flawed & atleast a public option would have got costs down. He also says the system with exchanges in the ACA & others are pretty complex. He says ACA has done good things & even has support in some conservative counties which swung away from the Dems in 2010 !

You had 3 potential 2020 candidates - Merkley, Warren & Gillibrand speaking about support for a Single Payer system !

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQV2F6Un1qI