TBubba

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sure you could dig deeper, but a lot of times, Americans vote between the actual human beings running for President and not just the R or D. And the human being the Republicans ran in ‘92 was a the awkward incumbent, clearly inferior to his predecessor Reagan, a 2nd Bush term would have felt like 16 years of Reagan, with the last 8 being bad facsimiles, and the pendulum is typically not allowed to get swung that far without having to come back. Also, “Read my lips…no new taxes” then…taxes. And the 1st Iraqi War that 35 years later, still almost no one could tell you what the frick that had to do with us. And the Democrats ran one of the most gifted politicians of the 20th century, who convinced people he “felt their pain,” and gave the biggest generation in American history, the Baby Boomers, the 1st “one of us” they could vote for. And he played saxophone on the Arsenio Hall Show while wearing shades. In ‘96, that incumbent Democrat ran against a Republican “human being” who, bless his heart, was 137 years old—possibly dead—and had to shake hands left handed, because he couldn’t move his right. Yet he always had a pen stuck in it as merely a prop. I think the economy was pretty good both years, so there wasn’t a backlash to vote against, really or a clear “vote my pocketbook” difference —I think the “read my lips” campaign was more about painting H.W. as a liar than him simply raising taxes. So, at the end of the days, people were able to just vote for the human being they liked best and wanted representing us. Issues were close enough that they didn’t really matter. Clinton was young and hip and liked to slay poon. Bush was a dork who had been in power too long, and Dole, like I said, was 137 years old. At least. And we wanted Slick Willie to be our face to the world. Those elections were about the humans, not their parties. And it obviously trickled down into redder areas. I am no political analyst, did no research before answering, consulted no data. I’m just in my mid-40s and was alive and old enough to have witnessed it. This is my memory of the overall feeling in America during that time. I’m sure you could drill farther and break it down more scientifically than that. But I don’t think that you need to. Democrats ran the better horse both times.

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