Soccer Dad

Sharpton's Triumph

I'm about 10 days late writing about this but Tom Bevan at RealClearPolitics did a nice piece on Al Sharpton.

But for fringe candidates like Sharpton who don't have a prayer of winning and whose only concern is a personalized seat at the table of political power, national polls are a barometer by which they can measure - and leverage - their influence in the party. The bigger Sharpton's national numbers get the more he's seen as representing an important constituency, the more coveted his endorsement becomes, and the more the eventual nominee has to promise him in return for that endorsement.

In that respect, nobody is benefiting more from John Kerry's demise than Sharpton. He's out-polled Kerry in three of the four latest national polls and is running, on average, 2-points ahead of John Edwards. The man who gave us the Tawana Brawley hoax and the riot at Freddy's Fashion Mart is, in the eyes of some Democratic voters, more qualified to be President than two sitting United States Senators. How's that for creating an image of legitimacy?

Sharpton is successful because he's getting recognition in the polls, but Tom notes, that also shows the bankruptcy of the Democratic Party.
(An aside: I was very happy when the South Carolina debate was delayed to accomodate Joe Lieberman. It had to start late enough so he could observe the Sabbath until the end. But I would have really liked it is Lieberman had stood up to Sharpton and insisted that he wouldn't share a stage with someone who indulges in antisemitism to promote his own career. I realize it would have taken tremendous courage for Senator Lieberman to denounce Sharpton as the Democratic party's David Duke, unfortunately the senator didn't decide to make an issue of Sharpton's legitimacy.)

Sharpton though, isn't simply out for a place at the table, he's looking for money to buy all the food he wants once he gets to the table.

The Associated Press reports that Sharpton’s campaign is expecting a $100,000 check from public matching funds. This will be the first check sent to the campaign from the presidential public financing system.

The Wall Street Journal pointed out a number of years ago that running for public office was actually quite lucrative for David Duke. I expect that it will much the same for Al Sharpton. Few things pay better for someone who is not used to gainful employment than a campaign with public financing.

Posted by SoccerDad at January 2, 2004 02:33 AM | TrackBack