tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post8022362041476673443..comments2023-10-16T07:13:12.123-05:00Comments on A plain blog about politics: Biden's Career PathJonathan Bernsteinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15931039630306253241noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-62213917975483019572012-10-11T15:35:42.853-05:002012-10-11T15:35:42.853-05:00Agreed, but as usual, that could go either way: Yo...Agreed, but as usual, that could go either way: You can only play effectively on the national stage in the first place if you have the potential to put that power network together, which also probably means you have the potential to "focus on the work" well if that's your priority. Of course, the campaign process itself could go a long way towards turning that potential into reality, which I suppose is your point. Xenocrypthttp://xenocrypt.dailykos.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-29683429542823134592012-10-11T14:32:07.218-05:002012-10-11T14:32:07.218-05:00@JB how would you count Orin Hatch? I don't t...@JB how would you count Orin Hatch? I don't think his post 2000 career has been very impressive. I kinda see him as a windbag, but that's just me. Also Hubert Humphrey went back after the 68 and 72 debacles, did he do anything much before he died? I don't really know of anything, but he was beloved both in the Senate and the House (he is one of the few Senators to give a farewell address to a joint session of Congress).longwalkdownlyndalehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13173899547449318257noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-75830330021190607562012-10-11T13:35:38.439-05:002012-10-11T13:35:38.439-05:00Wondering about the causal arrow here . . . "...Wondering about the causal arrow here . . . "playing on the national stage" may make one a more effective senator b/c it increases one's influence (rather than changing one's attitude toward Senate work). Putting together a serious presidential campaign in the post-reform era means developing a (power) network of supporters and donors that "ordinary senators" just don't have. Those supporters and donors, that network, lasts beyond an election cycle--if you don't implode in scandal. (I wouldn't count the silly plagiarism changes against Biden in 1988.)<br /><br />Just speculation. I don't have any data. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-53804053905166912812012-10-11T13:33:40.798-05:002012-10-11T13:33:40.798-05:00So, a piece of political conventional wisdom that,...So, a piece of political conventional wisdom that, when investigated, turns out to be mostly true? Unpossible!Robnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-61875640377023868092012-10-11T12:50:26.490-05:002012-10-11T12:50:26.490-05:00David Vitter comes to mind.David Vitter comes to mind.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-48070315074902386852012-10-11T12:09:20.029-05:002012-10-11T12:09:20.029-05:00Actually, Robert Taft only ran for the Republican ...Actually, Robert Taft only ran for the Republican Presidential nomination three time, in 1940, 1948 and 1952. In 1944 he deferred to Ohio's Republican Governor, John Bricker, who lost at the 1944 convention to Tom Dewey and then became Dewey's running mate. Taft bypassed the nomination battle in 1944 to run for re-election to the Senate, and he barely won his 1944 Senate race, 50.3% to 49.7% for Democrat William Pickrel. But while he failed as a Presidential candidate to even win a nomination, he was in some ways the most important Senator of his era, the driving force behind the Taft-Hartley Act of 1947 that permanently changed labor law, making it more favorable to the interests of corporate management.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-14216075262365916112012-10-11T11:54:44.591-05:002012-10-11T11:54:44.591-05:00Going back even further, I think the same can be s...Going back even further, I think the same can be said of Robert Taft and Barry Goldwater. Although he failed in his four attempts at his party's nomination, Taft was still a productive Senator who had a significant impact on the Republican Party and American foreign policy. Similarly, although Goldwater was unsuccessful in his presidential campaign, he served another 18 years in the Senate and continued to impact politics and influence the conservative movement.Carah Onghttp://millercenter.org/ridingthetigernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6926413038778731189.post-44228231026175149022012-10-11T11:46:12.689-05:002012-10-11T11:46:12.689-05:00I read something not long ago to the effect that i...I read something not long ago to the effect that if you're a politician who wants to survive a scandal, the Senate is the place to be -- the nature of the job and the lengthy terms in office make it possible to ride out a scandal in ways that governors or House members cannot. Perhaps something similar is going on here, with the added point that members can choose whether or not to run for president in a way they cannot choose whether or not a scandal is exposed.Chris Gnoreply@blogger.com