Congrats Senator Van Hollen.
I like them both. Was kinda pulling for Edwards as the underdog though. Glad I didn’t have to decide between two great candidates. I hope she finds a good position in the Clinton administration in the next chapter of her political career.
Totally agree that Edwards is a good, solid Dem (dare I say even, a strong progressive) that deserves a place in the upcoming Clinton admin. I really think Van Hollen is going places, this is just the first step. He’s a strong Dem and, seemingly, an overall decent man.
Could not agree more and might I add he has the perfect temperament
I tell you, unless there’s something really funky in his background or personality (ala John Edwards) that I can’t even dream of, I think he could be looking at 2020 with his eyes on that prize.
Disappointed for Edwards. Hope she finds a place in politics, we need more like her in Washington.
The choice was hard because of Van Hollen’s dedication to Democrats. He is a good guy. But Donna Edwards was a populist candidate, and through small donations won a seat in the House, unfortunately, money held her back this time.
I was really pulling for Edwards (there’s simply not enough black women anywhere) but she just wasn’t doing it for me at the end, her campaign was giving off a desperate vibe to me that kind of turned me off.
I thought we were trying to move the party more ot the left, but apparently not. Van Hollen is a "go along to get along’ Democrat, while Edwards was a more FDR Democrat. When Republicans say they will cut food stamps by 30%, Van Hollen says we will only cut it by 15%, Edwards says we will not cut it at all. The Baltimore Sun called him the “Democrats golden boy”. We move the party to the left in the primary, not in the general election, and we are failing miserably.
I hope not, I consider him a moderate Democrat and we ahve enough of those.
He’s experienced and savvy and knows how to work within the system. He’s plenty left for me. But I really want to see Donna keep active and grow too. It was a tough choice.
I like them both and Md is very lucky. CVH is great but was pulling for Donna because I grew up in PG county and her taking out Al Wynn was something she’ll have my eternal gratitude for. Maybe when Cardin retires she’ll run again.
Funny thing about this race is, though it should have, it didn’t come down to a Bernie vs Hillary split. It came down to a white/black split in the DC suburbs. Donna has represented PG country- most affluent black district in the country- and Van Hollen represented Montgomery County, an affluent white district. There was no correlation between the presidential and senatorial voting. Just an observation. Still parsing what that means for the primary and why people are voting the way they are because I found myself making arguments for Edwards that people make for Sanders and I had white friends who support Bernie doing the same for CVH. I reconcile my stance on Edwards by saying that the senate and congress are more reliant on coalitions that you build in each chamber to push your agenda, whereas the presidency is a more executive function requiring a diverse skillset. Visionaries with poor executive skills can thrive in Congress, whereas in the presidency, the buck stops with you.
Just some thoughts floating around at 6:30am.
Sorry, TPM, but Van Hollen didn’t just “get by” her; he beat her 52 to 36%. That’s a much more substantial margin than the polls indicated. In the end, her decision to run as an identity candidate backfired with an electorate that consistently supports progressive candidates, but also wants to get things done.
As an outsider, I have no local knowledge, and heard only what the national media said about the race. So I won’t judge who I would have backed had I been a voter in Maryland. But we need more of these kinds of races, not fewer. They help Democrats to decide the future of our party and, I devoutly hope, the nation.
I loved his version of Pretty Woman…oh wait Hollen…never mind!
Give it a break. The chances of getting a strong progressive in MD are pretty slim considering it’s proximity to DC. Look to places like VT or OR to get the radical contingent out.
“Gets by” seems like the wrong way to describe Van Hollen’s rather resounding victory.
Do you have a specific legislative action in mind? Or is this your sense based on something else? Because Van Hollen is pretty progressive in his outlook. It’s hard to say how Edwards and Van Hollen compare because Edwards has not been in Congress for as long.