Dick's Political Prediction
for the Millennium

You read it here first!

I think that the Reform Party is going to play a major role in the next US presidential election and deny the presidency to either of the front runners, Al Gore or George W. Bush. There are several ways that they could do this, the only requirement being that H. Ross Perot stifle his immense ego and let things run their course. That's asking a lot of a man with Perot's impetuous, take-charge personality, but he personally despises both Gore and Bush so much that he just may do it.

One of the ways they could spoil the election would be to run a big vote-getter like Lowell Weicker, the former Senator and (very) independent Governor of Connecticut, or Jesse Ventura the equally very independent Governor of Minnesota. Both these men are popular enough, and would be able to raise enough money, to insure that no one got a majority, thus throwing the election into the House of Representatives. With the conservative make-up of the House anything would be possible. George W. Bush, the moderate, and Al Gore, the liberal, however, would probably not be among the possible choices.

If the Reforms don't run their own presidential candidate they could instead become power brokers and deal makers. They have more than $12 million in federal matching funds that will come due to them because of their past election performance. I can see them making a back-room deal with the Republican bosses to cross-endorse John McCain, or the with the Democrats for Bill Bradley, for example, thus denying Gore and/or Bush the nomination. If Perot were to run as Vice President on his party's ticket, but not on the cross-endorsed major party's then, under federal election law, he would be able to contribute an unlimited amount of his own money into the effort without scaring us into believing that he could really become Vice President.

These are just a couple of possible scenarios - I am sure there are many more. But whatever the tactic, I expect that the Reforms will be throwing out some curve balls this year that will have a big impact on the election. I am a life-long registered Democrat but I wish them every success because I think that neither Al Gore nor George W. Bush have the qualifications to be President of the United States. How the press ever put them in that position is beyond me.


This is my opinion. What's yours? envelp.gif - 1664 Bytes rcasaly@albany.net