Why don't we all run for President?

Over the weekend three new candidates jumped into the presidential race. Hillary Clinton got all the coverage but Sam Brownback and Bill Richardson both all announced respectively. Brownback is a Republican senator from Kansas and Richardson is the Democratic Governor of New Mexico. Both could be interesting characters in the presidential storyline. It was interesting to watch how all three decided to announce.

Hillary launched her campaign on-line with a warm fire side chat kind of feel. I thought hers was the best of the three as it shows she understands the role the internet will play during the election. She also had a soft appeal to her announcement that I think will resonate with voters. This softness is in direct contrast to the hit job she has contracted against Obama. Over the weekend, Obama's cocaine addiction and his enrollment in Muslim schools were reported and I have no doubt that both came from Hillary's camp to bloody him up.

Brownback's announcement was more old fashioned or should we say conservative as he announced at a campaign rally in Topeka. Brownback is a great guy and I agree with him on several issues especially abortion and our involvement in helping Africa. But his event was too conventional and he didn't offer anything with flare that the media could report on. Plus the fact that he announced the same weekend as Hillary shows he may not be ready for prime time.

Richardson appearance was more statesmen like as he announced on This Week with George Stephanopolis. His announcement was better than Brownback's but he should have chosen a more watched show than This Week. When Brinkley was host it was a must watch but since he retired does anybody watch that show anymore. The compelling thing about Richardson, other than his being the only Hispanic in the race, was that he seems to want to push the race towards more policy debates as opposed to personality and soundbites. I welcome that.

These three entries make a total of 17 candidates between the two major parties that have already announced. Another 5-10 could still announce in the coming months. Pretty soon there will be people lining up outside convention halls just for the chance to be president. Oh wait that's American Idol.