Tim Blair

Playing it carefully, I would bet on the following to place...

a) Richard “Dick” Gephardt

b) Al “Reverend” Sharpton

e) John “Regular Person” Edwards

h) Dennis “Department of Peace” Kucinich

And if pressed to back a winner, I would have to say Edwards. The guy is starting to look like one of those generic bunnies they always put up against the energizer bunny.

* CLARIFICATION *

* By "place" I meant that the next four will go in no particular order.

* By "winner" I meant that next guy to lose his head.

I did, the first of 3.

To be followed by Denny Kucinich and Al Sharpton.

With Wes Clark as the eventual VP candidate.

I think Sharpton will stay in it until the end. Not because he has a chance to win but because he doesn't have a real job anyway, so why not? He's all about seeking attention so as long as he's getting some he'll continue.

Kucinich may keep running as well but no one will notice.

I did, but I predicted she'd drop in November.

Kucinich is too stupid to drop out. He'll drop out when he runs out of money or he takes his tinfoil hat off.

Sharpton will stick it out -- he's hinted that he's not playing to win, but rather intends to pick up enough delegates that he can influence the convention.

It was only 2 days ago that Braun was on Hannity and Colmes vowing to fight to the finish. Hannity, with a very sympathetic, sad for the fool, look on his face, asked her if she realized she had very slim chances. She smiled and denied it. The very next day she folds. Thanks Hannity! Now please psych Sharpton for us.

Sharpton is playing Buchanan, he's in it until they invite him to speak at the convention.
I chose Kucinich, and I'm sure he's the next one out. Then Lieberman, then Edwards and Clark.

Oh no, Geoff - Clark is in until the bitter end. He is the Clintons' boy, and the Clintons control the Dem Party machinery. If it looks like he won't win outright, they will try to engineer a brokered convention where delegates are free to vote for whoever they want.

The Yahoo story says "Braun never broke out of single digits in national and state polls and failed to qualify for several state ballots."

Isn't that a little generous? I don't recall her getting anywhere near 10%.

R.C.

I think Clark's various flip-flops and laughable statements are going to catch up to him. And I don't think he'll be able to out-anger Dean. Right now, he seems to be copying him.

I meant to have put Gephardt before Clark, though. He's too much of a politician to continue on a losing path.

Xavier,

Braun was consistently inconsequential. She, Kucinich and Sharpton are the 3 that don't have any chance whatsoever. If the other 6 were murdered in a terrorist bombing or Republican hit(sarcasm off), someone else would enter and beat them.
Sharpton is the true believer, the crusader who doesn't want to win, he wants to make a difference. Kucinich and Braun never fell into that category.
Braun's departure now raises the question of whom NOW will endorse.
As if most people really cared.

NOW endorsed Clinton over Flowers and Lewinsky so Braun should not have been counting on their support.

James,

Hate to break it to you, but Geoff was right; NOW endorsed Braun a while back.

http://www.now.org/press/08-03/08-26.html

I think that endorsement only added to the "NOW = irrelevant" meme.