This summer is it.  The field of 23 Democratic candidates will become a handful of legitimate candidates.  Here is my take on where they stand, and what the summer has in store for them.

Joe Biden

I worry about a Joe Biden candidacy.  Hillary and Obama’s sidekick.  As if their portraits are tattooed on his arms.  That will be Trump’s entire campaign.  The ammunition chest will be full for the bully in-chief and he will have fun with it.  For an entire Presidential campaign.  Anything Hillary or Obama did will now have a Biden nickname.  The other candidates for the most part are new players.  Bernie has been in Congress a long time but on his own the whole time.  Biden is needed for the older swing voters that have him leading in the polls now.  The establishment Democrats.  But this will turn off Gen-X and Gen-Y voters and work against maximum possible turnout for the Democratic ticket.  They want real change.  There are progressive candidates.  Biden is more of the same from the past 30 years.  A symbol of the same class that has been in power since the eighties.  So is this one segment of voters enough to win in 2020?  More importantly, is this segment dependable enough to go all in on?  Is it a sure thing?  Seems like quite the risk to me in these times.  However, the speech he gave today in Iowa was great.  That attack formula will work.  He is also the best candidate to assure wins in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania.

Bernie Sanders

He is out there and doing his thing.  But where is his heart and fighting spirit?  I am not seeing it.  He backs down on direct questions from tough interviewers.  When he doesn’t have to.  He doesn’t appear to have a lot of endorsement action within Washington.  Is his base of small donors the same as it was in 2016?  I don’t think so.  Many of the Democratic candidates are running progressive in one way or another.  So Bernie isn’t new.  He is just the guy who did it first the last time around and lost.  Without the advantage of being the shiny new thing and without the fight how can Bernie get the nomination?  His Medicare for All plan is not some crazy idea anymore and healthcare needs fixing.  But he isn’t selling it well.  He still has time but he has to go for it now like this summer is his last fight.  Which it is.

Elizabeth Warren

Running the best campaign so far.  No flopping on certain issues.  Breakup tech giants.  On the side of the the consumer.  The only candidate coming out with policies and a list of things she wants to get done.  She has handled the Pocahontas thing well.  Apologize often enough, loud enough, and soon enough, and it will be forgotten.  Her energy is great and she is coming from a good spot.  A northeastern Senator who isn’t new to the national stage trying to gain enough credibility to stay afloat.  She can run a campaign from this position of stability while others have to try and act out and punch through the ceiling.  If she gains steam she will get support within Washington and the party.  Others may not.  I worry about the rant tone that can turn people off, and how she would react under direct attack from Trump.  However, I do think she could be good at the Trump counter-punch with a little work.

Pete Buttigieg

I knew how to spell his name without checking.  So he must be doing something right.  The more we know about him the more he seems like a picked and sculpted establishment candidate.  It wasn’t great to see him riding around in a car with Zuck but what are you going to do?  Facebook owns a huge portion of all communication now.  Mayor Pete handles Trump’s attacks well and The Donald seems to back off.  Again, he is too new for Trump to know quite how to attack.  I don’t know what his policies are and he hasn’t really come out with anything big.  It will take more than being the young and talented gay veteran to have traction.  To be a true contender.  Feels like Mayor Pete had an initial bump when he appeared, but that is fading and nothing has happened since to send him upward.

Kamala Harris

Another candidate that seems to be just hanging out.  Although I am familiar she is not well known outside of the West.  When I hear her town halls I like the content.  A former prosecutor who I am sure knows how to fight.  Obviously talented.  My take is she needs to pick a couple of core issues and stick to them.  There is a boil the ocean feeling I get when I hear her speak.  Cramming many facts and topics into one two minute answer.  We are not that bright Kamala.  Pick what you think will get you attention and stick to it and drive it home for the entire summer.

Andrew Yang

Not on the radar yet, but he has things going for him.  Very up front about the facts we all know to be true.  Government and society needs a giant overhaul, and it can’t be avoided.  Less America falls in stature and quality of life.  Automation is good.  But we are all tied to this money system that makes America go round.  Corporations feel no responsibility to the people and neither does government currently.  Automation will feed profits and not quality of life.  Creating opportunity for Andrew Yang.  The Freedom Dividend has some strong points and potential benefits.  But we still live in a simplistic culture where labels matter most.  Easily attacked as Socialism there will have to be more from Yang.  One more positive.  Someone with nothing to lose can do what they want.  Yang is in that position.  He won’t get establishment support so it has to be the people that propel him.

Beto O’Rourke

You are done Beto.  Whose idea was it to be Will Conway from House of Cards?

Kirsten Gillibrand, Amy Klobuchar, Cory Booker

I heard there were some Senators running for President.  No, not them.  The other ones.  Hold my beer I forget their names.  Ok, I am back.  Cory isn’t spelled Corey, and it is Kirsten not Kristen definitely, and Amy yells at her staff or something.

The Rest

You all have to yell really really loud with something worth listening to.  You have three months to do so starting… now.