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Jewish World Review March 22, 2000 / 15 Adar II, 5760
Chris Matthews
The best hope for an exciting multiple choice this November lies with Jesse "The Governor" Ventura of Minnesota. The first man elected to high office by the Reform Party, the former pro wrestler now enjoys the extra credit of having broken with the party's founding father, Ross Perot. This man wants no part of a political movement that would wish Pat Buchanan on the American presidency.
What Ventura wants is a third option that excites his "heart and mind." What he grasps, and the Legacy Twins don't, is the David-vs.-Goliath romance that elevated the surprising early success -- and big voter turn-out -- of long-shot John McCain.
"He's the kind of renegade outlaw that is being despised by his own party, shoved away by his own party."
"Also, we're a sucker for underdogs. We love in the United States to cheer on Rocky Balboa, you know, who isn't given a chance to win. We like to prove this is America. You can win here."
Before a crowd a college students here last week, I asked the Minnesota governor about a Newsweek poll that shows McCain winning 32 percent as an independent presidential candidate against Bush with 35 percent and Gore with 28 percent.
"I would say this, that McCain will win. They don't poll the factor of the non-registered voters who will come out of the woodwork for a third party, centrist candidate. The day before (my) election, I was polling 28. What happened? I got 37.
"There's a 9 or 10 percent in there that's not factored in. If McCain is getting those kinds of numbers right now, that shows he could win the whole thing."
Ventura speaks with open interest of backing -- or even joining -- a national ticket led by McCain or Colin Powell. "I've been to Washington and I like the VP house a whole lot better," he disguises his humility. "It doesn't get the traffic. You've got a little bit of peace and quiet." The one certainty, Ventura assures us, is that he will not back either Bush or Gore (whom he once wrote was "as exciting as watching paint dry").
"You're going to see both candidates bring (campaign-finance reform) to the forefront, make it a big issue. They're going to talk about it all the way till November. They're going to tell you everything they're going to do about it. And then as soon as the election's over, that's all you'll hear about it. It'll disappear until four years from now because it is the lifeblood to both of these parties."
Is the American voter so jaded that he or she will stand for this two-party double-talk?
"Yeah," Jesse answers. "You have to remember, somebody shook their finger at us and said they `didn't have sex with that woman,'
03/20/00: Bush's California dream vs. reality
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