The View From Here . . .
By Bob Morgan, Jr.

It is still more than 20 months before Election Day, 2008, but the long, long Presidential campaign is very much in full swing. But are the voters quite ready for this marathon?

At least three news stories in the last week show that the nominating races have heated up quickly. Movie mogul and Barak Obama supporter David Geffen lashed out at his former friends, Bill and Hillary Clinton, basically calling the Clintons liars. Two leftist bloggers resigned from the campaign of John Edwards amid accusations of previous vulgar and anti-Catholic postings on their websites. The Associated Press breathlessly reported on the polygamous lifestyle of the great-grandfather and other distant ancestors of Republican aspirant Mitt Romney, a Mormon. It was unclear what these revelations had to do with Mr. Romney, who has been happily married to (one) wife for 37 years.

Meanwhile, there are plenty of other signs of the 2008 race. A Democratic "candidate forum" has been held by the ASFCME union with speeches by the major aspirants. Republicans Rudy Giuliani and John McCain have both accepted invitations to debate on May 3 at the Reagan Library. And the Democrats will have a debate in Nevada in August sponsored by (surprisingly enough) Fox News.

There are a number of reason for the early start to the campaigning. For the first time since 1928, it is clear that the nominee of the party holding the White House will not be either the sitting President or the Vice President, so the nominations of both parties are wide open. In addition, President Bush's standings in the opinion polls are not scaring away lesser-known Democratic challengers, who may feel a need to enter the race earlier. Also, since few of the major candidates will be taking federal funding there is more need to solicit donors.

But this very early beginning may not be a good thing, even from the candidates' perspective. In a report cleverly titled "Voters Remain in Neutral as Presidential Campaign Moves into High Gear", the Pew Research Center reports that voters are no more interested in the campaigns than in December, with only small minorities able to name a candidate they might support. Beyond these findings, of course, is the possibility that once the voters do wake up to the campaign, they will become weary of the rhetoric well before the fall of 2008.

And from the country's perspective, the early arrival of the campaign raises concerns as well. In a thoughtful essay this week in the Wall Street Journal, independent Democratic senator Joe Lieberman proposed a "truce" in the Washington political war over Iraq until the end of the summer, so that we can see whether the Bush Administration's "surge" will actually work. Fat chance of that happening with so many candidates competing for headlines.

While government limits on campaign start dates are undesirable, and there are a number of unusual incentives to begin early for 2008, one possible way to shorten future cycles is by rationalizing the primary system.

In recent presidential elections, the nomination has been won and lost in a few early primaries, with the winner usually apparent by March. This frontloading of the primaries (which is leading many states to move up their dates) has put a premium on early preparation by the candidates A better solution might be a series of monthly regional primaries from February to May. This structure might disappoint New Hampshire and Iowa and would require cooperation between senior Democrats and Republicans, but would help avoid the seemingly never-ending campaign.