David Petraeus for President?

Does it not seem strange there is buzz about David Petrraeus running for president in 2012? It is not only a matter of generally seeking out military heroes during a time of military crisis, like Dwight Eisenhower during the early days of the Cold War, but Petraeus, stand up guy that I am certain he is, is a blank slate upon which people are assuming whatever they want him to be.

Many did that with Barack Obama in 2008. Look where that got us.

I will be fair. The Petraeus 2012 talk is more like that of Colin Powell in the mid-90’s. Remember Powell was a political enigma. A lot of people waited on pins and needles for him to even declare his party loyalty in anticipation he might run against Bill Clinton in 1996 or join the Clinton cabinet. There was no clue which way he would go. Once he declared he was a moderate republican, people started forming opinions about him. He certainly left the Bush Administration less popular than when he entered it.

The point being familiarity breeds contempt even when choosing presidential candidates.

We do not know Petraeus’ party affiliation, his economic philosophy, or his governing philosophy in general. All we know is he has successfully run a war the left would roast him alive for during a presidential campaign. Plus, there is the biggest obstacle--he has already said no to a White House bid.

It is worth noting we have not been big in electing veterans for president in quite a while, either. I am not certain what that says about us. Obama had to pay lip service in an interview with ABC News to considering the military in his youth when you know he despised the American military as imperialistic. There was just as much debate over Vietnam War service in the 2004 election as the contemporary Iraq War. Military service did not seem to mean much either time. Progressive John Kerry lost in 2004; conservative (*snicker*) John McCain lost in 2008.

Is any serious candidate with military credentials being touted in 2012? I do not believe so.