The Big Thread For the USA 2016 Presidential Candidates [Poll updated!]

Started by Blythe, July 31, 2015, 04:50:07 PM

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Blythe

I think this is as good a place to discuss this as any. I thought it would be good to have a 'big thread' to talk about 2016 presidential candidates--who's running, under what party, what you think of them, etc. I'm going to try my best to list everyone I know of that's running, when they declared they were running, with what party. If I miss anything or a correction needs to be made, post here to let me know that as well. :-) I have linked their wikipedia pages, but if people would like, I can go through and find more comprehensive information and add it in! Although dang, it was a lot of work just getting the list together at all. I will note in any subsequent edits anything that is added into this first post. :-X

Democratic Party

Hillary Rodham Clinton - Campaign Site
Declared she was running on April 12, 2015.
Bernie Sanders - Campaign Site
Declared formally he was running on May 26, 2015.
Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide
Martin O'Malley - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on May 30, 2015.

Lincoln Chafee - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on June 3, 2015.

Jim Webb - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on July 2, 2015.




Republican Party

Ted Cruz - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on March 23, 2015.
Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide
Rand Paul - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on April 7, 2015.
Marco Rubio - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on April 13, 2015.
Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide
Ben Carson - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on May 3, 2015.

Carly Fiorina - Campaign Site
Declared she was running on May 4, 2015.

Mike Huckabee - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on May 5, 2015.

Lindsey Graham - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on May 18, 2015.
Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide
Rick Santorum - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on May 27, 2015.

George Pataki - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on May 28, 2015.

Rick Perry - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on June 4, 2015.

Jeb Bush - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on June 15, 2015.
Donald Trump - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on June 16, 2015.
Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide
Bobby Jindal - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on June 24, 2015.

Chris Christie - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on June 30, 2015.

Scott Walker - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on July 13, 2015.
John Kasich - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on July 21, 2015.
Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide
Jim Gilmore - Campaign Site
Declared he was running on July 30, 2015.

It's hard for me to keep up with notable independents who are running--if you know an interesting candidate who is not running under the Democrats or Republicans, post here and let me know when they declared they were running!

Questions I have for those keeping up with this:

  • Who are you most likely to vote for (or if you are not voting in the 2016 US elections: Which candidate do you like best?)
  • What do you feel are the best qualities and policies of your favorite candidate? Their worst?
  • Who is your least favorite candidate and why? Do they have any redeeming qualities and policies?
  • Are you surprised by some of the names who are running? Which ones, and why?

Remember the civilty rule, and post away folks! I apologize for the hugeness of this list, to be honest. I...had no idea that there were actually that many notable candidates seeking the Republican nomination. O_o

I have not personally settled on where I will vote yet or the why of that; I do know that the Democratic candidates currently appeal to me more.

Edit 1: Updated with campaign sites.
Edit 2: Updated and added the candidate Jim Gilmore.




Edit: Cleaning up the poll. For record keeping purposes as of 7:52 p.m. US Central Time on March 15th, this was what the poll looked like. I wanted to keep an image since the poll listed all the candidates who'd been in the field. This poll included all of the major candidates who were running for their party's nominations and had been updated as individuals suspended their campaigns as the primaries have gone on. Because so many updates happened, it was time to update the poll since most of the candidates are out. It also gives people a clearer idea of who is in and allows people to vote in the new poll with a cleaner looking updated poll.

Old Poll Image


Cycle

Awesome thread, Sherlock.  :-)

I haven't decided who I am voting for yet, but I am very much looking forward to next Thursday's Republican Primary Debate on Fox.  I bought an extra box of popcorn for it!


Blythe

Quote from: Cycle on July 31, 2015, 05:00:05 PM
Awesome thread, Sherlock.  :-)

I haven't decided who I am voting for yet, but I am very much looking forward to next Thursday's Republican Primary Debate on Fox.  I bought an extra box of popcorn for it!
Thank you! Right now, I'm trying to decide if it would be helpful for others to link the campaign sites each candidate is using.

I wish now more than ever that I had regular TV access, because I do want to see the Republican Primary Debate rather badly.

On another note...I...should probably answer my own questions in the first post. Heh.   ;D


  • Who are you most likely to vote for (or if you are not voting in the 2016 US elections: Which candidate do you like best?)
    I don't have one yet! I quite like Bernie Sanders, though.

  • What do you feel are the best qualities and policies of your favorite candidate? Their worst?
    I like his stance about wealth inequality/jobs/minimum wage, because I see the growing gap in income between the rich and the poor as a serious problem for the economy. I also like his stance on many social issues, and I'm intrigued (but not quite sold) on his immigration stance. I would say that I strongly disagree with him about his position about ISIS, though, and I think it's his worst quality.

  • Who is your least favorite candidate and why? Do they have any redeeming qualities and policies?
    It's...hard to say. I'm torn between Ted Cruz and Donald Trump, and I strongly think neither is suited to the presidency. Cruz because I'm still pretty bothered by Cruz's 2013 government shutdown antics and his stance on some social issues and particularly health care, and Trump because...well, nearly everything, but his unpleasant and poorly informed manner of discussing immigration reform is particularly galling to me.

  • Are you surprised by some of the names who are running? Which ones, and why?
    For me, what surprised me was seeing Lincoln Chafee running as a Democrat. He started out as a Republican in the 80s, drifted Independent after that, and now seems to have come full-circle as a Democrat.

Edit: I decided to add in each candidate's campaign site, mostly because while Wikipedia gives a decent overview, I think it's good to see what's up on their own sites. And when in doubt, I think this is a good sort of topic to try to be more comprehensive on. Again, if I have linked the wrong site or have erroneous info in my OP, feel free to poke me to correct me. ^^

Cassandra LeMay

The latest candidate in the Republican field is Jim Gilmore, who declared he's running on July 30.  Just copy-paste to your original list:
[url=http://www.gilmoreforamerica.com/]Campaign Site[/url]
[url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Gilmore]Jim Gilmore[/url]

Only just discovered he entered the race two days ago via this candidate overview on Rolling Stone: http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/us-presidential-election-candidates-2016 I expect they'll update that list if more candidates declare so it may be worth a look now and then.
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Blythe

#4
Thanks, Cassandra LeMay! I've added him to the first post. I must admit that I've never heard of Gilmore before today, though. While browsing his campaign site, though, I did find something rather neat to pass a bit of time.

This quiz!

A person can take the quiz and afterwards compare which candidate they align with most on a general array of issues. I took it and I was not surprised that I aligned closest to Sanders, and I had the least in common with Cruz.  ;D

Cycle

I took the test and I am basically not compatible with any of them...  XD

Highest was in the mid-30s with Sanders, Clinton, Christie and Biden.  Lowest was Cruz at 1%.


Beorning

Out of curiosity, I took the quiz and it turned out that I'm closest to Biden, Sanders and Obama. But of course, I won't be voting in your elections  :-)

ReijiTabibito

We're almost a whole year away from the general election, and already we're starting to see major news orgs cover the various campaign trails being forged by the candidates.

And yes.  This is a very, very big year for the Republican field.  The candidates are about as wide-ranging as the right-wing special interest groups, or groups they're trying to court (Huckabee & Santorum for the evangelical block; Cruz for the Tea Partiers; Rubio for the Hispanics...etc etc).  That said, even with so many candidates, I'm taking the Colbert approach to their field this year:

"Once all the votes at the primary are tallied, and someone has secured the nomination, I will discover my newfound love for this man...now that I have no other choice."  (Or something like that.)

Quote from: Sherlock on July 31, 2015, 04:50:07 PM
Who are you most likely to vote for (or if you are not voting in the 2016 US elections: Which candidate do you like best?)

Bernie Sanders.  I was ecstatic when I heard he was officially going to try and run for the Presidency.  He's thrown the Faux News Crew into fits, and I'm more than willing to bet that he's going to give Hillary a run for her money, even if he doesn't win.  Plus, even if he fails, his ideas are getting out there.  Ideas that are resonating with the common, sane individual.  And these are ideas that need to be heard.

I do have an honorable mention, but I'll detail them below.

Quote from: Sherlock on July 31, 2015, 04:50:07 PMWhat do you feel are the best qualities and policies of your favorite candidate? Their worst?

The best qualities for Bernie, from where I sit, is that he's A: not your typical DC politico, and B: his suggestions and ideas actually make sense, compared to a great number of the candidates.  I've heard of a lot of his policies, but the personal favorite I've heard from this election cycle is placing a modest - modest - tax on the everyday transactions at Wall Street, to help students pay for college.  I know a lot of guys who came out of university up to their necks in student loans they needed to pay off, and in a society where going to college means your employment options are not limited to working the drive-through at McD's, there needs to be a way for everyone who can get into college to pay for it.

In general, Sanders' policies represent the removal of special corporate interests, and the restoration of the American middle class, which was part of what made the lives of our parents growing up so good - the Long Boom that started post-WWII.

Quote from: Sherlock on July 31, 2015, 04:50:07 PMWho is your least favorite candidate and why? Do they have any redeeming qualities and policies?

This one is a bit tougher.  It's actually a 3-way tie for me to my most least favorite candidate.  (Yes, that makes grammatical sense.  So does this: Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo.)

Running in spot A for the least favorite is Jeb Bush, aka Bush III.  Every Bush we've had in office has had some sort of major financial crisis, and some sort of war attached to them.  Bush Sr's financial crisis was the S&L blowup, and his war was Desert Storm.  W's financial crisis was 2008, and his war was Afghanistan (which we are still fighting, I think), and Desert Storm II (not the actual name, I know, but there is a strong feeling he went into that to 'finish what Dad started').  People wonder what sort of financial shenanigans that Jeb will get into, and if we get into a war in the Mid-East, hopefully it'll be against ISIS and not Iran.  Plus, I'm just against political dynasties in general.  The idea of electing our leaders was to prevent the father-son passing down that happened with kings.  Partly.

Spot B is Lindsey Graham.  Part of what made me dislike him was his whining about the Fox News debate.  "It's not fair that this news organization gets to pick only 10 candidates and leave us out in the cold!  What about the primaries?"  Whining that was entirely self-serving: in addition to New Hampshire and Iowa, South Carolina is another of the big early primary states.  And where does Lindsey Graham happen to come from?  Oh, South Carolina?  Where people will probably vote for him? How intriguing!  The rest is that as a long-running fan of the Daily Show (Curse you, Stewart!  Why are you leaving?!)...well, fellow fans will know that Graham is a favorite target of Stewart's, for a good reason.

Spot C is Scott Walker.  He would probably be the frontrunner candidate if I actually lived in Wisconsin, and/or Bush III wasn't running, but as it stands now...I'm in education, and I've been hearing over and over again that Walker has been ripping the guts out of WI's public education system, in addition to driving the economy into the ground with his right-wing policies.  I have friends who have family that live in WI, and I hear a lot about how people are having to tighten their belts because of what Walker's doing.  Plus, the man couldn't finish a Philly cheesesteak!  COME ON!  :P

Quote from: Sherlock on July 31, 2015, 04:50:07 PMAre you surprised by some of the names who are running? Which ones, and why?

I'm with Sherlock.  I had never even heard of Lincoln Chafee up to this point, which is weird considering the field this year - both left and right - are filled with guys whose faces we've been seeing on the news during President Obama's terms.  (People might not know Jim Webb, but I do, and I think he would be a good third-runner candidate, especially with his experience in Vietnam.)


Now, onto my honorable mention for best candidate:

Trump.

Now, before you start hollering at your screens, hear me out.  I don't like Trump because I think his policies are insane.  Here's the keys to Trump:

A - Trump's positions are the positions of a lot of people on the right.  He's been leading in the national opinion polls, for the last...however long this is.

B - Trump has no mouth filter.  He's balls-out, says exactly what he means, doesn't try and couch it in the usual political language that guys like Graham and Walker and Christie and Bush and [Insert Names here] would.  And since he has a pile of his own money to run his campaign on, he doesn't need people to donate to him, which means donors can't control his message.

As a result, when he speaks these offensive policies, they sound offensive - which is exactly what we need.  People keep voting for Republicans for two reasons.  A: easily exploited cultural resentment, and B: Republicans are really slick at disguising their policies in terms that make them sound reasonable, when they're anything but. 

And while Trump may not be able to solve both, if the real policies of Republicans are brought to light, and people are made to understand them for what they are, rather than how they sound, it will go a ways, I would think, to help drive people away from the GOP, which would either cause their collapse or for the party to re-evaluate their positions and policies for real, rather than trying to keep to the same ideas while just changing the packaging, so to speak.

In short, Trump is a horrible candidate for President - but he is an excellent candidate for exposing the political right for what it is, instead of what they pretend to be.

Cycle

I love the fact that Trump is running and polling well.  But that's mostly because I find him entertaining.

I agree he is a problem for the Republican Party.  He clearly speaks to and for a significant percentage of their base.  But in so doing, he is alienating liberals and more importantly, moderates and independents.  (Neither the Democrats nor Republicans can win the Presidency without the votes in the middle.)

But the Republicans can't shut him down.  They can't outmaneuver him since he is far more skilled at playing the TV game than they are.  He doesn't need donor money, so they can't control him that way.  And if they try to kick him out of the party using some kind of procedural trick, he can just go Independent and guarantee a Blue victory in 2016.  Simply put, they need to bow to him now, not the other way around.

Trump also has no reason to stop running at this point.  His empire has already taken its reputational/financial hit, so that price is paid.  Each day he stays in the limelight gets him more publicity, which translates to more ego inflation and possibly more money.  So the longer he rides this train, the better off Trump is personally.

All together, this creates a fascinating dynamic to watch.  Too bad Jon Stewart is retiring next week...


ReijiTabibito

And alienation is precisely what the country needs at this point.  The longer Trump runs, and the longer he becomes seen as the iconic representative of the right-leaning side of the political spectrum, the more people will realize that the right is just going to drive the country into the ground with their continued insistence on the elevation of a small handful of very specific individuals at the cost of everyone else.

So, in a grander sense, not only is it better for Trump the longer he runs, it's better for the country overall, because while he's out there, making his entirely-unfiltered statements, the more people can realize the truth about the political right across all levels..  Because, as we have seen, it's not enough to simply have a progressive, or even moderate, President in the Oval Office.  Congress needs to follow.  That's been the bane of Obama's legacy, is that Congress has tried time and again to sabotage whatever he's wanted to do.  Obamacare.  Iran.  Obamacare again.  Reform for the tax code.  Obamacare AGAIN.  Handling immigration policy.  OBAMACARE.  AGAIN.

Goddammit, Congress!  Obamacare isn't going away, now shut up and take your money!

And yes.  I'm really, really cursing the fact that Stewart is gone after next week.  Trump alone would make this election cycle highly entertaining.  Then you throw in guys like Ted Cruz and Jeb Bush, and second-rans like Perry and Santorum...what follows is a formula for incredible entertainment.  The only thing that might make the right funnier is if Sarah Palin tried to run again.


********

On the left, I really want it to come down to Clinton v Sanders.  Clinton the Mr. did some alright things in office, and I have little doubt that Clinton the Mrs. would be a far better leader for the country compared to anyone I see on the right.  But Bernie has a handful of populist ideas, ideas that have been out there in the political arena for some time, and with him running, now those ideas have a face.

In a certain sense, Sanders and Trump share one very important quality: they do not care about the media game.  Trump doesn't care because his ego is bigger than six Trump Towers, and because - as you noted Cycle - he is the master of the game, he can play it better than anyone.  The whole thing with Lindsey Graham and the 'jackass' comment showed that.

Sanders also doesn't care, but not for the same reasons.  He doesn't care what the media says because he is committed to his policies and his ideals.  At a time when a lot of people - left and right - are trying to avoid the 'socialist' label that FOX throws out like Pez from a battery of rapid-fire dispensers (when really it's just a word they use to describe anyone who tries to deviate from their incredibly narrow way of handling things), Sanders stepped up to the plate and labeled himself a socialist.  He is relying on the strength of his ideas, and the fact that they benefit many many people rather than the Forbes' Top 100 to get elected.

la dame en noir

Holy moly...why is the Republican pool so big?! D:
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Blythe

#11
Quote from: ReijiTabibito on August 01, 2015, 03:07:10 PM
Running in spot A for the least favorite is Jeb Bush, aka Bush III.

I suspect being the 3rd Bush will have many in his own party who might normally vote Republican rather antsy about him. That being said, his current and more relaxed immigration stance is likely to win him some moderate supporters, so I suspect Jeb is a contender, unlike many of the other names. His removal of the Confederate flag from the Florida State Capitol grounds in 2001 and reaffirmation in 2015 that its racist will aid him and will appeal (granted, he's had some serious other problems when it comes to civil rights that are pretty glaring). He also seems...less hostile to a negotiation of climate change than many other Republicans, although still not ideal. He's still not acknowledging the science, but at the same time, he has publicly acknowledged a need to address that the climate for whatever reason is changing and wanted to work on carbon emissions. He's technically a climate change denier, but I suspect his more mellow rhetoric will again win him moderates.

In short, he's not my least favorite, although I do not like him. But should he secure the Republican nomination, I will be genuinely worried for the Democrat that runs against him. He maintains just enough of the old GOP attitude with just enough flexibility to potentially appeal to folks.

Quote from: ReijiTabibito on August 01, 2015, 06:06:41 PM
The only thing that might make the right funnier is if Sarah Palin tried to run again.

She probably won't from what I've heard. Trump has mentioned considering appointing her to part of his administration or giving her an office. I suspect that she might wind up a VP pick of his. >_>;

That being said, a Trump-Palin ticket is...mindbogglingly horrifying and potentially entertaining all at the same time. The only thing that would be scarier (for me) is a Cruz-Palin ticket.

Quote from: la dame en noir on August 02, 2015, 12:24:17 AM
Holy moly...why is the Republican pool so big?! D:

The Republican party is intensely divided at this point in time. The Tea Party faction, the GOP, the evangelical factions, etc. are all vying to be the voice of the Republican party. The party has finally started cracking as moderates within the party try to distance themselves from the more extreme elements, and it's creating a spiraling bit of chaos.

And in this case, currently, resulting in a huge amount of candidates.


(This stuff is my opinion, of course. Because I know how these sorts of topics can sometimes get heated, just tossing in an apology in advance in case my wording is poor or I cause offense).

Thank you all for contributing to the thread so far! ^^

Yukina

This may sound like a simplistic answer, but I'm also voting for Bernie Sanders. Just seems to know what he's doing and has a good grasp on the reality of our economy. Not to mention he's clearly aware and speaks out against how corporations have infested politics. :)


Far eyes

Quote from: la dame en noir on August 02, 2015, 12:24:17 AM
Holy moly...why is the Republican pool so big?! D:

Ninja Theory?

On another note i am always distinctly weirded out by the US and its strictly 2 side system. It always feels so binary and wierd and i often wounder if it contributes to the distinctly for us or against us vibe the US has on anything even faintly political
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Thumper

Unfortunately the two parties are opposite sides of the same coin.

Oniya

Quote from: Thumper on August 02, 2015, 09:54:38 AM
Unfortunately the two parties are opposite sides of the same coin.

Look into Bernie.  Mainstream media has been ignoring and dismissing him, but look into his policies and positions.  This man speaks to America in ways that no other candidate can match.  He has had rallies that have matched or exceeded every other candidate's rallies (with the one 'match' being at Liberty U, where attendance of Ted Cruz's speech was mandatory for certain classes.)

For once in my entire life, I feel like I can vote for a candidate instead of just voting against 'the guy I really don't want.'  To the point where I am declaring my party affiliation so that I can vote in the primary (PA's primary is closed, so non-affiliated voters can't vote in it.)
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ReijiTabibito

Quote from: Thumper on August 02, 2015, 09:54:38 AM
Unfortunately the two parties are opposite sides of the same coin.

OldSchoolGamer, is that you?  :P


Thumper

Never been on this site before this username that I remember.

Yukina

Quote from: Oniya on August 02, 2015, 10:24:21 AM
Look into Bernie.  Mainstream media has been ignoring and dismissing him, but look into his policies and positions.  This man speaks to America in ways that no other candidate can match.  He has had rallies that have matched or exceeded every other candidate's rallies (with the one 'match' being at Liberty U, where attendance of Ted Cruz's speech was mandatory for certain classes.)

For once in my entire life, I feel like I can vote for a candidate instead of just voting against 'the guy I really don't want.'  To the point where I am declaring my party affiliation so that I can vote in the primary (PA's primary is closed, so non-affiliated voters can't vote in it.)

Seconded. :)


Cycle

Quote from: la dame en noir on August 02, 2015, 12:24:17 AM
Holy moly...why is the Republican pool so big?! D:

My guess is there are two reasons.  First, the current Republican party is made up of several non-homogeneous groups:  rich folks, religious folks, tea party folks, hawks, fiscal conservatives, social conservatives, gun folks, world domination types, semi-moderates, etc.  It is relatively easy to become the favored child of one of these groups, and from there rise to prominence.  But since the groups have different interests, being the favorite of one does not mean you will be the favorite of the other groups.  Hence, lots of people have risen "to the top."

Second is strategy.  People like Cruz, Perry, Paul, Rubio and Walker are young.  They may be thinking for the future.  Run this year, see if they get anywhere, learn and adapt, and be ready to come back stronger in 4 or 8 years, depending on the lay of the land.  A practice run, if you will.  Learn how to do it, meet some backers, get your name out there, establish a framework to use next go around.  It costs them little, since they are spending other people's money.  And running and losing the primary contest isn't fatal like running and losing the actual Presidential Election.


Thumper

Quote from: Oniya on August 02, 2015, 10:24:21 AM
Look into Bernie.  Mainstream media has been ignoring and dismissing him, but look into his policies and positions.  This man speaks to America in ways that no other candidate can match.  He has had rallies that have matched or exceeded every other candidate's rallies (with the one 'match' being at Liberty U, where attendance of Ted Cruz's speech was mandatory for certain classes.)

For once in my entire life, I feel like I can vote for a candidate instead of just voting against 'the guy I really don't want.'  To the point where I am declaring my party affiliation so that I can vote in the primary (PA's primary is closed, so non-affiliated voters can't vote in it.)

From looking at the very first article with referenced quotes from him I can say absofrigginglutely NO

Blythe

Quote from: Thumper on August 02, 2015, 12:21:48 PM
From looking at the very first article with referenced quotes from him I can say absofrigginglutely NO

Which is your prerogative, of course.  :-)

That being said, since this is a thread about the candidates, who do you feel is likely to secure the Democratic nomination and who is likely to secure the Republican one? Any of them in particular stand out to you, for good or for ill?

Was there anyone that you had hoped would run that isn't running at the moment?

Thumper

Admittedly I don't follow democrats as much as I should. So I can't speak intelligently on who has a chance and who does not.

As for the other side? Probably Rand Paul.

Blythe

#23
Quote from: Thumper on August 02, 2015, 12:37:37 PM
Admittedly I don't follow democrats as much as I should. So I can't speak intelligently on who has a chance and who does not.

As for the other side? Probably Rand Paul.

I'm looking a bit at his campaign site on the issues. His stance on term limits/re-elections seems okay. I'm skeptical about his tax solution, but I'm not sold on it or against it at the moment. I'm conflicted about his stance on energy--on the one hand, he seems open to new discoveries and innovations, but on the other hand...he consistently supported the Keystone pipeline. That being said, I was very surprised to see his opinion on criminal justice, and I find myself liking his stance about non-violent ex-offenders (in other words, someone who's committed a crime who isn't going out committing more crimes), although I'd want to read more about it. Of course, I disagree with him on his immigration plan and on his abortion stance (and a few other things, but those two are two of the bigger ones), but...overall, I went in with a certain expectation of how Rand Paul would be before reading and find that I am pleasantly wrong on a couple of things.

Overall, he's not the worst Republican candidate, and he's head and shoulders above some of the others I fundamentally dislike/never want to see in office.

Cycle

I've been thinking about this and I suspect that Bernie and The Donald both appeal to people for the same reason.  That is, both are popular with people who are sick of/distrust career politicians.

Being annoyed at the way politicians behave is neither an inherently Democratic nor Republican thing.  So the liberals who are sick with government go Bernie, the conservatives go with The Donald.  This is probably exacerbated by the fact that a lot of folks feel (felt?) that come next fall, we'd end up with Bush Mark III versus Clinton Mark II.