ATTN: No Freakin' Clue voters

OK....we're getting close to the early primary season. I've been neutral all year, and with less than a month to go, now I feel like I really ought to start thinking about the candidates. What follows is a list of what's basically been bouncing around in my head for the last twelve months and does not even pretend to be comprehensive.

I want this thread to be for undecided voters only. If you already know who you're voting for, please refrain from commenting. If you're volunteering for a candidate, please refrain from commenting. I want this to be a discussion of the relative merits and demerits of each candidate, free from mudslinging and horserace bullshit.

I specifically want to appeal to lurkers too: c'mon, log in already and let's talk. I know you're out there. (I can hear you breathing....)

Clinton

PRO:
• The Republicans hate her. If she wins, so many wingnut heads  will explode that it'll sound like the Fourth of July.
• Do they have any oppo left on her? The machine has been shoveling shit on HRC since the early 90s. Hell, she's the one that coined the term "vast right-wing conspiracy." I remember laughing about that in the 90s, but not anymore.
• Speaking of the 90s, I still think Bubba was a hit-and-miss President, but the 90s sure look like the good ol' days, don't they?
• 1st woman President. America is ready: nobody got all bent out of shape about Pelosi, did they?
• All of the Big Three seem in general agreement on universal healthcare, but it's been Hillary's signature domestic issue for 15 years.
• Has raised beaucoup bucks. She will not be outspent by the Elephant candidate if she makes it to the general.

CON:
• First and foremost, the Iraq thing. She has been terrible IMHO on Iraq.
• Also voted for the PATRIOT Act.
• I'd rather not see two consecutive Presidents with the same name as two other Presidents. Hillary can't really help this and I hate to hold it against her but it's true.
• She's taking advice from Mark Penn. Bad.
• Shares a video-game obsession with a certain Independent who will go unnamed.
• From New York. Probably won't hurt her, but there may be some indie votes in purple states that swing away from her based on that alone.
• Supports the death penalty.
• I'll vote for a centrist, so this isn't a knock on HRC per se, but at least as far as foreign policy goes (and perhaps also domestic policy), she's clearly not as openly liberal as the rest of the Big Three.

Edwards
PRO:
• Already voted for him once. I'd have no problem voting for him twice.
• From a Southern state. He isn't polling very well in SC though....
• Only one of the candidates who's personally argued with Dick Cheney on national TV.
• I think his career as a lawyer before he ran for Senate is pretty impressive. We got to hear about it a bit in 2004.

CON:
• Voted for the Iraq War. Now, he has since backed off of that, but had the luxury of not actually being in office when he made that backtrack. Call it a wash.
• Voted for the PATRIOT Act. I'm not sure if he's done a mea culpa on that like with the AUMF.
• The whole public financing thing. I think Kos is right on this, it will hurt Edwards significantly. I think it was a noble tactic but a poor strategy. Time will tell.

Obama

PRO:
• First black President. Nuff said.
• Opposed the Iraq War from the beginning. Also didn't have to vote on the PATRIOT Act. This is IMHO a huge mark in his favor.
• Impressive pre-elected office career.
• Was actually in the State Leg, which I believe HRC and Edwards weren't.
• Oratory. The man can give a speech.
• Has actually raised enough scratch to keep up with Hillary, which is amazing.

CON:
• The Obama v. Krugman thing. Why go after your own?
• Making noises about Social Security. Why?!?
• The McClurkin debacle. WTF?!?!?
• The debate answer about hitting AQ in Pakistan without Pakistan's permission. Uncharacteristically tone-deaf.

Really, all three have fairly similar policy positions. Hillary's the hawk of the bunch, Obama is the dove, and Edwards has made the transition from hawk to dove. All three agree generally on healthcare, balancing the budget, net neutrality, climate change, Roe v. Wade, etc.

Obama and Clinton both voted for the Berlin Wall Secure Fence Act.

Obama and Clinton have done nothing to help enforce Congressional subpoenas. This is not a trivial failure. They are as high profile as it gets and they are not speaking out about this.

OK. So this list is woefully incomplete. But it's a starting point. I'll update with stuff from the comments.

Do we need to do a pro/con list for anybody else? I don't see how Dodd, Biden, Richardson, or D.K. are supposed to win a state. It's been the Big Three all year, and Dodd and Richardson both looked poised to hop into a middle tier* at various points but neither ever caught fire.

*Predicting the fourth place finishes in IA & NH will be interesting....