Third Bases

Political Insider takes on the issue of potential third party candidacies from the usual suspects (Bloomberg, Paul, McKinney, et. al.). But I have to ask this question: is there really a constituency for such third party candidates? Does Cynthia McKinney really embody the fringe left? Are the wing-nuts supporting Ron Paul's candidacy going to follow him to a Libertarian nomination? Does anybody take Ralph Nader seriously? A third party candidacy has really not taken off since Ross Perot's 1992 run. Sure, Nader had something to do with the results of the 2000 Presidential election, but really it was Perot who had the last chance to actually win electoral votes.

I don't see a way for a third party candidacy to gain traction if the Democrats nominate their far left candidate (Hillary) and the Republicans nominate a mainstream conservative. However, if the nominees are Hillary and a liberal Republican such as Giuliani or Romney, there is a chance that a third-party on the right will emerge and attempt to run to the right of the Republican nominee. This is, of course, is not an optimal situation given the fact that this increases the likelihood that Hillary Clinton is elected....