Herding cats: Why being governor or mayor is good preparation for a president

Herding cats: An idiom denoting a futile attempt to control or organize a class of entities which are inherently uncontrollable, such as legislators or city councilors.

I hope the Democrats will look beyond Congress -- especially beyond the handful of self-anointed U.S. Senators banging around the Beltway like so many ego-filled hot air balloons -- at some of the mayors and governors who have expressed an interest in running or might be persuaded to get in the race. Governors and mayors deal with real issues with constrained resources. Mayors are typically very good at retail politics. They have experience handling legislative bodies. And neither is tainted by

association with the Beltway.

Many of the parishes mayors manage are not small-scale operations. For example, only seven states in the nation are bigger than L.A. County (Los Angeles, by far its largest city, is bigger than 23 of the states). The populations of 38 states are smaller than NYC's. Chicago, Houston: these places are huge. Being chief executive in any of theses hamlets is going to give you more relevant experience than you'd get as, say, governor of Arkansas.

Even in smaller cities, mayors are dealing with issues like poverty, housing, immigration, schools, medical services, police and fire protection, infrastructure, utilities, transportation, even massive problems like global warming and international trade, while senators spend most of their time raising campaign dollars and whining that the other side won't let them get anything done.

Several mayors are considering runs, most seriously Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, former New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu (a small city with big problems) and South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg. Also being talked up are New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, a progressive favorite, and Boston Mayor and former labor leader Marty Walsh.

Only 7 states are bigger than L.A.

Parenthetically, Sens. Booker and Sanders are former mayors.

Governors, too, who deal with political problems at the granular level, need a closer look, although in the wake of the calamitous Obama years, the ranks of experienced Democratic governors are thin. California ex-Gov. Jerry Brown is probably too old (although nowhere has he said he'd turn it down). CA Gov. Gavin Newsom, IL Gov. JB Pritzker, WI Gov. Tony Evers, MI Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and CO Gov. Jared Polis are all too new, and NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo has taken himself out of the 2020 competition. But MT Gov. Steve Bullock and former MA Gov. Deval Patrick are exploring runs; MD ex-Gov. Martin O'Malley will want another shot; WA Gov. Jay Inslee gets high marks from all sectors of the party, especially on climate change; and the party ought to take at least cursory looks at other governors like LA's John Bel Edwards, NC's Roy Cooper and RI's Gina Raimundo, as well as ex-govs like VA's Terry McAuliffe and CO's progressive John Hickenlooper.

Reading list:
✓ Why Democrats should take mayors seriously as presidential candidates: From City Hall to the White House by Alex Shephard (The New Republic)
✓ The bloom has come off the gubernatorial rose in presidential politics and that might be good news for Democrats: Maybe a Democratic mayor should be president by Jamal Simmons (The Hill)
✓ Democrats might need a straight white man from the middle of the country, like Steve Bullock, to win the 2020 election. But do they want one?: Could This Unknown Montana Governor Be Our Next President? by Anne Helen Petersen (BuzzFeed)
✓ As mayor, he has helped usher in Los Angeles's renaissance, most recently by bringing George Lucas's Museum of Narrative Art to the city. Can he work the same magic in a possible 2020 challenge to Trump?: Eric Garcetti Is the Anti-Trump, Pro–Star Wars Man We Need by Chanan Tigay (GQ)
✓ Democratic insiders can’t stand the progressive New York mayor and want him to pipe down, despite his record of real accomplishment back home. What gives?: What’s Bill de Blasio’s Problem? by Edward-Isaac Dovere (Politico)
✓ Can an Obama acolyte be elected after Trump?: Deval Patrick’s Presidential Prospects by Jeffrey Toobin (The New Yorker)
✓ Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper is gearing up for an unconventional 2020 presidential run: ‘He’s going to do it … He’s got a theory’ by David Siders (Politico)

Extra credit:
✓ Top party donors and operatives are eager to see the Texas congressman jump into the presidential race: Beto O’Rourke blows up the 2020 Democratic primary by David Siders (Politico)