All Right Then

Former Republican Senator and current Democrat Lincoln Chafee says he's considering running for president and will launch a presidential exploratory committee:

Chafee said he plans to spend the next few months in Iowa, the first caucus state, New Hampshire, which holds the kickoff presidential primary and "other key battleground states."

A decision on whether to pursue a campaign, Chafee said, will hinge on the level of support he can generate over the next few weeks and months and on how well a web-based fund-raising effort goes.

He released this video, announcing his intention to explore a run for the presidency:

Lincoln Chafee, a 62-year-old thin white man wearing a white shirt, dark blue suit jacket, and blue-and-white striped tie, appears in a library, speaking directly to the camera.

I'm Lincoln Chafee, and I am a Democrat considering a run for President of the United States.

The 2016 election is an important one, for the Democratic Party and for America. Campaigns are the time for debates about the vision for our future, and for voters to assess the character and experience of those offering ideas.

When the Republicans were last in power, they left the economy in shambles. Over the last six years, President Obama has led admirably. He has revived our economy.

As we look to the future, in this age of nuclear weapons, I'm alarmed by the international instability, especially in the Middle East and North Africa. I don't like where this is going. Americans want safety, stability, and sustainability. We will need fresh ideas, and the most skillful diplomacy in dealing with this ever-changing world.

Throughout my career, as mayor, governor, and United States Senator, I exercised good judgment on a wide range of high-pressure decisions—decisions that require level-headedness and careful foresight. Often these decisions came in the face of political adversity.

During the next weeks and months, I look forward to sharing with you my thoughts about the future of our great country. Thank you.

Lincoln Chafee is not exactly a charismatic dynamo, but he's got some integrity, which is always in short supply in Washington. He's a former Republican, so, suffice it to say, he's not exactly a transformative progressive, but he may be attractive to moderate voters, so this is a pretty solid run for a vice-presidential spot.

Because Hillary Clinton is presumed to be the front-runner for the Democratic nomination—presumed, in fact, to be the eventual nominee, despite the fact she has not yet even announced her candidacy—it's impossible to listen to this introductory statement without hearing the implicit jabs at Clinton.

Chafee might not have intended to imply that he would be "level-headed" where other candidates (ahem) would not, but implying that a female presidential candidate would be too emotional and irrational and ninny-brained to exercise good decision-making is perhaps not the "fresh idea" we need injected into this campaign.