Will Jerry Brown Consider A 2016 Presidential Bid?

Will Jerry Brown Consider A 2016 Presidential Bid?
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Supporters of California Gov. Jerry Brown are pushing him to make a 2016 presidential bid. And though Brown hasn't confirmed the rumors, he hasn't explicitly denied them either.

When asked by The Huffington Post, Brown did not have a comment on the presidential rumors, but a representative did reference a statement he made at the California Chamber of Commerce host breakfast in May, during which Brown said "time is kind of running out on that." And polls show Brown could enjoy an easy reelection for governor in 2014.

But some argue that Brown's actions -- particularly his recent fundraising efforts -- suggest otherwise.

“Every move he’s making is the move of a presidential candidate,” said Ralph Nader, a five-time presidential candidate himself, to the Los Angeles Times. “It’s almost a blueprint.”

As KCAL9′s Dave Bryan noted, many political analysts believe a presidential run for Brown would be both unlikely and unsuccessful. But it's also not an impossibility.

"You call late December the holiday season; in the political world we call it the crazy season," he said. "That doesn't mean it can't happen."

Brown, 75, certainly has the experience under his belt. He's twice served as California's governor, and has held a variety of political positions throughout the years, including mayor of Oakland and attorney general of California. Should Brown run for president, it would mark his fourth attempt.

Despite his age and failed former campaigns, Brown seems to have support for the idea of a run.

“Jerry Brown is a rock star in California. I mean, he’s California’s rock star. He’s just risen… once again,” RoseAnn DeMoro, the executive director of the nation's largest nurses union, told CBS. "Jerry Brown is precisely what America needs. He knows how to govern. He’s not beholden to special interests."

At a fundraiser in Sacramento in June of last year, Vice President Joe Biden said Brown is "the smartest guy in American politics."

Even some journalists seem to be pushing Brown into the ring.

While a Brown campaign would widely be seen as a longshot, the LA Times noted that he could provide relief for Democrats who aren't lining up behind the party's seemingly inevitable candidate: Hillary Rodham Clinton.

While Brown has done nothing to fuel the competition, some would welcome his candidacy as a way to stop what Nader called the “coronation” of Hillary Rodham Clinton by the Democratic Party establishment. Others unhappy with Clinton had their hopes invested in freshman Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, who they consider less beholden to Wall Street, but she has vowed not to run in 2016.

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United States Governors
Robert Bentley (R-Ala.)(01 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2011Term ends: Jan. 2015 (credit:AP)
Bill Walker (R-Alaska)(02 of50)
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Took office: Dec. 2014Term ends: Jan. 2018 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Doug Ducey (R-Ariz.)(03 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2015Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Asa Hutchinson (R-Ark.)(04 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2015Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Jerry Brown (D-Calif.)(05 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2011Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:AP)
John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.)(06 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2011Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:AP)
Dannel P. Malloy (D-Conn.)(07 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2011Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:AP)
Jack Markell (D-Del.)(08 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2009Term ends: Jan. 2017 (credit:AP)
Rick Scott (R-Fla.)(09 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2011Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:Getty Images)
Nathan Deal (R-Ga.)(10 of50)
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David Ige (D-Hawaii)(11 of50)
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Took office: Dec. 2014Term ends: Jan. 2018 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Butch Otter (R-Idaho)(12 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2007Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:AP)
Bruce Rauner (R-Ill.)(13 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2015Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Mike Pence (R-Ind.)(14 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2013Term ends: Jan. 2017 (credit:AP)
Terry Branstad (R-Iowa)(15 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2011Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:AP)
Sam Brownback (R-Kan.)(16 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2011Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:AP)
Steve Beshear (D-Ky.)(17 of50)
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Took office: Dec. 2007Term ends: Dec. 2015 (credit:AP)
Bobby Jindal (R-La.)(18 of50)
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Paul LePage (R-Maine)(19 of50)
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Larry Hogan (R-Md.)(20 of50)
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Charlie Baker (R-Mass.)(21 of50)
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Rick Snyder (R-Mich.)(22 of50)
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Mark Dayton (D-Minn.)(23 of50)
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Phil Bryant (R-Miss.)(24 of50)
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Jay Nixon (D-Mo.)(25 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2009Term ends: Jan. 2017 (credit:AP)
Steve Bullock (D-Mont.)(26 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2013Term ends: Jan. 2017 (credit:AP)
Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.)(27 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2015Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Brian Sandoval (R-Nev.)(28 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2011Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:AP)
Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.)(29 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2013Term ends: Jan. 2017 (credit:AP)
Chris Christie (R-N.J.)(30 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2010Term ends: Jan. 2018 (credit:AP)
Susana Martinez (R-N.M.)(31 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2011Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:AP)
Andrew Cuomo (D-N.Y.)(32 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2011Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:AP)
Pat McCrory (R-N.C.)(33 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2013Term ends: Jan. 2017 (credit:AP)
Jack Dalrymple (R-N.D.)(34 of50)
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John Kasich (R-Ohio)(35 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2011Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:AP)
Mary Fallin (R-Okla.)(36 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2011Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:AP)
Kate Brown (D-Ore.)(37 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2015Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Tom Wolf (D-Pa.)(38 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2015Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Gina Raimondo (D-R.I.)(39 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2015Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Nikki Haley (R-S.C.)(40 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2011Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:AP)
Dennis Daugaard (R-S.D.)(41 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2011Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:AP)
Bill Haslam (R-Tenn.)(42 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2011Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:AP)
Greg Abbott (R-Texas)(43 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2015Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:Chip Somodevilla via Getty Images)
Gary Herbert (R-Utah)(44 of50)
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Took office: Aug. 2009Term ends: Jan. 2017 (credit:Getty Images)
Peter Shumlin (D-Vt.)(45 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2011Term ends: Jan. 2017 (credit:AP)
Terry McAuliffe (D-Va.)(46 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2014Term ends: Jan. 2018 (credit:AP)
Jay Inslee (D-Wash.)(47 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2013Term ends: Jan. 2017 (credit:Getty Images)
Earl Ray Tomblin (D-W.Va.)(48 of50)
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Took office: Nov. 2010Term ends: Jan. 2017 (credit:AP)
Scott Walker (R-Wis.)(49 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2011Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:AP)
Matt Mead (R-Wyo.)(50 of50)
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Took office: Jan. 2011Term ends: Jan. 2019 (credit:AP)