Congratulations to the Anaheim Ducks, winners of this year’s Stanley Cup. And, to the rest of you NHL hockey players, enjoy your summer vacations. Training camp starts in two weeks.

At least that’s what it seems like. Actually, players have about two months off before camp opens in September. That’s when the longest season in professional sports begins, and we’ll again be blessed with a bunch of preseason NHL games, heretofore the most meaningless endeavors known to humankind.

Until, that is, the 2008 presidential contest started. To paraphrase Churchill, never in political history have so many spent so much time on the campaign trail with so little to show for it.

First, consider the sheer length of this campaign.

When he ran for president in 1968, Sen. Robert Kennedy declared his candidacy in March of that year. He wasn’t even in the race until eight months before Election Day. This time, it would be fair to say the campaign started in November 2004.

As soon as Sen. John Kerry announced he wouldn’t contest President Bush’s reelection, the race was on to find Bush’s 2008 successor. Some candidates have been running even longer.

On the Republican side, John McCain first sought the presidency in 1999. Although, to be fair, he stopped running when George W. Bush became the Republican nominee in 2000 and he supported Bush’s reelection in 2004, so he actually took a few years off the campaign trail before picking up the mantle again.

That’s not really the case for former Sen. John Edwards. He sought the Democratic nomination in 2004, briefly suspended his campaign when it became clear he wouldn’t win, then became Kerry’s vice presidential candidate. He’s been running, virtually non-stop, for national office since at least 2003.

Next, consider the size of the field.

Because Vice President Cheney made it clear years ago that he wouldn’t attempt to follow President Bush, this is the first election since 1952 with neither an incumbent president nor vice president on the ballot. That means both parties started without a frontrunner, and plenty of people wanted to throw their hats into the ring.

The Federal Election Commission currently lists 17 candidates for president. These candidates are enjoying plenty of face time. Each party has already had two debates, and more are on the way throughout the summer and fall. Continued...