I think Kerry lost the election this weekend when his comments regarding a comparison of terrorism with prostitution and gambling were published.First, the good news, Frank:
Please don't get me wrong, I understood where he was trying to go but the Bush machine already has an ad out twisting his statement and it is pretty powerful. Originally the volunteer coordinator for Clark, I know that many of my cohorts (there were a significant number of us) were not totally enamored with Kerry. I'm sure that is also true of those of you who were Dean guys from the get go. It just keeps getting tougher and tougher to stand by this guy as he continues to shoot himself in the foot.
He hasn't rebutted the "Global test" distortion successfully (again I understood what he meant) and his failure to wail into the Swift Boat assholes forever allowed that pile of BS to circulate forever. He either is not listening to his advisors or he has assembled the dumbest team on earth. Damn.
I'm still going to vote the Kerry Edwards ticket but I honest to God believe the campaign is done.
With great respect for the job you have done,
Sincerely,
Frank
Plano, Texas
Kerry Opens Three-Point Lead on BushThe down news here is that the Bush machine is now going to go into full-court press, which means a sneakier, nastier and yes, dirtier campaign. Here's the passage from the article:
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic challenger John Kerry expanded his slight lead over President Bush to three points in a tight race for the White House, according to a Reuters/Zogby poll released on Monday.
The Massachusetts senator held a 47-44 percent lead over Bush in the latest three-day tracking poll, up two points from Sunday. Bush's support dropped one point and Kerry's support rose one point in the new poll.
LINK - When I asked Kerry what it would take for Americans to feel safe again, he displayed a much less apocalyptic worldview. ''We have to get back to the place we were, where terrorists are not the focus of our lives, but they're a nuisance,'' Kerry said. ''As a former law-enforcement person, I know we're never going to end prostitution. We're never going to end illegal gambling. But we're going to reduce it, organized crime, to a level where it isn't on the rise. It isn't threatening people's lives every day, and fundamentally, it's something that you continue to fight, but it's not threatening the fabric of your life.''There's the context. And we know the Bush campaign has no tolerance for context. It's going to happen. The response to the Bush attack is simple: "That's our GOAL - not our current condition. Let us do the worrying. Let us bear the brunt of the concern. It's our job to protect you, and we will. Americans should not live in constant fear generated by their government. We won't return to a pre-9/11 mindset. We'll return to a pre-Bush mindset, where domestic terrorism was contained, not ignored. Where the president took action on PDBs, instead of continuing a month-long vacation."
This analogy struck me as remarkable, if only because it seemed to throw down a big orange marker between Kerry's philosophy and the president's. Kerry, a former prosecutor, was suggesting that the war, if one could call it that, was, if not winnable, then at least controllable. If mobsters could be chased into the back rooms of seedy clubs, then so, too, could terrorists be sent scurrying for their lives into remote caves where they wouldn't harm us.
Of course, Bush will shoot back that there were terror attacks pre-Bush, but we've dealt with that - hasn't been much of a talking point lately.
Kerry's a big boy. He can defend himself. Bush will always be Bush. Anything Kerry says - ANYTHING - will be twisted beyond recognition by Bush. If the undecideds still can't see that Bush will not stop crying "wolf" by November 2nd, then they should stay home.
