http://www.villagevoice.com/issues/0417/mondo1.php Wow, for those of you that don't know, the Village Voice is a pretty liberal NY publication and now they are turning on Kerry. I did not see this coming. What do you guys think? Is it too late to replace Kerry? nation Mondo Washington by James Ridgeway John Kerry Must Go Note to Democrats: it's not too late to draft someoneâanyoneâelse April 27th, 2004 11:45 AM WASHINGTON, D.C.â With the air gushing out of John Kerry's balloon, it may be only a matter of time until political insiders in Washington face the dread reality that the junior senator from Massachusetts doesn't have what it takes to win and has got to go. As arrogant and out of it as the Democratic political establishment is, even these pols know the party's got to have someone to run against George Bush. They can't exactly expect the president to self-destruct into thin air. With growing issues over his wealth (which makes fellow plutocrat Bush seem a charity case by comparison), the miasma over his medals and ribbons (or ribbons and medals), his uninspiring record in the Senate (yes war, no war), and wishy-washy efforts to mimic Bill Clinton's triangulation gimmickry (the protractor factor), Kerry sinks day by day. The pros all know that the candidate who starts each morning by having to explain himself is a goner. What to do? Look for the Dem biggies, whoever they are these days, to sit down with the rich and arrogant presumptive nominee and try to persuade him to take a hike. Then they can return to business as usualâresurrecting John Edwards, who is still hanging around, or staging an open convention in Boston, or both. If things proceed as they are, the dim-bulb Dem leaders are going to be very sorry they screwed Howard Dean.
It's not much of a secret that Kerry is a weak candidate for the Dems. Look how well Governor Gray Davis did in California due to the fact that he was never challenged by a "strong" candidate! Thursday at the 911 Commission should be interesting: http://www.villagevoice.com/issues/0417/mondo2.php
Mav, you've hit gold here. I think it is an open secret that Dem political pro's are close to panic because of Kerry's failure to mount any sort of campaign. Basically, Bush has been through a nightmarish month, yet has seen his numbers actually improve. Kerry has been largely absent from active campaigning, fails to connect when he does venture out and is dogged by issues regarding his wife's wealth and his own background. The Dem's are so desperate they are now floating stories that Kerry is cleverly employing the rope-a-dope tactic made popular by Ali. Pretty high risk manuver if you ask me. Kerry has let the Bush campaign define him for the voters, and the definition is of a flip-flopper who will say anything. The charge has substance and the public is buying it. Perhaps more important, so are parts of the media, including the late night guys. When they are making jokes about Kerry thinking he met international leaders because he was eating at the IHOP, he is in trouble. The irony of this is that Kerry won the nomination because voters were convinced by the media that he was "electable."