Posted on 03/20/2004 5:56:04 PM PST by Indy Pendance
SUN VALLEY, Idaho, March 20 — After a 15-month campaign that took John Kerry from the brink of defeat to the nomination, and after a string of off-the-cuff statements that even his aides described as potentially damaging to his White House hopes, it may be hard to begrudge him a few days off.
Still, as Mr. Kerry disappeared to regroup on the slopes of Sun Valley this weekend, he left Democrats recoiling at the disparity between his campaign in the works and the White House, which has devoted six months to preparing for this moment.
As the White House greeted Mr. Kerry's claim on the Democratic nomination with an avalanche of advertisements and attacks, the challenger seemed at least a little spent as he faced the challenges of raising money, building a staff, responding to all of what his aides called the "incoming," and retooling his campaign to appeal to a general election audience.
Après ski, of course.
As the up-one-day, down-the-next cycle began in earnest, Democrats were wondering if even Mr. Kerry had underestimated the ferocity of the White House attack. In particular, they expressed concern about the potency of the Republicans' use of his Senate voting record to lampoon him as vacillating and indecisive, as he appeared to struggle to explain an array of votes the White House has come across during all these months of diligently researching his records.
"He has to come out forcefully and defend his record, because clearly the Republicans are trying to label him as a flip-flopper," said Gordon Fischer, the Democratic chairman in Iowa. "I don't think that's fair. But he's got to get out there, or his campaign has to get out there."
Senator John B. Breaux, Democrat of Louisiana, added: "He clearly is going to have to deal with that. But more important, he is going to have to talk about his positions on the issue of the day, not a vote on an amendment or what have you. People don't understand that. When you get into Washington-speak, it's a dangerous business. You've got to keep it simple."
While no one was ringing any alarm bells, Democrats around Mr. Kerry were contemplating some changes in course. Among the most prominent suggestions was that Mr. Kerry accelerate his selection of a running mate so that he has help raising money and making the Democratic case against Mr. Bush.
Democrats conceded that the past two weeks have highlighted some of Mr. Kerry's vulnerabilities, like his penchant for making politically unwise statements. On Tuesday, he responded to Republican attacks that he had voted against an $87 billion appropriation to support, in part, American troops in Iraq. "I actually did vote for the $87 billion before I voted against it," he said.
Republicans inserted a clip of Mr. Kerry saying that into their latest television advertisement in about as much time as it takes to say "on the other hand."
"You don't get a gift like Tuesday every day," said Matthew Dowd, a senior Bush strategist.
It was a gift that troubled some Democrats.
"This is a very important period, because it frames the candidates and the issues of the campaign," said Art Torres, the California Democratic chairman. "And I think that some of John's offhanded comments about foreign leaders are becoming a caricature for cartoonists and others. Once people start making fun of you, you're in real trouble and it's hard to move forward."
Slightly more disturbing, some Democrats say, is whether Mr. Kerry might have underestimated the effectiveness of the White House effort to point out what many people might view as conflicting votes he has cast during his Senate career. This is a common hazard for any member of Congress running for president, and part of why no sitting member of Congress has been elected president of the United States since 1960.
Democrats said that Mr. Kerry had yet to come up with an effective rejoinder.
In an interview three weeks ago, Mr. Kerry breezily dismissed suggestions that he might be vulnerable to that kind of attack. "My votes are actually going to be the easiest," he said. "I'm not concerned about votes to be honest with you. "
But a New York Times/CBS News poll conducted last week found that nearly 6 in 10 registered voters said that Mr. Kerry said what he wanted people to hear, rather than what he believed. Democrats said that reflected early Republican success at using Mr. Kerry's Senate votes, often on incremental or procedural bills, to raise questions about him.
A senior Bush aide said there was a "treasure chest" of votes and statements by Mr. Kerry that would let the White House continue this line of attack throughout the year.
Gov. Bob Wise, Democrat of West Virginia, a critical state for Mr. Kerry to win, said: "What's important is they've got to come back and rebut them right away, because he's not well known. He clearly has to rebut this, and keep swinging."
Mr. Kerry's weeklong vacation is welcomed by aides in no small part because of his remark about the $87 billion and a statement that Republicans have portrayed as him claiming that foreign leaders were rooting for his victory.
"When you burn the candle at both ends, you'll make a comment here or there that's blown out of proportion," said Scott Maddox, the Florida Democratic chairman.
While some Democrats said that they thought it was smart for Mr. Kerry to take time off now, others said he should not disappear for too long given that the White House was moving at full throttle.
Asked about Mr. Kerry's decision to take a vacation, Gov. Edward G. Rendell of Pennsylvania said, "I think he has to for a little bit."
"But not for long," said Mr. Rendell, a former chairman of the Democratic National Committee. "We need to be raising money."
That's our Philadelphia Fats talking. Should we be proud?
I cannot imagine anyone wanting a dem in charge of anything other than dogcatcher for a long long time.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.