Posted on 08/03/2004 6:29:27 AM PDT by presidio9
The morning after his address at the Democratic National Convention in Boston, former President Clinton volunteered to this scripturally challenged reporter that his speech's most provocative line had been inspired by the Book of Isaiah.
What Clinton spoke was truly unarguable: "During the Vietnam War, any young men -- including the current president, the vice president and me -- could have gone to Vietnam but didn't. John Kerry came from a privileged background and could have avoided it, too. Instead he said, 'Send me.' "
Each evening and speaker was dedicated to delivering slight variations on the convention's central theme: Biography is destiny; Democrats who have long lionized anti-war protesters now un-self-consciously salute and honor the combat veteran who served bravely in that most protested of wars. As the hero who later protested that war, John Kerry is the ideal bridge in resolving all conflict between those two Democrats' eras.
The discipline of the Boston delegates in submerging their own personal agendas for victory in November was truly impressive. Not once all week did I hear the presiding officer -- so that a speaker could be heard in the hall -- have to gavel the convention hall to order.
Not once were the marshals called upon to clear the aisles. As pollster Peter D. Hart who began attending Democratic conventions in the '60s astutely asked: "When was the last time that at a Democratic convention you saw on stage more American generals and admirals than labor union presidents?" Answer: Maybe during Andrew Jackson's convention, probably never. Hart added, "In Boston, Democrats (by featuring Jimmy Carter, Ted Kennedy, Al Gore and Bill Clinton) did not, as they have, run away from their past."
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
It is gonna be hard to top the Democratic convention. I mean how can one avoid the candidate's entire political record like the Democrats did Kerry's. It will be also difficult to avoid as many issues as did Kerry. Yep, it will be a hard one to top....
Wishful thinking?
Which do you prefer, the strawberry kool-aid or lemon-lime? DOWN THE HATCH!!!!
Indeed. It will be hard for Bush to lose more ground at his convention than Kerry did at his. The GOP has their work cut out for them.
Who writes this crap?
GOP convention is shaping up to be very boring and passionless just like the last convention. Speaker list is unimpressive.
Speaking of jobs, Hey Shields - get one!
Uh, yeah. The GOP will have to work very hard to avoid bursting into laughter whenever reminded of DEMCON04.
You forgot the "Barf Alert".
The way I read John Kerrys record, he didnt say SEND ME till all his deferrments ran out.
Dimwits like Mark Shields.
Wrong. The field now belongs to Bush, until the debates, then it's a new ballgame. But this is as good as it gets for Kerry, for now. Bush can use the bully pulpit to shape events. Kerry also can't spend as Bush can in the next 4 weeks. And the GOP convention happens AFTER most people have vacationed, and just as 9-11 rolls around again. And the convention has Arnold speaking. He'll draw HUGE ratings. The GOP played this just right.
Mark Shields needs to whistle a little louder as he skips through the graveyard, because as the GOP convention gets underway it's going to get a lot scarier for the Dems.
Sure thing Mark! The GOP will have a tough time of keeping their snikering in check as real adults talk about real issues and solutions not secret ones.
The Frechurian Candidate sounds like Dean Wormer from animal house and "double secret probation" with his economic and terrorism plans.
They are so secret even J F'n K doesn't know them........
Sophmoric...........
Tougher??? Try "easier"!!! The Dem convention is one of the biggest disasters in modern political times. They got ZERO bounce out of it!
Clueless, revisionist, leftist turds like Shields, that's who.
You forgot this: /sarcasm
Mark Shields is a shill. It will quite easy to top that bore fest where wild eyed leftist radicals who hate America were muted.
Not only does he drink the Kool-aid. I think he was the kid in school who ate the paste.
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.