Posted on 09/16/2004 12:11:37 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
ELEANOR HALL: In the United States, the campaign of the Democrat Presidential challenger, Senator John Kerry, is undergoing a transformation with the challenger now going after President George W. Bush.
The Kerry campaign is in trouble and is running out of time, with the President well ahead in the polls. And while President Bush's lead has come back slightly from his post convention high, many states critical to a Kerry win are now turning toward the Republicans.
From Washington, John Shovelan reports.
JOHN SHOVELAN: Out on the stump Senator Kerry is getting tough.
JOHN KERRY: President Bush's desk isn't where the buck stops, it's where the blame begins.
JOHN SHOVELAN: Trailing in the polls, he's been advised to take the gloves off.
So a fist pumping Senator Kerry takes to the stage.
JOHN KERRY: His is the excuse Presidency – never wrong, never responsible, never to blame.
JOHN SHOVELAN: He's campaigning on domestic issues – the economy, health care and education. Funny, given the Democrat convention was all about his experiences in Vietnam and how this laid a great foundation for him to become the commander in chief.
But his retreat from issues of national security like Iraq has left his campaign looking unbalanced and ignoring one of the key issues on the minds of many American voters.
A former adviser to four presidents David Gergen says the Kerry campaign has become too domestically focused.
DAVID GERGEN: I think the single biggest weakness the Kerry campaign has become is that his rhetoric and his votes on Iraq have struck many, many voters as being incoherent. And they don't understand what he thinks about Iraq and what he thinks ought to happen in the future.
And I think the absence of a framework on the war on terrorism and what to do about Iraq is coming back to plague this campaign.
You cannot, as the Democratic challenger, when deaths are accumulating in Iraq, you know, when the place seems to be closer and closer to the edge of real chaos, you can't, as the Democrat candidate, say, well, let's talk about the economy.
He's got to talk about both. He needs a strategy for the war on terrorism and it has to include Iraq.
JOHN SHOVELAN: Reports suggest there's disagreement within the Kerry campaign itself, with some saying it's verging on chaotic. And while the Kerry camp flails President Bush has been stabilising his gains in states that were once considered dead heats. As a result the number of genuine battleground states is shrinking.
And even in the Democratic strong hold of Minnesota, Senator Kerry's standing has fallen nine points over the past month, while President Bush has gained three points.
In Ohio, a state considered a bellwether of this election and one that has suffered 250,000 job losses over the past four years, it's President Bush whose beginning to pull away – and this is meant to be a state where Senator Kerry's message would resonate.
But even Democrats now concede Senator Kerry has failed to communicate what his plans are. This morning when asked what he would do in Iraq, he replied that's a question for President Bush.
DAVID GERGEN: It's totally inadequate, given where he is. If he were ten points ahead perhaps he could get away with the old Nixon formulation on Vietnam – I've got a secret plan to win in Vietnam – but he's not ten points ahead.
JOHN SHOVELAN: The time for the Kerry campaign to make its mark is beginning to run out.
John Shovelan, Washington.
By The Prowler
Published 9/10/2004 12:09:06 AM
More than six weeks ago, an opposition research staffer for the Democratic National Committee received documents purportedly written by President George W. Bush's Texas Air National Guard squadron commander, the late Col. Jerry Killian.
The oppo researcher claimed the source was "a retired military officer." According to a DNC staffer, the documents were seen by both senior staff members at the DNC, as well as the Kerry campaign.
"More than a couple people heard about the papers," says the DNC staffer. "I've heard that they ended up with the Kerry campaign, for them to decide to how to proceed, and presumably they were handed over to 60 Minutes, which used them the other night. But I know this much. When there was discussion here, there were doubts raised about their authenticity."...."
John Kerry made a mistake, and the Democrats made a mistake in nominating him.
Kerry's plan was to simply run as "acceptable" to the American people, and his entitlement complex would take care of the rest.
As it turns out he is neither acceptable nor entitled.
When Don Imus concurs, as he did this am, you know a steam driven hoe won't be powerful enough for sKerry's row!
It sounds like Imus is going to hang on to the runaway Kerry campaign train.
Will he jump before it heads over the cliff?
Do we care?
It was a chance that Hitlery was willing to take, and to her credit her gamble was a good one.
She knew '04 was improbable, however '08 is her only chance, so she "rode sKerry for all he is worth" to set the stage for the first woman President in '08, IF the Democratic party survives....
Personally, what I would love to see is this tied to one of Hillary's people...
I can answer that in one word:
LANDSLIDE! : )
Yea, HER!
Eeeewwwwwww.
No, David. The single biggest weakness is the candidate himself.
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