Bill Burkett's Yahoo Groups Message to his Fellow DemonCats

Yahoo Groups Texas Democrats ^

[ambrose]

Mitch and all Democrats,

This is long - but I urge you to read it.

I'm sorry but the whole strategy on this has been poor, slow of foot and anemic. It accents that Kerry is actually "flip flopping" in that he is slow to act, and then doesn't seem to have a single plan, but instead seems to have two plans.

First, we all knew the swift boat book and attack ads were coming. I knew about them in May, for God's sake. I saw postings on this site in Early July.

There didn't seem to be a clear plan. On the one hand, the Kerry team wanted to wait it out and say nothing and play the good guy role. Most of this was grounded in the same responsive approach Gore and Dukakis had used and it was obvious both that Bush would use this approach and the effect it would have. So why didn't we learn from the lessons?

Then we overestimated the impact and level of commitment of new found supporters gained from the convention. We began to believe our own press, and Kerry goes on vacation.

Now dammit, I've worked with Rove, Hughes, Bartlett and Bush. They knew he was a little "pretty". There was even a story about Rove's comments about Edwards being a little "pretty". What that means is that they knew he wouldn't be able to scrap. And they haven't.

So when someone claws Kerry what does he do, "Whine" to the FEC?

I spent some time on the phone with the Kerry campaign seniors yesterday after having to threaten to whip a little ass in order to get through seven layers of bureaucratic kids trying to get a job after the election. I talked with Max Clelend.

I hope he got the message, but even if he did, I'm not sure that his side of the issue can beat out the other half of the advisors. And that's a problem. There seem to be two factions within the Kerry advisors = one camp is the Gore holdover group who say play nice, we may make someone mad. The other includes people like Max Cleland who say kick ass. And the candidate can't seem to follow instincts and lay down some blood. The comments that he made Friday would have been effective if they'd been made the Monday after the convention, but two weeks later just doesn't work.

I'm concerned.

You have a candidate and all of us do. Your candidates are afraid to fight down and dirty. The people say they're sick of this- and they are. But Bush has nothing to lose. And he will do ANYTHING to get what he wants. SO when they do the attacks, if the turnout is lowered, as you are concerned, then he wins. If he scars Kerry, he wins. He wins in all directions unless there is a counterattack.

I said all of this to Max. I asked if they wanted to counterattack or ride this to ground and outlast it, not spending any money. He said counterattack. SO I gave them the information to do it with.

But none of them have called me back.

No, I'm sorry but until this party and this candidate learn to handle Bush, we in all honesty will lose this election. We have the emotion, the backlash, the issues, and discontent, but we don't have the passion for a fight. And that's what is about to get the elec tion tight enough that the dirty tricks in the voting booth and counting will work.

I've tried everything. Why do you think that my knowledge and ability was sufficient that I received death threat and actual shots fired at me? It's because I was willing not only to break ranks, but to fight. And I know how to fight them.

But the DNC is afraid of me, I guess, and afraid to do what I suggest.

John Edwards continues to be a non-factor. He won't fight.

So Kerry takes a vacation to go duck hunting, snowboarding, or something else every time he gets a slight lead. He doesn't know how to exploit success. This allows Bush to consolidate message, regain balance and regain momentum and then come back and kick butt.

Since Kerry just took away Moveon.org's counterattack, what the hell has he left himself? He has left himself as a piñata at the end of Karl Rove's baton. He will continue to receive attacks from 527s (it's ludicrous to think you could stop them), from the RNC, Cheney, Bush and he has just stacked arms - a unilateral disarmament - a cease fire negotiated by McCain - who has a dog in the fight (the other guy?).

NO ONE can tell me this is a well run campaign either by the candidate or the party.

I've volunteered to come back to come back out with more. Others have too. But this candidate doesn't know how to fight and the campaign organization seems destined to loss in spite of the victory handed it by circumstance.

I'm sorry, I hope I can change my observation - and soon. But every time we get momentum, we take a week off and lose focus.

George Bush is vulnerable on the issues. So put him on the defensive dammit.

And you don't do that by being a nice guy.

George Bush is vulnerable on leadership and you have to point it out.

The scores for the convention were a six on a scale of 1-10. But the follow through was anemic and lacked focus.

You can't wait for someone to attack you in these campaigns. You must be prepared for someone to attack you and respond immediately and in force. That's

what's missing. Some of you call it James Carville. I call it common sense.

And let this be a message for us in Texas.

Now I know I scare some of you - and some of you just aren't up for leaving any blood on this battlefield. But it's going to take some blood if we are going to take this country and this state back from the Bush's Rove's Delays, Hughes, Perrys and Parrys. If you aren't willing to scrap in this campaign - you'll be fighting for scraps throughout the rest of history of our country. It's that important and that simple.

For me, I've been to war. Most of you have quickly forgotten that I was the insider who broke ranks with the Bush Team and fought them in the legislature when our Democratic State legislators and LT. Gov were in bed with Bush to make him President. I fought many of the people whom you now consider HEROS because of Ardmore and Albuqurque. Why? because Bush was as corrput in Texas as he has been in Washington. And I exposed it.

While I hear all of you commenting and cannonizing the Repblicans who have jumped ship from the Bush Administration - Ambassador Wilson, Paul O'Neill, Richard Clarke, etc and then watching as the Modereate Republicans like Richard Holbrooke, and John McCain take to the headlines building compromise and disarmament, I know that I was one of the first on June 25, 1997; followed by the funergate scam and others.

If you want to turn this cuntry around, it can't be done with Bush in the White House. If you want to return freedom to our streets, it can't be done with Bush in the White House and Ashcroft as DOJ. So quit letting Ashcroft hide. Call him out.

If you want fiscal responsibility returned, you can't have that with Bush in the White House and the senate under the control of the Republicans.

Do more than talk. Be ready to gird up and go into battle. And when you go to battle there are scars. This isn't a gentlemanly event. It's war. And in war people get cut up, injured and killed. Take some risk. Be a leader nationally and at home. Quit just waiting for this victory to come to you so you can get some nice appointment out of it. If you wait, it will be a very long wait.

Bill Burkett

[Wissa]

It doesn't make sense for him to be complaining that the Democrat's failures are gonna make it so close that the Democrat's dirty tricks will win the election.

[igoramus987]

Note Burkett is in 2 different Yahoo groups...

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TexasDemocrat2/message/8925
and
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Texas-Democrats/message/7167

[planekT]

"He (Kerry) has left himself as a piñata at the end of Karl Rove's baton."

He's not completely deluded. This statement from Burkett showed he had a grasp on the situation.

"C'mon Kerry, get out that spitball cannon and fight, you gutless wonder".

[blondee123]

Ok look at what he is saying;

We have the emotion, the backlash, the issues, and discontent, but we don't have the passion for a fight. And that's what is about to get the elec tion tight enough that the dirty tricks in the voting booth and counting will work.

"But we don't have the passion for the fight (and that's what is about to get the election tight enough)" I think he means "the passion for the fight" IS going to get it close enough for the dirty tricks to work for them! That is how I read it.

[Wissa]

Possibly.

I think its unclear enough that we could get embarassed by this though.

I've been wrong before though. Time will tell, I guess.

[occutegirl]

Is this guy for real? If he never talked to this people how did he get in touch with CBS>

[blondee123]

Well the guy doesn't have the best grammer & I hope that sending it to all the MSM is not a mistake for us.

[M1911A1]

That is my concern, also. Is this guy for real? This is too perfect.

When you follow the link to the Yahoo! group, you are told you have to be a member to view the messages. Somebody got smart and joined the group, before they could shut it down is what I am guessing.

Still....this is too good. If somebody told me to make up the craziest, most unbelievable whack-job for Dan Blather's "unimpeachable" (snicker) source, my wildest imagination would not equal this for sheer ridiculousity.

[Wissa]

Me too.

[occutegirl]

If the guy is raving loon how did he get in contact with Rather? Did Max Cleland really blow him off?

At some point, if he is the source, someone decided to take him seriously, what I would like to know is who that was.

[dandelion]

Look at this!! The press would like you to think that Bill Burkett is an alienated lone wolf, a disabled former member of the National Guard working independent of all power bases. Nothing is further from the truth. Far from being a wacked-out loner, Bill Burkett is powerful and influential figure in TX Democrat Circles...

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Texas-Democrats/message/7278

Fellow Progressive Populist Caucus Members:

Our brother, Bill Burkett is under siege by the Carl Rove smear machine. Bill is a charter member of the PPC and our friend. Co-founder of the PPC with me,

David Van Os assures me that as Bill's legal Counsel on a longstanding basis, any assertions that Bill has engaged in "forgery" vis a vis the now infamous documentation of the Bush desertion of duty as a Texas National Guardsman is total smear with the footprints of the Karl Rove modus operandi all over it. Representing the PPC, I stand with both our brothers Burkett and Van Os and applaud their guts to stand up to the right wing slander machine; President Kerry and many of our DNC brethren can take a lesson from our two populist fellow-Texans who have the cajones to look contemptuously in the eye these ruthless cowards bringing down our formerly proud democracy and tell them to go to h*ll.

Stan Merriman Chair, Progressive Populist Caucus of the Texas Democratic Party. MORE

[HannaUSA]

I bow to your expertise. You are correct:) Guess I was a little too eager to see them admit what they do;/

[HannaUSA]

Seems you need to be a member to get into the first one.

[wolicy_ponk]

President Kerry and many of our DNC brethren can take a lesson from our two populist fellow-Texans

Did you notice this nutjob thinks Kerry is President?

[SunkenCiv]

Burkett can't tell the truth:

First, we all knew the swift boat book and attack ads were coming. I knew about them in May, for God's sake. I saw postings on this site in Early July.

By that time, the SBVfT had been active for a while. Everyone knew about it. Those gents have waited over 30 years for this payback.

On the one hand, the Kerry team wanted to wait it out and say nothing and play the good guy role.

That's such an outright, baldfaced lie it's unbelievable. Kerry et al have used nothing but underhanded and negative tactics since before the primaries. When the SBVfT stuff got press, he spun out, he went nuts (to borrow a Sam Kinison phrase). At the convention he trumped up his Vietnam service, and shot himself in the foot again with his statements about body armor. He is, quite simply, either the simplest simpleton ever to run for president, or he's arrogant beyond description, counting on the people to be utterly stupid with a short attention span. Or maybe both.

Most of this was grounded in the same responsive approach Gore and Dukakis had used and it was obvious both that Bush would use this approach and the effect it would have. So why didn't we learn from the lessons?

Maybe because he's lying? The Kerry campaign has never had anything but a "me-too" message. Kerry seems in favor of everything Bush is in favor of (other than abortion), but says he'll do it better. He's even said he'll leave the troops in Iraq until 2008. Everything else is an incoherent, continual attack based on air from between Michael Moore's cheeks.

And in 2000, Gore used that DUI late hit in order to salvage his campaign, saving it for that moment. And then in his "responsive approach" he tried to steal the election with illegal, selective recounts in Florida using his Dim henchmen/women on the Fla Supreme Court.

Dukakis had a mommy in show business (and had himself appeared on "St Elsewhere") and was from "Massachusetts, the state which has never failed to elect a Kennedy, no matter how many women they kill or rape." [Drew Carey]

Then we overestimated the impact and level of commitment of new found supporters gained from the convention. We began to believe our own press, and Kerry goes on vacation.

Kerry didn't go on vacation, he went into seclusion, in order to avoid media contact. His numbers stop sinking whenever he stops talking. But they don't rise. GWB was gaining strength before the convention, gained from the convention, and I expect will gain even more from the two debates.

George W. Bush will be reelected by a margin of at least ten per cent

[HannaUSA]

Maybe it would be easier to do this:

The way Burkett wrote it:

but we don't have the passion for a fight. And that's what is about to get the election tight enough that the dirty tricks in the voting booth and counting will work.

The way it should have been written:

but we don't have the passion for a fight, and that's what is about to get the election tight enough that the dirty tricks in the voting booth and counting will work.

[Colofornian]

Is this really the email he sent???

Well, yes. This actually may or could or might or possibly be a forged version, but we know it contains the content of what was in the original Yahoo posting.

At least that's what an 86-year-old Yahoo lurker tells us.

[danamco]

it looks like your avg everyday post on the DU.

What did he really say?????

[Colofornian]

Is this guy for real? This is too perfect.

Haven't you read the Dem spin columns? He's a Karl Rove plant.

[M1911A1]

Anything that looks bad for the Dems stems from Rove, don'tcha know?

I'm prepared to believe the post is real, after reading some of the other goofball stuff posted by and about Burkett on some of the Yahoo groups linked from the site listed by Ambrose.

If this is Rather's source, he is a bigger idiot than I thought possible. Why would he take the fall for this Yahoo? (pun intended)

I think there is more to this, and it probably involves his daughter. 60 Minutes has survived using forged memos before. Granted, the story wasn't so big, but Rather is commiting professional suicide rather than admit that he was duped by a whackjob. He may be trying to protect his daughter.

What an odd, bitter bunch these Texas Dems seem to be.