Sen. John Kerry (news - web sites), D-Mass., center, shakes hands with Sen. Charles Schumer (news, bio, voting record), D-N.Y., after a Senate vote March 2. 2004, to extend the ban on military-style firearms another 10 years.
At right, Sen. Edward Kennedy (news, bio, voting record), D-Mass., and center, partially hidden, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (news, bio, voting record), D-Calif.
'Kerry's intimate knowledge of Congress and its key players could be helpful,' says Darrell West, a political scientist at Brown University, but there is also the risk that 'familiarity breeds contempt.'' (AP Photo/Dennis Cook/File)
Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry (news - web sites) holds five month old Zoey Busboom as he arrives at a rally in Reno, Nevada October 22, 2004. The sign on the baby's neck reads 'Don't make me pay for the Bush deficit, Vote Kerry Edwards'. REUTERS/Brian Snyder US ELECTION