Maybe he wasn't a swing voter, but a man holding a Kerry sign swung fast - with his fist - and connected with the cheek of a Bush supporter outside the Everett Events Center on Friday.
Otherwise, it was a mostly peaceful gathering of hundreds of supporters of Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry and President Bush drawn by Kerry's private appearance.
Police did not report any other disturbances. Everett police Lt. Butch Braley estimated a couple of thousand people gathered at the center.
"It was pretty low-key except for the noise," Braley said. "There were a lot of passionate people and a lot of shouting."
While a long line of 600 or so Kerry supporters waited to get into the invitation-only event, other Kerry faithful and ardent Bush counterparts held signs and waved to passing cars on Hewitt Avenue and Broadway.
Drivers honked their steady approval for one side or the other.
Kerry supporters outnumbered Bush supporters by roughly three to one. But the Bush supporters had bigger signs - a group of handmade, white-on-blue signs about 3 feet by 5 feet bore slogans such as "Flush the Johns," "Kerry is scary" and "Kerry against free speech."
Several Kerry supporters stood in front of the Bush signs waving their own, and in some cases followed those carrying the large Bush signs around, holding their own smaller signs in front.
"I would never dream of doing that to you," Bush supporter Jennifer Alexander of south Everett said to the Kerry supporter standing in front of her.
"I have a hard time believing that," responded Mike Monas, of Snohomish.
Cecil Chapman of Mukilteo said he and a group of friends made the Bush signs. Chapman dressed as Uncle Sam as "a way of drawing attention" to his cause of supporting the president.
A 52-year-old Kerry supporter was arrested after punching Perry Valentine, 19, who was holding a sign for President Bush and wearing a Kerry sticker on the seat of his pants.
The men were shouting back and forth when the older man swung, said Braley, the Everett police lieutenant.
An Everett officer quickly arrested the man. He was booked into the Snohomish County Jail for investigation of assault.
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Unfortunately, I think that this is just a tiny taste of the kinds of tactics that sKerry's supporters will be using in New York next week. I have a couple of friends that will be there trying to photograph the outside events. I simply told them to be very careful, travel light, and be ready to move quickly.
Why did they list the victim's name but not the perp?
> A 52-year-old Kerry supporter was arrested after punching Perry Valentine, 19, who was holding a sign
52 year old. Nice. Boomer. Figures.
Ain't it soooo cool. You're just like a radical from the 60s! Get back in your new Volvo (Ford) and go get a Chai from your local independent shade-tree-friendly latte house.
Oh wait, you can't. You're in jail.
Listen loser - In 15 years, every ideal you ever had will be in the toilet and you'll be buying adult daipers hoping we all forget the wickedness your generation wrought.
We won't.
Think back my little hippie. It was just a flash ago. Bill Clinton was in office. All was great. 15 more years will go by reeeeal quick. I don't think you'll be taking any more swipes at 19 year old kids then...
Do we have a name for the 52yr old guy?
They name the victim, but not the perp? What is the perp's name and address and telephone number? Just curious.
"I have a hard time believing that," responded Mike Monas, of Snohomish.
A psychological defense mechanism known as "projection." No wonder these people hate guns so much - not only do they allow weak individuals to defend themselves against their thuggery, but they know deep down that they'd murder their opponents if they had guns themselves.