Why is Kerry moving to the Left on the War? (Squalid, shameless Vanity!)

John Kerry, flaming asshat ^ | 9/21/2004 | Section 9, The Prince of Darkness

[section9]

Back in the Day, after Kerry's coronation in Boston, he maintained his "tough guy" image by saying that he would have taken down Saddam. Now he has changed to a Pacifist approach to the war.

It was all a Tragic Mistake. The clueless BushHitler rushed into war without a plan to end the war and, worst of all, without the French. Now we are paying an intolerable price in lives because of BushHitler and his patrons at Halliburton. So, next year, we'll bug out faster than a herd of young boys from Michael Jackson's Neverland estate. It's another Vietnam and we're all going to die.

Kerry even got some Gold Star Mothers to bear witness to the righteousness of his positions.

Anyway, we know how Bush will handle this; by being aggressive in Iraq and stating again and again why we are fighting and why we will win. But that begs the question: why did Kerry move to the Left on the war?

Two words: Ralph Nader.

Nader has grown in importance in Kerry's mind and in his strategies. Bush's lead in the polls have grown as a result of the public's conclusion that he is the best man to command our forces in war. Women, for instance, split evenly among the two candidates because of the undercurrent among the ladies that Bush will protect them and their children better than will Kerry. Kerry's convention was all about being a tough guy and cutting into Bush's lead among men while wrapping up the Security Moms for the nominee.

The Swifties and Kerry's changing positions on the WOT put paid to Kerry's perceived advantage. After the RNC, Bush began to roar ahead on the critical question of the war. He had been consistent all year round in his pursuit of the WOT and the Iraqi Campaign. His consistency began to pay off. Bush's "flip flop" campaign highlighted voters' unease with the Kerry personality: an unwillingness to hold to a position in a time of war.

While Kerry was trying to tack to the center on the war and build himself up as a Manly Man, his base voters were looking at the polls and found themselves at sea. Kerry's only has a "40%" strongly support number. Bush is at 60% among Pubbies. Kerry's base voters are against the Iraq campaign. The dirty little secret among Democrats is that their base voters are also against the War on Terror. As Kerry moved away from his base, and his base looked at the poll numbers, they started to withdraw from the candidate. They became depressed. And their interest in Nader started to pick up.

As usual, Michael Moore is a fine barometer of Left attitudes. His latest screed is a condemnation of Kerry as a candidate and a jeremiad against despondent Democrats.

And so, Kerry decided that he had to jazz up his base to keep them from sitting out the election or going to Nader. That's why he's moving left. He was always going to end up doing this. When he was in trouble last fall, he moved Left to eat into Howard Dean's support. He is doing the same thing now, but for different reasons.

Will it work? No. Americans don't like a politician who promises defeat and a shameless bugout. Bush will patiently explain his case and state that his objective is victory in war. The American people always buy that; simply because they value winners over losers.

Be Seeing You,

Chris

[EQAndyBuzz]

"I do not think it is Nader. Do not dismiss what I am about to write. Kerry no longer believes he is going to win. He has looked at his own internal numbers and realizes he cannot make the majority of americans like him enough to make him president. He just wants to make sure that diehard democrats, the unions, inner-city blacks, and ignorant masses at least show up for something. He does not want to be an encyclopedia (webpedia) entry on the same page with Dukakis, Mondale, and Dole.

He knows he IS the Bob Dole of the Democrats. But he does not want to be humiliated."

Very accurate post. This probably explains why he didn't want to give up his senate seat. If he gave up his seat, the governor appoints a Repoublican. If he wins the Presidency, the governor still appoints a republican senator. The fact he didn't give up his seat is testament to his defeatist attitude.

[randog]

I think Kerry is trying to be Clintonian by working both sides of the aisle and expecting everyone to buy into him. Unfortunately for Kerry he has neither Clinton's charisma nor his massive spin team necessary to keep the ruse alive.

[section9]

You remember Bob Dole's problem back in 1996, though?

Dole was Majority Leader. He was trying to move appropriations bills through the Senate in the Spring. The Dems were tying him up in knots on orders from the Clinton White House to show America that if Dole couldn't move legislation, how could he be a President? Dole chose to retire at the end of his term and gambled on a run for the White House. Kerry could have done that and risked everything on one turn of pitch and toss.

But he didn't, and I'll tell you why.

Without that Senate seat, no one has to pay any attention to John Kerry. Nobody has to give a rat's ass about him. Dole has paid his dues and is neither a prisoner of an inflated ego nor is he possessed of a romantic attachment to the heroics of a bygone youth. Kerry doesn't have what Dole has: security in one's own skin. Kerry needs attention. Bush doesn't, nor does Dole, nor did Reagan.

No one will put John Kerry in a Pepsi commercial with Britney Spears, and that's what Kerry is afraid of. He doesn't want to go through the rest of his life being Theresa Heinz-Kerry's boy toy.

So he'll be in the Senate next year, a forgotten backbencher, but a vote that people have to go to to get what they want. And that will be okay, because he'll still be invited to all the right parties in Georgetown.

Be Seeing You,

Chris

[LibertarianInExile]

Who is the first person to make that connection on the board?

I did here:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1188261/posts

But I bet someone caught that a long time before you and me. I swear all he needs is a stupid last-minute buy-votes plan like Bob Dole's tax plan and he'll be dead on target.

Of course, we haven't seen the debates yet...

[colorado tanker]

I agree with your squalid, shameless vanity. He's trying to secure his base. The only problem is the lefty base is not a majority in America.

I think another reason he's doing this is Lurch thought he could basically "me too" the war and set himself apart on the economy, but that issue is evaporating as the recovery turns into an expansion. So, the only major issue left to distinguish himself from Bush is the war.

[EQAndyBuzz]

Kerry has 42 days to erode our nations confidence in this war. Al queada took the hint and will do whatever it takes to ensure that Kerry gets into office.

[Phantom Lord]

What I was referring to in "base" is the grassroot activist, precinct worker, rally/party organizer, convention attendee, etc...