Kerry, Kerry, Kerry
I find it interesting an administration led by one so maladroit in speaking can spin someone else's gaff so effectively. I really shouldn't be, though.
The morning talk show that I found in the rental car this morning (sorry, no station id) referred to the whole broohaha an indication of Kerry's perceived aristocracy and Bush's (ironically tragic, really) "down-home" vibe. I tried to argue, as I navigated the deadlocked traffic, but I could really come up with no better explanation. I would like to, and have, demonize Rove as the source of all evil (see the TN GOP-approved ad), but at some point the listeners out there have to discern...and maybe they are. Perhaps the average 'merican sees Kerry as a metonym for the Dems--and I see quite a bit of convincing evidence that this is indeed the case.
How else does one explain how a decorated, swiftboat, war veteran seems less patriotic than a fly-boy, Daddy-pass Guardsman (today is not yesterday's guard...)?
Two reasons--and Dems as a whole seem to suffer from this--lack of pithiness; lack of crass.
Seeing multiple sides of an argument is very appealing in a policymaker. Not being able to draw a clearly demarcated line on issues makes for a poor politician. Talking in nuanced arguments is great for wonks; suicide for passively interested voters.
Kerry is attempting to shoot from the hip. It is not his strength, and in this he is outmatched. John Stewart could hold his own in this type of debate, John Kerry can't.
Know your strengths and work within oneselves.
I fear for Tuesday.
What Kerry said: War Room - Salon.com:
The morning talk show that I found in the rental car this morning (sorry, no station id) referred to the whole broohaha an indication of Kerry's perceived aristocracy and Bush's (ironically tragic, really) "down-home" vibe. I tried to argue, as I navigated the deadlocked traffic, but I could really come up with no better explanation. I would like to, and have, demonize Rove as the source of all evil (see the TN GOP-approved ad), but at some point the listeners out there have to discern...and maybe they are. Perhaps the average 'merican sees Kerry as a metonym for the Dems--and I see quite a bit of convincing evidence that this is indeed the case.
How else does one explain how a decorated, swiftboat, war veteran seems less patriotic than a fly-boy, Daddy-pass Guardsman (today is not yesterday's guard...)?
Two reasons--and Dems as a whole seem to suffer from this--lack of pithiness; lack of crass.
Seeing multiple sides of an argument is very appealing in a policymaker. Not being able to draw a clearly demarcated line on issues makes for a poor politician. Talking in nuanced arguments is great for wonks; suicide for passively interested voters.
Kerry is attempting to shoot from the hip. It is not his strength, and in this he is outmatched. John Stewart could hold his own in this type of debate, John Kerry can't.
Know your strengths and work within oneselves.
I fear for Tuesday.
What Kerry said: War Room - Salon.com:
"Campaigning with California gubernatorial candidate Phil Angelides Monday, John Kerry told a crowd at Pasadena City College: 'You know, education -- if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well. If you don't, you get stuck in Iraq.'"
Listen
posted by Piss Poor Prof at 9:13 AM
2 Comments:
Although Kerry's past seems as if it is in the trenches with the troops -- his current situation is so removed as to make the statement credible.
Frankly, his attitude is VERY common among elite liberals, from college debaters to politicans. They see the US military as being a place for those who can't hold a regular job or graduate from high school.
If Kerry were the only example of this attitude, I'd just ignore him. Rather, this was the attitude my brilliant husband endured for 15 years in the military. You should have seen the reaction of the members of the top-20 political science PhD program when he told them he was a former enlisted person... of course, he knew enough not to tell them that until he'd shown that he had an education and could wipe the floor with them in seminar.
I honestly believed that Kerry thought he was referring to Bush's lack of education there. If one didn't study, then he would lead the free world into a senseless war. Of course, due to his lack of sense it is hard to say for certain.
That is part of the reason he is not president.
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