Wednesday, November 01, 2006
Kerry On, My Wayward Son
So, has Rahm Emmanuel put a contract out on John Kerry yet? Just asking.
The joke that I HAD BEEN working on for my stand-up act goes like this (delivered to a liberal audience): "Well, it looks like you Democrats are finally going to do it. You've figured out a pretty full-proof method to win an election: 1) Let 'Bush be Bush'. Given the track record, it's only a matter of time before there's some screw-up that will get people mad. Hello? Iraq? Harriet Miers? Dubai Ports? 2) Campaign only on being not-Bush -- as opposed to being Democrats. 3) Take advantange of a technicality in elections and exult in the fact that you don't have to run a lame-ass presidential candidate this year! Thank God there's no Al Gore or John Kerry to f**k up the campaign this year!"
Oops.
So, having been offered lemonade, Democrats seem prepared to turn it, um, lemons!
Much like his predecessor, George W. Bush has been blessed by the caliber of his opponents. If the election is just focused on Bush, he and the Republicans are, by definition, in a defensive mode. But when it becomes a comparison election, even Bush and company improve in the lights of many.
Democrats have been very successful about making this election a referendum on GWB. Now, John Kerry's big fat mouth has brought back all those wonderful "memories" of 2004 and why many Americans don't like Democrats -- especially when the discussion is military and defense issues. Instead of the uber-discussion just being "Bush vs. Bush", it now risks becoming "Bush vs. Kerry Democrats."
Can John Kerry snatch defeat from the mouth of victory.
The Democrats should be happy that the political environment has remained remarkably static for more than six months (Don't believe me? Check out the intro paragraph in this Michael Tomasky essay published in
April --
-- and the results of the latest NBC/Wall St. Journal poll). The public seems more favorably disposed toward Democrats than Republicans. Whether Kerry's Halloween re-emergence will notably change that is unlikely -- but can't be dismissed. One thing it has done, however, is make Democrats a bit more nervous than they were 72 hours ago.
Technorati Tags: John Kerry, George W. Bush, Republicans, Democrats
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The joke that I HAD BEEN working on for my stand-up act goes like this (delivered to a liberal audience): "Well, it looks like you Democrats are finally going to do it. You've figured out a pretty full-proof method to win an election: 1) Let 'Bush be Bush'. Given the track record, it's only a matter of time before there's some screw-up that will get people mad. Hello? Iraq? Harriet Miers? Dubai Ports? 2) Campaign only on being not-Bush -- as opposed to being Democrats. 3) Take advantange of a technicality in elections and exult in the fact that you don't have to run a lame-ass presidential candidate this year! Thank God there's no Al Gore or John Kerry to f**k up the campaign this year!"
Oops.
So, having been offered lemonade, Democrats seem prepared to turn it, um, lemons!
Much like his predecessor, George W. Bush has been blessed by the caliber of his opponents. If the election is just focused on Bush, he and the Republicans are, by definition, in a defensive mode. But when it becomes a comparison election, even Bush and company improve in the lights of many.
Democrats have been very successful about making this election a referendum on GWB. Now, John Kerry's big fat mouth has brought back all those wonderful "memories" of 2004 and why many Americans don't like Democrats -- especially when the discussion is military and defense issues. Instead of the uber-discussion just being "Bush vs. Bush", it now risks becoming "Bush vs. Kerry Democrats."
Can John Kerry snatch defeat from the mouth of victory.
The Democrats should be happy that the political environment has remained remarkably static for more than six months (Don't believe me? Check out the intro paragraph in this Michael Tomasky essay published in
April --
The Democrats are feeling upbeat these days, and why not? The Republican president and vice president have lost the country’s confidence. The Republican-controlled Congress is a sump of corruption, sycophancy, and broken principle. Races in the midterm election that Democratic leaders wouldn’t have dreamed of a few months ago are in play (the Senate seat in Tennessee!). A recent poll showed Democrats with a gaping 16-point lead over Republicans this fall. Seizing on the issues of corruption and incompetence, the party might even take back the House or the Senate -- or both.
-- and the results of the latest NBC/Wall St. Journal poll). The public seems more favorably disposed toward Democrats than Republicans. Whether Kerry's Halloween re-emergence will notably change that is unlikely -- but can't be dismissed. One thing it has done, however, is make Democrats a bit more nervous than they were 72 hours ago.
Technorati Tags: John Kerry, George W. Bush, Republicans, Democrats
