Quick, what were the three primary themes of John Kerry’s campaign?

[scottxyz]

Never in the past thirty-six years have Democrats put their differences aside more than they did in 2004 and rally around a man that was couldn’t have been fuzzier. Quick, what were the three primary themes of John Kerry’s campaign? Name a signature issue (one that he has been identified with and has championed and worked consistently on through must of his tenure in the Senate) for John Kerry that he took into the campaign. Once again we had generic Democratic running for POTUS because we refuse to come clean and clearly take a stand on major issues. With each election cycle, more and more that Democrats thought we held dear become negotiable.

http://www.theleftcoaster.com/archives/003699.html

[rockymountaindem]

1. Health care for all, sensible and cooperative foreign policy

and fiscal responsibility. Was that so hard?

[Osamasux]

5. Two minutes to respond. That was quick enough for me.

Thanks rocky.

[msongs]

2. I voted for the Iraq war resolution

there must be others :-)

Msongs
www.msongs.com

[amazona]

3. help is on the way, they outsourced the hunt for Osama...

..and OK I can't think of a quick snappy third theme, but the first two were pretty good.

I think we've had plenty of fuzzier candidates for POTUS. We just don't have the media on our side to hammer the message home.

The conservation movement is a breeding ground of communists
and other subversives. We intend to clean them out,
even if it means rounding up every birdwatcher in the country.
--John Mitchell, US Attorney General 1969-72

[spooked911]

4. Yes, exactly.

Kerry's themes weren't bad at all. I just wish he'd have hammered Bush a little harder overall.

[welshTerrier2]

6. red, white and blue ...

"i'm a patriotic American who served my country" ... wasn't this the central theme? perhaps a bit less red and a bit more blue would have been helpful ... the "purple people eater" strategy has got to go ... centrism is DEAD ...

the problem was, and I agree with your central point, that voters couldn't see a substantial difference between bush and Kerry ON POLICY ... this is NOT to argue that such differences didn't exist ... i think they did ...

but the differences were not made clear to most voters ... what big issues did voters identify in the last campaign? i'd say terrorism, Iraq, jobs, and taxes ...

Issues and Perceptions:
terrorism: no attacks since 9/11
Iraq: both candidates support a military solution
jobs: economists say things are improving
taxes: bush already cut them
overall: no strong reason to change during a "war"

this didn't add up well for Democrats ... plus, republicans spoke with one voice parroting the core message in every public appearance ... Democrats are seen as a wishy-washy, big tent that stands for nothing as a Party ... each candidate writes his own script ...

Patriotism sells, but there had to be more ... oh well, maybe next time ... if there is a next time ... i'm Don Pardot ...

[sandnsea]

7. Return to JFK American values

Stronger at home, respected in the world.

Alternative energy, investment to create jobs, health care, early childhood education, rebuilding America's schools, security, fighting terrorism smartly.

Some people are just too damned smart for their own good.

[MasonJar]

8. John Kerry wanted to insure every child in America the day of his

inauguration. Kerry wanted to rebuild our sense of community with the rest of the world, and rejoin important treaties. Kerry spoke about his committment to keeping jobs in the US and rwvising the tax system in order to eliminate rewards to companies that send jobs overseas and that profit from offshore headquarters. Most importantly of all to me was his stand for the environment at home and the rest of the globe. I know that Bush said Kerry was a flipflopper, and it appears that some of you all bought this lie just like the sheeple.

[dvaravati]

9. 1. Im not Bush

2. I have a plan to fix everything but its a secret.
3. uhhh......

[sallyseven]

10. I find the Kerry bashing very tiresome

you can all go cheney yourself.

[sandnsea]

11. And blame others for the loss

Maybe it was their secret plan all along.

[thecorster]

14. Kerry would have made a great President

but he wasn't the greatest candidate for the race he was in. Had he been running in 1996 instead of Clinton, he would have won in a landslide - he's intelligent, honest, and (yes, I really think this) inspiring. But he was running against the most deceitful campaign in history and he refused to stoop to that level.

Was his campaign effective enough? That's a mute point. Would he have done a better job than Bush? You bet your ass he would have.

[sandnsea]

15. I disagree

He was the perfect candidate for the race he was in. I can't think of another candidate who could have challenged Bush as effectively as Kerry. I certainly think the campaign could have done some things differently to more sharply define the choice though. Clinton and his stupid advice to stop talking about Vietnam, the vets should have been all over the place. I think "the economy stupid" was not the right approach this year. It's the basis of the party that we win without trying. Defense and security is what we needed to win on and Kerry was the perfect candidate to finally remove that weanie blot from the party. If the campaign had run him in the right way and fought defense issues differently. Ah, oh well, it's done for now.

[lastknowngood]

17. If Kerry had challenged him on anything it would have bee

refreshing.

[ginnyinWI]

16. Kerry was a great candidate but it was a bad time to run for any Dem.

In the mid-terms in 2002, Bush kept hammering about the war on terror and the need to be tough--kept scaring people and using his post-9/11 popularity--"stick with our side, because we will keep you safe." Campaign 2004 was Part Two: he worked on keeping people scared, and smearing Kerry right off the map. He convinced enough of them so that Kerry couldn't win in a landslide like he should have. I think a lot of people bonded with Bush after 9/11, and any rational arguments had no effect on them at all.

So the reasons I give for the loss are these:

1. Bush lies and smears
2. A Democratic party without a clear message.
3. Campaign managers who didn't want Kerry to attack Bush, but to keep it positive and focus on domestic issues, when national security was what concerned people the most. Pre 9/11 campaign tactics that didn't work.
4. Voter suppression, possibly/probably rigged voting machines. They could do this because it was a close election. He could only win if it had been a real landslide.

[Blue Wally]

18. You are on the right track

1. I served in Vietnam and i am a war hero (central theme of the convention and opened the door for the Swifties).

2. Bush screwed it up, but we must persevere in Iraq and I will go and talk to all the world's leaders who will help us out (immediate comeback was "yeah, Chriac will senbd troops to relieve ours. yeah when pigs fly).

3. Bush sucks on every domestic issue, but i have a plan to sort it all out and make it better.

ABB didn't get us very far. We need to state exactly where we stand and ennuciate specific programs, not platitudes. Maybe Rush is right and we are secretly afraid to tell the people exactly where we stand because we remember 1972 so well.

[seabeyond]

12. education, health, care jobs.......n/t

[blm]

13. Stronger US, Respected in the world, Safer and more prosperous at home.

Kerry's career is filled with dedication to good governance, exposure of government corruption, integrity in foreign affairs and in decisions of war, extending healthcare, and a fairer, more environmentally friendly economy.

[vinessa4freedom]

19. people, people, people

John Kerry cares about people.

Health care for everyone, especially children and seniors.

Foreign policy that works with the world, not alienating us from the world.

Ending tax breaks for companies that outsource jobs.

Eliminating tax breaks for the elite.

Environmental reform. More focus on alternative fuel, and undoing some of the damage done during the last 4 years.

If you think he's fuzzy, maybe you should have your eyeglass prescription checked. He's anything but fuzzy. He's been out there doing the work he promised he'd do as president. He wants to support troops (with up to date equipment and assistance from allies, not with magnets on cars that say "support our troops"). He's been out talking to them. He promised to build stronger relations with foreign nations. How many foreign leaders did he meet with last week? And now he's home just in time to hit the floor with 2 bills sponsored by hundreds of thousands of Americans--children's health care and election reform. You don't have to like him, but I think you should take another look before you call him fuzzy.