Boyce at HuffPo: Why Kerry and Gore Should Run

[ginnyinWI]

...why they are our best candidates for 2008, and the dangers of believing in consultants!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/james-boyce/2008-only-a-l...

Al Gore not talking about the environment means it's not really Al Gore talking - the environment is his passion - his soul - and what makes him real. John Kerry not talking about veterans, and war, and international relations and patriotic dissent, takes him away from everything that made him the person he is. It's not about polling, it's about authenticity and being true to yourself. This doesn't show up in a focus group of undecided voters in Florida, but the lesson comes through loud and clear on the first Tuesday in November.

Should Al Gore and John Kerry have known better? Yes. Does the buck for their respective losses stop with them and no one else? Absolutely. But what if each man decides to run again? How should we judge them?

I believe that only those who have gone through the vortex of a Presidential Campaign can truly appreciate the enormous physical, mental and emotional toll it takes, and only those who have done it and lost, can truly understand what it takes to win.

Trust me, you might not believe that Al Gore and John Kerry know much, and you have every right to be angry at them for losing and you have every right to disagree with my premise, not to mention that the fact that I fully admit I would support and work with John Kerry first in 2008 and if he doesn't run, I'm going to try and convince Al Gore to run - but please, take it from someone who survived, barely, the 2004 election, these two men who lost everything, they know how to win.

[iconoclastNYC]

1. I hope we have 20 people running

I don't buy this "crowded primary" = loss in November convential wisdom that the party elite and the consultants are shoving down our throats all the time.

[blm]

4. I actually agree with that - Dems can judge by debates who's best prepared

and has their chops down for the long haul. That's the difference between Dems and GOPs who have NEVER used debates to pick their candidate.

That said, I still believe the only Dem who CAN win the presidency is the one who works with the DNC to expose the voting machines and secure them BEFORE the election.

[AtomicKitten]

5. big hell yes on that -- EVM fraud MUST be addressed

[Sinti]

17. The best thing about a "crowded primary" is that a lot of points of view

come to light. It actually helps the winner, I think, get a good idea of how many different political perspectives and ideas there are out there, and rather than protecting only his/her own ideas, develops a sense of respect for the other ideas presented, because the candidate also needs the vote of the other primary candidate's constituency. At least, it should work this way.

[blm]

20. Incorporating various messages is done to help unite the party afterwards

and has been a grand tradition of Democrats that I hope to see carry on.

[ginnyinWI]

22. all of the messages of our progressive special interests

can be united under one theme: they all make America stronger, so all of us should support them for the common good.

The more ways Dems can find to get this message across, the better. Otherwise each person will say, "well this doesn't apply to me--why should I care?" United we will stand!

[AtomicKitten]

2. I think it would be a karmic reckoning.

Particularly for Gore.

[LSparkle]

3. I'm with you there -- and he was far more aggressive

in pursuing the 2000 election to the end of the line (the Supreme Court). I was disappointed that Kerry didn't show similar resolve in '04. I think Gore deserves a second shot before Kerry in '08.

[blm]

7. They weren't even close to being the same issue.

You would have to assume that Gore would have contested had he been PERCEIVED by the media and the country to have lost the popular vote by 3 million votes.

And it's alot easier to contest when you're told you're behind by 500 + votes than by 130, 000.

But, my bottom line is that NO Dem wins unless they work to expose the machine fraud and secure the machine before the election. THAT is the Dem that I will support.

[ginnyinWI]

8. would you accept a dual ticket?

I would: Gore for president and Kerry for veep, as should have happened in 2000 (Kerry was on the short list). Gore for president because he wouldn't want to be veep again, and I think the two of them would make for a very good almost co-presidency, like Clinton-Gore was.

That said, it's the primaries and the people who will decide.

[LSparkle]

9. I'd definitely vote for Gore/Kerry

Wish Gore had chosen JFK instead of Joe-mentum ... hmm, that lapse of judgment suddenly has me reconsidering my support!

[ginnyinWI]

10. I know--lol

But as Boyce points out in his article, Gore trusted the consultants. I think the "new" Gore has seen the folly of that. As has Kerry.

[LSparkle]

13. I've seen the switch in both, more markedly in Gore

I was especially proud of him for coming out for Dean -- and contrary to what some think, I don't believe that was just because Dean was the frontrunner at the time. (He admired Dean's use of the Internet and no doubt agreed with many of his positions on issues.)

[MH1]

21. Did you see this?

From last weekend. You only need to get a few minutes in and you will see what I mean. (I think)

http://www.johnkerry.com/video/flash/042406_dissent_full.html

or text at
http://www.johnkerry.com/index.html

[Mass]

6. Great - The two on the same ticket would be my ideal combination.

[AtomicKitten]

11. And what an "in your face" statement to the Republicans, eh?

I almost hate to burden any Democrat with the monster mess this country is in.

[ginnyinWI]

12. these two are patriots--they'd do it.

Seems we just get most of the elephant poop cleaned up when we lose control and the GOP messes everything up again.

They can win elections with fear-and-smear, but they cannot govern. How can you when you basically despise federal government as a concept?

[AtomicKitten]

14. I'm wondering when reasonable GOP voters are going to catch on.

[blm]

16. One thing I believe strongly about BOTH of them is that they would

do their best as president to do the RIGHT THING. I think Gore has probably had a change of heart about the wisdom of keeping the books closed on BushInc. throughout the 90s.

I think he will join Kerry and the few others and be an open government lawmaker now.

[Sinti]

18. You'll never get the mess cleaned up without a Democrat, though.

I wonder if, given the power, JFK would go after the BFEE like he tried to go after BCCI back in the day.

[blm]

19. He'd open the books and that would be all he'd need to do.

The media can't fool an American people that now understand what the name Bin Laden means to this country and who will invariably ask WHY the Bush administration worked so hard to protect the terrorists and their funding.

[OneBlueSky]

23. I'd love to see a Gore/Kerry ticket . . .

but I doubt that Kerry would take the second spot . . . and, conversely, I doubt that Gore would play second banana to Kerry . . .

so someone (Jimmy Carter?) needs to sit them down and explain to them that the fate of the nation and the planet depends of their working as a team to take back our country, to stop the insanity, to start repairing the BushCo damage, and to lead us with vision, integrity, and inspiration . . .

check your egos at the door, guys . . . your country needs you! . . .

[wisteria]

15. This is an excellent piece. It makes a lot of sense! n/t

[LaurenG]

24. I could trust these two guys

I would gladly call them pres and vice pres. A much cleaner choice than Ms. Clinton IMHO.

[IndyOp]

25. They did not lose, THEY BOTH WON and

They could WIN AGAIN if we don't continue to lie to each other about how they 'lost'.

TRUTH WILL SET US FREE!!

[Marnieworld]

28. damn straight!

It's like as if my house was robbed while I was at work. Talk about blaming the victim. I hate reading things that otherwise make sense but then you hit this wall of ignorance. People still live in a world where you just have to campaign well to win. I believe both Gore and Kerry truly one but because of a combination of various methods to disenfranchise people the vote totals reflected otherwise. Didn't the OMB publish a report? It's not that obscure a topic.

We are nothing without a voter verified paper ballot system. It's all just wishful thinking.

[New Earth]

26. i hope they run together

they both deserve it and we deserve them (either as VP or President!)

[blm]

27. Bottom line is the world will NEED them both by then...and every other

compassionate, forward thinking solution seeker the Dems have. It will take a TEAM working straight through the next 10 yrs, to fix what BushInc has wrought.

[tomp]

29. they both WON!

my problem is not with their campaigning.

my problem is with their failure to claim the presidency. they both knew their respective elections were stolen, yet they both walked away. that's, if you'll pardon the expression, "bush league" patriotism. that's cowardice on a grand scale.

on top of that, neither one has taken up the problem of fraudulent elections to any significant degree.

these are two COLLOSAL failures on both their parts.

i'll vote for either one again, on the basis of "anyone but a republican", but how anyone can think these guys have the right stuff, in light of the above, is beyond me.

[blm]

30. For ANY Dem to claim the win, they need a DNC that works to secure the

voting machines BEFORE the election - there is no AFTER - after is TOO late.