EDWARDS supporters and well-wishers only

[Skinner]

This is the official thread for Edwards supporters and well-wishers to discuss his performance in the Maine caucus, free of disruption.

If you are not an Edwards supporter or a well-wisher, please do not post in this thread. The purpose of this thread is for disruption-free discussion among Edwards supporters. Any negative posts by opponents will be deleted by the moderators. We will open up separate threads where supporters of the other candidates can interact without disruption from opponents.

[bigwillq]

1. Good luck to Edwards

and to all his supporters. job well done, keep up the good work

[MuseRider]

2. Good Luck! n/t

[newyawker99]

3. Good luck Edwards supporters!!

:bounce:

[DjTj]

4. Looks like we're finishing ahead of Clark.

At least we won't be hearing "Clark beat Edwards in 5 of 8 contests" anymore.

Even not counting Iowa, Edwards has now finished ahead of Clark in 6 primaries while Clark has beaten Edwards in only 5.

...Tennessee and Virginia are the real battle though. I'm going to be doing as much as I can on the ground tomorrow.

[leyton]

5. These two keep tying each other...

And I'm glad to see Clark won't edge out Edwards all the time. I think in the four ties, he's edged us out twice (NH, OK) and we've edged him out twice (WA, ME).

[ChangeAgent]

6. Take heart, Edwards supporters...

Come what may, Edwards supporters should implore their man to maintain his campaign until both Clark and Dean terminate theirs. If he does so, and so long as his showings remain reasonably strong (not necessarily #1), he has the ability to upset Kerry in both California and New York on March 2, and turn the race upside down. I say this as a veteran of three past presidential campaigns. What are my reasons for saying this? He's a far superior debater than Kerry, and the camera loves him -- as much as it loved Reagan or Clinton, perhaps more. Moreover, the great, largely unnoticed strength of Edwards in relation to all these other candidates is that he has a superb ability extemporaneously to frame and make a logical argument, stemming from his years as a trial lawyer. While Kerry declaims in stentorian tones, apparently believing that haughtiness is a form of persuasion, Edwards gets himself out of the way and makes his points in crisp fashion -- providing a personal, story-based dimension by referring both to his own values and his listeners' experience, insisting on the unfairness of the present system, and driving home the substance of what he believes. That's why he is connecting electrically with ordinary voters -- again, largely unnoticed by the national media, who are oblivious to anything now but Kerry endorsements by fellow pols and Dean's free-fall. If Edwards gets Kerry one-on-one, the toe-to-toe performance comparison would begin to wither Kerry's support immediately, since it's built on nothing more than the assumption of electability, not Kerry's inherent personal appeal, which is minimal beyond the Vietnam vet image. So the pecking order among also-rans in places like Maine or Tennessee doesn't mean much. It's purely a question of whether Edwards -- who is the only candidate remaining with a chance to defeat Kerry -- can survive with credibility until these other candidates are gone and he can get Kerry one-on-one...

[DjTj]

7. Thank you for your insightful post.

and welcome to DU! :hi:

[katieforeman]

8. Welcome to DU!

It's great to have another Edwards supporter.

[citizen snips]

9. Welcome to DU ChangeAgent.

:hi:

[spooky3]

10. well put!

However, I do respect Kerry's long history of service and his strong voting record.

[tll]

11. Beautiful!

That's just what I needed to hear.

I'm taking heart... have been lurking here for news and a sense of where this primary's going. I've been upset that so many have declared this thing to be over before I get a chance to cast my vote here in PA. If that's the case, what kind of democracy is this? Why should a handful of states determine the nominee? And the media? I could scream.

I've been on the fence and back and forth between Dean and Edwards for months but have recently gotten excited about Edwards. I really want him to hang in there. I don't dislike Kerry but the rest of the country needs, deserves to have its say, too.

[PATRICK]

12. About New York

Under certain circumstances we could go against the grain, as "inevitable" as it might appear. If Edwards were up against a Mondale or Dukakis he would win hands down, Carter too, easily, maybe even toast Bill Clinton who was trailing all his negatives behind him at primary time.

But I think you might be a little hard on Kerry. I think, though not exciting, he has a steelier appeal to the base voters. I think Kerry too could have given all the others who ever ran here a run for their money(during the pre-Kennedy era).

Your main point is more important. Edwards is not in his merited spotlight, not given the opportunity to win the state. He had no prior fame, no standout crusade, no media attention to match his natural talents. He'd have to win it from the ground up like he did elsewhere and that's a big job. I think even the best candidate ever would have to come up short. If he manages to win- on his own strength against all odds- he certainly would demonstrably be the best candidate ever.

This may be the sleeper injustice of the campaign. Other candidates have done themselves in(even Kerry before his resurrection) with negatives. Only Edwards has failed simply because he couldn't break through the anointed frontrunners hogging the track. The only bad thing I can say about Clark's candidacy is how his entry dampened Edwards' chances from the get go- and still today- when Edwards needs all the spotlight he can get just for a fair shot. Clark may now feel the same about Edwards- and Kerry. Such is political life. Maybe people do go for the hardened experience and assurance Kerry gives. If there were no substance to that he would not even have done as well in Iowa, no matter how good and well-heeled his campaign was.

Then too, Edwards chose his upbeat campaign message and tactics in such a way as to court this dilemma and risk running out of time. I hope to get some shot at helping out here but as fate would have it now our bungling workplace needs us seven days a week.