Clark Set to Endorse Kerry in Wisconsin Today

[NNN0LHI]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=694&ncid=703&e=1&u=/ap/20040213/ap_on_el_pr/democrats

Retired Gen. Wesley Clark (news - web sites) is ready to salute Sen. John Kerry (news - web sites) after campaigning for months to stop him. "General Clark is looking forward to going to Wisconsin to be with Senator Kerry," a spokesman for the former four-star general said of a joint appearance Friday in Madison, Wis. Democratic officials said it would include an endorsement by Clark.


Kerry, the runaway front-runner in the Democratic presidential race, hopes to make Clark's voters his own when he clashes with Sen. John Edwards (news - web sites) and Howard Dean (news - web sites) in Tuesday's Wisconsin primary.


There are 72 pledged delegates at stake, and polls thus far make Kerry the favorite.


The Massachusetts senator already has 539 delegates, according to an Associated Press count, compared to 182 for Dean and 166 for Edwards. It takes 2,161 delegates to win the nomination for president.

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[kstewart33]

1. If Kerry is such a scumbag...

Then why is Clark endorsing him two days after he's left the race? It seems that Clark is rushing this. Why?

A key question, don't you think? Sort of like the one: If Bush served his duty in Alabama, then why has not one individual come forth and said he remembers Bush at the base?

About Clark, here's a thought--Lehane is behind the rumor spreading about Kerry, and Clark knows it. He's endorsing Kerry to show that he had no part in it.

[Adelante]

4. Look to Dem rivals before Lehane

The Drudge item blaming Lehane quoted Craig Crawford, a former Democratic operative who now works as a consultant and columnist for MSNBC. Within 10 minutes after Drudge posted the Kerry intern item, Crawford sent a memo to his superiors that said the story was "something Chris Lehane (clark press secy) has shopped around for a long time." According to Crawford, someone at MSNBC promptly leaked his memo to Drudge. But when Lehane called Crawford with a loudly indignant denial, the MSNBC columnist quickly issued a public retraction. He said:

"The comments attributed to me are from a private email to television news associates based on conversations with Democratic campaign operatives. I did not consider any of it confirmed enough to report or publish. I can only verify that Chris Lehane's rivals in other Democratic campaigns made these claims and I have found no independent source to confirm it. Which is why we did not go with the story. But then someone sent my email to others, which is the only reason it got into the public domain." In other words, there is no proof that Lehane circulated the rumor, let alone that the rumor has any basis in reality.

Source: Joe Conason, Salon, 2/13/04

[oasis]

7. Craig Crawford ALSO has an interest in making this a horeserace.

Kerry's big Wisconsin victory will lay the story to rest.

[MaineDem]

6. Even though Lehane is a good Maine boy

I question some of his moves.

[molly]

2. Good - we are stronger for this

[eileen_d]

3. Funny how this thread has only gotten two responses

while there are 10 or 12 threads promoting the Kerry "scandal"

Hello?

[eileen_d]

5. Kick for an actual "Top News" story

as opposed to "Operation Drudge"