Challenge from Edwards could help Kerry stay sharp

[Feanorcurufinwe]

John F. Kerry praised the voters of Wisconsin last night for giving him another win in a long line of triumphs, but he might have added some thanks for making it close enough to keep on campaigning. Kerry edged his main rival, Senator John Edwards of North Carolina, but fell far short of a majority. Edwards's vote, combined with that for former Vermont governor Howard Dean, put the anti-Kerry tally ahead of the Massachusetts senator's own by double digits. All in all, it was enough of a backlash to send Kerry back to the stump to sharpen his message before the rash of Democratic primaries on March 2.

And that could be one of the best things that's happened to him.

<snip>

Going into the Wisconsin campaign, Kerry's rise had been perhaps the smoothest of any nonincumbent since the advent of the primary system. With states scheduling their primaries on top of one another, Kerry rode the "front-loaded" process to a string of victories before even Matt Drudge could push the send button on his first Internet rumor.

<snip>

But even if Edwards never wins another primary, he's at least set himself up as a suitable foil for Kerry, forcing the Massachusetts senator to fight for every vote.

"It extends this thing a little bit further," Michael Feldman, ex-aide to former vice president Al Gore and an unaligned Democratic political consultant, said of the Wisconsin returns. "I'm generally a believer in the process. The process will sort itself out and we'll end up with someone better, stronger, and more likely to beat George Bush."

http://www.boston.com/news/politics/president/kerry/articles/2004/02/18/challenge_from_edwards_could_help_kerry_stay_sharp

[On the Road]

1. Edwards is Still Not Being Taken Seriously!

I think Wisconsin is a watershed. Edwards getting over 40% in a northern state? It will change perceptions -- that electibility momo will be split. Up until tonight I never thought Edwards had a serious chance. Now I think he can easily win it all.

[Feanorcurufinwe]

2. I'm taking him seriously.

and I'm sure the Kerry campaign is as well. Ohio is the Kerry/Edwards battleground for Super Tuesday, and sure enough, that's where Kerry is headed tomorrow (umm, today).

[SerpentX]

3. Ohio is the key.

Kerry can afford to lose it. Edwards can't.

[MarianJack]

4. A Win/Win Situation!

If Kerry keeps winning, but has to keep debating Edwards, he will be sharper for the fall and the debates that pres. moron will almost certainly try to avoid.

If Edwards finds a way to win the nomination, he'llbe seen as a giant killer who will just have that much more credability in the fall. bush will probably (again, almost certainly) try to avoid a debate with him also.

Either way, we have excellent candidates to go against whistle ass (is it still O.K. to use that term? I hope so because I'm only insulting the guy this website was founded to oppose) in the fall and they will ALL be a better president than this bozo we're stuck with now!

[Feanorcurufinwe]

5. Absolutely. And Kerry does better under pressure, as we've all seen.