For everyone freaking out about Kerry's chances...

[WilliamPitt]

I have six requests:

1. Watch 60 Minutes tonight;

2. Read 'Tour of Duty.' That goes double for people who don't like the guy. I'm finding the book incredibly revealing. A lot of the 'elitist' barbs, along with tons of other stuff, really gets brought into focus in a way that helps Kerry.

3. Research Kerry v. Weld 1996. Start here:

http://news.bostonherald.com/opinion/view.bg?articleid=385&format=

4. Turn off CNN, MSNBC, Fox and the rest. Let PeteNYC and his crew do their work. Help them when you can.

5. Help where you can in the campaign. If you're not a Kerry person, help somewhere else.

6. There are about 230 days until the election. That's about 32 weeks, 5,500 hours, etc. Get a grip and enjoy the marathon.

[Dookus]

1. but.. but...

don't you SEE IT?! Republicans are saying bad things about him!! If he didn't go skiing, they wouldn't have said anything! He needs to fight back against ANY and EVERY lame accusation IMMEDIATELY!! No sleep, no rest, no pee-breaks. If only we'd nominated somebody else, there wouldn't BE any attacks!

ACK! ACK! PANIC!! RUN!

[sandnsea]

4. rotfl

No pee-breaks, omg, lol.

[AP]

2. About No. 5 -- if you're not going to help with the Kerry campaign...

...directly, then help indirectly. Get involved with ANY Democratic or progressive campaign, whether federal, state or local, and work on getting out the Democratic vote.

[WillyBrandt]

5. Exactly! Progressives have plenty of candidates to help

Even if they dislike Kerry, they can work for other candidates!

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

9. Right! The more Congresspeople we elect

that are Dems, the easier President Kerry's job is going to be!

[calimary]

19. And Senators. I've seen reports that Dems could actually make more

gains this year. THAT would be great. Supreme Court protected.

[acmavm]

3. Thank you. You are always around when we need a voice for reason

and sanity. I've read a number of hysterical posts today, and I've seen quite a few people try to curb the mania of people who are so freaked out because the poor guy took a couple of days off to rejuvenate. But you are a voice of 'authority' to many people here. I hope they listen.

Kerry looked pretty damn good on that snowboard, don't you think? Now just picture bush* on one. Just the thought makes me giggle. The guy can't even eat a pretzel without hurting himself.

[Auntie Bush]

10. Or ride a Segway! n/t

[yardwork]

14. Bush on the slopes? Big giggle!!

[NWHarkness]

6. Check out what Ruy Teixeira has to say on the subject.

http://www.emergingdemocraticmajorityweblog.com/donkeyrising/


Everyone should be reading his blog anyway!

[WilliamPitt]

11. Snip from that link

Should Democrats be pressing the panic button about these developments? I don’t think so, for several reasons.

First, the Bush push-back was inevitable and it was equally inevitable they’d find some statements by Kerry to push back on. If it hadn’t been the foreign leaders and the "first I voted for it, then against it" quotes, they would have found other quotes to use. No matter what Kerry said or did not say, it would not have forestalled these attacks.

Second, running this kind of early, highly negative campaign is a sign of weakness, not strength on the part of the incumbent. If you have a decently positive record to run, this is the time you spend reminding people how great your presidency has been. But this is difficult for the Bush campaign to do, as there's little positive for them to run on. As even Bush booster David Brooks had to admit, Bush's compassionate conservative image and program are in tatters. Voters continue to be very unhappy with the economy and job Bush has done in this department. And the messy situation in Iraq and around the world vexes Bush's ability to run on his foreign policy accomplishments.

Finally, and closely related to the previous point, recent events have tended to undercut, not improve, Bush's ability to run on his record. The messy situation in Iraq and around the world has simply become messier. The Medicare prescription drugs bill is now not only unpopular, but a scandal that further damages Bush's credibility. The economy continues to limp along. And so on.

That's why, despite making headway in the Bush-Kerry horse race, Bush's approval rating hasn't budged (flatlined at 48 percent in the Newsweek poll), his re-elect number isn't going anywhere (46 percent, about his average for the year in this poll) and voters are viewing the Republican party more, not less negatively (note that the Democrats now have a healthy 7 point lead in the generic Congressional contest).

So what should Kerry do? Pretty simple. Push back. And I agree with Josh Marshall that the best way to push back is to go after Bush's credibility. Again and again and over and over.

[yardwork]

15. Award for understatement of the year....

If you have a decently positive record to run, this is the time you spend reminding people how great your presidency has been. But this is difficult for the Bush campaign to do....

[jpgray]

7. DU popular opinion gives me whiplash sometimes.

The only comfort sometimes is how wrong it often is.

[leftistagitator]

8. Kerry wasn't my first choice

But he is a strong candidate, and better in every way than *. We will win this election as long as it's not rigged and we don't give up. I don't care if * had 250 billion dollars, no matter how many flowers you put around a turd it still stinks like crap.

[Auntie Bush]

12. How/where do I get PeteNYC? eom

[WilliamPitt]

13. He posts here

so find one of his posts and PM him.

[Andy_Stephenson]

17. who is PeteNYC?

what is his significance again...I'm sorry I'm sick and can't think right now.

[WilliamPitt]

18. A DUer who works in the Kerry campaign

Specifically, here:

www.dbunker.com

That's his gig.

[welshTerrier2]

16. try this for starters

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=472841&mesg_id=472841

[Rhiannon12866]

20. Thanks for the advice, Will. I hope many people take it

Kerry was not my first choice because I just wondered if he had the stature to defeat Bush*. I have listened to the man and liked what he has had to say, even if I still prefer Kucinich, LOL! If he is the nominee, he certainly has my vote!:-)

[calimary]

21. Can't help it, Will, I am STILL freaking out anyway.

I'm VERY miffed that Kerry took a vacation this past week. Let the bush people regroup and regain some lost ground. Look how much mileage they got all week, while we had a few piddly little email responses from out on the ski slopes. ICK!

YES, I'm doing stuff. LOTS of stuff. Including putting my money where my mouth is (just sent off another contribution online, about 5 minutes ago, as of this writing), and I'm the obnoxious, insufferable boor of a woman who always, non-stop nags people to call their reps for free (note sig line). But I'm still grinding my teeth.

YES I know it's a long way til November. YES I know anything can happen. YES I know Michael Moore and John "Worse than Watergate" Dean and Larry Flynt have yet to weigh in and stir the pot, and YES I know the deliberately delayed PPI numbers have to come out eventually, but still! I am STILL nervous as hell.

Maybe, periodically, you need to post something like this so people can get a hit from it and be consoled or reenergized at regular intervals. At any rate, it's good to see you posting again.

[cally]

24. I have a different take on the vacation

I'm with you on all the rest. :hi:


Kerry seemed so tired near the end and he was making mistakes. Losing his temper and such. Little was coming out but enough to know that he was losing his voice, both Teresa (sp?) and Kerry had the flu for weeks. He was not exercising and not eating right. It sounds like he was working 7 to 11. The man had to be exhausted.

I'm glad he took a break and tried to recover. I do not know how Presidential candidates do what they do. The schedule is crazy. I don't know what the best time was to take a break, but I think this might be one of the better times to do it.

Well the ski thing. That's for another thread. ;-)

[WilliamPitt]

22. So I hope everyone took care of #1.

You're worried about Kerry going skiing?

[DaveSZ]

23. Well

At least we have Stern on our side bashing Bush daily now.

[many a good man]

25. I just donated

Recurring donation! Thanks for helping me get off my butt to finally do it.

I live in a solid blue state so I wonder what I can do that might make a difference elsewhere. Any suggestions?