Kerry Bests 1st Primary Opponent In 24 Years

[Skip Intro]

http://wbztv.com/local/primary.day.john.2.819192.html

BOSTON (AP) ― Sen. John Kerry fended off his first Democratic challenger in nearly a quarter century, handily defeating political newcomer Ed O'Reilly in Tuesday's primary election.

O'Reilly had tried to make Kerry's 2003 vote authorizing President Bush to launch military action against Iraq a central issue of the Democratic contest, suggesting the vote was a political calculation by Kerry to keep his presidential prospects viable.

But Kerry, the Democratic Party's presidential nominee just four years ago, defended the vote, saying he met with top Pentagon officials, the National Security Council and former Secretary of State Colin Powell before voting.

He said his only mistake was believing the Bush administration would responsibly handle the Congressional authorization of force.
-----------------------

Personal note - I like Kerry, I am still shocked we aren't talking about his second term as president this election cycle, but I have to say - that same Iraq war vote was hung around Hillary's neck by many here and elsewhere and that played no small part in her demise during the primaries. I find it hard to reconcile calling that treatment just while cheering the fact that Kerry's challenger was unsuccessful in using the same vote to harm him.

Having said that, I'm glad to see that Kerry survived this challenge.



on edit - I hope this isn't a dupe, didn't see the news posted anywhere here

[sniffa]

1. He had 2 votes in our household to help him win

:woohoo:

[TheCowsCameHome]

...plus 2 here.....

[sniffa]

4. Hello, fellow Masshole

:hi:

I like seeing others here. :D

[TheCowsCameHome]

8. And likewise, greetings to you...........

Next stop, watching Kerry dismantle that idiot Jeff Beatty in the GE.

:woohoo:

[rox63]

21. Another enthusiastic vote for Kerry here!

:woohoo:

[sniffa]

42. Did you vote for Tsongas too?

Did she have a primary opponent?

[rox63]

89. Tsongas had no primary opponent

But I voted for her also. :)

[Cha]

31. Good! I like Kerry a lot..want to see him in

our Senate representing you guys in Mass:patriot: :patriot:

Great surrogate for Obama Biden!

[sniffa]

46. Not sure, but I "think" this may be my first time voting for him for Senate

I don't remember if I voted in 2002 or not. I'm usually good at voting in every election, but I don't remember that one (not memorable) so I can't say if I voted for him or not. I didn't vote for him in 1996, my first election where I could vote for him. His 2004 run for Prez made me really appreciate him, and I now greatly appreciate him and was ecstatic to go out and vote for him today. :D

[Forkboy]

33. And at least two more from my house.

:)

[sniffa]

41. Awesome, masshole

Was Lisa Wong on the ballot? :D

[stillcool]

plus 2 here!

[sniffa]

40. Hello, fellow Masshole

:hi:

[Mojambo]

2. I'm glad he faced a challenger and I'm glad he won. n/t

[RoyGBiv]

14. I like that sentiment ...

It's rarely expressed that way, but I agree thoroughly.

Incumbents should have challengers within their own party as it helps to force them to think about their actions and to explain themselves before the electorate more completely.

It doesn't mean I necessarily want the incumbent to lose, but I like the idea of him or her having a challenger.

[politicasista]

20. That's democracy even though

he was a jerk and was a waste of time.

[LisaM]

3. Agreed. Hillary took more heat for that vote than Kerry

or Edwards for that matter. I presume Biden voted yes, too (I'll have to look that one up).

[goldcanyonaz]

5. Biden also voted for the IWR.

Hillary took the most heat for it though, wonder why...

[Jennicut]

26. Biden and Kerry realy turned on Shrub after all the lies came out, Hill kept defending her vote

That is why it was brought up over and over again in the primaries. I forgive the Dems who voted for Shrub but only if they owned up to it and Hillary really did not do that at least in the beginning of the primary season.

[karynnj]

49. Probably because she continued to insist it was the right vote

and because there was a disconnect in her saying she voted to get the inspectors in and the fact that she was silent in the build up to war when she and Bill had the biggest Democratic voices.

I also think that the comparison for HRC was that she was challenged in 2006 by Tasini. There was nowhere near the attention the press gave O'Reilly against Kerry and very little pressure to debate him - which she didn't.

As to Obama, Iraq was just one thing, but a big thing. If you were looking to healing the divide, the Clintons wer not the ones who, fairly or unfairly could do it. Too much division already there.

[chascarrillo]

76. You just refuse to get over the primaries, don't you?

[redstate_democrat]

7. The difference is that Hillary was still defending that vote well into the damn primaries.

THAT was stupid.

[LisaM]

9. I would have preferred that she rejected the vote

However, I think that she was trying to explain that she was presented with false intelligence (they all were) and she defended her vote based on that.

That said, whomever provided that false intelligence should be in jail. I know that a lot of people like the Eleanor Roosevelt quote, "fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me" but I heartily disagree with that, much as I like Eleanor Roosevelt. It's still wrong to try and fool other people.

[karynnj]

51. But if true, why did she not speak up when it was proven false

Why did she not sign Kerry's letter on completing Part 2 of the WMD report on whether Bush manipulated the data. (Part 1 simply said it was wrong.)

[Captain Hilts]

13. To people that were too lazy to read her statement upon voting specifically stating that her vote...

was NOT an invitation to invade Iraq OR oust Hussein.

But, that would require reading.

[Zhade]

16. Iraq. War. Resolution.

"Resolution to USE FORCE".

How stupid do you think people are?

[Captain Hilts]

19. To folks familiar with how govt. works - Kerry, Biden, Clinton, Edwards, etc...

it was a lever to force the UN to act. That's what she specifically stated when she cast her vote.

[karynnj]

54. Not Edwards

He spoke in 2003 on a Hardball segmant claiming he didn't believe there were WND, but there were other reasons to want Saddam out. He was in 2003, a cheerleader for the war. He shifted some in 2004.

Of them only Kerry spoke out loudly when it was clear that the Bush administration was not using it as the lever they said they were.

[blm]

88. HRC refused to break with Bush, though when Kerry opposed invasion BECAUSE weapon inspections were

working to prove force was not needed. Both Clintons stuck with their support of Bush's DECISION to invade instead of siding with Kerry who promised in his speech ion IWR that he would oppose invasion if the case was not made.....throughout that 2003-4 campaign, Clintons sided with Bush's decision and Bill even defended it vigorously throughout his summer2004 book tour. Kerry was attacking Bush's decision at the time, but Clinton ignored him completely on terrorism and Iraq as he bolstered Bush in most every broadcast and print interview.

You think it would have been helpful to Dems if Clintons had publically BACKED UP Kerry's opposition to Bush's Iraq decisions?

[AlCzervik]

6. Good news! Thanks massholes!

[Breeze54]

28. No problem, fuckhead!

:eyes:

[politicasista]

10. There were and still are people attacking Kerry for that

vote and other things here. ? :shrug:

[sandnsea]

11. Jan 2003 - "Mr. President, Do Not Rush To War"

That's the difference between John Kerry and Hillary Clinton.

[Captain Hilts]

15. She said it in her statement when she cast her vote.

She also stated it was NOT a vote to oust Hussein.

[sandnsea]

24. So did John Kerry

When he also said that if Bush didn't follow the diplomatic measures he promised, that he would be the first to stand up and challenge him. Which he did. Repeatedly. As opposed to Hillary who cheerleaded him at every turn including in her remarks to Code Pink, and Bill who gave him a pass on the yellowcake, clear up until last year when she realized she couldn't win if she didn't disavow her vote.

[karynnj]

56. But, she was silent later in the march to war

This hurt because she and Bill were the loudest Democratic voices

[karynnj]

57. But, she was silent later in the march to war

This hurt because she and Bill were the loudest Democratic voices

[4themind]

12. I"d think there'd be relatively better places

to post this than in GD-P then again I'm not a moderator. I'd also wonder if your comment about Hillary's vs. Kerry's respective primary challenges would be seen as ,well a rehashing of the primaries, but again moderators will make their own judgment on that

[TheKentuckian]

17. Grats to one of the finest Senators to serve the USA

[PresidentObama]

18. Good--Ed O'Reilly was an idiot. Kerry will be re-elected, and back where we need him.

Well, where we need him now. We really need him in the White House.

But Barack Obama can fill that position.

[Breeze54]

25. Why do you say Ed O'Reilly was an idiot?

Because he dared run against Kerry?

O'Reilly made some great points!

[PresidentObama]

29. He can run against whomever he wants.

Had made absolutely no valid points against Kerry.

Every charge he made has been answered, and answered. And over answered.

[Breeze54]

48. I disagree. I think he made some very valid points. n/t

[beachmom]

38. Not really. Ed O'Reilly is a drunk driving defense attorney

who served one time on a school committee but then quit because "it was too much work". He said the Swift Boaters "had a point". He had a float in a parade with a Kerry figure windsurfing -- he encouraged the crowd to throw things at the Kerry figure. Sure I'm all for primarying, but this guy was less an opponent and more just a dude yelling insults at Kerry for a year. And his supporters who I had the displeasure to run into on various blogs were nasty, always accusing me and other Kerry supporters of being "operatives" or staffers. It was a tactic they used to smear us. I am so glad he lost. He doesn't deserve to be elected dog catcher in any state.

[sniffa]

47. Which parade?

Because he was at the Boston Pride Parade asking for votes. I looked the other way as he came through the Obama Pride contingent.

I thought he needed a hair cut, and his suit ironed (and at least a size smaller) - I think it was appeal as a "regular guy."

[beachmom]

71. Gloucester

http://www.masslaw.com/index.cfm/archive/view/id/444255

(subscription only -- you can read the article in part on Ed O'Reilly's site which I will not link to)

Though not nearly as scandalous as the Beverly Farms Horribles Parade, which made national headlines earlier this month by lampooning teen pregnancy, Edward J. O’Reilly’s float in neighboring Gloucester’s 4th of July parade raised a few eyebrows nonetheless.

O’Reilly, a criminal defense lawyer and first-ever Democratic challenger to U.S. Sen. John Kerry, enlisted a friend to rig a windsurfing board to the back of a truck. Blowing in the breeze was a sail with the word “Flip” on one side and “Flop” on the other, while a figure wearing a John Kerry mask and T-shirt balanced on the board.

“People were yelling at him, giving him the finger,” O’Reilly recalls a week after the parade. “It was great!”

That kind of over-the-top campaign stunt is typical for the Gloucester attorney, the unlikely opponent of the former presidential candidate.

[Breeze54]

50. I wasn't aware of all that, although I suppose I could've

asked my brother, as he loves in Glouscester but I figured that O'Reilly only had one axe to grind and wasn't putting much information out there about himself. I tried today to find out anything before I cast my vote but I couldn't even find a website, so I couldn't take him seriously. But I am glad that Kerry got challenged. Becoming complacent leads to stupid votes and trusting assholes like Bush. I think Kerry has learned his lesson now and he's proven that by making amends and being pro-active.

[karynnj]

59. He was "making amends" and being pro-active

long before he was challenged. It also was not complacency that lead to the wrong vote - it was giving Bush the trust he would have wanted and that he would have given Clinton in the same situation.

From his speech before the Torture bill, where he compared the rush to vote before an election - not taking the time to get a good bill - as like the IRW - he realized it was better to not give the trust normally extended in the Congress to a President on such issues.

Biden before the Iran vote made a similar comparison, saying that it was because Bush had proven untrustworthy so he could not vote for it.

[Breeze54]

64. "it was giving Bush the trust " that got him a lot of flack!

I don't need you to rehash it for me.

I was there and I know what happened.

Kennedy knew better and so should've Kerry! :grr:

But that is in the past now, what's done is done.

[ProSense]

66. Kennedy and Kerry

were the only two who vocally and visibly hit the road lambasting Bush in the run up to the war. Even as Kerry called for regime change in this country one week into the war, a lot of those who were critics shortly after the vote disappeared. Some began making those "well, what's done is done" comments. Guess what: with or without that specific resolution, Bush was going to war anyway. The trust factor is one thing, the legislation is another, and consistency and conviction are also factors. Kerry has been consistent in his opposition to this war.

Contrasting Kennedy and Kerry's vote to make a point is BS. They voted the way they did based on the information presented to them. You need to watch the recent debate with O'Reilly. Kerry made his point, which I have always known to be the case.

It's the past, but people don't get to rewrite history.

[politicasista]

67. Thank you n/t

[ProSense]

60. Sorry, when was Kerry ever complacent?

The IWR vote, as he made clear when he smacked down O'Reilly in the debate, he he did not make lightly.

John Kerry is one of the best Democratic Senators ever

[Breeze54]

65. I didn't take it 'lightly' either and quite frankly? Kerry fucked up and he knows it.

John Kerry has learned NOT to trust Neo-Cons... finally!!!

[ProSense]

68. Oh, please.

Kerry trusted the President. You know who fucked up: the idiots who elevated Bush to that position. You seem to believe that one vote or lack of confidence by one person was going to stop Bush from invading Iraq. Kerry had a duty to as a lawmaker, and he made it clear on the Senate floor what he intended to do if Bush abused that trust. So don't make it out to be some person walking blindly into a situation.

[politicasista]

70. But you know that

Kerry is a warmonger with blood on his hands. :sarcasm: :sarcasm:

Don't like the vote, but we need to stop letting Bush off the hook.

[Breeze54]

22. The difference is: He apologized and worked to make amends. Clinton did not and that's

why he got my vote today. Kerry has been apologizing left and right

and not just in words but in deeds. That's the difference.

Ed O'Reilly DID peak my interest but I didn't know much about him.

He had a great AD though! It was very creative and funny! ;)

[jillan]

23. Time to celebrate!

:toast: :party: :bounce:

[graywarrior]

27. What were the numbers?

[rox63]

30. At 9:00 PM, NECN said it was 67% for Kerry, 33% for O'Reilly

[graywarrior]

35. That's so awesome.

Thanks Massachusetts!

[Breeze54]

53. C'mon... those numbers are not unexpected at all in MA!

:P

Get real!! That's why no one went to the polls today.

They figured it was 'in the bag' anyway.

[graywarrior]

58. I know, I grew up there.

But I lived in Gloucester so I kinds get the whole thing. I think it's great.

[beachmom]

32. Kerry admitted his vote was a mistake. Plus, he was hit with it in the 2004 presidential primary

and nevertheless won the primary. I think the difference is that the person challenging Hillary, Barack Obama, was an extraordinary candidate who made that argument among many others to beat her.

My feelings on the vote are ambiguous. I certainly think Dems should have voted No, but I can be forgiving based on what they did afterwards. Kerry came up with the timetable for withdrawal in June 2006. Hillary did not show that type of leadership, sadly. I hope she will now take on any liberal cause she feels very strongly about, and I will cheer her on when she does.

[Forkboy]

34. Great news, even with your silliness at the end.

[DevonRex]

36. Great for Kerry, great for us!!

But why are you bringing up the primaries again?

[quakerboy]

37. RE the personal note

Part of the difference might be that we are talking about a national election and a mass. Election. Going back to the presidential primary, Hillary took Mass by a fairly large margin. So apparently the IWR vote didn't prove to be quite such the burden there as it was in some other places.

Combine that with an incumbency advantage, and a name recognition advantage and Kerry's win isnt all that odd, I don't think.

Think about it this way.. He had a primary challenge this time. How about before the IWR was hung around his neck? Isn't that damage?

[DevonRex]

39. Excellent points. Thank you for the common sense.

[quakerboy]

63. I am just trying to make sense of it.

I don't have any major problem with Kerry, but if his opponent was anything like decent, I probably would have voted for the opponent. Kerry is a little too couth for my taste, I prefer drag em out sorts. And the IWR is big with me.

[karynnj]

61. He would not have had this challenge if he had not endorsed HRC

It was people mad over the endorsement that helped him get on the ballot.

[quakerboy]

73. Huh?

[karynnj]

79. To get on the ballot in MA, you have to do two things

1) Get sufficient signatures - which he paid to heve done.

2) To get at least 15% of the votes at the MA Democratic convention. Some of the delegates he got were Democrats mad at the endorsement. It is entirely possible that EOR would never have gotten the number needed without those peopel. He had at that point already made the DKOS comments arguing that Kerry needed to refute the SBVT lies.

Read the article on the float he had. Then consider, he put this article on his web site - He was proud of it.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=7090629&mesg_id=7091872

Do you thing Senator Kerry deserved having to take abuse from this despicable jerk. Remember that is an article EOR had on his website.

[karynnj]

43. There were major differences between HRC and Kerry

1) Kerry said he would speak out if the President used the authority differently than he promised - and he did BEFORE THE WAR, when HRC was silent. (ie Kerry voted wrong, but was never pro-war - with HRC it was more ambiguous)

2) MOre importantly, Kerry and Feingold fought for setting a deadline to withdraw - at a point where HRC did not want the Senate to deal with the issue in 2006. By early 2007, all the Democrats except Leiberman were in line with a variant of Kerry's plan

3) The comparable challange to HRC was Tasini, not Obama. Iraq was only one part of Obama being a break from the old politics - there was a lot of Clinton baggage. In both cases, neither HRC or Kerry were in any real danger.

4) Why cheer Kerry, he is one of the strongest leaders of the progressive wing and his opponent ran a despicable campaign where he questioned Kerry on SBVT charges that Bush never personally touched. Kerry is a decent, honorable man, who did not deserve to have to deal with this creep. It should also be noted that he was on the ballot only because Kerry endorsed Obama.

[seaglass]

72. He did a disservice to his consitituents by endorsing before the MA

primary, just as Kennedy did. I know why they did it when they did it, but I didn't appreciate it and have lost a little respect for both of them because of it.

That being said, it wasn't a tough choice to vote for Kerry over O'Reilly today - which both my husband and I did.

[politicasista]

74. Then you can have my GOP senators Alexander and Corker

And we'll take Kerry and Kennedy. I am sure people here in TN will respect them more down here than up in MA. Kerry and Kennedy had a right to endorse whomever they wanted and they happened to think that Obama was the best person for the job. They have said nothing but nice and respectful things about Hillary, sorry if that still bothers people.

The primaries are over. Hillary has soldiered on and is now campaigning for Obama. As will Bill. Everyone is unified and working to get Obama elected. Shouldn't that be everyone's priority now rather than holding on to lack of respect or past primary grudges? JMHO.

[chascarrillo]

77. The primaries are over. In such manner, get over it.

[karynnj]

80. Did you criticize all the people who endorsed HRC before

any primaries, including my goveror and Senator Menendez. I did not consider it wrong of them to do so - it was there right. Just as it was my right to ignore them and vote for Obama,

Did you have a problem with Gore and Harkin endorsing Dean in 2003? There is always an effort to get endorsements, Kerry's and Kenndy's endorsements belong to them - they are a public statement of their private choice at the ballot box. That is NOT something they need to agree with the state on - they were not representing MA in doing so.

[seaglass]

81. Why would I care about who anyone endorsed other than those

who represent me? The endorsements were a public statement of their SD votes.

[Mass]

83. Quite a few congresspeople endorsed Hillary in MA. I do not see you criticize them.

(Franks, McGovern, Neal, among others).

I have nothing against them doing that. They are entitled to their choice just as Kerry and Kennedy are. I find amazing that people would be mad at them because they dared make a choice.

[karynnj]

86. As were Kerry's and Kennedy's

Also, Kerry clearly considered his super delegate vote distinct from his endorsement - he said as soon as asked in early February when either could win that it would be wrong for the superdelegates to overturn the choice of the delegates. I took that then that he would not cast his for the loser of the delegate count - even if it were Obama.

Did your Congressman endorse Clinton prior to the election. (I know a Worcester student who was very mush for Obama, but likes McGovern - she was surprised by his endorsement of Clinton, but didn't hold it against him. )

It seems to me that you disliked Kerry's and Kennedy's because they carry real weight nationwide.

[politicasista]

91. **crickets**

Interesting they always appear after nice rebuttals like these.

[HughMoran]

44. Kicked the guys ass

Go Kerry!

[madmax]

45. Agree with you that we should be talking Kerry's second

term now. I was so sure he'd win 2004. :cry:

[Kat45]

52. He got my vote too.

Glad to hear he won, though I thought he would.

[Democrafty]

55. Congrats to one of our most progressive senators! n/t

[anonymous171]

62. Damn, what could have been.

Kerry 2004!

[midnight armadillo]

69. he had my vote!

I have rarely thought so little about for whom I should vote. Except maybe Kennedy vs. Robinson.

[iamthebandfanman]

75. actually, kerry did take alot of heat on DU

for his vote on the war as i recall back in 2003/2004

[chascarrillo]

78. The primaries are over. K?

[Marrah_G]

82. He got my vote!

[Meshuga]

84. I am glad that is out of the way!

I am happy for Kerry!

[Mass]

85. Good - Now time to give Beatty his lesson. BTW, the result is not surprising.

O'Reilly came out as a good guy whenever he was not trying to copy Howie Carr, but he clearly had no idea of what a senator was doing, and, sadly, did not allow progressive ideas to be discussed, focusing too much on Kerry's supposed disinterest of MA and too little on REAL issues.

[Alter Ego]

87. Glad that sonofabitch O'Reilly got what was coming to him.

[rvablue]

90. Good news!

[mitchum]

92. Well done, Senator Kerry