Huffington Blog : Post on Kerry

[Mass]

Great stuff and I thing I agree with most of it.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/james-boyce/will-the-real-john-kerry-_b_9548.html

James Boyce Bio Blog Index RSS
10.26.2005
Will The Real John Kerry Stand Up Today?
READ MORE: Iraq, CIA, Saddam Hussein

On Monday in New York City, I had lunch with one of my favorite people from CNN and she asked me what I thought John Kerry lost. I think it's simple, but sad. John Kerry lost because I only saw the real John Kerry three times during the whole campaign.

The real John Kerry showed up in the small towns and living rooms of Iowa.

The real John Kerry showed up the night of the first debate, with the weight of the race on his shoulders.

And the real John Kerry showed up on November 3rd. And conceded.

I got a press advisory from John Kerry's Senate office a few days ago about a speech today, a "major speech" on foreign policy. After so many false starts on this, I wonder if the real John Kerry will show up today. I hope he does. Because folks inside the beltway might disagree, but when John Kerry speaks today - he won't be speaking just on the war in Iraq, or just on the 2,000 men and women who've died in a war we were lied into. John Kerry will be speaking for his political future.
...

[TayTay]

1. I don't think this writer will be disappointed

I think the 'real' Kerry showed up a lot more than he credits, but the point is taken.

Again, I see this as a 'painful' speech. The personal always is.

[karynnj]

2. I guess if he didn't see Kerry he wasn't there

I think the Kerry speaking in the last week of the campaign about Bush not guarding the munitions dump and having them used for the bombs killing our "kids" was as raw and as direct as politics gets.

If the media had covered these comments- as they were starting to after a MN News organization's previously embedded reporter was able to show that the munitions were still there sealed a month? after the invasion - more often, more people would have seen the real Kerry.

I do think he is right that this speech will affect Kerry's future. The thing that concerns me most is that even with a brilliant speech (which we have almost come to take for granted), how does he get momentum behind what he proposes. The media seems to be tiring with Iraq and MAY be losing faith in the grand PNAC plan, but the media certainly didn't help Kerry last year.

Even if Kerry send this speech in written or the video link form he used twice to his 5 million list and if he makes himself available for interviews (though he'll be in Boston Sunday) to point out as he did to Rice that the Iraqi leaders and people and our military were in agreement with at least some of his plan, how does this create enough pressure to move Bush to change. (When we know he is stubborn and has goals he's not yet totally honest about - though I think the Democrats should spread Rice's comments on why we went to war.)

[whometense]

4. I don't know the answers,

but I do know my Kerry email alerts this morning were packed with headline after headline from different news outlets saying,

Kerry: Bring troops home over Christmas

and that's a good thing. The rest of the media?? Who knows. My head threatened to explode this morning when I watched c-span for a minute and heard caller after caller talk about the liberal media conspiracy against the Bush presidency. :eyes:

[Noisy Democrat]

3. I disagree with his exact count

of how many times Kerry was real -- I thought the acceptance speech and his September 19th (or was it 20th?) speech on Iraq were too, not to mention the way Kerry was at numerous rallies around the country -- but his overall point is good.

[Mass]

5. I agree with you, which is why I posted it.

[sandnsea]

6. Well this is hoke and bull

He took his press advisory and pretended to be "prescient" about what would be in the speech. Interesting tactic, a whole new insight into what passes for journalism.