Throughout the 2004 election, John Kerry had numerous chances to call out the Bush administration’s serial lies. The best he would ever say is that they "misled". Kerry was encouraged by many to be forceful and strong, both in defense of his own war record and of the Democratic party. He refused, preferring instead to play to the media and the GOP’s shared vision of what a Democrat is and how he or she should act, attempting to play the game on their field without introducing any plays of his own. Now, almost two years after losing the election, the guy finds some nerve? Give me a break, John Kerry. You had your shot at the electoral stage, and while I still you believe you would have been a good president, you clearly suck ass at the business of being elected.
Silence, please.
And with all due respect, can you and your ankle-biting ilk please shut up?
I have seen no end of “Where was this Kerry in ‘04″ snark-fests on just about every progressive blog. There seems to be some contest of which so-called progressive is the most witty and cynical when it comes to this subject. Everyone’s smarter than the next man/woman in the room.
I have an idea, how about easing up a bit on the venom and bitching about how Kerry could’ve done better in ‘04 and actually look at and judge what he’s saying NOW? The battle is being joined NOW. If you want to hop in the Delorean and go tell ‘04 Kerry to “grow a sac”, then pay a visit to Christopher Lloyd.
If you want to help take back Congress and eventually the Presidency, here’s a hint GET THE HELL OVER ‘04! The constant back-biting and acidic comments are not helping! And you, Oliver in particular seem to get some kind of kick out of criticizing Dems for lack of spine. Well, not all of them are afflicted. Why don’t you spend a little more time educating your readers on Democrats that you feel are up to your standards?
Again, no disrespect. I’m just sick to death of the cynicism that seems to have taken hold of certain bloggers. Get over yourselves already. We truly ARE in a battle of “good vs. evil” and I’m not talking about Al Qeada. Either you join in or continue to be one of the “Muppets in the Balcony.”
Your choice. Choose wisely.
You know why there’s this venom now? Because
a) If Kerry had found his stones in ‘04, things wouldn’t be as bad as they are now
b) Kerry is trying to rebrand himself in order to run in 2008. He didn’t have this interest in standing up so strong for Democrats in 2004.
I do call out Dems who are on the right track, as well as those I find to be on the wrong track. Sadly there are more of the former, especially at the party’s infrastructure level. I don’t want to just win in 2008. I want a Democratic party strong enough to win in 08, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18 and beyond. We’re a long way from that now, and too many people in power think that the status quo is just okay and we can just wait for the Republicans to hand us the reins of power.
“You know why there’s this venom now? Because
a) If Kerry had found his stones in ‘04, things wouldn’t be as bad as they are now
b) Kerry is trying to rebrand himself in order to run in 2008. He didn’t have this interest in standing up so strong for Democrats in 2004.”
I agree, on BOTH counts. But again, how does it help by constantly harping on this? I’m sure we both agree that it’s MUCH more important that he’s speaking clear and concise truth NOW? That serving the greater good by re-claming Congress should be priority #1?
Can’t we save all of the criticisms and deciding who’ll be our candidate in ‘08 (Feingold!) until AFTER this job is done?
I just don’t see how bashing Kerry on the head every time he speaks actually HELPS. I mean, what do you accomplish by repeating what anyone with half the brains God gave a tapeworm already knows?
YES, Kerry was to careful to a fault in ‘04. YES, he should’ve fought the Swiftboaters harder. YES, he should’ve pursued the Ohio voter-fraud more. But there’s nothing we can do. I like the way he’s speaking more plainly and straightforward (a lesson he’s learned). And he’s the ONLY person of any substance that has come out and blatantly said that the Bush Administration are LIARS.
I’ve got his back on this, past sins be damned!
Yeah, but when he says it now it just sounds like bitter old Kerry, now that he lost the election he finally found a clue. It’s very inauthentic, and transparent positioning (more so than the usual positioning that goes on around in DC). This guy wasn’t with us when we chose him as our leader, why does he think he has any authority now?
That said, I don’t think I ever said getting back congress wasn’t a priority. We’re sort of positioned positively there in spite of the campaign Kerry was ultimately responsible for in ‘04. But there is a cancer of complacency in the Democratic party, with leadership that acts like the 90s never happened or that Dems never lost control of congress. I don’t think good Democrats of conscience can remain silent on this.
AGAIN, what does it accomplish by constantly bashing the guy? That I don’t get. It’s well-tread ground.
Oddly enough, his speech in C-SPAN right now. Actually watching it instead of reading it is quite the experience. He’s gotten several standing ovations!
And what do you mean “he wasn’t with us?” Seriously dude. This man has been sticking his neck out for Americans before you were even born.
You think he’s inauthentic and calculating, fine. But you can’t be calling his very progressive nature into question. This Kerry bashing is becoming a mini-obsession.
And it’s the Democratic LEADERS that are in my opinion, soft. Clinton, H., Kennedy, Reid.
I’m a big supporter of Dean, Feingold, Pelosi, Murtha and now, yes, Kerry. I don’t waste time wondering “what if” about ‘04. He’s saying the right things (and quite forcefully) NOW. If he’s positioning for ‘08, great! I don’t care. He’s openly calling Republicans liars and hypocrites and he’s the ONLY one doing it. It give me no pleasure or self-satisfaction to continually snipe and back-bite him. I don’t feel any smarter or intellectually superior. He’s “turned the corner” (ha!) and I say, better late than never.
God bless him.
I agree with StarkyLuv, to a degree. If Kerry can help the Dems take control of the House and/or the Senate in a few weeks, then I say more power to him.
But starting on November 8, we need to pound the crap out of him (figuratively) so he doesn’t even think about running in ‘08. If he is the best that the Democratic Party has to offer, then I say it’s time to let the party die.
I’m sick of Democratic Presidential “hopefulls” who don’t stand for Democratic values. If the Dems don’t put up Feingold in ‘08, and go for Biden or Clinton or Kerry instead, then I say to hell with them, I’m voting Green.
Bingo! That’s exactly what I’m saying n_d.
This man is trying his damndest to get control of Congress. Let’s find a candidate for ‘08 AFTER we accomplish that. Beating him down for ‘04 now is just wasted energy. Especially when he seems to be our most direct and bold speaker at the moment.
“I want a Democratic party strong enough to win in 08, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18 and beyond.” Screw that! I want a party that will win now in 06 ’cause that may be our last chance to stave off the disintegration of this country. Looking forward to the Presidential contest as the big fashion show of the season and ignoring the cheap racks where mass of citizens seek protection from the cruel world is exactly the kind of foggy-headed DLC think that filled Kerry’s head in 04. Wake up! The time is now – all that matters is now – You can bet, win or lose the stinking Republics won’t be fighting about 06 in 08 or 08 in 10!
Wow, Oliver’s saying pretty much the same thing I was saying over two years ago. I guess that makes me “progressive” and “forward-looking?”
Kerry has one single underlying principle: that he is better than anyone else, and he ought to be president simply because he’s better. His hindsight is so 20/20 because he’s spent his entire life with his head up his ass. People (including me) have said that for years, but now it’s finally too obvious for even Oliver to ignore.
J.
Jay Tea – I’m not entirely sure how different “I should be President simply because I’m better than everybody else” is from “I should be President because God wants me to be.”
Frankly, the latter scares me more.
Y’know Jay, I find it hilarious that it hasn’t dawned on you how pathetic it is that you come and troll here daily.
Your “counter-points” actually only serve to bolster the points of the liberals you loathe. Yet of course, it never occurs to you.
I’ve been reading this site for months without posting and always found you amusing. Like when you drive a cat crazy witha laser-pointer. All the time thinking “why doesn’t this cat figure out that it’s just light?”
That’s how I view you. You don’t care of course (your consistent posting just screams being oblivious to your status here), but I just thought I’d say it.
I think Kerry was a smarter campaigner and debater than GWB. I think what determined his loss was largely the anti-Democratic media narrative, as with Gore, doing him in.
I’m a little tired of reading about what a bad campaign Kerry ran. Yes, he made some bad calls on his response to the Swiftboaters. But I’m not going to criticize Kerry for taking the high road in campaigning when there are lots of Americans who still can’t believe the Republicans are a bunch of criminals. That realization dawned on all of us at different times. Maybe there’s a level of political thuggery that Kerry couldn’t believe would happen- and now knows it can.
Oliver, I believe that you have this wrong on several fronts. First, although you believe that calling Bush on his “serial lies” would have tipped the election, most Americans don’t care. Getting indignant about disputed facts would have cost votes, not created them. Second, Kerry ran a noble campaign and frankly beat the shit of Bush in three separate debates. He lost the media narrative and our political operatives didn’t get as dirty as their operatives. We can start playing dirty and loose with the facts, or we can expect more of Americans. Frankly, I prefer some occasional losses at the poll rather than loss of principles.
The next president is going to be the person who is most able to sell Americans on their vision of the future. The candidate most able to do so will have my vote whether that’s Kerry or some other front-runner.
I guess that makes me “progressive” and “forward-looking?”
No, Jay. That just makes you a coward. Oh, wait, that was when you banned me from your blog. Criticizing Kerry in ‘04 just made you a boot-licking turd who valued maintaining Republican power at the expense of the best interests of our country. Which isn’t very progressive, even for a conservative.
Being noble’s only good enough for second place. Fighting dirty wins. If the Dems don’t fight dirty, they’ll keep being losers. And Jaytea, like other cons, just makes shit up.
Kerry should have just painted Bush as the liar he is. Even Dugger has to admit you can’t take anything Bush says at face value. It should have been Kerry the Flip Flopper vs. Bush the Liar.
I like Kerry – truly believe that he wants what is best for all and has more stones than all the fake bluster of Bush. I am not a fan of bashing him for speaking out now – we need to finish strong and win this game. At least we are in the playoff – we can talk about the superbowl after we win this game.
Maybe in the long run nobility ultimately defeats sleaziness. Maybe that’s how Democrats will prove themselves as the true party of morality, without having to shout it from the mountaintops.
Let’s pick our candidates wisely and let the Republicans hang themselves on their own.
Give me a break, John Kerry. You had your shot at the electoral stage, and while I still you believe you would have been a good president, you clearly suck ass at the business of being elected.
Ollie, Give us all a break and quit whining about Kerry!
At least Kerry finally wised up and quit trying to straddle the fence on Iraq by admitting he made a mistake in voting for it. It’s just too bad he didn’t wise up sooner in 04.
But with that said, at least he does now and that beats the hell out of Hillary who is still trying to have it both ways:
source: http://www.antiwar.com/frank/?articleid=8928
If you guys insist on nominating her, you can forget about my vote!
I will vote Libertarian, Green Party or Vegetarian before I vote for Hillary or another Republican.
Don’t you think it is telling that Democrats who were so high profile in ‘00 and ‘04 are talking tough now? I think it’s great, personally, and i think in the long run it sends a message to other Democrats that they should no longer be afraid to speak up and say, “hey, the Emperor is fucking’ nekkid!”
Hmm, haven’t I heard this before?
Democratic presidential candidate, utterly botches his race by being wimpy and “centrist” and refusing to fucking FIGHT to win.
Then, a couple years after losing, starts speaking up and developing some testicular fortitude.
Where have I seen this before…. hmm… oh, yeah, AL GORE!