Do you have a dog in the primary? I'm neutral now....help convince me

[FDRLincoln]

I am now officially neutral in the Democratic primary race. I was supporting Kerry, but I've been disappointed in him for a variety of reasons. I will still consider him strongly, and will certainly vote for any Democrat (even Holy Joe) over Grandmaster Chimporama, but I am uncertain at this time which Dem to send my money to for the primaries.

If you have a candidate chosen, please help me decide. AVOID FLAMEWARS and attacks on other candidates. I want to here why YOUR candidate is the person I should support, not why I should hate the other guy's candidate.

About me:

By DU standards I am rather conservative. By most American standards, I am moderate to somewhat liberal. I tend to be moderate on economic issues...I think capitalism, properly regulated, is a good thing. I am very much in favor of a strong military. I am 100% in favor of gay rights, and I support gay marraige. I am uncomfortably pro-choice, in that I think abortion should be legal in the first trimester, but there should be very strong restrictions after that. I supported military action against the Taliban in Afghanistan, but I had serious reservations and doubts about Iraq, which are now being borne out. I am a member of the Sierra Club. I support the Second Amendment, but I think the NRA gives people who support gun rights a bad name. I am opposed to the Death Penalty due to the problem of putting innocent people to death. I believe in God, but I don't believe very much in organized religion.

My political heroes are Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, and Franklin Delano Roosevelt. I admire both Churchill and Tolstoy, Sherman and Gandhi.

Who should I support?

[quinnox]

1. Take a look at Edwards

He might be one to keep an eye on. I think he has some of the same positions, like he is strong on the military and thinks abortion is wrong, but wouldn't overturn the choice law. I think he is supposed to be good on the environment. But he does support the death penalty.

[Josh]

2. Well...

sounds like Graham, Dean, or Kerry are your guys.

Dean and Kerry, as I understand it, are anti-death penalty, and, of course, all pro-choice. And I believe all three, to various degrees (Dean leading the charge) are pro-gay rights.

What you said about capitalism and the environment, however, reminded me of something I saw on Graham's website. I'm supporting Graham, although I'm not a citizen and therefore can't vote for him.

Dean's got the good rating from the NRA and Graham doesn't fare as badly as Kerry and some other Democrats, but that's largely a wash, I'd say.

Well, that's it. I can't give you an exact candidate, though of course I'd love you to vote for Graham for me. :-) But I hope narrowing it down to these three candidates helps you out.

Cheers.

[camero]

3. No, but I should run my dog in the primary

She would be better than the choices we have so far. ;)

Besides Kucinich that is.

Bella for pres.

[lkinsale]

12. My dog can beat your dog

How's that for kissing babies?

Folly, Pyrenees Princess, 105 lbs, 3 yrs, a shoe-in.

[pasadenademocrat]

4. I'll just tell you what I wouldn't do..

I would never support anyone in the primaries who gave George Bush authorization to launch a preemptive war.

That would include Gephardt, kerry, Lieberman, and Edwards.

[ryharrin]

5. Sounds like Dean is perfect for you

You named his stances one after another. Economically conservative, for gay rights, pro-choice, pro-afghanistan war, anti-iraq war, pro-second amendment. Dean is also in favor of the death penalty only in cases of the murder of a child, a policeman, or for terrorism (which I disagree with, because how do you define terrorism?).

[Upfront]

6. Dean Is Your Man

Dean is the one who first started to call Bush out that anyone listened much too. When you hear this guy speak you will get it. I would vote for anyone of our canidates but I beleive that Dean will win the nomation and the Pres. My hero's are Truman, JFK, and BK . Now that tells my age. lol :)

[mdmc]

7. Dean

or just wait out the primary.

[lkinsale]

8. Since you asked. *Pulls out her Graham talking points* ;)....

I never paid any attention to Graham (or any of em really) until I got so upset about the whole Iraq misadventure, which just seemed an insanely weird turn off the main road.

So I happened to see this article in the Washington Post about Graham (no link anymore, sorry,) and how he had gotten so upset that he was turning red and yelling when he gave his speech about voting against the war, which took everyone aback cause he's normally such a soft-spoken guy. (Which I've since learned that he is.) But, he was saying what I was thinking: Why the HELL are we haring off to Iraq when we haven't even begun to finish the job with al Queda, or even done much to look at our own port security and obvious weaknesses at home?

So, I got interested in him. And so far, the more I find out, the more I like him.

First, he has an enormous amount of experience. Successful two-time governor of Florida, a state of 12 million at thetime. Three-term senator. Never lost an election, carries the Republican districts in his state. Served a long period of time on the Senate Intelligence Committee and has pushed and pushed and pushed to get the 9/11 report declassified, ostensibly for reasons of homeland security issues. (Though there are rumors that he knows something he'd like to say but can't. Those are mere rumors, and I don't put any weight on them. It would just be gravy.)

He comes from a farming background and seems to connect with southern rural voters in a very strong way. I believe he could "take back the south." Part of my reason for this is my own Texas farming/ranching family--I can see that he would not terrify them like some of the more left-leaning or northern candidates. They might prefer Bush, but Graham would not make them say, "Oh lord save us! No!"

(Along these lines, he's sponsoring a winning NASCAR truck for the campaign, and it's been so successful that there have been posts on DU about republicans calling up their friends and saying, "I'm voting for THIS guy!")

He is highly respected in Washington as an intelligent, astute and experienced man. You can see this when he's on the talk shows--they don't treat him like a chump. Or if they try, they don't get far. Here are some links to his recent appearances:

Face the Nation, May 11, 2003

CNN Inside Politics, July 10, 2003

Meet the Press, July 13, 2003

NPR May 2003


On the issues:

ENVIRONMENT: The League of Conservation Voters Scorecard rates him 81% for the 106th Congress, and 64% for the 107th. This is not as high as some of the other candidates, but the Concord Monitor said, "As Governor of Florida] his environmental record was strong in a state where population growth constantly strains natural resources. He has maintained that stance as a senator."-- Concord Monitor May 5, 2003. He's been successful with legislation and programs to protect the everglades and preserving coastlines from oil drilling. He's gotten awards from the American Rivers Conservation Council, Audubon Society, National Wildlife Federation, Sierra Club and other organizations.

ECONOMY: He's a fiscal conservative and had worked for an amendment to balance the budget. When asked what he would do with the deficit now, he said he would repeal the high end tax cut, and pass a (I think--$1500, not sure of exact figure but that range) payroll deduction in order to get money to the middle class. From his site: "Graham recently voted against President Bush's latest round of tax cuts for the super wealthy, arguing that the way to get a short-term stimulus is to put money in the wallets of those Americans most likely to spend it. He proposes a "holiday" from a portion of the Social Security and Medicare payroll taxes for the next two years. "I would extend the unemployment benefits. Many people have been weeks and weeks without being able to find a job, no matter how hard they search. Those are the people that if you continue their benefits are the most likely Americans to spend and contribute to demand."And he has proposed to create new jobs by targeting federal funds on rebuilding crumbling bridges and highways and other high-priority

VETS: He's been active in passing tax relief and increase access to health care, particularly for returning vets.

CIVIL RIGHTS: He appointed the first minority and women to the Florida Supreme Court, and has helped pass measures to protect against hate crimes. Voted against Ashcroft and thinks he has overinterpreted the Patriot Act against the wishes of congress. Believes the Patriot Act should be reviewed and not extended, and opposes Patriot II.

I'm not sure about his death penalty stance. I don't have any specifics on gay rights, but I recall that he praised the recent Supreme Court decision on the Texas law.

In any case, I won't bore on anymore. I think you might want to check out Graham. He's no more perfect than any of the rest, but it's my belief that he is the one who can beat Bush.

The main complaints about him on DU seem to be, He's too old (66), lacks fire (but he is even more effective in his quiet, sane way, in my opinion) and his speeches are dull. Well, I haven't seen his speeches, I only saw him on Russert, and I thought he hit a home run.

Oh yeah--and the Notebooks. He keeps these logs of his day, with great detail. Russert tried to say they made him look neurotic, and he just said it was "Discipline," a habit he picked up from his father who had kept notebooks about sick animals on the farm, and basically ended up making Russert look a little neurotic for asking. ;)

Hope this helps!


Graham for President Site

Senate Website (LOTS of voting history here)

And our Yahoo forum...Click to subscribe to Graham04

[lkinsale]

9. And, and if you go for Graham

And decide to send him money, put "Laura Kinsale" down as your BobCat, and maybe I'll get credit for raising at least $5 of the 1k I pledged to raise! ;) (I'm new at this, LOL. I have to take what I can get!)

[sandnsea]

10. Look at Edwards or Dean

Here's a link to Edward's votes. It should give you a good idea of where he stands on things. And I never heard him say abortion was wrong, only that he wouldn't want any woman to have to face that choice but believed it was her choice to make. He is a little stronger on defense than I like, but you might see it different. Good environmental record. Voted to expand hate crimes to sexual orientation. Is against gay marriage, don't know about civil unions. Most candidates are against gay marriage though. And he things capitalism, properly regulated, is a good thing. He'd like to do more for small business and rural economies. He talks to regular families, "like you and I grew up with." And I think he'd blow them away on the corporate issue. How can you argue with a guy who went after a company who's product was killing children (pool drains)?

http://www.issues2000.org/Senate/John_Edwards.htm

On edit:

So I got so carried away with Edwards I said phooey on Dean! (Kidding, there's plenty here about Dean)

[Octafish]

11. John Kerry is for Regime Change in America

I've wanted my country back since November 22, 1963. From what I know, Kerry has, as well.

Here are a handful more reasons why I’m for Kerry:

1. Kerry wants to take out Bush Organized Crime Family as much as I do, which is as much as ANYONE.

2. Kerry is able to do it, willing to do it and in a position to do it.

3. Kerry has a track record of going after the crooks in power — from BCCI to Iran-Contra to CIA Drug Running — while in the US Senate.

4. Kerry would know what to do as President and as Commander-in-Chief. He has served his country as a commanding officer in combat and the Pentagon and other government agencies respect that kind of person.

5. Kerry is the last one since John F. Kennedy who’s this good on paper and in person.

Who knows what John Kerry can do, given the chance. Given the facts, I think the majority of all voters would feel John Kerry is the best person for the Presidency.

Kerry has the experience in domestic and foreign affairs needed to straighten out the mess the Little Turd from Crawford created in less than three years. With his experience in law enforcement, Kerry can also bring to justice all the evil-doers foreign and domestic, inlcuding the members of the Bush Organized Crime Family.


Kerry avoids war, focuses on domestic policy

Candidate: I'm going work for regime change here in the U.S.

Monday, Mar 24, 2003
By LISA WANGSNESS
Monitor staff

Confronting the delicate business of campaigning for president during wartime, Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry mostly avoided speaking directly about Iraq at events in Manchester and Concord yesterday.

Instead, he used the war to frame a critique of the Bush administration's domestic policy. The outcome of the conflict was not in doubt, he said, the country's great challenge lay beyond it.

"America is not defined by what drops out of the belly of a B-2 or what comes out of the muzzle of an M-4 carbine," he said in a speech at the Manchester City Democrats' St. Patrick's Day breakfast. "America is defined by the quality of our life here at home, and what we stand for."

(SNIP…)

"I'm going to work every day until we have regime change here in the United States of America," he told a group of about 100 Democratic activists gathered at Hermanos restaurant in downtown Concord.

Continued…

http://www.primarymonitor.com/news/stories2003/032303kerry_2003.shtml

[sandnsea]

14. He's good on paper alright

But if he can't get his butt out there and lead the country right now, then he isn't going to be able to do it a year from now. I don't see him out there and he certainly ought to know how to get publicity. If he wants to be President, he needs to start acting like one. I honestly wish he would.

[FDRLincoln]

13. so far

So far, I can see supporting any of these guys. I like something or a lot of things about each of them.

Unlike some people, I think our field is strong this year. All these guys would make credible presidents. Which is why I'm having a hard time choosing.

I think I'm going to have to take another look at Graham.

There are a lot of things i like about Dean, but I'm afraid he may be a bit vulnerable to verbal gaffes that can be spun by the Rovian Media Machine to make him look bad. There are a lot of things I like about Kerry, but he can be mealy-mouthed at times and again, and is easy to characature like Gore was.

I like most of what Edwards has to say, too.

Thanks for the input....Kucinich, Sharpton, Moseley Braun, Gephardt, Lieberman supporters, please weigh in.