"His strategy will work in Virginia"

[GBD4]

"If you saw the crowds that flocked to Graham's celebrity-laden campaign events Wednesday in Roanoke , you might think the Florida senator is a front-runner in the fight to take on Republican incumbent George W. Bush."

The Roanoke Times
July 17, 2003

Already having secured the endorsement of the Virginia State Legislature Democratic Leader, Dick Cranwell, Senator Bob Graham is making good progress in the early primary (Feb 10) state of Virginia.

Today's Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel outlines Virginians' responses to the Graham campaign.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/nationworld/sfl-abubba21jul21,0,2326194.story?coll=sfla-news-nationworld

[DrFunkenstein]

1. Kerry Can't Relate To Good Ole Boys?

"It would be hard for John Kerry to come down here and try to say he relates," Snow said.

Don't you know that Kerry played Boss Hog on the pilot of Dukes of Hazzard?

[lkinsale]

2. Time to take back rural voters

"Rural America is forgotten America. Do we have a chip on our shoulders, a lot of us? Damn right we do. We'd like to be paid attention to a little bit. These people have been voting for Republicans, no doubt, but will they vote for a Democrat? Damn right, they will. If you get through the culture, they are going to listen to you.

snip

Democrats in recent years have largely conceded rural areas to Republicans while cultivating voters in larger cities and suburbs in major electoral states. In the last election, if Democratic nominee Al Gore had won any one of the mountain states that often vote for Democrats -- Kentucky, West Virginia, his home state of Tennessee or, farther west, Arkansas -- he would be president today, regardless of what happened in Florida.

One of the reasons I feel Graham is highly electable and competitive with Bush is that it will be very hard to demonize him with this group of voters. The northern candidates have an inbuilt disadvantage in this regard, not their fault, just the way things are.

Graham is the kind of man that my Texas farming family could swallow with no problem.

These are critical electoral states and voters.

******

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[kwolf68]

3. Graham has been impressive

When Bob Graham first entered the race I was like, "Oh man...This is our version of Bob Dole (some of me still thinks that)."

Here was a solid, high character good man with little charisma and not sure about what he stands for.

But Graham has been amazing. He has come out with definitive plans, has solid ideas, has not been afraid to take on Bush, has had a distinguished career and now has apathetic ME thinking he could possibly win a few Southern states here and there, bringing Democratic ideals to those who have rejected the party.

He's still not my guy, but he is moving up the list.