Let me say this LOUD AND CLEAR. This was NOT Kerry's fault

[fujiyama]

I've seen some already bitching about Kerry. That's a great way to start off a premature postmortum.

First of all, maybe people don't realize this, but 11 states had anti gay measures. ALL 11 PASSED. This nation truly is to the right on cultural issues. It is far to the right of any other industrialized nation.

Kerry did absolutely evreything he could. I had my differences with Kerry. I thought his vote again the 87 billion was stupid and I thought he didn't respond quickly enough against the Swift Liars.

Like Gore, he dealt with a terrible media that smeared him and his record.

All of that is in the past. If Kerry lost it is because of "moral values". Yep, Bush is supposedly a moral leader. That's what everything I've read indicates. About the absolute dumbest assertion I've read is a liberal candidate would have done better. That's right, when all the anti gay amendments pass, a liberal like say Kucinich that was in full favor of gay marriage would have won.

Kerry may still pull it off. I'm doubtful but hold out a little hope.

[Sirveri]

1. I now fully believe that KErry was the best pick.

The fucked up bullshit thing is that it wasn't good enough.

[NVMojo]

2. Kerry did nothing wrong but be a decent human being.

To win against these bastards, you have to think and strategize like they did and that is in the dark places ....where the mind has to go and Kerry ain't like that. But look what he did by being honest!!! He may even win still and chimpass and his band had to manipulate so damn hard!!!

[mazzarro]

7. Democrats handicap ourselves by wanting to be seen as decent

when the reThugs have far long forgone any atom of decency and instead loudly proclaim it like Pharisees.

[TheWebHead]

3. Yeah, I don't fault Kerry

there was no other Democratic candidate who could have performed better, no matter what some on the right try to say with Gephardt -- he would have been crucified and did nothing to rally our base. The others were too green on the issue of foreign policy or too green in Clark's case on domestic policy.

[ever_green]

4. I don't know

I blame Americans for being stupid, apathetic, and backwards, but I think Dean was the better candidate. He had the passion.

[Seabiscuit]

5. Agreed. I don't fault Kerry at all

but you're right on both counts.

[saracat]

6. Crap. Dean would have gone down in flames.

His own base didn't vote for him in the first primary before the scream.

[Seabiscuit]

9. Sure they did. They just didn't have the numbers yet to undo the damage

the right-wing media had already done to Dean's image.

[SoCalDemocrat]

8. Kerry won this election - it's being stolen righ tnow

Wake up and join the resistance.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=1292142#1296986

[Seabiscuit]

10. Agreed, SoCalDem - I've been expressing my anxiety for months here

that Kerry will win the true vote count but that Bush will find ways to steal the election through various forms of massive voter fraud. And sure enough, it's happening right now before our eyes.

[hadrons]

11. Kerry's not to blame ....

if the news from the last two weeks didn't lift the veil from the Bush voters eyes nothing Kerry could have done would have

[Awsi Dooger]

12. Similar to 2002, we lost again due to 9/11

Pure fear. White women and Hispanics seeking security and aligning with the GOP. Security moms were not a myth. We were 50/50 or worse with women in so many key states I stopped counting.

I've been looking st statewide exit polls all night and it's shocking. The Republicans have gained the upper hand in party ID in almost every critical state. Only independents in those states made Kerry competitive in this race at all. The GOP had a party identification edge in Florida and Ohio by 4 and 5 points apiece, with 41 and 40 percent. They even had a party ID margin of 38-35 in Wisconsin.

That's the hurdle, easing the fear and regaining support among women. We actually did a little bit better with men this time. The respected PEW and Harris polling firms detected a party ID change immediately after 9/11, and warned of that prior to the 2002 midterms, but many of us thought it had vanished or lessened.

[Jasper 91]

14. Don't those figures make you sit up and question

What is going on ? It is generally acknowledged that the Democrats had a better campaign to register the voters , outnumbering new Republican voters by as much as eight times , in OHIO . And don't forget Sproul and co. . What about all those destroyed Democratic registrations ?

[Awsi Dooger]

17. I was never a believer in registration advantage

Got flamed for it several times. Especially when I posted a thread insisting we would not get a 3% net edge, or even close, due to registrations. I read online papers constantly and there were indications for four years the GOP was emphasizing registration and GOTV. We weren't going to overwhelm them based on six months or a year.

Plus we were apparently targeting young voters among new registers, a block who historically doesn't come through. The GOP latched onto older rural conservatives. The exit polls indicate Bush won the 65+ vote, something like 53-46. Young and first time voters did favor Kerry, but by the sensible +10% margins, not the looney numbers that were thrown around DU.

I hate to rely primarily on numbers because I know people reject them and prefer subjective analysis. But some of the figures tonight already scream an indication of what happened:

* Bush's job approval rose at the end of the campaign, as indicated in the final polls beginning last weekend. Nationwide exit polls had it at 52%

* Kerry simply wasn't likeable enough; 48% favorable impression and 50% unfavorable. Those are not numbers that will oust an incumbent.

* We are losing the ideology battle decisively. Moderates went for Kerry 55-44 and a greater percentage of conservatives (16%) voted for Kerry than liberals (13%) voted for Bush. So that's great, right? One problem: 33% identified themselves as conservative and only 21% liberal.

* Kerry won the late undecideds, but not huge. And very disappointing versus an incumbent. It was in the 56-43 area, among people who decided in the final three days. Again, I think lkeability held Kerry back there. Zogby has found late deciders put a higher premium on personal qualities than those who decide earlier.

[i_c_a_White_Ghost]

15. I hope these same security moms regret this

when they are packing their sons/daughters off to fight * war!

[western mass]

13. Similar to 2002, we lost again due to the DLC

I know, we didn't lose this time. Let me rephrase:

Non-confrontational, uninspired, corporate-friendly
DLC values made it that much easier for the GOP to steal the
election again.

[Cooley Hurd]

16. The media is at fault...

They gave a pass to * at every turn - 2000 election, 9/11, the war, etc...

THEY failed to do their job. Not Kerry...