Are you people really going to take the bait on this Drudge thing?

[WilliamPitt]

From a quick observation, the GD2004 crew divides into three groups regarding this Drudge thing on Kerry:

1) The group rushing to the ramparts to use whatever weapon available to kneecap the Kerry campaign. In this case, the weapon is Drudge. Insert moral judgment on that source here;

2) The 'Chicken Little' group who assumes that if it on the internet, it must be true;

3) The wait-and-see crew from all campaign supporter groups who know that a lie can get halfway around the world before the truth gets its pants on.

Count me in group three until further notice.

[NewYorkerfromMass]

1. what I can't believe is that it was allowed in LBN. eom

[GumboYaYa]

2. You need to add one more caveat to #3.

...and if it is true Kerry turns the tables on the Repukes and their politics of scandal mongering and shoves it up their collective asses using all of the many available Bush scandals.

[Punkingal]

3. I'm in group 3 also...

I expected this, but not so soon. I hope it backfires, because people didn't care about Clinton's personal life, except for the people who hated him anyway.

[Fleshdancer]

4. I think most people are reserving their judgement

By this point, I hope everyone understands that a Drudge story with no link is questionable and rarely verified.

I think the odds are that Rove wanted to squash the AWOL stories fast...and nothing does that better than a sex scandal.

on edit: poor grammer

[NicoleM]

5. I'm kickin' it with you in group three.

It's Drudge, for Pete's sake.

[w4rma]

6. Kerry needs to put SOMETHING out NOW.

Otherwise the Drudge version will be the version that is told over and over.

[Fleshdancer]

9. you're right. n/t

[mouse7]

56. Agreed

All charges must be answered immediately. Even if it's just with a Drudge joke.

[MoonRiver]

104. BS. Kerry needs to do nothing! Why should he respond to this

slimy shit? He should consider the source and ignore.

[arendt]

109. Remember Al Gore, the "liar"? Kerry can't let this take root.

We are all sick of spineless Dems and relentless media
assasinations.

If Kerry can knock this one down instead of dancing around
it for a while and then getting caught, he is doing better
than Clinton.

I am so sick of the so-called liberal media.

arendt

[progressivebydesign]

Like your pre-emptive strike.

You made sure, pretty much, that no one could discuss this issue here, for fear of being put in one of your little groups. Very clever. This subject has been discussed here weeks ago. Frankly I think it's out of the Rove camp.. to deflect Junior's AWOL problem. The reason I haven't wanted to end the primary season too soon, is that it give Bush and Rove more time to trash the nominee one on one. I like it better to see Bush and Rove scattering their buckshot at a variety of candidates.

[leftynyc]

78. I think it's a deflection of two stories

One being the AWOL story and one being the CIA leak. I mentioned on another thread that during McLaughlin this past Sunday Tony Blankley (Washington Times) predicted imminent indictments from the CIA leak. From what's been floating around in the press, I'm pretty sure it would be Scooter Libby and someone Hannah, both from Cheney's office. The *'s needed something juicy (true or not) to get that kind of story off the front pages.

[Lisa0825]

7. I guess I am somewhere in between camps...

I don't want to believe it because, even though Kerry is not my pick, this just gives more fuel for people to use against Democrats in general.

But it scares the hell outta me too. Even though I personally don't believe that a person's sex life should have anything to do with what kind of President he/she would make, I know that lots of people disagree with me... and they aren't all Republicans. I have known a lot of people who *usually* voted Democrat, who voted for Bush because of Clinton's sexcapades.

I really fear what 4 more years of Bush will do to this country, and if Kerry's sex life ends up handing the election to Bush, I will be royally pissed at him for it.

[lancdem]

38. That's my fear, too

BTW, it's depressing to think people actually punished Gore for what Clinton did. Thanks to them, we have one of the worst presidents ever.

[shivaji]

113. Gore's blunder was to declare "Clinton the best president ever"

That cost him the election...pure and simple.
If Clinton was not so selfish, he should have stepped down
and Gore be the incumbent in 2000.

[jpgray]

8. Too light on the evidence for any clear judgment to be made

We don't know how long ago this is, what the evidence is, how people know what they say they know, etc. etc. The glee people have over this is a little sickening, but understandable.

[Loonman]

10. No, but stuff like this is bread and butter for Brit Hume, Blitzer,

Etcetera.

[jackstraw45]

11. Spreading the republican slime here at DU

Seems that Drudge has already won.

Later we'll be reading things that start "Rush said ___about Kerry" and "Hannity said ____ about the affair" and "Coulter said ____ about the intern."

Some of us come to DU to get AWAY from the repuke lies and spin. Sadly, a lot of it gets carried here, thus giving those wackos legitimacy.

[phillybri]

21. Good call, we're our own worst enemies...

Too many here want to see Kerry slip so their guy can jump ahead...

[ronnykmarshall]

26. One time, at Band Camp .....

I saw John Kerry....... well, ya know. *wink* *wink*

[progressivebydesign]

44. I think it's a valid discussion.

If America is reading about this, then it needs to be discussed. No matter how true or untrue it turns out to be, it's out there. We can't ignore it like the elephant in the living room. It's there. Now we need to figure out what to do with it. It's not perpetuating GOP lies.. it's discussing that lie or truth, whatever it turns out to be. And it WILL affect our nomination process, we have to deal with that. Did we really think our nominee would skip happily into November, unscathed? Dean was first to be taken down, now focus turns to Kerry, then... ???

[Cooley Hurd]

12. Either way, Kerry needs to vet this immediately...

...and I don't believe the "Clinton model" will be of much help in this. Things have changed dramatically since 1992 - namely the Lewinsky scandal. Clinton-fatigue was a factor in the 2000 race. It certainly cost Gore votes which brought the race close enough for the repugs to steal.

Best thing for John Kerry to do at this point is to TELL THE TRUTH, and repudiate the inquisitors (like Poppy did to Dan Rather when confronted about Jennifer Fitzgerald - he didn't deny it, but turned on Rather for asking such a question). If he does this, we'll weather it. Best to get it out now and get it behind him - it'll be a non-issue by November.

[dolo amber]

13. Group #4

Those of us who know that whether the allegations are true or false, the mere fact that it was made will be repeated unto the heavens for all eternity. The damage has been done. Hopefully Senator Kerry will find some way to handle the situation gracefully whatever the truth turns out to be.

[Snivi Yllom]

17. Group #4

Reality is a bitch. And the damage has been done.

[TexasPatriot]

41. Group 4 could be a lot worse than that

Kerry's big claim to fame was the all important but undefinable 'electability' factor. If he loses that, he begins to lose everything. That's why perception is more important than facts in this case, and why he has to be proactive on crap like this or expect to get stomped by it. I'm stunned his camp didnt come out and quash this immediately.

[KoKo]

14. You forgot ME! The "Dirty Trickster" Conspiracy Theory Post!

:hi:

[dave29]

15. We should all always be in group 3

but it only works that way when it's someone you support. I hate to say that but it has been made all too clear to me right here in GD2004 forum over and over again.

As the frontrunner, you gotta now crap like this is gonna come flying at you. I will not believe this until it is reported by a major news source - and maybe not even then. The fact is however, Kerry needs to get out in front of this. He can't be seen as hiding from it. I'm surprised there hasn't been an announcement already. They had to know this was coming - with so many papers supposedly researching it.

It's dirty, it's ugly, and unfortunately Drudge was right on the mark with Lewinski. He is wrong about so many things, and quite often a tool. But the fact remains, this could be very bad news for Senatory Kerry. With so many people saying Senator Kerry is the electable one, he needs to go out and prove he can deal with this sort of thing ASAP.

Get on it Senator!!!

[candy331]

32. The truth and a lie are almost

synonymous now each can do the same amount of damage. Remember the Dean scream.

[Snivi Yllom]

58. Either Kerry deals with it or it does him in.

And ignoring it is not a realistic option as the story is out there. It can't be taken back.

[phillybri]

16. Group 3 for me...It sucks that plenty at DU will push this harder...

...than Rush, Hannity, or O'Reilly will...

We are some moronic cannibalistic mother-fuckers...

:grr:

[robsul82]

18. Kerry needs to say something now, or else.

Lewinsky began as a developing story on Drudge. Anything is possible.

Later.

RJS

[ronnykmarshall]

19. Looks like a bunch are!

The Kerry bashers seem to be foaming at the mouth on this one. You'd think this was Freeper-ville.

[emulatorloo]

20. 200 Million GOP $$$ buys a lot of BIG UGLY ARIAL TYPE and a nice server

I cannot wait to see this JK swat this nonsense down; this could be fun.

[Terwilliger]

22. A lot of people have

Drudge threw a flash-grenade and everybody's scattering

[JasonBerry]

23. Drudge and Monica

Drudge had the Monica story - FIRST.
Drudge had the blue stained dress story - first.
Many more examples. There's nothing wrong with speculating about this. It would be crazy not to. It's not just the "Internet" - it's Matt Drudge, who I don't like, but is going out on a limb on this. He has scooped toooo many times before. Ask Bill.

[bullimiami]

51. and...

yes

""Drudge had the Monica story - FIRST.
Drudge had the blue stained dress story - first.
Many more examples. There's nothing wrong with speculating about this. It would be crazy not to. It's not just the "Internet" - it's Matt Drudge, who I don't like, but is going out on a limb on this. He has scooped toooo many times before. Ask Bill.""

drudge didnt use any caveats in posting this. he is a wicked lil troll but he usually reports rumors, slime and innuendo a little more carefully.

im afraid he must be pretty sure he has something to go so far out on this limb.

If the major media has a story and is working on it someone like drudge can jump out in front and take a chance before he sees solid sources to protect him while they cannot afford to.

[MUAD_DIB]

24. Is #3 also considered the I could care less group?

You can't swing a dead cat in Washington without hitting somebody who has had an affair...or who has engineered stories about the opposition.

If this is the worst thing that the pubbies can dredge up on Kerry (true or otherwise) then they are indeed scared.

This is a non-issue.

[GCP]

72. My feelings exactly - SO WHAT

Even if it's true, who the hell cares. He'd still make an infinitely better president than AWOL.

[Kathy in Cambridge]

93. Hey, MUAD_DIB, Long Time No See!

:hi:

[MUAD_DIB]

101. Hi RationalRose

I hope you gave 'em hell at the statehouse today.

[SpaceCatMeetsMars]

25. It is DRUDGE after all

Second -- knowing how the prudish swing voters in this country feel about sex after that whole Clinton impeachment farce, none of the Democratic candidates would even have gotten into the race if they weren't already "clean" on the sex issue.

Third --There have already been smears about Kerry on this topic and they were totally fake, the articles tried to make it sound just horrible that he was seeing women while separated from his first wife, like anyone would care.

Seems like they are really frightened of the AWOL issue and needed to let out a smear ahead of schedule.

[JasonBerry]

31. Yeah, it is Drudge - the guy who BROKE the Monica story N/T

[SpaceCatMeetsMars]

35. Well, that's about the only one that turned out to be true!

He also had all kinds of other crap that was totally false.

[JasonBerry]

40. Actually

To be honest - and again, I hate the guy - rarely has he been wrong on political scoops. Time and time again he scoops the traditional media. I hate it and I hope you are right about this story.

[West Coast Democrat]

27. A few days ago Drudge broke the story about Clark.......

eating French food. Come on, people!!!!

[deutsey]

28. I'm in the "I don't care" group

I know if it goes mainstream it will have a big impact on the primary race, and, therefore, I need to care. But, as with Clinton, this kind of stuff just doesn't register with me personally, especially when it's so obvious that the media are biased toward milking stories smearing Democrats while giving Republicans a pass (if what happened to Joe Scarborough had happened to Clinton, for example, there would be nothing left of Clinton after the rightwing feeding frenzy was done with him).

I'm not a Kerry supporter, but this rumor, if true, won't prevent me from voting for him if he's the nominee (which I'm hoping he won't be, but for other reasons).

[dawn]

29. I just don't care! But I'm not a Kerry supporter. nt

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[nomaco-10]

30. Does anybody remember.....

the last big thing drudge broke? It was kind of a big deal around here for a couple of days about a month or so ago. I can't remember to save my life. Does anybody else remember this, if so what was it and was it true?
Thanks

[zbdent]

33. Hmm, maybe the problem is with the "independent verification"

Rush was saying that the only real problem "hobbling" the "credible news sources" was that they didn't feel that the "Drudge Report" would weigh too heavily on the public's minds as a reliable source.

(So, the shotgun theory works once - shoot wildly at everything, hope that one bullet finds its mark - really worked well in the jungles of Vietnam, eh? But it caught Monica).

Not having a verification from a second (and third, if they try to include the Washington Times) source means that you could make the case that the aliens are all around us, there are still survivors living aboard the Titanic, and the Face on Mars is speaking to Kucinich. The only source there is the supermarket tabloid, never been any independent verification" from anybody else, including the people involved.

[DuctapeFatwa]

34. There's a fourth group you left out - the ones who know that truth

is not a highly valued commodity in politics, nor relevant in campaigns, and who fully expect that all personal indiscretions and rumors thereof concerning all the candidates will make their way to the news media in the coming months.

[ant]

36. group 3 here, BUT...

...I'm not waiting to see what's true or not - I don't really care and I don't think it matters. I'm waiting to see who wins the media war.

We can all list the many, many, MANY lies that have hurt Dem candidates and office holders. Truth is irrelevant, so all those saying that Drudge isn't credible, blah, blah, blah, that is irrelevant as well. What matters is that the story is there, and now the RW machine will beat that fucking drum until the mainstream is forced to deal with it. As long as there's even the possibility of truth, meaning no outright "disproof," they'll do that.

Again, whatever the truths is here doesn't matter. This Clinton/Gore all over again. Let's see what the Dems have learned.

[KoKo]

39. Exactly, if Dem Party Elite haven't learned to expect this and Fight Back

then we've learned nothing in the past 13 years!

[JohnOneillsMemory]

59. Prepare to repel dirty darts! AOL News headline: "Fonda Defends Kerry"

The trick is to catch the dirty snowball, pack it harder, and then throw it back in their faces.

Now is when Kerry shows us how he survives his political enemies.

These attacks are an effort to break up the dem statistical solidarity forming behind Kerry in the primaries since that's how the media are covering the results in every state. How many will jump ship to Edwards the way people jumped away from Dean's 'scream?'

Kerry must boomerang every charge against him. Turning his Vietnam War protests back on W's TANG record is just a start.

[IrateCitizen]

37. I'd actually put myself under a (4)...

(4) If it's Drudge, it's most likely nothing but smear and innuendo and completely devoid of fact, so the opposite must be true.

[Beetwasher]

46. Exactly! THERE'S NO STORY!

This is Drudge's fevered imagination, probably inspired by Rove to try to MAKE a story from nothing.

"When did you stop beating your wife?"

[seventhson]

42. This story is #2 on Google News for Kerry

It will not die a natural death just because it is on Drudge.

I WONDERED why Kerry was "taking the day off to "rest""

But I wonder too why Clark is out if he really knew. Maybe he is vying for VP with Dean or Edwards.

You cannot even access Drudge right now it is so busy (last I checked)

[slinkerwink]

45. exactly.....

[IndianaGreen]

48. It is making its way across several internet websites

one of which is claiming that TIME is coming out with the goods.

I just heard that Rush is talking about it on his radio show.

Whether the story is true or not, is not even relevant anymore. Once the 24/7 cable news shows start talking about it, little things like evidence and due process matter very little.

The problem for Kerry (assuming the allegations are false) is that if he comes out today and denies them, the media will be talking about it all day long. If Kerry ignores the story, the feeding frenzy will continue until evidence is produced, or the audience tires of the story.

Like I said, no one seems to care about truth anymore.

If the allegations are true, then Kerry better come clean now rather than let this fester for the next 9 months.

[Name removed]

43. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Cuban_Liberal]

47. Group #4: "What if it's TRUE?"

I don't relish the prospect of trying to defeat Bush next November while being beaten about the ehad and shoulders with "Clinton's Cock: The sequel".

[Terwilliger]

52. "beaten about the head" By Bushlicking Repuke traitors?

I don't care what Kerry does with his dick...he ALREADY has better credentials to be president than George W. Bush.

[Padraig18]

53. I don't dispute that.

But I don't see us winning in November, if the alleagations are true and Kerry is our nominee.

[Terwilliger]

69. Padraig

Just which Democratic candidate is going to be above being labelled as some moral degenerate? That's what Repukes do. Acting as if their actions are already having some impact acknowledges that Repukes know everything and Democrats know nothing.

Is that what you're trying to say?

[Snivi Yllom]

64. you may not care

but a large percentage of states that were marginally RED in 2000
would care what Kerry does with his dick.


And I think Teresa will care.

[Terwilliger]

67. well, isn't that between Kerry and his wife?

As for the people in the heartland...well, they don't care that Bush was an AWOL coke-snorting drunkard who paid for an abortion, why should they care about Kerry's possible peccadilloes?

[Catherine Vincent]

49. You can put me in Group 3.

And I can't believe there are some here actually happy this came out whether it's true or not.

[YNGW]

50. Wait & See

But regardless, someone is going to a lot of trouble to give Kerry a black eye.

I'm still on the bandwagon that says the Clintons are setting up Hillary for 2008 and to hell with everybody else.

[JCMach1]

54. Monkey Business II ?

Clinton got off... but he was welllll

Clinton...

[Walt Starr]

55. As much as I dislike Kerry

this story is pure drivel.

[Mr. Brown of MD]

57. Drudge is not a legit news source

He's admitted as much himself, even if he never quite does it on his website.

My suggestion to anyone on DU who puts even a modicum of faith in the veracity of anything Drudge posts is to read The Clinton Wars by Sidney Blumenthal. Particularly the parts that relate to the Whitewater stuff. Drudge is both known to completely make shit up, and to get talking points straight from RNC operatives.

I would not believe anything that Drudge had to say about John Kerry unless John Kerry himself said it was true - and probably then on nothing short of live video. Of course, the rest of the American public is hardly me, so we may have a bit of a problem here, and I hope Kerry's people are on top of it.

-CollegeDude
Following the same "make shit up completely" style of news is Rush Limbaugh

[Name removed]

60. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[nomaco-10]

63. Yes, that's the story I was trying to remember....

It caused quite a stir here not that long ago. I hate to say it, but drudge usually is accurate in his stories. I think this one is going to knock Michael, Janet and Kobe right off the nightly news.

[Uzybone]

79. Wrong again

it was the Enquirer who broke Rush. Nice try.

[bigtree]

61. Teresa Kerry is in the #3 spot

• Her views on marital fidelity: "I don't think I could have coped so well" with a mate's philandering as Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) has. "I used to say to my husband, my late husband, 'If you ever get something I'll maim you. Not kill you, just maim you.' And we'd laugh, laugh, laugh." Heinz adds that she has never had any reason to suspect either of her husbands. "Not for one day, because what I expect of them, they have a right to expect of me. Maybe I'm into 18-year-olds." At which Heinz's campaign handler, former political journalist Chris Black, cautioned bleakly: "That was a joke."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&node=&contentId=A17760-2003May5¬Found=true

[fishnfla]

62. An affair with an AP intern?

That's foolish.

[Feanorcurufinwe]

65. You mean we can't trust Matt Drudge?

Who'd'a thunk it?

[Bread and Circus]

66. the same group in #1 used the Drudge leak to kneecap Clark back in Sept...

don't forget it was Drudge who leaked the "GOP Fundraiser" tapes.

Weirdly enough, Dean, Lieberman, Kerry, and the rest picked
up the ball and ran with it.

[SEAburb]

77. I was thinking the same thing

It amazed me nobody took the time to ask themselves who gave the tape to the media. Rove and company, of course. Same with the lobbying story.

Our best candidate is out of the race now and Rove & company are giving high-fives to each other.

[SahaleArm]

80. What comes around goes around...

The media built up Kerry, I suspect they will bring him down.

[cmd]

68. #3 from an old timer

and then I'll just add.........Who cares!

[Jacobin]

70. Magical Thinking can be very comforting at a time like this

Come on. Tall, rugged politician who believes he's invincible....lithe young intern who worships senator....a spat at home and hormones kick in.

If it didn't happen I'd be amazed.

[Spirochete]

71. Drudge is a geek

I think he just makes stuff up most the time. If he told me I had 10 fingers, I'd stop to count them.

[MoonAndSun]

73. I do not believe this story from Drudge unless there is a "reputable"

(if there is such a thing anymore) news source.

That being said, if there is any truth to this, I would think that Kerry would have to drop out of the race.

As a Democrat I do not want this to turn into another sexual orgy by the media and the repukes. Bill Clinton was crippled in his last 2 years by sex scandals and we can not afford for this to happen again.

And yes, I support Dean, but I would hope that even Kerry supporters would understand my position.

[indigo32]

74. Frankly I could give a *&^@ what John Kerry did in his

personal life.
I'm furious that the story has been floated, cuz I don't want to deal with it (and we WILL have to deal with it).
AND
I'm furious with the people trying to score points here off it.
see I like to follow the Bundy example (Married with Children) when it comes to outside attacks. Stick together and hit back hard.

[CalProf]

75. It was probably Lehane

This from the Kerry website forum:

FROM CONRESSIONAL QUARTERLY'S CRAIG CRAWFORD: 'Drudge item on Kerry intern issue is something Chris Lehane (clark press secy) has shopped around for a long time -- it was one reason the Gore vetters in 2000 shied away from Kerry as a running mate choice -- their conclusion that it wasn't bad enough to disqualify him, except for the fact that they couldn't risk it as they were trying so hard to distance themselves from Clinton's personal failings (note: Lehane worked for Gore at the time -- and briefly advised kerry during this campaign). The Kerry camp has long expected to deal with this, and have assured party leaders they can handle it''...

[SahaleArm]

81. If this was such a 'known' thing...

How come it didn't show up until after Clark exited the race?

[Adelante]

116. Probably not Lehane

"I can only verify that Chris Lehane's rivals in other Democratic campaigns made these claims and I have found no independent source to confirm it."

Hmmm, which Democratic campaign would it be? It must be the Kucinich campaign, ya think? :eyes:

The Drudge item blaming Lehane quoted Craig Crawford, a former Democratic operative who now works as a consultant and columnist for MSNBC. Within 10 minutes after Drudge posted the Kerry intern item, Crawford sent a memo to his superiors that said the story was "something Chris Lehane (clark press secy) has shopped around for a long time." According to Crawford, someone at MSNBC promptly leaked his memo to Drudge. But when Lehane called Crawford with a loudly indignant denial, the MSNBC columnist quickly issued a public retraction. He said:

"The comments attributed to me are from a private email to television news associates based on conversations with Democratic campaign operatives. I did not consider any of it confirmed enough to report or publish. I can only verify that Chris Lehane's rivals in other Democratic campaigns made these claims and I have found no independent source to confirm it. Which is why we did not go with the story. But then someone sent my email to others, which is the only reason it got into the public domain." In other words, there is no proof that Lehane circulated the rumor, let alone that the rumor has any basis in reality.

Source: Salon 2/13/04

[Uzybone]

76. Group three

for me. This is embarrassing to see. Im sure the lurking freepers are lauging their asses off looking at this board.

[YouMustBeKiddingMe]

82. I assume it's crap coming from Drudge

[Adjoran]

83. Group #3, too

I will wait and see. It is the only prudent course.

I must admit that it scares the hell out of me, though.

I spent many years in the newspaper business. If there is one thing reporters hate, it is not having the story if someone else has it. Right now you can bet most of the political reporters are frantically trying to check this out.

Personally, I think it's a matter for Kerry and his wife, and not my business. Politically, it has the potential, if true, to be heavily damaging.

Clinton survived such allegations to win for several reasons: he confessed to unspecific past problems, and sincerely asked forgiveness, his wife was 100% supportive, his accuser was not very credible, and his personality drew people to him.

[stickdog]

84. I'm predicting that Kucinich won't.

He seems to be above all this.

[WilliamPitt]

86. You predict correctly.

[Mairead]

85. We're witnessing a historic moment, people: the birth of

a political urban legend.

A hundred years from now, the Dem frontrunner's spouse will come home to find their Doberman choking on Clinton's shlange.

[genius]

87. What is going on?

What is this all about?

[Festivito]

88. Truth matters?!! TV's Midday reported "It's all over the Internet."

Then they lamented this type of thing happening again and that they don't care if he had an affair.

So, the argument is not over the source, ALL RIGHT-WING I'D BET, it's over the (shhhhhhh! ALLEGED) affair is (shhhhh! ASSUMED) true because it doesn't matter.

Later, there will be """SO MANY SCANDALS...""" and the half-listening-swing-voters will assume the truth lies in the middle, never realizing the double meaning of lies they'll be using.

[bigtree]

97. Here's another story about it?! Will they never end?!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=319251&mesg_id=320982&page=


:eyes:

[eissa]

89. Here's what I don't understand

Everyone on DU agrees that the Rove machine will hit our eventual nominee with a ton of bricks. We've been ready and waiting for it. And now that it's here WE'RE BELIEVING IT!

[enki23]

90. wait and see is fine

but if this story has legs, true or not.... do you really want another candidate who fucked an intern? even if people just *think* he may have fucked an intern? can you *imagine* the field day which will be had in the general election? how many "kerry fucked an intern" ads a few hundred million dollars can buy?

[Lydia Leftcoast]

91. Some people on this board hate Kerry so much

that they'll even run away with unsubstantiated rumors from, of all people, Matt Drudge.

And even if the rumors are true, so what?

This board is turning into an unpleasant version of bizarro world.

[Undemcided]

92. Anything salacious has legs

So this will get play in the major media. Look for AWOL to hit the back burner.

[LostInTheMaise]

94. Yes.

Will you condemn Kerry when the charges prove to be true?

[kerryistheanswer]

95. I'm abandoning the DU if this low ball smear continues

There's no proof that this ever happened. This is so obviously a right-wing smear attempt to get the media to focus on things other than the issues at hand.

[seaglass]

110. Please don't - read the Conason article linked here

I know it's been a really rough day at DU today (there were over 30 threads on this topic!), I'm disgusted but not surprised...hang in here - we need you !

http://salon.com/opinion/conason/2004/02/13/drudge/index.html

[hellhathnofury]

96. Thanks Will, you just confirmed it. Congrats!

[VolcanoJen]

98. Hey, I'm sick too, Will, but I'm no Polyanna.

Let's not pretend that we don't understand what this is about.

Timing is everything.

If even one little inkling of it is true, we'll be thrown off-message for the next nine months. And, we've got the best message ever, with or without Kerry.

It's our election to lose, in my opinion.

Kerry should come out swinging in denial about this issue. Immediately. Not because we, here at DU, like this kind of stuff, but let's not pretend that we don't understand that salacious stories sell, but big.

[diamondsoul]

99. Group 3 here-

I'll admit being worried about the effect of even the rumor, though.

[goodhue]

100. Group Three all the way

The whole issue is silly, likely baseless and will blow over. And in any event, who cares?

[HuckleB]

102. Nope, I don't buy it.

And, quite frankly, it wouldn't change a thing even if I did. It's his personal life. I could give a rip.

[molly]

103. Group three - Teresa would have divorced him by now

[stickdog]

105. Perhaps anticipation is making her wait. (nt)

[John_H]

106. Like the GOP, some DUers are desperate to ressurect Dean.

[mountainvue]

107. 3

This should only strengthen our party's resolve to get that pos out of the White House.

[quaker bill]

108. It is not whether we take the bait that matters ultimately

It is that narrow slice of the public that votes either way and provides the margin of victory for one party or another that matters.

Will they take the bait?

If the story has legs and hangs around for more than a few days, they probably will. Sex sells, that is why Madison Avenue uses it.

Once again "Electability" is the weakest reason imaginable to select a candidate. It is so specifically because it leaves them very vulnerable to stuff like this.

I have based my decision on other factors. True or false this story would have no role in my decision because I feel that at most this is a matter between Mr. Kerry and his wife.

[janx]

111. Are you really going to answer most of the people who reply

to your posts?

You claim to be a writer with Ritter, who has come out very strongly against Kerry, a candidate you supported until very recently--can't you bother to reply to these threads you create?

These people look up to you! Can't you at least participate in their interests?

Do you just post this tripe upon a whim or the candidate you are currently supporting? What is going on here?

[corporatewhore]

112. why cant we go back to criticizing kerry on things likeNAFTA/IWR

REAL ISSUES

[dsc]

114. I would like to know if even one time

when Drudge was used as a source to attack anyone but Kerry and Kucinich during this race, if you posted anything remotely like this.

[Feanorcurufinwe]

115. Drudge is a right wing tool