Weighing defeat, Kerry sees lessons to guide future

[jeebie]

February 6, 2005

The following interview was conducted by Peter S. Canellos, Nina J. Easton, Michael Kranish, and Susan Milligan of the Globe staff. The article was written by Canellos.

WASHINGTON -- Pained but not bowed, Senator John F. Kerry promised in an interview with the Globe last week to apply the lessons of a presidential campaign that he portrayed as ''so much bigger and more complex than people think" to bolster a Democratic Party that he indicated he might seek to lead again.

''I'm not going to sit around, you know. I'm going to learn a lot of good lessons," he said.

Sitting in a wing chair in his Senate office, opposite a historical print of Nantucket Harbor, Kerry offered a wide-ranging assessment of an election he lost by about 3 million popular votes and 35 electoral votes. He said he was determined to play a leading role in his party's efforts to integrate values and religion into its message, especially as directed at his fellow Catholics.

http://tinyurl.com/6yhdg

[Pirate Smile]

1. Here are some interesting parts:

"Kerry also said he hopes to sit down with President Bush to talk about foreign affairs before Bush's trip to Europe at the end of this month, in what would be the first meeting between the two since their final presidential debate."

I doubt Shrub is going to actually do that.

"Kerry demanded that the swift boat veterans who had criticized his military record agree to open up their own files because he knows ''one guy was busted" and another ''has a letter of reprimand."'

-snip-
The furor over military credentials hasn't ended with the campaign. Kerry pledged to sign Form 180, releasing all of his military records, but challenged his critics, including Bush, to do the same.

''I want them to sign it, I want John O'Neill, Roy Hoffmann, and what's their names, the guys on the other boat," Kerry said. ''I want their records out there. They have made specific allegations about my record, I know things about their records, I want them out there. I'm willing to sign it, to put all my records out there. I'm willing to sign it, but I want them to sign it, too."

Kerry later confirmed that his decision to sign the form is not conditional on any others signing, but he expressed lingering bitterness over double standards on military service.

''Let me make this clear: My full military record has been made public," Kerry said. ''All of my medical records and all of my fitness reports, every fitness report involving each place I served, is public. Where are George Bush's still? Where are his military records? End of issue."

-snip-
Kerry pointed out that about two-thirds of Bush's popular-vote margin came from Texas and Oklahoma, and that the Kerry-Edwards campaign had made no effort to run up the popular vote in Democratic strongholds of New York and California. The Democrats' campaign had focused on a core group of battleground states, and, Kerry said, ''We won the popular vote in the battleground states," but fell short of the big prizes of Ohio and Florida.

Now, Kerry said, he feels a responsibility to promote the issues he highlighted during the campaign, particularly universal healthcare for children and greater support for troops in Iraq.

-snip-
Meanwhile, Kerry said, he is working on a book, but will not reveal the subject.

Hmmm - what is the book going to be about? Very interesting.

[ginnyinWI]

2. a book on top of everything else? Wow.

Maybe it's about terrorism or some other foreign policy topic? Sign me up--I'll read it, whatever it is!

[Forever Free]

3. Here are two great excerpts

<snip>
"During his recent trips to the Middle East and Europe, Kerry said, he experienced firsthand his newfound celebrity, both in meetings with world leaders and in spontaneous cheers from people in pubs and on street corners in London, Paris, Cairo, and Damascus."

<snip>
"Asked what hurt him the most during the campaign, Kerry mused about how ''all of us are flawed as human beings" and ''I think I have a strong record" before raising his voice and declaring: ''One thing I know is that I didn't flip-flop on anything."

John Kerry: The Real Deal (Those words couldn't be truer!)

[TayTay]

4. Good. Make the SBVT come clean

We know there are things in the records on those guys. I hope Kerry sticks to this and really makes them sign the same records release form he is going to sign. I would love for some of those things to come out. (Especially on Gardner, the weasel.) Hoffman is a friggin war criminal, let him lay it on the public line as well.

I loved this passage, it touched me to my Masshole core:

''I want them to sign it, I want John O'Neill, Roy Hoffmann, and what's their names, the guys on the other boat," Kerry said. ''I want their records out there. They have made specific allegations about my record, I know things about their records, I want them out there. I'm willing to sign it, to put all my records out there. I'm willing to sign it, but I want them to sign it, too."

That's it big John, make them sweat it out. hehehehehehehe

And a book too! Wow! That's good news. I bet it will be on the challenges faced by America in the post 9/11 world. But it could be a book like what John McCain wrote, that would be smart. Explain yourself without any filters between you and the messagae.