Time to say it - Kerry is a wimp!

[kstewart33]

From today's NYT front-page article:

"Officials said these attacks were being made through the party and not the campaign to provide a measure of distance from Mr. Kerry, who is described by many officials as reluctant himself to impugn the president's character."

How, pray tell, has Bush grabbed the lead? By "impugning" no, destroying Kerry's character. And Kerry's response? He doesn't want to get his feet wet in the battles of attack politics.

If Mr. Kerry does not fight back and fight hard, he is a wimp, in the unfortunately ongoing tradition of Democratic presidential campaigns.

How can we convince this guy to step up to the plate? How much more slandering of his character will he take?

Any ideas anyone? We've got to help this wimp start fighting and fighting effectively.

[expatriot]

1. No, last week was the time to say it. New advisors have given him....

...more of a backbone.

This is high tide for the Republicans: The Convention, 9/11 anniversary and he is holding his own in most polls. I was feeling down like you a week ago, I was very defeatist like many here... but I am seeing nothing but sunshine now. (well, a few clouds here ant there).

[rndmprsn]

3. He's gotten more aggressive...

in the last week or so since the repug convention ended, but i think he needs to get even more so and tell us all why he's mad.

that said...i think the fighter in kerry will be unleashed soon...i hope.

[niceypoo]

13. I agree. He isnt on the defensive now.

Bushes lead will melt away over the next month.

[tjdee]

2. The optimism thing is good in theory....

But not if you don't have someone to take jabs.

I don't think Kerry is a wimp.
I think he (and Edwards, who I :loveya:) are overestimating the ability of Americans to wade through the bullshit--or, maybe they've got an ace up their sleeves. I'm sure they'll do well in the debates, for example. But what about everything else?

[AlCzervik]

7. Kerry is no wimp but his mistake imho was bring micro managed

less handlers, more Kerry i say.

[Sydnie]

15. That came up in a conversation I had yesterday.

Kerry is an intellectual. He is compassionate and does see complexities in many issues. He speaks as if most Americans are as intelligent as he is. Those of us that can keep up are having a hard time breaking down such complex issues into layman's terms for the majority of people that were just like Bush, pushed through school, not because he learned the material, but because he was the right age for the next class. Perhaps Bush's statements about that ring just a little too true from his own personal experience but it's not being counted against him that he didn't have a thirst for knowledge, but rather a thirst for partying. Many of our generation had the same thirst as Bush and couldn't be bothered raising their own bar (so to speak) if there was no reason that we had to, no one compelling us to do more, see more, THINK more.

The very thing we love and admire about our candidate is the very thing that seems to be keeping him from connecting to the minimally educated, tv zombie watching, haven't read a book without pictures in years (if ever), give it to me in 30 seconds ADD population.

We need coloring books for this election. We need books and speeches that are written in the most common phrases of our language. No compound sentences and lots of pictures. That is one thing that the other side has seemed to have claimed a monopoly on. We see it as talking down to us, when most people see it as just talking to them.

We need to break it down to the lowest common denominator for the "regular" people who don't want to know the details, just the score. We need to make this campaign read like the sports page, the gardening how to columns and basic recipes.

Sorry for the rant. I feel better now.

[JI7]

4. oops, posted in wrong place

[are_we_united_yet]

5. I prefer to

Think of it as Kerry (if in fact sentiment has REALLY changed at all) has made some tactical mistakes. But the media is also propping upthe "Miserable Failure" administration.

[spanone]

6. Wrong...Kerry knows how to win elections. He' no fool.

If you truly think he's a wimp you should vote for his macho opponent.

[George W. Dunce]

11. Whimp?

Did I click the wrong link? Is this Freeperville? Backbone people Backbone!

[Mikimouse]

8. Hey that's certainly a winning strategy to use in winning...

against * in November. Why didn't I think of that? (sarcasm off):mad:

[Julien Sorel]

9. Did Bush make the Zell attacks?

Did Bush say Kerry's election would cause a terror attack? Did Bush personally launch the Swift Hoax, appear in the ads? No, Bush "distanced himself" from all of those attacks. He kicked Zell out of his box at the RNC. He issued a half-hearted endorsement of Kerry's military record. Cheney was forced to backtrack on his ludicrous terror charges.

Wake the fuck up and read the whole article. No place in it does it say Kerry doesn't want Bush attacked; he says he doesn't want to do it himself. That doesn't make him a "wimp"; it makes him someone who wants to avoid looking mean spirited and nasty.

The fact that Bush does the exact same things that Kerry does, but it is Kerry who is painted as a wimp should tell you something about the mindset of the media. The fact that you ramble on about this article and cry about Kerry's "wimpiness" tells me a lot about your mindset. It's the people who hate the "whore media" and Bush the most who are the most easily sucked in by Bush-media propaganda, and who admire Bush's tactics the most.

[JI7]

12. yes, i notice that also

just liket the swift boat lying thing where those who complained about it the most and demanded kerry do this and that were the most likely to follow the media in accepting the "kerry brought it on himself by talking about his service" line and adopted the line that "if kerry can't defend himself against this he wont defend america". rather than focusing on the lies itself and holding them accountable it became about kerry.

[JI7]

10. when he went out campaigning they asked him about jobs and health care

[redstateblues]

14. That's B.S.- How Many Battles Have You Turned Your Boat Into?

Having to adjust a campaign strategy doesn't make a war hero a wimp.Bush is a wimp. Kerry is open to criticism on lots of things but your charge is over the line- It's Bullshit.

[SaintLouisBlues]

19. Exactly

Kerry is credited with 20 kills. We should be using that fact to win over the macho white-guy swing-voter.

I've used the "20 kills in 'Nam" on some macho types and it gets their attention.

Wimp? That label is reserved for Poppy and his evil spawn.

[mazzarro]

16. Wimp or no wimp, I think DLC has much too much influence on

the Democratic party, most Democratic candidates at most levels, and above all the so-called experts that they overly rely on. They pay little to no heed to the rank-and-file of the party. This makes me infuriatingly mad!

[EST]

45. Having to do something a thousand times

before succeeding on the thousand and first time does NOT mean I failed a thousand times and succeeded once! It means I had to make a nuanced approach to success that included a lot of adjustments to come out right.
Making a breakthrough doesn't necessarily mean instant results.

[AntiCoup2K4]

48. Abso-fucking-lutely!!

The DLC is doing exactly the job they were created to do, and they are doing it well. And that job is destruction of the Democratic party from within. If Kerry loses this election, there may not ever BE another one, and if he wins, those ASSHOLES will claim that he only did so by running to the right of Reagan. Either way it's a lose-lose situation for any real Democrats.

For the record, I'll vote for Kerry to save the Supreme Court from complete fascism. Hell, I'll even celebrate the defeat of the BCE over the holidays, if Kerry is successful.

But no "honeymoon" for John-boy. Starting January 21, 2005 it will be my patriotic duty (and yours) to remind him as often as possible that a DLC-PNAC-Likud driven agenda is simply not acceptable.

[Gyre]

51. A miniscule amount of sunshine IF the unimaginable happens

Terry McCauliffe will be history.:)

Gyre

[Caution]

17. having grown up in massachusetts, having followed Senator Kerry's career

one thing i can say for absolute certain is that Senator Kerry is most definitely, NOT a wimp.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

18. Yeah..wimps turn their boats into fire all the time

Bush has used his surrogates to do all the attacking...why? because George Bush is a wimp.

God I hate it when people post shit like this on DU...I don't mean to infer that you aren't entitled to your opinion but look at your fucking title!

[redstateblues]

21. This Sounds Like Something Dick Cheney Would Post

[bushwakker]

24. Wimps allow their character to be defiled

without getting publicly pissed off about it. This whole Swift Boat/AWOL thing is such a winner for the Kerry campaign - and they've done nothing with it. Sending Edwards out ain't gonna do it. Kerry has acted as the stereotype his opponenets label him with. Aloof, oblivious.

[JI7]

26. yeah, he "allowed" it to happen, another right wing talking point

first of all he did STRONGLY speak out against it. and he went after them for avoiding service themselves. but the media wont report most of what kerry does. and of course most people on du don't pay attention either. they think the cable news shows are fair and balanced and what they report is what is.

[seabeyond]

27. as soon as kerry did go after it all the media said

what is he making such a big deal of it. look at the vanity, all he does is use his military history. he really has to get beyond this. we dont want to talk 35 years ago

tell me how that worked for him

when the media takes EVERYTHING you do and put a negative spin on it, how do you give that to kerry

[bushwakker]

31. why does he care what the media says?

gore spent his entire campaign thinking about what russert and woodruff and maureen dowd would think about his strategy - look where it got him. you think bush gives a flying fuck about what the editorial page of the wapo writes? you know what these media flunkies respect? clarity and toughness. strong positions that are not backed away from. they respect success. all the rest is bs.

[Snellius]

20. Unfair. But windsurfing off Nantucket and skiing in Ketchum don't help

Like many smart, civilized, open-minded, well-off liberals in this country, they have been reluctantly slow to face up to what they are up against.

[Name removed]

23. Deleted message

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

[bushwakker]

29. since when have campaigns been high-minded debates?

looking for a symposium on the latest trends in public policy? head to your local institution og higher learning. get a grip. maturity in this case is recognzing what has to be done - and doing it. mr bush's personal character must be called into question by john kerry personally. i beleeeve in health care ain't gonna do it.

[bushwakker]

22. He's a pussy, I agree.

I can't think of a greater opening than the attack on his military service by an AWOL drug user - and he fumbled it. Yeah his campaign people are a joke but at some point you would expect his own fighting instincts to kick in. I guess he has none.

[seabeyond]

25. swift boat came up in spring and was a three hour story

in a one day news cycle.

they expected the same to happen. no one predicted the news outlet would take a story like this, a story of lies, with all documentation supporting kerry, all people who knew that time supporting kerry.........that the media would take it and run with it.

it was also done in august, when he couldnt spend his money.

and they also see that it was a mistake and they should have gone after it

you want perfection, not going to happen. calling him a pussy, is the pussiest of male to use that term, in this womans opinion. use your own body parts to make a man less, and leave mine alone. i tend to catagorize males like that as simple "pigs"

[bushwakker]

30. spring versus fall

two different animals my friend. they weren't ready for it and they should have been. i got news for you - the sbl's are not through and guess what - i bet they still have no clue what they're gonna do when the next round of attacks come. kerry could drop a nuke bomb on bush next week at the guard convention in nevada - but he won't.

[redstateblues]

33. This Thread Is Absolutely Useless- A Waste Of Cyberspace

[JI7]

28. what a bunch of crap, he DID FIGHT BACK

just because the media doesn't report it doesn't mean it didn't happen.

after everything du members still think the media is fair and balanced. hahahahha.

[Name removed]

32. Deleted message

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

[Walt Starr]

34. There's a good reason why Kerry won't impugn the president's character

he could be censured in the Senate for calling the president a liar. Being censured in the Senate woud result in an overwhelming Bush victory. Remember, folks, the majority in the Senate is the Republican Party. If you think they couldn't get Kerry censured for calling Bush a liar, you haven't been following politics for the past four years.

Senators must be careful what they say about a sitting president.

[kstewart33]

35. Geez guys, I post an opinion and I'm Cheney?

Having given hundreds of dollars to the Kerry campaign, that hurts.

I stand by my statement. He is not fighting back. Or if he is, he's doing a lousy job of it.

If he was fighting back effectively, we'd have loads of threads titled something like "Way to go Kerry!" and "Give 'em hell John!"

Seen any of those lately?

[AuntPatsy]

36. How can anyone trully tell if he is fighting back? The news

rarely tells anyone the facts unless it highlights Bushie and company, again, he has survived many years in politics without his daddy paving his way, holding his hands and surrounding him with the most evil of bodyguards...

Now who is the real wimp?

[Walt Starr]

37. When the fuck did I call you Cheney?

I stand by my statement. A Senator must be careful about what he says or he can be censured. I simply stated WHY Kerry would be this careful.

SHEESH!

[kstewart33]

41. Sorry Walt!

I didn't mean to post my last comment in response to yours. That comment was made earlier in the thread.

No offense intended!

[Walt Starr]

43. K, not a problem

I only took it personally because you responded to my post. Accidents happen!

:D

[redstateblues]

39. I Take It Personally When You Call A War Hero a Wimp

You can criticize a lot about Kerry-Say He's not running a Good Campaign?that's fine- But A Wimp? That's Bullshit and I won't let it stand. I said you sounded like Cheney- He says that kind of stuff.

[Gyre]

42. Dont worry about it

There are a few democrat brown-shirts in DU who don't like people's opinions when they're critical of their candidate. So those who're willing to express their opinions get attacked as freepers sometimes.

I'd suggest they'd spend their time more profitably by stealing lawn signs they disagree with.:)

Gyre

[redstateblues]

47. I think it fine criticizing the campaign- but impugning Kerry's

character with an untrue statement is a tactic used by the other side. Kerry has proven he's not a wimp.

[Octafish]

38. You couldn't be more wrong if your were named Karl Rove.

Kerry volunteered for duty in Vietnam and after his first tour volunteered for duty aboard a Swift Boat, about the most dangerous combat assignment in the US Navy. After seeing what was going on, he returned home and resigned his commission so he could devote his energies full-time to ending the war ASAFP. There's nothing wimpy there or to the present day.

For example: GOOGLE BCCI + Kerry if you want to learn more.

[LoZoccolo]

40. Uh, Bush* himself really hasn't impugned Kerry's character.

He let other people do it for him, which is what Kerry's doing.

[IronLionZion]

44. Kerry needs to be less wishy-washy

He doesn't want to offend anyone, but thrives on offending people. I say it is time to go on the offensive with the issues that matter instead of letting Rove pick Vietnam service or terrorism.

He needs to tell it like it is

Bush and Cheney are unfit for command because:
bam bam bam


And here is how I would do better:
bam bam bam



no more if this half-assed wishy washy stances on the issues either. He needs to make his positions and plans very clear.

[irancontra]

50. WHAT are you watching?

cause you don't sound like you've seen Kerry's last 4-5 rallies.. Why do some people find the need to speculate & give advice without really doing their research?

"He needs to tell it like it is"

HE IS buddy.

"no more if this half-assed wishy washy stances on the issues either. He needs to make his positions and plans very clear."

They seem very clear to me.. I don't see where Kerry's hedging... your problem I assume is him saying waaa waaa iraq is bad iraq is bad, let's pull out.. as much I wish he could say that, he knows, just like every supreme allied commander, general, etc... that cutting & runing without a plan in IRAQ WILL be a disaster. SO don't hold your breath, but he has been PERFECTLY CLEAR on most issues & has laid them all out on his site. GO to it & read ... and then tell other people to go check it out, instead of bitching about nonsense.

[seabeyond]

46. Kerry is a wimp!" is the media lie. bush=wimp is reality

thru out the history of his life. so who is buying the media b.s.

[Mr Blond]

49. I prefer to think of Senator Kerry as a man of honor!

"Wimp" is the furthest thing in mind when thinking of him!!

[EST]

52. Whew! (wipes brow)

Battle nerves gettin' to everybody! Weekends really suck. Hardened war crew needs to have fight very regularly. Go get drunk-pissing, moaning, falling down, commode hugging, knee walking drunk. Sleep late tomorrow. Be ready to attack monday morning, four A.M. Shoo kids!

[Moderator]

53. Locking.....

Please continue here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=791363&mesg_id=791363


Thank you.


DU Moderator