Reply #159: You've been trying to steer the conversation away from my original point —

[NYCGirl]

that Kerry is finished as a national contender. Whether the significant majority of the public believes "the botched joke" to be a non-issue or not, the two days of media attention for that non-issue will serve to make him radioactive as a Democratic candidate. Even if the smear is totally ineffective, the fracas has served to highlight Kerry's former inadequacies as a candidate, and that's too bad.

He screwed up. He screwed up big time, and instead of saying, "Oops, I mangled the punch line of that joke. I've told it dozens of times — here's what it was SUPPOSED to say...If anyone was offended by it, please accept my apologies, I meant no offense." Instead, he puffs himself up and says, (I'm paraphrasing here) "How dare they question my commitment to the troops; me, of all people! Tony Snow...Rush Limbaugh...etc." which prolonged the stupid story.