Kerry at his best when he leaves Mr. Nice Guy at home

[papau]

http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20040915/a_hype15.art.htm

Kerry at his best when he leaves Mr. Nice Guy at home
Hype & Glory By Walter Shapiro

TOLEDO, Ohio — The back-and-forth seemed more appropriate for a press-bashing Republican rally than a John Kerry health care forum. As the Democratic nominee responded to questions in a steamy Toledo community center Tuesday afternoon, a middle-aged man gushed, “Your plans are simple, they make sense, they're logical.” Then the questioner veered off to say, “We have the media here. That's where we need better (attention) to John Kerry and his message.”

An amused Kerry told the man, “They're behind you,” referring to the seemingly benign cluster of reporters at the back of the room. Rather than continuing a discussion of his press coverage, Kerry instead stressed his determination: “That's what the campaign is about over the next weeks. I'm focused like a laser beam, folks. I'm ready to carry this message. And I'll tell you this, I'm going to fight every single day until 8 p.m. — or whenever it is — on Nov. 2 when we're going to change the direction of this country.”

The candidate's fiery statement was marred only by that Kerry-esque clause that he added (“or whenever it is”) in an apparent effort to define precisely when on Election Day he would stop campaigning. But every candidate has his foibles. In the annals of mangled presidential discourse, it is hard to top President Bush's line last week about malpractice: “Too many OB-GYNs aren't able to practice their love with women all across the country.”

But Kerry, who has become a crisper candidate in recent weeks, still can exasperate his supporters. Probably the most common phrase uttered by prominent Democrats this month has been “Kerry needs to …” The remedies vary widely, and the level of candor depends on whether the speaker is inside the campaign. But the persistence of George W. Bush's lead in the polls since the Republican convention has easily-panicked Democrats hearing the ominous theme from Jaws.

The seven weeks until the election can have the sweep of an epic novel. And there is no evidence that Bush is immune from the forces of gravity that can deflate a lead after a convention's glow fades. But an examination of the Gallup Polls in years with presidential debates indicates that the horse race does not gyrate much between Labor Day and the first presidential faceoff.<snip>

[Paradise]

1. I think so! n/t