Your final judgment on Kerry

[UdoKier]

Poll question: Your final judgment on Kerry

Your final judgment on Kerry

[youngred]

1. I chose option two

He ran a horrid campaign, and though he wasn't my first or second chocie made a good enough candidate. His failure to recognize the importance of exurban voters, month-long silence on the swifites attacks, failure to respond to the flip-flop charges, giving up on the Republican swing states (MO, KY, WV, VA, AZ, NV) early and the Bin Laden tape breaking undecideds to Bush combined with a aloofness and seeming weakness combined to defeat him. It wasn't values voting, it wasn't cause he didn't want it, it wasn't rigged (too much, though I don't doubt some happened), and it wasn't because God chose Bush or the American people wanted Bush (hell a third of Bush's supporters can't stand him)

[Crunchy Frog]

8. I went with door number two.

I think he had real potential to emerge as a strong leader for this country back in his Vietnam protest days. But somewhere along the line he lost his fire and became just another member of the comfortable establishment. I really felt that the man I saw in the movie Going Upriver was not the man that I saw running for president.

I never supported him for the nomination. At no time did he look to me like the sort of candidate who would be likely to actually get elected. Towards the end, I thought that he might be able to pull it off, just because Bush seemed to be imploding. That's likely what made it as close as it was. Unfortunately, in the end, my initial feeling about him proved to be accurate.

Edit: Sorry, meant to respond to the original post, not yours, although I agree with it.:)

[truebrit71]

2. I voted for the Kerry Landslide thing...BUT....

..his behaviour after the "election" has been deplorable. First the concession, and then his refusal to stand up and fight has left me feeling gutted and betrayed.

I guess "reporting for duty" has a different meaning than I thought...I thought I was supporting a fighter, a guy that wasn't afraid to roll up his sleeves and get dirty, a guy that would honour his side of the bargain if we supported him...

I was wrong.

[brainshrub]

7. right-on.

"Reporting for duty" does not mean filing a request then running away to play pretend-diplomat while your party whithers on the vine.

[Deja Q]

3. 2 and 5. 7 MAY have been a factor, but not by a large one. But

the issue of paperless machines NEEDS to be rectified.

Still, 2 and 5 sum it up for me. His campaign was weak, he could easily have pounded * on MANY issues during the debate when he was called a flip-flopper... I was yelling at the TV for Kerry to come back with something damningly obvious; he had MANY OPPORTUNITIES and took surprisingly few of them.

And then he pulled the biggest mutha of a flip-flop of them all, not even 24 hours after election day! Instantly conceding despite any reasonable concerns.

Kerry is toast, and he's full of sawdust if he thinks he's got any cred left. He doesn't. His premature concession unwittingly proved * correct in terms of the flip-flop stance.

Kerry was weak and a quick capitulator. Screw 'im. And not in the good way.

[CalebHayes]

4. "He is a good man that should have become president of the USA"

Thats my final thought

[gtp1976]

5. 41% (so far) think it was rigged.

Is that good or bad for the future of our party?

[bookman]

6. Other...

..too complicated to come up with a simple answer. It's always easy to look for quick blame (repugs do it all the time), but we need to look into all possibilities.

[mike_c]

9. other....

He was an awful candidate from the beginning, hamstrung by his inability to articulate positions in clear opposition to the neo-con machine. Pro-Iraq, pro-"war-on-terra," pro-USA PATRIOT Act, pro-corporatist, unwilling to take strong stands on ANY democratic ideals-- John Kerry lost to the worst president of the last century-- even if you subscribe to the belief that he actually won, there is no denying that he would have done so by the skin of his teeth. What the hell was the Democratic Party thinking?

[Dhalgren]

We will probably never know for sure who actually won

the Presidency in 2004. I find it hard to believe that a majority of voters chose Caligula over Kerry, but, again, with no one to officially investigate, only the historians in years to come (in more free times) will make that determination.

However, when Kerry said that he would not contest the certification of the Ohio electors (or any other state's) because it "wouldn't change the outcome of the election", he showed me that he is also a part of the problem. "Free and fair" elections do not mean only those that Democrats win, it means that every vote is counted and counted in a public, transparent, way. The fact that Kerry doesn't seem to "get" this is proof to me that he was never the right choice.

[Merlot]

12. Good point

Not contesting the certification because it wouldn't change the outcome of the election misses the point. We are not trying to change the outcome of the election, we are trying to validate the outcome of the election. We want to have confidence in the electorial process. There was to much "monkey business" in Ohio to have confidence in the results.

[readmylips]

10. I expected a warrior but he became jello.....

There are way too many things to single out one problem or fault. I expected Kerry to be a Roosevelt, a warrior and hero, full of fire, the eye of the tiger. Instead of taking the fight to bush and kicking his ass, Kerry became naive, too soft and apologetic when answering stupid questions from stupid reporters. I became so heartbroken and disappointed, I will never vote again.

[flordehinojos]

11. yes, it would have been a kerry landslide if ... there'd been NO rigged

machines etc....however, i am fed up with kerry's behavior since the election!

[The Zanti Regent]

13. He made a bonesman deal with his buddy Bush

He made a bonesman deal to take out Dean, Kucinich, Clark, Graham and Sharpton. In return he laid down and died for his pal in the great Dukakis tradition.

My only child now has permanent residence in a VA Cemetery thanks to the Bonesman.

I will do everything I can to remove Kerry from office for flanting his pink tutu, and that also goes for Bilderberger Edwards too. Edwards took orders from his Bilderberger masters to go along and throw the election to Bush. Screw both of them for sending my only child to die for nothing.

Today, the Goodwill truck came and took all of his stuff away. I now have an empty room here that I'm sitting in with my computer. I'm thinking of 19 years that went down the toilet thanks to Jesus and the Pink Tutu Democrats. Whatever faith I had in this country is gone forever.

I'm going to leave the Democrats and now I will concentrate full time on working to secede California from Jesusland and the TEX ASSES who killed my only child and who now come for YOUR children. Jesusland has to be stopped.

[zann725]

14. If you want CA to secede...check out Sunday LAT front page

...latest news from Ahnnnald S. He wants a "special election" in the Fall to decide several of his "issues" (abortion, illegal aliens, etc.)

He's already re-districted. CA might not even be a place any of us recognize in the near future. If you want CA to secede, better do it soon.

[Milo_Bloom]

15. Big other...

Never liked him as a candidate. From the very beginning he was my absolutely last choice among the group, so much so in fact that I didn't actually decide to vote for him until the debates. The reason was trust. I didn't trust him to keep his promises or to do the right thing. Iraq-War, Patriot Act, War on Terror, etc were all instances where I felt he betrayed his principles for politics. Each of these decision cost lives and fundamental rights, so I had a hard time believing he could ever stand up for people when he was willing to help allow bush to send people off to die in an idiotic war over oil. If he was willing to allow lives to be sacrificed because it might give him a better chance to become president down the line, that is not someone I want making life and death choices, since they have a screwed up sense of values!

Although I vowed not to vote for Kerry, support him or otherwise, I reluctantly decided to vote for him once I watched mr. arrogance stand on a debate podium and claim he hasn't made a major mistake. The thought that this digusting piece of garbage could get rewarded with another 4 years was far too much to bear, so holding my nose, I voted for the lesser of two evils.

With all that said, I have almost no doubt that this election was rigged and that if everyone who wanted to vote was allowed to vote and have their votes counted, you would find out that Kerry won.

All in all, I wonder if this is all for the best. The arrogant boy king really thinks he can get away with anything right now and so long as he believes that maybe he will try AND finally get caught with his hand far enough into the cookie jar that the MSM won't be able to cover it up for him.

I always feared how Kerry would handle the problems we have to face in the next four years and whether he would continue to compromise his principles for potential popularity. Things could have actually gotten worse under Kerry as all of the problems bush created came crashing down on Kerry's head and his weak approach to problem solving wouldn't get the job done. In the end, I fear bush would come back and run in 2008 on an "I told you so" platform, blaming all the problems directly on Kerry.

The Neo-cons can't hide from the damage bush has and will continue to cause. Once the housing bubble bursts the last thing holding up this economy will crash and people will see what is really going on! It might hurt for the next four years, but the cleansing that will follow will be so much better for America.

So, the final judgement. Kerry sucked as a potential candidate AND as a candidate and from what I saw, probably would have been a weak willed President as well, so I am glad he is not in there to take the blame for all the problems bush has caused!

[Piperay]

16. No. 5

Kerry didn't get his word to fight, the sight of him makes me mad. :mad:

[juajen]

17. I still love Kerry and all his gang.

They were wonderful candidates and gave it everything they could. Remember, except for a few mistakes, they did everything right. Remember the wonderful crowds and enthusiasm? They did this, with some help from us "friends". They are to be commended and we have to be committed.

We all knew this could and probably would happen. We talked about it for months before the election and for years after the 2000 election. We cannot be twisted away from our goals this time. The fraud must stop and we are the ones who have to stop it. Pray to God and "Zepher" we are successful. Well, isn't he now DU's guardian angel?

[DiverDave]

18. I feel used

by kerry AND the DNC.
To just give up and slink away, Just makes me so freaking mad.

When he refused to fight for me and my family, I tore the only bumper sticker I have EVER PUT on my car.

We were hosed by the democratic party and will be by the rethugs in the years to come.

[Revolucionario83]

19. Kerry was not a very good candidate

I don't think he was the right candidate, he wasn't that different from Bu$h when it came to Iraq, I really truly wished that he was he voted against the war in Iraq, or that he could've said that invading there was a mistake, he came across as some rich snob he didn't appeal to the "workingman", he also did a lousy job defending himself against all these personal attacks, everything was to "little to late". I am mystified why he was chosen, but dammit id still take Kerry over this ignorant asshole arrogant chimp that's sitting in the white house...bastards. :mad: :puke:

[rhino47]

20. I feel pissed and used

I was a john edwards then wes clark democrat.
I went with kerry volunteered went door to door etc in both pa and ohio.I am so pissed because I went with the dnc/dlc choice.
I felt that I let myself be sold out.
I would never ever support him in 08.There is grumbles he might run again.Screw all this talk of ohhh the party needs to change .. ohhhh it needs to go more to the center.
A BIG SCREW THAT im going for the liberal or even better yet progressives.I am not buying that prepackages bullshit the dnc tries to shove down my throat.
I stand for personal choice,personal freedom ,the government the hell out of people bedrooms,I am my brother`s keeper,the greater good,government can and has the moral responsibility to make ALL of its citizens lives better.
Think I could get that with the matchstick candidates the dnc pushes?
I dont .

[jsw_81]

21. I chose number one

John Kerry was a great candidate and came within a whisker of defeating a wartime president. If only America had been smarter! I will definitely support Kerry should he run again in 2008.

It is sad to see a plurality (if not a majority) of DUers still in denial and clinging to the "fraud" nonsense; I guess it's easier than accepting the terrible fact that this country re-elected an absolute idiot who is bent on dragging us into war and economic ruin.

[T Town Jake]

22. I picked #1, too...

...I really thought Kerry was going to win, if not by a landslide but a fair margin.

Though I do think the voting irregularities need to be investigated, I nevertheless agree with your post in it's entirety.

[bklyncowgirl]

23. More than one of the above

Let's remember folks, 70,000 more votes (give or take a few) in Ohio and we'd all be celebrating--or screaming about Republicans attempt to hijack the will of the people by protesting the Electoral College victory.

Of the primary candidates, Kerry had the best all around experience and was the best available compromise candidate to bring the party together. He did a good job of reaching out to and bringing in his ex rivals, particularly Howard Dean who was in the perfect position to be a (justifiably)traditional Democrat sore loser. Instead Dean and Clark became two of the campeigns best spokesmen. He did a great job in the debates and had the election been held closer to the debates I believe he would have won hands down.

He and his team made some huge mistakes. My take on Kerry is that he is an honorable man and expects other people to play by the rules. Unfortunately the Bush regime does not play by the rules. Kerry was too bound by his timid advisors. As a result he looked weak when he failed to respond to the Swift Boat Veterans. Also his response to the Bin Laden video (AKA the October surprise) left a great deal to be desired. Kerry's advisors had to know that someone was going to attack his war record and that at some point in the campeign Osama would surface.

If Shrum, Cahill and company didn't plan for these events they are guilty of campeign malpractice and John Edwards should get his ass to court and sue the bastards.

The Democratic Party also made some huge mistakes. I think one thing that really killed us was that the Democrats made very little effort in non swing states. I live in New Jersey where Kerry's win was far closer than it should have been. As the lowest level of volunteer imaginable, it seemed to me that we were working on a shoestring. I mean we didn't even have yard signs until shortly before the election. This may not have effected the electoral college vote but it did effect the popular vote. Bush's three million margin in the popular vote pretty much put the end to any protests around Ohio and Florida. The Republicans on the other hand, while they might not have been spending vast amounts of money in non-swing states had a much better operation. They were organized--we were not.

Then there was voter fraud, but frankly, if the other bases had been covered, voter fraud wouldn't have mattered.

[rhite5]

24. I chose 'Other'

mostly because I really don't know how I feel or what to think, at least NOT YET.

I was never drawn to Kerry in the first place, and I think the Primary process was manipulated, but I eventually became ABB and worked with MoveOn to boost local turnout, believing that a huge turnout would be needed to overcome the fraud that I expected.

I am absolutely certain that a variety of fraudulent activities took place -- the obvious ones we saw in Ohio that discouraged and actually prevented people from voting:
• deliberate short-changing selected precincts of both machines and supplies;
• giving out confusing or wrong instructions about polling locations and provisional ballot requirements;
• mixing several precincts in the same voting locations;
• the discouragement of registrations (80# paper requirement)

And the not-so-obvious shenanigans that took place in the vote counting itself. I believe far more votes were lost and/or switched in the vote tabulation process than anyone has imagined. I think it happened in many states (maybe ALL states) in order to create that phony "mandate."

Initially we were told "women did not go for Kerry" and "the expected student turnout did not materialize." Both of those statements are pure bullshit. They were attempts to "explain" his win. We all know better. We saw it. The turnout was HUGE everywhere across the country. So where are those votes?

I lost my temper when I heard Kerry had just conceded. I could not believe it. I was very angry, and decided my worst fears about Skull&Bones and Bilderberg were true. Also that my worst fears about DLC/DNC complicity were also true.

I have calmed down now.

I am sort of waiting for "the other shoe to drop" (or whatever).

Whatever it takes to do it we can't go on as a country under this regime. Not even for 4 more years. Yet who would ever want to try to undo the damage that has already been done if they had to do it from within our corrupt government?

An impeachment won't work. There is no where in that process that we can escape the neo-con regime.

African-Americans and third party members are energized and highly motivated. Will white American progressives and liberals of all parties work with them toward a solution? Maybe.

So I am withholding judgement on Kerry for now.