Barnstormin' for Kerry in Iowa. 99 counties in 7 days

[DJcairo]

Building on the momentum of John Kerry’s presidential announcement in Des Moines, and the notable strength of his campaign organization, Iowans for Kerry will host 99 barnstorming meetings in 99 counties during the week of September 27. Including an event with John Kerry and Ted Kennedy, in Black Hawk!

Click below for an event schedule.
http://www.johnkerry.com/ia/barnstorm.html

[sandnsea]

1. First hand report - Kerry & Kennedy

"...What I was totally not expecting was that most of the people in the room would rise in a standing ovation when they came in, but I quickly realized that that was out of great respect for Ted Kennedy.

Indeed, when Kennedy spoke first, introducing Kerry, you could just feel love and respect in the room - very much like what I felt from the crown when Clinton spoke at the Steak Fry. Kennedy made mention of previous trips to Iowa campaigning for JFK, then Bobby, then himself, and it was really a powerful moment.

Kennedy also provided Kerry with a great intro, even including the moment when he misnamed the local college team and got a big laugh for doing so. He recovered nicely, but when Kerry took over to a big round of applause he cleared up the mistake. It seems that the name Kennedy had used came from a high school near Des Moines that they had been to earlier in the day.

Kerry's speech got off to a good start, but then he kicked it into another gear with a steady stream of humorous observations, ending with the 'camel' joke. As I'd noticed in other recent appearances, his ability to be funny - and last night he was really on - has an almost immediate effect on people who haven't seen him yet. It's like they instantly realize that this guy is NOT who they thought he was, and they really start paying attention.

Kerry transitioned excellently from light-hearted intro to meaty middle, then covered a number of subjects in-depth, laying out not just the 'why' but the 'how'. At one point - and I'm sorry that I've forgotten the subject he was talking about - Kerry himself got a standing 'o' from most of the room, which surprised the hell out of me. (Hey, I'd give him one every time, but that's just me. This was a very savvy crowd of long-time Dems, and all I can tell you is that they don't stand up for bumper stickers.)

When it was all over I felt beyond great. I felt like I'd just gotten a preview of something the rest of the country's going to discover in the next three months..."

Mark from Iowa
Kerry Blog

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