After Gore Endorsement, Attacks on Dean Are Sharper

[Freddie Stubbs]

CONCORD, N.H., Dec. 10 — Faced with a presidential race suddenly recast by Al Gore's endorsement of Howard Dean, Senators Joseph I. Lieberman and John Kerry sharpened their attacks against Dr. Dean, with Mr. Kerry accusing him of inconsistency on the Iraq war and Mr. Lieberman saying Dr. Dean represented the party's past.

Mr. Kerry, in one of his toughest attacks yet, said that Dr. Dean, the former Vermont governor, had flip-flopped from supporting the war to opposing it and asked whether Mr. Gore had been misled into endorsing "the wrong Howard Dean."

"When Al Gore says that he was making the choice because Howard Dean showed the right judgment, my question is, which judgment?" Mr. Kerry asked at a stop in Manchester. "Which Howard Dean?"

At the same time, a day after Mr. Gore gave Dr. Dean his backing, Representative Richard A. Gephardt and Gen. Wesley K. Clark lined up prominent African-American endorsements from the South, where Dr. Dean is perceived to be weak.

more: http://www.nytimes.com/2003/12/11/politics/campaigns/11TRAI.html

[trumad]

1. It's called desperation and panic

pure and simple...

[molly]

3. I'm not paniced or desperate

I'm puzzled - Gore used to be a hero to me.

[LuminousX]

5. Used to be?

Much like Kerry used to be a hero to me. It is a bummer when Superman gets beat.

[trumad]

6. So if he backed Kerry last week he'd still be your hero?

That's pure goofy.

[eileen_d]

4. Did you expect hearty congratulations?

Primaries... multiple candidates... one frontrunner...

It's called fighting to survive. Not necessarily desperation.

[helleborient]

2. About the African-American endorsements...

I for one am very happy for the African-American community that prominent endorsements have gone to multiple candidates - African-American and white.

Gone should be the days when white politicians and reporters look at the African-American community as a single voting bloc - there is no reason the African-American community should be any less complex than any other racial or ethnic community in this nation in ideas about major issues or choice of candidates.

[Bucky]

7. Kerry "Gore misled to endorse 'wrong' Dean"

Kerry really is losing his once high credibility with me. He makes it sound like Gore is some sort of idiot. Anyone knows Gore isn't a political fool. He's a klutz, politically speaking, but certainly not a fool when it comes to individually assessing a person's qualifications.

I'm pissed at Gore for the endorsement too. But flailing recklessly at Gore's intelligence over the matter is not presidential. Kerry should know better.