If I were to write an open letter to John Kerry

Tom Rinaldo

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Fri Mar-05-04 01:58 AM
Original message

If I were to write an open letter to John Kerry

Edited on Fri Mar-05-04 02:03 AM by Tom Rinaldo

I'm not saying I will write Kerry an open letter mind you, but if I did, I would of course start out by congratulating him. For winning sure, but that really goes without saying. Mostly I would congratulate him for having the will to keep on fighting through those long months when it seemed like the whole country was rejecting him. Actually though I most want to congratulate Kerry for the month of January, when he regrouped, stepped up, and poured it on. Nice show John. Hold onto January John, is what I would say. Every month is January from here on out. Fight as if our very nation depends on it, because it does.

I might urge John Kerry to get together a few of his old friends, back from the days when he routinely almost sat near Jane Fonda. Round them up, find a cabin somewhere, and stay up most of the night talking. Talk about the empire, talk about the machine, talk about the awesome power of the government that was fully arrayed against you, and then remember the fight you waged to stop it. This is that fight John, I hope you realize that. You served honorably in the U.S. Senate Sir, just like you once served honorably in the U.S. Navy. You were loyal and you fit in, and you alway managed to keep your conscience about you. You left the Navy, and now you are leaving the Senate. It is time to reveal the truth about what you saw while you were there. That's what I want to tell John Kerry.

I would add that this is not a time for caution. You are fighting a War President John. Remember the last time you fought a War President? Remember his enemies list? Of course you do, how could you forget? This one has one too, and half of our nation is on it. Everything is at stake this time, that's the deceptive truth. This election is not about policy differences. The devil isn't in the details John, the devil is the sum total. Back when you were throwing away medals, you knew the problem wasn't the way we were going about Vietnamization. The problem was we were fighting the wrong people for the wrong reasons in the wrong war. It's like that now John. The fight isn't over the size of a capital gains tax cut, or a loop hole letting Corporations move their Headquarters to Bermuda. The fight is over who owns America. Is it all the people or just the share holders?

So speak out John Kerry, that's what I would say. You are finally free to say all that is truly important. You are released from roll calls. You hold center stage, and what you say will be heard. This time you have a band of brothers larger than any Army, with millions of sisters too, all ready to fight beside you in this battle for our future. Trust us. Use us. We are fighting for our lives and there is no greater motivation. We will help you in this struggle once it is fully engaged.

That's the most important stuff really, everything else is more like nuts and bolts. I guess I would say a few words about the Vice President question. I know it is on Kerry's mind. I guess I would start with the most basic statement. It's your call John. It's not the pundits call. It's not the bosses call. It's your call. This is someone you will have to work with closely. I know it wasn't always like that. I know Kennedy and Johnson didn't get along. Maybe I'm wrong but I don't think it's like that anymore. Everything is bigger, faster, more complex, and becoming more dangerous by the day. I hope you pick someone you respect and trust John. And if you do the public will know it. We will know we are getting a leadership team and not just a balanced ticket. I understand that you want your VP choice to help you win the election in November. Fair enough, but then what? Sometimes Vice Presidents become Presidents. It's sort of like designating a legal guardian for your children in the awful event something were to happen to you. You wouldn't just go with the best resume.

Since I am who I am, and this would be my letter to John Kerry after all, I probably would put in a good word for Wesley Clark. But I would understand it if John chose someone else. Personally I'm not wild about John Edwards, but I could accept Kerry picking Edwards for VP. Edwards is clearly smart, he looks and speaks well, he says a lot of things I and many other Democrats agree with. We all know where he's from, and that might be helpful. But please John, don't pick Edwards mostly because the media and the public right now think that you should. Pick him because you know, respect and trust Edwards. Pick him because you think he could be a great President for America if something happened to you. Or don't pick him. Pick someone else who fits that bill.

Here's where I would make my plug for Clark, for what it's worth. John, I would say, you know Wesley Clark better than I do. I don't have to tell you about him. You saw him campaign in New Hampshire where you were a virtual favorite son. When people began to doubt your ability to win, you saw them start turning to Wes as their second choice. So you know that Clark can campaign well and campaign effectively. Enough said about that. I would say, think about this. If there is a coup in Pakistan in September, and it then seems probable that one or more nuclear bombs fell into radical Islamic hands, who would you want as your running mate then?

You already know the outline of Bush's attack plan against you. He says you are weak on defense. Rowe will try to play up your youthful "anti American" protesting to soften up your support among Veterans. I know you can fight back against all that John, but it would be easier with Wes by your side. Bush likes to trumpet patriotic themes. I am sure you noticed how good Wes is at claiming those themes for the Democratic Party. You aren't bad at that yourself, but Wes is a master at it. I know a number of Republicans who are very impressed with Clark, and no other Democrat. Sorry, but it's true. I'm sure you don't take that personally. Anyway, it seems to me that you and Clark would make a bullet proof team. A friend referred to that ticket as "Heavy Medal". It has a nice ring to it I think.

Then I think I would pretty much run out of things I felt were important to say to John Kerry. I'm sure he and his team are busy trying to unify the Party and raise money and all of the other things that are so important to winning. I guess I would just trust him on that stuff and keep my mouth shut. Then again I probably never will write a letter to John Kerry. But those are the things I would think of saying if I did.