Post positive commentary here

[whometense]

The air out there is thick with schadenfreude, so I thought it would be a positive thing to have a thread where we can post any positive comments we pick up here and there.

I'll start with Shaun's post at Upper Left. In my opinion, it's just perfect.

And Elias promises a post later today, which I'm certain will be not-to-be-missed.

[emulatorloo]

1. Upper Left summarizes well why I was ambivalent about Kerry running in '08

<snip>

Of course, the fact that so many Democrats have chosen to become a hallelujah chorus every time Republican operatives have set out to smear him had to be a factor in Kerry's mind, and it was one of the principle reasons I haven't been leading the cheers for another run. While I still believe he's more qualified in a number of respects than any of the names currently in play, asking John Kerry to make another run for the White House is akin to asking a GI to undertake another tour of Iraq, especially since primary season promises to be as much a meat grinder as the general election campaign. For instance, the Clinton camp, deprived of Dick Morris's guidance in the realm of triangulation, seems to be taking a page from the Karl Rove's politics of attack and insinuation early on with an opening salvo from her campaign aimed at Edwards and Obama.

<snip>

I've been so angry about how many Dems were willing to play along gleefully w the Right Wing Echo Machine if it meant a chance to dump on Sen Kerry.

I was really dreading seeing Kerry going through this hell.

I look forward to a liberated John Kerry tearing up the Senate.

No one would make a better pres than JK -- who knows, in a few years the country may be ready for it.

[karynnj]

6. exactly the paragraph that caught my eye too

It says it all - as do your comments. As said, I think it will be great to see the unleased John Kerry.

[k j]

2. Great idea...

but there is no way on earth I'll have the internal fortitude to go scouring for good quotes today.
Much peace and patience sent to those who are willing to sift through the garbage to find the gems!!!

[whometense]

3. Comments at Salon

http://letters.salon.com/politics/war_room/2007/01/24/kerry3/permalink/c21f8c85741cabc3d1be419dc0d109d5.html

Know A Man By His Enemies?

If the old saying that you can learn a lot about a man by his enemies is true, looks like John Kerry's doing OK, at least around here.

Kerry was a less than perfect candidate. Most are. Running for President against a bunch of ethically challenged wing nuts isn't as easy as it looks. But I think his choice today was the correct one for a number of reasons -- both for him and for the country. Senator Kerry can better serve our country in the Senate.

-- Texas PI Lawyer *

http://letters.salon.com/politics/war_room/2007/01/24/kerry3/permalink/aff8a667ae0c6af5b4da9bea59a0e368.html

A man who deserves respect

Despite his occasional gaffes, Kerry is a fine statesman and he definitely has gotten a raw deal from the press in general these past several years. He deserve props for his decency and for his fine service to his country. He would have made a good president, but alas, didn't play certain crucial aspects of the game well enough. Hats off to you, Mr. Kerry.

-- astroboy *

http://letters.salon.com/politics/war_room/2007/01/24/kerry3/permalink/85369bdb9d9e0b0e517884961a8fc092.html

Sounds like a Patriot and a Statesman...

Gee, imagine putting the urgent needs of our country ahead of your own personal ambitions...

Refreshing, and encouraging.

-- AncientAssyrian *

[Dr Ron]

4. More links

I had a post earlier today at Liberal Values with speculaiton on why Kerry is not running. I just added an update with two links to favorable comments on Kerry:

http://liberalvaluesblog.com/?p=939

Josh Marshall: http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/012104.php

Kerry donor quoted with positive comments: http://electioncentral.tpmcafe.com/blog/electioncentral/2007/jan/24/kerry_donor_lets_give_the_man_some_credit

[ProSense]

5. Very nice.

Shaun's comment are great, especially the points highlighted in emulatorloo's post above.

[politicasista]

7. Good comments n/t

[kerrygoddess]

8. A couple of nice posts on the Dem Daily

from our writers:

Well, There’s Always Secretary of State
http://blog.thedemocraticdaily.com/?p=5186

Thank You Senator Kerry!
http://blog.thedemocraticdaily.com/?p=5185

[whometense]

9. Elias's post, as promised,

and it's a beauty.

...Meanwhile Kerry isn't running and something intangible is lost to the debate (such as it is) as a consequence.

Clinton has a pedigree, Obama gives a good speech, Edwards is energetic and optimistic, Vilsack, Biden, Richardson and Dodd are all keen as razors, but Kerry had gravitas, he was a serious man with a serious mind.

And the fact that is no longer considered an advantage in a presidential contest is a loss for us all.

Dunno how we will handle it, but we're gonna have to.

[Blaukraut]

10. thanks, Whome

Elias' post made me think; It's quite possible that in 04 the Democrats, for the first and possibly only time chose their nominee for all the right reasons. Qualification, competence, intelligence, gravitas.
I suspect the 08 nominee will not be chosen so wisely.

[ginnyinWI]

15. I do believe it was an exception to the rule

For once we had a candidate who was authentic and sincere, and there's no way to fake that. John Kerry shown out in those primary debates as the real deal and so many of us "got" him and got on board. I'm not likely to do that very easily; I'm not a life-long political person. I was attracted to JK specifically and stayed engaged because of him. Now it seems as though we are going back to a selection that is just "politics as usual". Sigh.

[Mass]

11. Correct link.

http://chimesatmidnight.blogspot.com/2007/01/alas-and-alack.html (Elias's links still do not work).

[whometense]

12. Sorry!!

I always forget to correct them. Thanks!!! :-)

[saltpoint]

13. I was very moved by Harry Reid's praise of Kerry yesterday

on the Senate floor.

It was a show-stopper for me.

I heard Ted Kennedy a moment before that, and then Harry Reid, and realized that while few other senators even were in the chamber, those two were there, and their remarks to and about John Kerry were very reassuring and real.

[karynnj]

16. I actually still don't know what to make of those comments

I saw read only after the start of 2005. He seemed more than anything to have been involved in a whisper champain suggesting that Kerry was "staying in his place". He ssmed to feel that Kerry should retreat and be quiet - not even giving him the assignments to speak on foreign policy he had before he ran for President. He also undercut him on the Kerry/Feingold amendment. So, I take the "I love John Kerry" with a grain of salt from him.

[MBS]

19. me, too

Knowing also his role in the events you've mentioned, my reaction to his speech was, "Yeah,right".

[ginnyinWI]

14. Joshua Micah Marshall offers some insights

worth pasting here:

One of the dimensions of US national politics that has always stood out for me is the light-switch turnabout before and after a presidential election for perceptions of the losing nominee. Nominees almost always turn out to be outsiders to some degree. They aren't leaders of the party going in. They take control of it, at least temporarily, by navigating the primary process. And then there's a collective process each party goes through of psyching itself out, whiping itself up into a stitch of enthusiasm over the marvelousness of the nominee. And then when he loses, if he does, then he's tossed out like yesterday's garbage. Because, heck, we barely knew the guy anyway.

The contempt and derision for losing candidates among members of their own party in American politics is, I think, tied to this shot-gun marriage that takes place between the end of the primary process and the convention -- a fast-food, made-to-order personality cult that doesn't last a day after defeat.

snip...

So, yes, there have been a couple of exceptions. And significant ones. But they're not recent. And the whole tenor and structure of our national politics militates against the pattern. There are plenty of chances for trial runs -- Gore, Reagan, Scoop Jackson and now McCain potentially being an example. But once one of the great national parties lets you suit up as its nominee for the big contest and you whiff it, pretty much always that's it for you.

Or put it another way. Tell me the last losing major party nominee who members of that party didn't after the election decide was a rotten candidate.

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/012108.php

[Mass]

17. In the Globe, some of his NH supporters

http://www.boston.com/news/local/politics/primarysource/2007/01/kerry_nh_suppor.html

Kerry N.H. supporters react to his decision not to run

Not all New Hampshire supporters of John Kerry were surprised to learn that he would not run for president in 2008, but most said they were relieved that he had made a decision.
A sampling of opinion:
- Billy Shaheen, husband of former Gov. Jeanne Shaheen and a NH Democratic Party power broker: "This is a decision that only he could make and I respect it. I was proud to stand with him and would have done it again on a new endeavor. These decisions are very personal and it is not a question of right and wrong. I last talked to him a couple of weeks ago and it was obvious that he was really struggling with the decision."

- Joe Keefe, former party chair and close Kerry advisor in 2004: "I wasn't surprised by the news. I spoke to him a few times over the past few weeks. I like the guy a lot and I was a big supporter of his. I think he came to the decision that this was just not his time.
I am biased and I was planning on supporting him again, but I do hope he gets some of the recognition he deserves for the contributions he made to the party and the country. I understand the decision he has made and it was a wrenching decision because he came so close last time. History is a fickle thing and a botched joke and a crowded primary field forces decision to be made and I am sure this was a bitter pill to swallow."
- Former Manchester Mayor Bob Baines: "I just talked to him two days ago. For him personally it is a good decision. In many ways it has to be a sense of relief. He brought a lot to the debate and I was sort of waiting to see him do it again. He was been very loyal both (during) my illness (colon cancer) and on my campaigns. Loyalty is in short commodity in our politics today, but he had it. I am relieved for him."

[MBS]

18. I just submitted this LTE to NY Times

It's 22 words over the 150-word max. Who knows what they'll do with it. but thought it would be of interest here,anyway ..

RE: “Kerry will not Enter Presidential Race “ (Jan 25, 2007).
Democrats blame Kerry, but not themselves, for 2004: here we go again with “John Kerry had his chance”, the latest chapter in the Democrats’ tired “one-strike-and-you’re-out” policy for disposal of worthy candidates. Supposedly based on lessons from Adlai Stevenson’s second presidential loss, this self-defeating philosophy misses a salient fact: both Stevenson and Kerry faced difficult odds.
Stevenson ran in 1956 against a popular incumbent president; no Democrat could have won that race, “fresh face” or not. Sen. Kerry ran a valiant, uphill battle against a sitting wartime president, midst an inattentive electorate confused and cowed by fear. Kerry deserves our gratitude, not carping, for his efforts.
They say that great leaders arise in times of crisis. But democracy adds a crucial condition: citizens must recognize the leaders in their midst. Instead of doing our job, we’ve outsourced our citizenship to spinmeisters and sound-bite journalists. We had our chance to put a first-rate president, a man of exceptional courage and integrity, into the White House, and we blew it. We should be ashamed.

[ginnyinWI]

20. very nice letter

I hope they publish at least part. Your last two sentences say it all!

[ProSense]

21. Excellent letter. Thank you. n/t