Dem candidates

[Rainster]

Wanted to post this on the other thread, but the focus shifted to Reagan, and this would seem out of place...

I'm torn between supporting Dean and Kerry in 2004. I agree w/ jku that Kerry has the best chance at defeating Bush . But it's that whole voting-with-your-conscience or voting-to-be-strategic... I admire Dean's positions, esp in terms of civil unions and health care, but ultimately I can't see moderates or swing voters supporting him.

(A tangent : Kucinich has some good ideas, but he recently switched his position on women's rights and seems a little too NewAgey for mainstream politics).

[pisces2473]

I'm definitely a Democrat--although I'm registered unaffliated but thinking about changing so I can vote in the primaries.

I am also a little confused as to who to vote for. I wish there was some kind of "test" where you could enter your positions about key issues and the answer would be the candidate who best supported your views.

Oh well, I'll have to keep researching on my own.

[jku]

This next election is SO important that we can't afford to be idealistic. It's time to be REALISTIC. Idealism can follow.

They have an Asian proverb - "You can only cut your shirt out of the cloth you have.

Kucinich, Dean, support for Nader, is a vote for Bush. Dean's biggest supporter? Karl Rove.

It's Kerry or four more years of Bush. Simple.

[thejoesays]

I'm curious, why are you supporting Kerry. It seems to me that the only people on the dem side who are representative of Democratic ideals are Howard Dean, Al Sharpton, and to a lesser extent Dennis Kusinich. Add that to the fact that Kerry is one of the richest men in the Senate and has many corporate conections.

[jku]

First - In regards to Kerry smoking marijuana - he never said he did and no one has accused him of doing so. He just said no like Nancy Reagan.
It was a supposition, relating more to Clinton's campaign issue in 1992.

Second - where did you get the notion that Kerry was a "corporate tool" like our President!?
The fact that he has his OWN money and has NOT accepted money from Political Action Committees in the past makes him appealing to the average hard working middle class citizen. Kerry, by the way, has the money by proxy. His wife is the widow of John Heinz - the wealthy senator killed in a plane crash in the early 90s.

The basic reason Kerry is viewed as such a threat to Republicans is that its hard to slander him.
Sharpton and Kucinich say certain things I can agree with, but I know the average American has been brain washed with the notion that "liberal" is a "bad word," so that label would hurt Kucinich.
Sharpton ostensibly fights for Civil Rights. I can agree with that.
Kucinich asks "where is the TRILLION dollars MISSING from the Pentagon budget?" I can agree with that as well.

Any candidate you have a question about can be looked up at www.opensecrets.org

Here's Kerry:
http://www.opensecrets.org/presidential/summary.asp?ID=N00000245

Here's Bush:
http://www.opensecrets.org/presidential/summary.asp?ID=N00008072

It's not even a question as to who is more qualified to lead this country! A sheltered son of priveledge and wealth, who never had to look for a job or struggle to get by vs. a man who himself was middle class, growing up among the wealthy and elite thanks to a generous and loving aunt. Served his duty in Vietnam and came back to save the lives of his fellow soldiers suffering through a government led quagmire - and later went on to become a Senator!

Kerry represents the best of America, and what every young person can hope to aspire to.

[pisces2473]

Kerry's money is self-made. People think he's loaded but it's really his wife who is wealthy. Teresa Heinz Kerry inherited it from her first husband when he died--tragically I believe?

He is not from an old-money, New England family who used political connections to get their "golden boy" into the White House. Don't you think it's a little strange that every job GW had was because someone else got it for him? And then when it failed, Daddy or a pal would be there to bail him out.

At least Kerry can say he's done an honest day's labor and watched his parents do the same. He didn't go AWOL on the army when things got tough a la GW. When the majority of this country is middle class or below, I'm going to vote for the man who best represents us.

Joe, I don't know why you are pulling out the argument about Kerry's corporate connections and wealth, when your heroes certainly have plenty of money and a few connections of their own. Halliburton, anyone?

[thejoesays]

Interesting, I always thought that Kerry married into money. His wife is the heiress to the Heinz family fortures. The reason I thought he was influenced by corporations is that the Heinz family is known for it's katchup. Either way, I personally think it's irrelevent what contributions are made to campagins.

I would also say that none of the Democratic canadates strike fear in the hearts of the Republicans. The one that might would be Edwards since he's from the south.

In regards to information about Kerry, here's some interesting things that he himself said.

http://www.rnc.org/Newsroom/RNCResearch/Research012303.htm

I admit this is the Republican National Committee website, but like I said it has actual quotes. The website does list other canadates as well. Just go to www.rnc.org and scroll to the bottom.

Lastly, GWB was never AWOL, he was a member of the Texas Air National Guard and flew jets.

[dakotagopher]

From what I have seen, Kerry is an attractive candidate. Seems like a straight shooter. I personally like Lieberman and (though I do not consider myself left wing) Dean. But as I have said before, Kerry and Edwards seem to have access to the money train, and that is the key.

I think Kerry scares the GOP a bit, but not so much. In my opinion the only person with a clear shot at beating Bush is Hillary Clinton.

If Bush's poll numbers continue to slip, I for one would expect Hillary to step up to the plate and run. The rest of the field would fold in a matter of days when the financing and public interest dried up (possible exception: Edwards).

I think HIllary running, not Kerry, is Karl Rove's nightmare.

[pisces2473]

As a proud CT resident and a constituent of Lieberman, I'm glad to see that he's gotten some support outside of New England. I really like him, but I think he's too much of a moderate (which the Republicans like) and no offense to ANYONE, but I think the fact that he's Jewish will prevent him from becoming President. It doesn't matter to me, but it does to a lot of people. Ask your parents what it was like when Kennedy ran--he got a lot of heat for being Catholic.