January 17, 2003
"JUST FOR KERRY":
An image of aloofness shadows Kerry (Brian C. Mooney, 1/16/2003, Boston Globe)Part of his image as an ambitious pol on the make dates to the early 1970s, when Kerry, a Vietnam War hero who became a national leader of the antiwar movement, shopped around three congressional districts. In a matter of months in 1972, Kerry lived in Waltham, was in the process of buying a house in Worcester, and suddenly settled in Lowell, running for an open seat in the 5th Congressional District. He won a wild 10-way Democratic primary before losing in the general election to Paul Cronin, a Republican.After being elected lieutenant governor in 1982 and senator two years later, Kerry was commonly viewed as a lone wolf in Bay State politics, with little or no aptitude for the small talk and stroking of everyday politics.
When he hosted the annual St. Patrick's Day breakfast and gibe fest in South Boston, then-Senate president William M. Bulger would observe: ''There's JFK,'' using the shared monogram of John F. Kennedy, an early Kerry idol. ''Just For Kerry,'' Bulger would deadpan, twisting the skewer. [...]
Back on the political circuit that spring [1996], Kerry was approached at one party by a local pol introducing himself as ''Butchy Cataldo,'' a former state legislator from Revere. He was actually William G. Reinstein, a longtime state representative and former mayor from Revere.
''Kerry reacted with gusto, slapping him on the back and telling `Butchy' how good it was to see him again,'' the Globe reported.
Had he known the jokester's true identity, Kerry might have been less enthusiastic. After three decades in politics, Reinstein was best known for surviving three trials before his acquittal on charges he conspired to accept kickbacks on a construction project.
The prank came to symbolize Kerry's problems with rank-and-file party officials. Many had no relationship with him; others saw him as an opportunist who courted them and moved on.
The more you read about these guys the more certain it seems that Hillary
will get into the race. Posted by Stephen Judd at January 17, 2003 10:48 AM
Is there a state in this country whose electoral votes Hillary would win?
Posted by: pj at January 17, 2003 11:58 AMPJ - I don't think any but the socialist states of Vermont, MA, RI, and maybe NY (they voted her Senator) might.
Re Kerry - this article explains why I have less regard for Kerry than even for Kennedy. Kerry is a Kennedy liberal with Clinton's convictions and Gore's charisma (even though he thinks he has Clinton's charisma)
Hillary will wait until 2008 when the memories of Bush's triumph in the war and Bill's affairs will have faded.
Posted by: M Ali Choudhury at January 17, 2003 1:40 PMHillary could win Wisconsin. And California. Maybe Michigan. And Minnesota.
Probably not, though. As Josh Marshall pointed out, she ran in a Stalinist time warp state and didn't exactly bury her neophyte opponent. Heck, 90% of his support was that he wasn't Hillary.
pj:
It's not about electoral votes, it's about the nomination. It's just itting there waiting to be taken. hen , lke her husband, she just hopes for the economy to stay mediocre.
p.s.--I didn't just have stroke--I'm using a tv in our hotel and it's not user friendly. :)
Posted by: oj at January 18, 2003 9:34 AMThe hotel is in the eastern time zone, I trust.
Posted by: David Cohen at January 18, 2003 10:24 AMOne has to love the fact that Kerry is already disolving into his real self, the Rev is coming to the fore, and all the mediocrity of the democratic party are ALL running. Just waiting for Hilary will be the last piece of the opening act of the democratic nomination circus.
Posted by: neil at January 18, 2003 11:29 AMFL-the Wife hd a medical conference and wouldn't travel alone. Left NH at 4:30am on Friday and leave here at 4:30am on Sunday
Posted by: oj at January 18, 2003 12:14 PMOJ: Enjoy Florida. If you're anywhere near me, you're probably thinking, "Isn't it supposed to be warmer
than this?"
BTW, I just found out that Kerry's "Catholic." (Proving, for the record, that Eric Alterman isn't a complete waste of space.) This is the funniest dang thing I've heard in a while. I'm hoping we can have another Ferraro moment this year or next ("On the contrary, the Church's opinion on abortion is not, in fact, open to debate." Gotta miss O'Connor sometimes). I think the whole ticket took a ten-point plunge right after that.
The scuttlebutt in Washington appears to be that Hillary is angling for the 2004 VP nod, with an eye toward a 2008 run.
Posted by: pj at January 19, 2003 8:41 AMPJ - If the Dem ticket in '04 looks like a sure loser I'm not sure Hillary would want to be tainted with that going into '08. Also a poor VP nominee performance (see Lieberman 2000) could hurt her Senate reelection in '06 which, if she loses, would hurt her chances in'08.
Posted by: AWW at January 19, 2003 9:03 PMKerry's dead meat. In Democrat politics the largest fund raiser always wins the nomination. In the current field who do you think has the best access tapping funds? Hillary is too smart to run against Bush unless the war fails and the economy continues to stumble. Besides Lieberman isn't her man so there should be some interesting internal political maneuvers that may split the Dems in 2004.
One note on war hero Kerry, he threw away a friend's medals and claimed they were his own. His medals are on display in his office. Kerry is a fraud and slightly to the Left of Stalin.