November 10, 2004
CIRCLING THE REACTIONARY WAGONS:
Democrats Vow to Hold Bush Accountable (Charles Babington and Dan Balz, November 10, 2004, Washington Post)
Congressional Democrats returned to Washington in a defiant mood yesterday, making no apologies for the campaign in which they lost congressional seats and the presidential race and vowing to hold President Bush accountable for his handling of the deficit, the Iraq war and other issues.In his first public comments since conceding defeat to Bush, Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) did not rule out a bid in 2008 and promised to keep pushing the issues he championed this year.
"Let me tell you one thing that I want to make clear," Kerry said in a brief meeting with reporters in the Capitol. "Fifty-four-plus-million Americans voted for health care, they voted for energy independence, they voted for unity in America, they voted for stem cell research, they voted for protecting Social Security. We need to be unified, and we have a very clear agenda. And I'm going to be fighting for that agenda with all of the energy that I have and all the passion I brought to the campaign."
By the time of his second inauguration Mr. Bush will be up around 60% approval in the polls, casting themselves as the party of defiance and obstruction will serve Democrats poorly. Posted by Orrin Judd at November 10, 2004 2:24 PM
Well, some of us don't feel that 40% of the people shouldn't just roll over and say "walk all over everything we believe in, we don't care."
That's the nature of democracy. Everyone has a right to stand up for what they believe. It's a basic principle in the founding of America.
I'm sorry you have a problem with that.
Posted by: Joe at November 10, 2004 3:03 PMJoe:
Yes, no one can make the Democrats be relevant if they choose irrelevance.
Posted by: oj at November 10, 2004 3:06 PMIf Kerry brings the passion and energy he showed in the Newsweek photographs of him (from their election special), it will be a quiet fight.
He looked like a cross between Raymond Massey and Boris Karloff.
Of course, what else is he going to say? "I am a hopeless wuss who couldn't beat that idiot"? Or, "I am going to go spend a little of my wife's money"? Or, "I am eagerly awaiting all those 42-58 votes in the Senate"?
Posted by: jim hamlen at November 10, 2004 3:09 PMThey've been trying to do that for the past four years - that's the source of BDS, Bush Derangement Syndrome.
No one said they shouldn't be partisan, but they have to get realistic.
Posted by: Mikey at November 10, 2004 3:36 PMNote the implication that America would be united only if the Democrats had won. Follow the logic and you get ...
that it's the Democrats alone that are causing the disunity. That matches my experience. I was last in America a year ago at the time of the Democratic Party presidential nomination debates. The amount of time the various candidates spent attacking President Bush rather than setting out a positive agenda was amazing. It was as if the candidates were competing to outdo each other in their attacks.
Posted by: A at November 10, 2004 4:07 PMIf he's serious we have four more years to get him to sign the 180 and release all his service documents.
Posted by: genecis at November 10, 2004 6:33 PMHe'll die before he signs that document. I suspect the records will validate everything John O'Neill wrote.
Posted by: ratbert at November 10, 2004 9:45 PMStill, I did like the part about the clear agenda.
Posted by: Barry Meislin at November 11, 2004 2:28 AM"I have a plan, trust me."
Posted by: JFKerry(aka LDForber) at November 14, 2004 1:21 AM