Vet-Smear Response You Support: Aggressive, Measured or Creative?

[WiseMen]

Poll question: Vet-Smear Response You Support: Aggressive, Measured or Creative?

The new national polls coming out will likely show the depressing effects of the Swift-Smear on Kerry’s numbers. I previously described the Rove’s Swift-Smear as an ingeniously timed attack that is at once pragmatic, preparatory and pre-emptive. I believe Rove achieved his goal of casting doubt on Kerry’s golden resume. Smear tactics almost always work to some degree because the public is powerfully drawn to scandal and the mass media feeds on this dynamic.

There is hardly any topic that will be off-limits for the right-wing hit squads so we should expect smears regarding everything from Kerry’s bachelor days to Teresa’s Cuba connections, to ….

Question: What approach to the Smears machine will you support financially, with your lobbying and volunteer activities?

[Raya]

1. Only way to WIN on this is to go ALL THE WAY STRONG

[gollygee]

2. How about some combination of the above?

[WiseMen]

3. There are some interesting combinations: What's yours?

[gollygee]

4. 1, 2 and 4

[WiseMen]

7. I think I agree. As long as counter-offensive continue through RN Conven

[UTUSN]

5. O'REILLY Just About Fainted

He was yakking about JK's response to the swiftbots' attack. The guest said this is Day 20 of the swiftbot ads, that JK should have responded "within 24 to 48 hours", that there would have been a bitter fight for a week, but then it would have been over.

So O'REILLY asks, "Respond with WHAT? There are 250 of these guys, how do you attack them?" The guest said, "Not them. Attack with (Shrub)'s National Guard record."

O'REILLY looked like he had had the WIND KNOCKED OUT of him. He said, "THAT? No. Not THAT?"

So there's the big elephant in the room that has been there all along, what their deepest fear is.

[TNMOM]

6. Hardhitting and Creative. Mean with a brain.

[NV1962]

9. Yup, that's my choice too

In my opinion, neither the Kerry campaign nor 'even' the MoveOn type 527s can or should stoop to gutter tactics. I think they're doing a pretty good job as it is. But that doesn't mean that a counter-op isn't necessary. I'd strongly support a 'guerrilla warfare' initiative that hits back harder, deeper and faster in response to swifter-type smear campaigns; e.g. a co-ordinated blogger campaign spreading researched inflammatory material, in conjunction with LTTEs and keeping a close eye on the smear campaigners so as to quickly expose them and their connection.

The world isn't monolithic, neither are campaigns. It makes no sense to expect 'the' response from 'the' campaign - it's a combined effort that can and does make the difference. We're a team, and 'the' Kerry campaign needs 'us' (out here on the Net) to feed them campaign intel and hit back the way only we can afford to.

But that's my 0.02...

[Nimrod]

8. The smear HAS worked - way too well

The bushbots have succeeded in burying the campaign under a giant mound of shit. The SVBs will get smacked down hard but it's not going to happen until WAY after November, and that's all the goal was.

"Look, just distract those dumbass mouth-breathing 'Muricans with one of those nice loud pissing contests they love so much. They get to sqabble among themselves, we don't have to waste time answering questions about our policies, and you get the rest of your money on November 3rd."

I hate the fact that Americans ARE dumb enough for this to work.

[John_H]

10. ALL of course. PR101.

1 & 3 are givens and, to me, measured means well-timed.

[WiseMen]

12. I think Kerry, himself, is moving away from "measured" to aggressive.

[AP]

11. Other: use it against the media. Ask them why they keep giving these

proven liars so much credibility and never present the concrete evidence of their unreliability.

[WiseMen]

13. LA Times Poll, Bush gains 5% since last. As expected, ball in our court .

[A_Possum]

14. "Creative" and DRAMATIC, like Cleland's pilgrimage to Crawford

Just aggressive won't work. We need dramatic visuals, great humor, and entertaining methods to get the facts out.

Add speaking to the Vietnamese delegations in Paris in 1971 as "treason" to the coming smears.

I say Kerry should start talking about that openly now, to defang it, but I'd love to hear some more creative way than that to lay it on the table in a positive and dramatic way.

[johan helge]

15. Kerry should sue the SBVT. And "prove" they are lying.

Kerry should run ads with "proofs" (if possible) that e.g. Louis Letson's version ("I know John Kerry is lying about his first Purple Heart because I treated him for that injury.") is wrong. And he should sue the bastards.

Only then will this give Bush a backlash. Only then will this topic go away.

[newyawker99]

16. Hi johan felge!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[Raya]

17. Guess Worriers re. SwiftSmear were RIGHT. Got Biggest Media of Any

campaign AD of tactic. Dems are going to have to ante-up the bucks
to keep MoveOn SwiftResponse going.