Reply #203: I think Frenchie is one of the best spokespeople for Clark.

[AP]

I believe that if everyone thought like Frenchie, Clark would win the Democratic primaries. What Frenchie says over and over again is that the world is a dangerous place, that it isn't 92-00 anymore, and that we need someone like Clark to lead us in a world this dangerous.

Furthermore, if you look at Clark's speech in DC recently or take a look at his book, "Waging Modern War," Clark clearly sees the world in those terms (or, he clearly wants people to understand that this is his framework for understanding the world) -- he frames all his speeches, his books according to a set of priorities that puts defending America from external threats first.

I do not dispute for one second that Clark is progressive on a very very broad range of issues (and clearly to the left of Dean on many of the issues I find important -- like taxes, and Keynsian economics). However, I still think that the point made in those Rockridge Inst quotes I have above is worth considering: when you concede that the world is a frightening place, you are telling swing voters that the way the Republicans see the world is the right framework for understanding reality.

I think it is the pure 100% appeal to hope over fear (which guided FDR to 4 victories at a point in American history when there was a serious threat that fascists inside and outside of America could have destroyed democracy) is the path to victory. And winning that way isn't a pyrrhic victory -- it's not just hanging on by your fingernails in a world dominated by conservatives. Winning 100% on hope and optimism will win races up and down the ticket, and will change the mood in America so that people stop thinking the way they're thinking today (which is basically, who cares if the middle class is disappearing so long as we're alive).

I could totally be wrong about this, but I really feel that it's true.