Metro Detroiters still divided

[unfrigginreal]

Panelists cite rhetoric as candidates' weakness

By Ron French and George Hunter / The Detroit News

So many candidates, so many opinions.

Sunday night's 90-minute debate at The Fox gave Metro Detroit residents a closer look at the nine Democratic candidates for president -- former Illinois Sen. Carol Moseley Braun, retired Gen. Wesley Clark, former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina, U.S. Rep. Dick Gephardt of Missouri, Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry, U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio, Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman and the Rev. Al Sharpton -- but offered little help narrowing their choices.

Darlene Janulis of Rochester wasn't impressed.

"It was a lot of rhetoric," complained Janulis, a securities sales executive. "I've been reading a lot about it in the newspapers, and I just find it interesting that nobody really went after Dean. They say Dean's the front-runner and he has the most money, but I don't see it. He just had more rhetoric than most of them. I just thought he shot himself in the foot. Al Sharpton was all hype to me. Kucinich just really didn't have a handle on what was going on. I liked Joe Lieberman and I liked Carol Braun. They would make a great team.

http://www.detnews.com/2003/politics/0310/27/a06-308160.htm

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Lieberman?

[5thGenDemocrat]

1. Okay, first -- read the article

That said, the Detroit News is a right-wing Republican paper (not necessarily a rag, provided one steers well clear of the editorial and opinion page -- which reads like the Arbeiter Beobachter. Tony Snow grew up there). Second, Ms Janulis' hometown of Rochester is one of the more Republican areas of rather Republican Oakland County. So take the commentary with a grain of salt -- on balance, the piece is pretty balanced as far as the Detroit News goes.
John
Whose great-uncle Joe was circulation manager of the News for over 20 years though, as far as I know, he never voted for a Repug in his life.

[SahaleArm]

2. From the Free Press.

Gaffe shows neglect of urban issues:
http://www.freep.com/features/living/riley27_20031027.htm

Emotions boil over support for war funding:
http://www.freep.com/news/politics/debate27_20031027.htm

[booksenkatz]

3. These fat ass Michiganders

won't be bothered to get up off their behinds to research anyone's record, will they? They don't want to inform themselves, they don't want to learn about issues. No, that takes time and effort. They will base their vote entirely on whether or not they heard "just the right words" in a debate. This is exactly the same crap that happened in 2000. I remember wondering back then what magic words those people were waiting to hear from Gore. Where do they get such uninformed people for these focus groups? The "undecided" voters who twirl a strand of hair while chewing gum and watching the debates, waiting to hear just the right thing. They're never "impressed," are they? Fuck them. Do us all a favor and DON'T VOTE.

[NWHarkness]

4. Fat Ass Michiganders

carried the state for Gore in 2000, have elected a Democratic governor and are represented by two fine liberal Senators.

[booksenkatz]

5. No, not those fat ass Michiganders

these fat ass Michiganders that they used for this "focus group." How can this group be representative of a blue state, for God's sake? Everyone I know here in the Ann Arbor area is liberal, the rich and the poor. Once in awhile I see a pathetic wounded refugee from Oakland County limping along here, grossly out of place with their pro-Bush, pro-war puke. It is amazing that this group for the newspaper doesn't fairly reflect what I see with my own eyeballs every day.

Nevertheless, Michigan will be blue again in 2004!!!
:kick:

[NWHarkness]

7. Thanks for clarifying.

Consider the source. As another poster pointed out, the News is a very GOP paper.

I will make one point about Oakland County, though. I live in Ferndale, and we vote overwhelmingly Democratic, as do other parts of the county, such as Southfield, Oak Park and Pontiac. It's out in Sprawlsville and the super-rich areas like West Bloomfield and Auburn Hills that the GOP has so much strength

[booksenkatz]

8. True, true

You can't really paint any area with a big brush, and I should know better than that.

I can't tell you how nice it is to live in a blue state, though, after the first 34 years of my life were spent in red states! I love it here.

And for the record, the local newspapers are excellent... they do a great job of absorbing my cockatiels' droppings! Keeps their cage ever so nice 'n tidy.

[Az]

6. We are seeing the core problem with the current Dem tactic

Anyone but Bush is simply more of the same no message Democratic hyperbole that they have been running on since the DLC started pumping their message into the party.

To get the people to follow you have to lead. You don't lead by following the people. If you are running against George then you are not running for anything.

Look the problem that most people have with Democrats is they do not trust us. Most Democratic leaders will not take a stand on anything. They don't lead. People do not trust someone that changes their stance with the latest poll.

We have been yelling at the candidates to grow a spine for years now. People are aware that they cowered until there were enough willing to come out together to beat on Bush. But that is all they are doing is beating on Bush. They are not revealing themselves. The people see no leaders. Keep this up and the people will plug their nose and still vote for Bush because he stands for something (something heinous). It is that conviction that draw peoples attention. Knowing (or at the least the illusion of knowing in *'s case) what a person stands for. Consistancy of message. It will win people over every time.

[donotpassgo]

9. Repugs are happy that Bush is taking care of their Muslim problem

n/t