On JK Blog: cool map plus Donna Brazille: Why John Kerry's Presidential Primary endorsement matters

[beachmom]

The map is all the co-signers on setadeadline by city, and the Brazille article is very, very interesting. Like a flood of praise can now come out, now that he's not running, and everyone wants his support.

http://blog.johnkerry.com/2007/02/setadeadline_check_the_map.html

[rox63]

1. Wow, a Kerry-positive article from Brazille

I'm shocked, :wow: but very pleased. :)

[blm]

2. Fuck you Donna - you lie about Kerry for YEARS when YOU didn't do YOUR JOB

as head of the DNC's Office of Voter Integrity. You let GOP tactics to suppress votes and purge voter rolls go UNCOUNTERED for FOUR YEARS. You refused to secure the election process for FOUR YEARS when it was your and McAuliffe's duty to do so.

"No matter what you think of him...." FUCK you, you lying, sanctimonious LIAR.

[Luftmensch067]

4. What you said! n/t

[MBS]

8. ditto n/t

[beachmom]

5. Gee, BLM, don't hold in all your feelings about Donna.

Just let it out and tell us how you REALLY feel.

[MH1]

7. Yep, what you said.

Frankly, I'm not sure why that article would even be posted at johnkerry.com. I guess I'm too used to reading between the lines, or just plain too cynical... but the article didn't read that well to me. More like a softened "heyjohn" pile o' crap. Or maybe I just dislike Brazile so heartily that I see everything from her through a lens of disgust.

On a lighter note, thanks to whoever gave me the hearts! :hug:

[karynnj]

12. MH, I'm with you

For every line of praise, there is a barb. It is also configured as: Given(barb), but (praise).
This treats the barbs as assumed wisdom. Some are beyond annoying - jokeS - there was ONE (1) bad joke. I also don't like that she doesn't give Kerry credit for his character, skills, policies or abilities. However, her expertise is not foreign or domestic policy, her expertise is as a political operative - and her praise is mainly giving the Kerry campaign some credit on how they ran. (As to character, Brazille is friendly with Rove, that alone may mean that she could not see real integrity if it bit her.)

She admits that Kerry's money people and the people in his campaign were very good. This is contrary to the Carville/Begala/McAuliffe garbage. The people who won the nomination had a great candidate to sell, but they undeniably did a great job. I bet the Kerry people want this acknowledged. He and they won a nomination without support from the media and most of the party people.

Those people will likely attach themselves to other campaigns long before Senator Kerry endorses anyone - many already have. While they may well have spoken to Kerry to get his opinion - likely far franker than we'll ever hear - on the other candidates, they don't come just because Kerry endorses someone. If I know this, she know this - so, using that as a reason Kerry's endorsement is disingenuous.

Getting Kerry's endorsement would mean something. I think Brazille misses the real reason, though she kind of hints at it mentioning Kerry's email list. It would mean more toward 2008 than Gore's did in 2004, as would Gore's now. This, is because in a time of chaos, they have proven to Democrats that they can be trusted. Just as I listened to Kerry's reasons to send money to 2006 candidates, I would listen to his reasons to chose one candidate over the others - which would come with an endorsement (if it occurs while there is still a choice.)

I did find it vaguely amusing that Brazille suggests he could help Clinton deal with swiftboating. Kind of cute given the constant Clinton boasts that they could not possibly have been swiftboated as they were uniquely able to fight back.

This is by far the nicest thing Brazille has ever said about Senator Kerry.

Thanks for the hearts. :grouphug:

[whometense]

11. Amen.

No one likes John Kerry:

With so many states seeking their moment in the sunlight of the presidential season, Kerry’s e-mail list is still the envy of the party — 3 million-plus battle-tested citizens who are prepared to stand and fight on his behalf. Kerry’s support could help the frontrunners — or help jump-start one of the second-tier candidates still trying to raise his or her name identification among voters.

Fuck you, Donna.

Yeah, we are the people who don't exist - until you need us, that is.

[Firespirit]

13. Woo hoo!

All these newfound "friends" in the party should consider themselves forewarned that we have NOT forgiven or forgotten their previous behavior.

This article, though, reminds me of one thing: I do not want him to be in the position of feeling obligated to endorse "her." (Not Brazile, of course.) Of the other two frontrunners, I'm OK with Edwards or Obama, but not her. I don't want him to give her any stamp of approval, even the obligatory "I endorse the party's nominee." So, time to bring her down.

[MBS]

15. As I wrote on johnkerry.com, I also don't think Kerry should feel obligated

to rush an endorsement for anyone. Personally, I'd feel completely fine-- in fact, in many ways I'd prefer it-- if he chose to stay completely neutral in the primaries (as long as that didn't help "her").

[blm]

16. I agree - no endorsement for a long time. Unless Clark or Gore jump in.

.

[whometense]

21. I agree too.

His endorsement means too much to be hurried. And as he said yesterday - let the people decide. He, better than anyone else, knows the value of respecting that process.

[TayTay]

17. I see.

Dear John:

Love ya, great guy, nice to see you back, yadda, yadda, yadda.

Ahm,, can we have your stuff now please?

Love and kisses

Donna

[MBS]

19. you nailed it n/t

[whometense]

20. Is this the first glimpse

of the "John won't share!!!!" meme?

[karynnj]

22. Good translation

Except, he's smart enough to know that what he has, he can't give away - and have it be what it was. If he gives his list to one candidate, I would unsubscribe the first time she emailed me.

[Luftmensch067]

3. It does sound a bit like the praise is choking her!

I'll have to send her a nice sauce for that crow she's not-very-graciously eating... :-)

Edited to add: but the map is awesome!!!

[ProSense]

6. Posted

here.

[rox63]

18. Off to the Greatest Page! n/t

[beachmom]

9. Um, guys -- all good comments and all, BUT, if you don't put them

on the JK blog, then, you know, nobody over there knows how you feel or even that you read it. When John Kerry puts up a post up there once in a while, he's directing it at ... US. And yet, all the comments I'm reading are HERE. Now, obviously, the obscenities need to stay off the Kerry blog (saw that "kids" provision in the comment field, sigh, so I admit to bringing it down a bit), but the sentiments should be directed OVER THERE. It's like this: if a tree falls in the forest, and nobody hears it, did it ever fall? Similarly, if y'all read the post, but didn't comment over there, well, then, folks, who, you know, look at the effectiveness of the blog, wonder if we're reading it, if nobody comments. I just thought the JK blog was AWESOME yesterday with the live blogging, and now I see we're back to whispering behind its back again.

What do you think?

[TayTay]

10. Agreed.

I added one.

[karynnj]

14. Good idea

I'll put a version of what I said here.

[Democrafty]

24. I have been saying this for months now.

If we're going to support JK, we have to take it outside every now and again.

[PresidentObama]

23. That map is awesome. My area looks to have...

....a green or yellow pin, I can't tell. Which means between 25-100 signs. Hopefully some of those were some of friends from the various e-mails I've sent out ;)

That puts into color the momentum setadeadline.com is getting, and gives us the motivation to push on ward to get more people on this map all across the United States.

Donna is right, BTW. I don't like her, and I don't agree with her. But I think John Kerry's endorsement will be important in 2008. I wish Gore would get in, so Kerry could endorse him. Or Clark. But either way, I think some pressure will be placed on the Senator to pick a candidate. He may, he may not and wait for the nominee to be picked. But I'm glad he's holding out to let the race form up first, right now it's all a dog show of who can jump through more loops without messing up.

[dwahzon]

25. I held off on posting this but...

I think the value of posting the Brazile article depends on just how "inside baseball" one is with their perspective on what happens in politics. Because you are Kerry scholars, you know a lot of history that many others don't.

From a purely pragmatic point of view that is not so "inside the beltway"-oriented, she is a known Dem party operative who is a frequent guest on TV shows. She will be asked about this article and she will say positive things about JK.

Many people will hear those positive things and take them at face value.

Yes, the Kerry scholars know better and BLM's comment, in particular, is very valid.

But, nonetheless, positive comments about our guy are positive comments about our guy.

Let's take them.

[TayTay]

26. Yeah, I agree

It's better to hear good things than the endless bad.

We know what really happened. We can remember that. But it's still nice to hear good things.

[Democrafty]

27. I'm actually really glad you posted it.

It's nice to have something over there that we can debate. It IS a must-read, even if it pissed a bunch of us (including me!) off.

I also don't think that Donna Brazile meant to be offensive. But, as I learned over and over in my many years of liberal arts education, Authorial Intent is worth very little.

[blm]

28. I am never happy with manipulation - it shows no respect for people as CITIZENS

just interest in manipulating them for their VOTES.

And Donna is one of the worst at pointing blame away from herself - she is no different than Terry McAuliffe.