In one segment Kerry can be really good on NBC and then be equally bad the next. On Meet the Press today, Tom Brokaw asked John Kerry about Wesley Clark's Face the Nation segment.  Why that was even on Brokaw's agenda is mind boggling since the news is clearly focused elsewhere, but I guess McCain's Media felt they could help out their guy today. Kerry immediately threw Wes under the bus. Thanks John---for getting the back of a four star general who has been nothing but brilliant for the progressive movement when he gets slimed by the press. This was a subject that Bob Schieffer made into an issue. Clark only talked about judgment qualities, as we all know. Here's the original transcript of Clark on FTN.  

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SEN. KERRY: Yeah, I, I don't agree. I don't agree with Wes Clark's comment. I think it was entirely inappropriate. I have nothing but enormous respect for John McCain's service. I had the privilege of standing with John McCain in the, in the cell in Hanoi when we visited there together, when we worked on the issue of Vietnam together. It was an emotional moment. I, I have awe for John McCain's experience as a prisoner of war, and he, and he does understand duty and service. But...

And John Kerry debated SCHIEFFER about McCain's judgment previously when Bob tried to inject the character issue again so he knew what to say yet went out of his way to trash him.

You'll notice how Brokaw calls Bob his friend, as if he was offended because his pal was. Schieffer blew out of proportion what Clark had said and it was Bob that egged on the whole discussion. And Brokaw suddenly forgets that Obama did distance himself from Clark's remarks, but asks Kerry why Obama didn't. Wake up, Tom. Are you that out of it or did you want Kerry to say it again on national TV? He's been horrible filling in on MTP.

I have an idea, why doesn't John Kerry make a campaign ad for John McCain and praise his service? 

Obama's camp has to do a better job at surrogate selection. Not all of them, but most have been just awful either going on the offensive or deflecting a false charge. I'll have another video up on this issue shortly.

MR. BROKAW: We're going to get to all those issues, but I also want to raise what a surrogate for Senator Obama had to say to my friend Bob Schieffer on "Face the Nation." This is former General Wesley Clark talking about John McCain. He said, "I don't think riding in a fighter plane and getting shot down is a qualification to be president." He described him as untested and untried. With all due respect, Senator Kerry, he could have been talking about your qualifications. You're a Vietnam veteran...

SEN. KERRY: Yeah, I, I don't agree. I don't agree with Wes Clark's comment. I think it was entirely inappropriate. I have nothing but enormous respect for John McCain's service. I had the privilege of standing with John McCain in the, in the cell in Hanoi when we visited there together, when we worked on the issue of Vietnam together. It was an emotional moment. I, I have awe for John McCain's experience as a prisoner of war, and he, and he does understand duty and service. But...

MR. BROKAW: But unless...

SEN. KERRY: But...

MR. BROKAW: Unless I missed it, though, Senator Obama has not specifically rebuked Wesley Clark's comments.

SEN. KERRY: Oh, I think they--I thought--I did, and others did, and I thought Obama had at the time. But here's what's important, Tom. Let's not get lost in this, you know--John McCain said this ought to be about big ideas. Medicare is about to implode. You know, John McCain has a health care plan that every expert has said does nothing for the people who have no health care.

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215 comments

Nice. I voted for you, Kerry, but not for lack of trying to find a better candidate in '04.

Maybe Kerry forgot how McCain piled on during the fake controversy over Kerry's botched joke (if you don't study you end up in Iraq...) during the 2004 campaign. Find that clip.

So is John McCain's military service now officially a graven image?

Apparently Kerry is following the message from the party. A shame, because all he has to do is say "Do you really think being a POW entitles someone to be president? That talking point works on you?"

John, you don't have to agree with Clark, but that doesn't mean helping another guy on the opposing team get elected, either-jerk.

Kerry's an ass kissing fool. Clark never denigrated McCain's service and went out of his way to state that repeatedly. What he said was being a pilot and getting shot down isn't a qualification for being President.

So either Kerry is an idiot or he has a hidden agenda in the VP stakes.

Hillary, Kennedy, Kerry, Biden, Dodd, Edwards... they need to stand up and basically say, "You want to fuck with someone? Fuck with me."

That's the exact moment when I turned it off. Duke Cunningham (R) is in jail for bribery, but is he qualified to be president simply because he was shot down? Wesley Clark was right.

Herman Munster certainly would have been a better President than Bush but his statements about Clark and McCain are simply nuts. These politicians have no shame. They'll say and do whatever way the wind blows. And Tom Brokaw is a has-been newsman who overcame a speech impediment to become somthing of a celebrity. I'll tell ya, I just can't watch this stuff anymore. It makes me sick.

John Kerry lost to the worst president ever. Don't forget that. This type of statement is part of the reason.

The day John Kerry lost the election was on August 9, 2004 when he was asked if he would still vote for authorization to invade Iraq if he knew back then what he knows now, and he responded with "Yes, I would have voted for the authority. I believe it was the right authority for a president to have.” Speaking to reporters at the edge of the Grand Canyon, he added: “[Although] I would have done this very differently from the way President Bush has."

When I saw him make that statement I knew he just threw the election.

Beelzebud: Pretty much. Obama might be a bit on the pandering side, but nowhere near as bad as Kerry.

I wish the individual Dem congresscritters would stop listening to the advice of the Dem party establishment, such as here (to go ahead and throw Clarke under the bus). They are cutting their own legs out from under themselves.

I can't believe this guy was my 1st choice for Democratic nominee in 2004. No wonder the Election was close enough for the scum to steal it. The ticket should have been Clark/Edwards.

The mainstream media is hopeless, and Democrats - even ones who risked life & limb in combat - are total pussies. End of discussion.

Why anyone pays any attention to kerry is puzzling. He is totally irrelevant. Wish he would just go away.

The old adage, the best defense is a good offense, applies to the McCain ads and how Obama and his surrogates might best respond.

Imagine an ad that goes after McCain's supposed strength, in national security. Make him out to be an airhead, trivial, shallow.

“John McCain. Not serious. Silly ads, silly attacks. Trivial. Like his choice of two female celebrities, he’s not to be taken seriously. Sings silly songs about bombing. Whines when criticized. Denies his lies. John McCain. Unserious in serious times."

Just saying.

Feh on John Kerry. For every time he gets it right, he goes and does something like this.

Rasputin @ 6:

Kerry's an ass kissing fool. Clark never denigrated McCain's service and went out of his way to state that repeatedly. What he said was being a pilot and getting shot down isn't a qualification for being President.

So either Kerry is an idiot or he has a hidden agenda in the VP stakes.

Hi Ras, How are you? I agree with your statement above.
I hope the voters in Ma replace him with another Dem.
Well Ras, I'll be seein ya. Today is my only day off for awhile. So I'm gonna rest .
Nice seeing you again.
Be well my friend.

PorridgeGun @ 13:

I can't believe this guy was my 1st choice for Democratic nominee in 2004. No wonder the Election was close enough for the scum to steal it. The ticket should have been Clark/Edwards.

That's what I said as soon as Clark threw his name into the hat back in the 2004 election - the only candidate who could defeat an incumbent president during war time is a man with an extensive and mighty military background. As usual, though, the Democrats chose poorly. With the exception of the ridiculously charismatic Bill Clinton in 1992, the Democrats haven't chosen a candidate properly since JFK in 1960. They're so clueless it's sad, really.

Man, not one politician is for anyone but him or her self... how effed up is John Kerry?! To support McSame's "service" over Wesley Clark's is so screwed. Everyone is out for themselves; nobody has any integrity, honesty, or commitment to truth or doing the right thing. It's obscene this avarice and greed...

Unfortunately, Party Unity is not the Dems strong suit. You would think, after these past 8 years, that the Dems would be speaking out with one coordinated voice every chance they get to insure that Obama and their congressional bretheren are handily elected in November.....

but Noooooooo.......

i disagree with you people regarding on surrogate selection....i hear the and the unspoken from kerry. this guy is smart and well spoken....he is not giving them any speakings points to reguritate....no he isn't biden who uses less wording that will come...sometimes the very aggressive opposition is a victory for the (R) they want you irritated even if your correct....why? many people have an easier time communicating with body language and emotion....they may not understand the issue but they will pick up on the body language/emotion to make a decision...i think kerry handled fine.....brokaw is NOT replacing russert very well at all....he doesn't have good poker face he is so obvious to me....he gets a thumb's down

Kerry is a twit, he likely is suffering from PTSD after being awarded those three Purple Hearts in Vietnam and is only sticking up for his fellow War Hero.

Lets take an emotional issue, say, ones war time service, remove facts from the argmuent (being a POW makes you not qualified for a fucking thing) and somehow imfer that someones "honor" is being impugned.

STFU John, you had your chance to speak out about Vietnam in 2004 when YOUR service was attacked by the Smear Boat vets.

Dear Dems: You are only on the shows for gotcha' talking points. Please govern yourselves accordingly. Thank you, signed, Still Hopeful. . .

I for the life of me can't believe I voted for that traitor (to the party) John Kerry. And to make it worse Lieberman was along with him. He ran a terrible campaign and then didn't have the b**** to stand up to Bush. Even after the trashing Bush and McCain did to Kerry.

But back to now.....can't the Democrats keep Kerry off the TV shows? He is doing more damage than good. Gen. Clark has more going for him than Kerry ever did. Kerry might as well be working on mcshame's campaign. Wait, he is.

Why haven't we heard anything from Hillary? Where is she? She hasn't even been on any of the Sunday morning call downs. If the Democrats have shut her up they better do the same to Kerry. And I agree, Brokenjaw (as Limbaugh affectionately calls him) is a poor excuse for a Tim Russert. Glad this is only temporary.

John Kerry said this, hmmm....

Can't say I'm especially surprised, he's a 'Nam vet, too....

Let's state the obvious. The McCain campaign is really afraid that Obama can choose a military man as his running mate. It would mean that Obama would be President today. Now the MSM wants all these "military men" to shoot each other one way or another so Obama picks some "pussy" (like Joe Lieberman and many, many others that are circulating as potential Veeps), in other words, we are being played, prepared and slowly conditioned for a lose in November thanks to guys like Brokow and the non-liberal corporate media. It's the only explanation. THE ONLY ONE.

they want to bring that wesley clark issue up again. i don't agree i feel kerry wasn't going to let them try to get more out of that trap.....that's what they wanted....kerry did what everybody feels they have to and that preface your opinion/attack at mccain "we respect his service" personally i'm tired of it......it's done for the simpleton's that's all they know about mccain he was a POW/vet. and they will base their opinion just on that. this is what wes clark was trying to address....mccain has no more executive experience than obama....of course the media couldn't believe clark went there....because they knew how the simpleton's would react. there is a lot of cool smart people on this blog but i don't think it's reasonable to attack kerry.....what would obama say?

Lieberman was allowed to dominate this discussion with pro-McCain talking points. Kerry just allowed Joe to just steamroll them thru. Shame on you John Kerry. Kerry has been coming across a bit weak lately Of course,Brokaw also said nothing to dispute Joe’s hollow talking points. Brokaw is a poor replacement for Tim. He needs to step up and stop these guys as Tim did when they run off their mouths on these highly disputable talking points. Brokaw seems more suited to sports commentary then politics. I don’t understand this choice by NBC.

Someone asked yesterday, "Where is Kerry, Clinton and some others? Why aren't they coming out and defending Obama?" Well there's your answer. Sometimes they just do as much harm as good. Get Dodd, Biden and Feingold. Kerry has a history of gaffes.

This election will be lost to the Republicans. I can't believe that the Democrats are falling for the same trap -- spending more time defending themselves from the mudslinging, so the issues are ignored. It should have been an easy win.

Rush and all the crowd send their thanks and greetings, John. It becomes more and more clear why this fool lost to BUSH, of all people.

Ron @ 30:

Someone asked yesterday, "Where is Kerry, Clinton and some others? Why aren't they coming out and defending Obama?" Well there's your answer. Sometimes they just do as much harm as good. Get Dodd, Biden and Feingold. Kerry has a history of gaffes.

wow ron you really thought kerry was that bad.....maybe i need to reconsider my opinion i don't see it

Kerry sounds like he's working for McWars now. Wonder how much they're paying him.

constituent @ 33:

Ron @ 30:

Someone asked yesterday, "Where is Kerry, Clinton and some others? Why aren't they coming out and defending Obama?" Well there's your answer. Sometimes they just do as much harm as good. Get Dodd, Biden and Feingold. Kerry has a history of gaffes.

wow ron you really thought kerry was that bad.....maybe i need to reconsider my opinion i don't see it

He may not be that bad but, he is not that good.

Kerry has the stink of loser on him.
He should do his job and lay low until 2009.

Ron @ 35:

constituent @ 33:

Ron @ 30:

Someone asked yesterday, "Where is Kerry, Clinton and some others? Why aren't they coming out and defending Obama?" Well there's your answer. Sometimes they just do as much harm as good. Get Dodd, Biden and Feingold. Kerry has a history of gaffes.

wow ron you really thought kerry was that bad.....maybe i need to reconsider my opinion i don't see it

He may not be that bad but, he is not that good.

i respect your entries/judgement regarding these issues
i'm just going to disagree. these topics are nonsense and kerry knows it explained the trying to scare you motive....again to try to sway you but if your over the top then the talking heads say see how upset they are.
i would be curious to know how obama would rate kerry's appearance.

Tom Daschle did almost as bad today when he said Obama had always been in favor of offshore drilling.

I was laughing my tiny butt off today at Lindsey Graham. He worked himself into a frenzy defending his bff, McCain. I think he had a case of vapors. Even Daschle himself was laughing at him.

Is there anyone more aggravating than Lieberman when he is on one of these shows?

Meet the Press sucks. Tom sucks as a host. They better do something quick or that show will become irrelevant.

First time I'd seen MTP in over a month--God, what a waste of time.

Kerry sure seemed to get defensive over Wes Clark's comment. I wish he'd have had the balls to come out and agree with Clark (that being held as a POW qualifies as f.p. experience). Were that the case, I suppose my months spent incarcerated in some of California's finest county jails would qualify me to at least be a congressman or senator.

Wow. Sorry, but just because he's a Republican, Kerry's not even allowed to have respect toward his combat service? I mean, damn, I don't like McCain, but come on, I think it's admirable that Kerry's willing to allow his opponent the good qualities as well as the bad ones. The fact that you make this sound like a bad thing really kind of worries me.

constituent @ 37:

Ron @ 35:

constituent @ 33:

Ron @ 30:

wow ron you really thought kerry was that bad.....maybe i need to reconsider my opinion i don't see it

He may not be that bad but, he is not that good.

i respect your entries/judgement regarding these issues
i'm just going to disagree. these topics are nonsense and kerry knows it explained the trying to scare you motive....again to try to sway you but if your over the top then the talking heads say see how upset they are.
i would be curious to know how obama would rate kerry's appearance.

Kerry could have said that it wasn't said about him and he could of then defended Clark. He could of then said that he respected McCains service and let it go at that.

Jeez @ 31:

This election will be lost to the Republicans. I can't believe that the Democrats are falling for the same trap -- spending more time defending themselves from the mudslinging, so the issues are ignored. It should have been an easy win.

I disagree. Kerry ignored the swiftboaters and it cost him. He has since acknowledged this publicly as a mistake. As we have learned from the Bush campaigns the more you leave the lie out there undisputed the more of a chance it will be believed. I believe you need to counter these attacks one at a time and dispute them immediately. Since this type of mudslinging is pretty much all McCain has this left has to be addressed and countered. Once you do that he has nothing left. He can't really run on his own policies so he has to attack and other guy.

I use to respect Brokaw but since he has been doing MTP I have lost any respect I ever had. Why has he sold his soul to the corporate store when he does not need them any more? He was retired for Christ’s sake. I hoping he was going to end his career/life in the mold of Bill Moyers. It would have been so easy for him to do that. Instead he has become just another Charlie Gibson or Britney Hume. Shame. Shame on you Tom Brokaw! I thought you were better than that.

I disagree, yeh Kerry was wrong to rebuke but in a strange way I think this good, why? If he had not done the Mccain campaign would have creamed itself and brought it up again in some "disrespect" ad that would have had the MSM in a tizzy for days. I may disagree with Kerry, however, given his tendency to provide candy to the opp I am glad this will not become an issue and another reason for the ditto heads to ignore policy and force Obama to answer the patriotism question yet again.

And maybe Kerry was deflecting the question in the first place, Brokaw was going on to say something about "this could have been said about your service" which is, quite obviously, nothing that made Kerry qualified to be President either.

When we vote for people based on their "war record" it shows how twisted peoples meaurement is of who is qualified to "lead", as if you had to shoot somebody in some illegal war of aggression waged by the U.S. (Iraq, Vietnam, etc..)

I have said it before and I will say it again. Amerika is a one party state.

Repubs and Dems are just siblings fighting over who gets to inherit their old man's money after he dies on the Tuesday following the first Monday of November every four years.

"Obama’s camp has to do a better job at surrogate selection"

More importantly, Obama's campaign has got to do a much better job of controlling the debate and the news cycles. The inability to do so has cost dems the last two presidential elections. If you do not control the two, all the character assasination and distractions are given far more weight than they deserve.
I am all for a non-negative campaign but the responce to the negativity has got to be more intence, focused and direct. subtle doesnt cut it.

I was among the 50,000 people who gathered in Portland, Oregon ("Little Beirut", as GHW Bush called us) one day in 2004 to hear John Kerry campaign for president, and I'll bet every one of those 50,000, including me, think of him now only as a cowering betrayer. There are so many millions of proud liberals in this country -- why can't we get ONE in public office with the balls to say so and stick up for what we believe in at that critical moment when it counts? (Yes, there are a few who try -- Kucinich, Barney Frank -- but they are never in the position of power from which they could actually DO something, like Kerry was just before he tucked tail and ran like a whimpering dog away from the Ohio recount.)

Captain Bitter Whiner Husein Kangaroo @ 43:

I use to respect Brokaw but since he has been doing MTP I have lost any respect I ever had. Why has he sold his soul to the corporate store when he does not need them any more? He was retired for Christ’s sake. I hoping he was going to end his career/life in the mold of Bill Moyers. It would have been so easy for him to do that. Instead he has become just another Charlie Gibson or Britney Hume. Shame. Shame on you Tom Brokaw! I thought you were better than that.

Maybe Brokaw's 401k and health insurance went south like most everyone else's.

obama's campaign is very sophisticated. they are going to put the hammer down after the olympics. a good way to make an issue a nonissue is to excuse it without emotion. not going on and on about it. personally i wished clark's side of the argument got some traction earlier but it didn't....they tried...personally i feel clark has a good argument....but that POW/vet/maverik brand is difficult to crack....but i often ask myself why couldn't mccain beat bush in 2000. bush who held a relatively weak governor position.

Plus Brokaw cherry-picked the Clark quote without including the "leading" Schiffer gave him - in the interview Schiffer picked the words and Clark was dumb enough to repeat them, kind of like Colbert asking Wexler (?) to repeat "I like cocaine because its fun" and the moron repeats it.

Schiffer said - does riding in a jet and getting shot down qualify McCain to be president? and Clark just repeats it.

Kerry SHOULD have said it was a leading question and Clark was merely using the framing that Schiffer fed him, which I guess would be tantamount to admitting Clark was dumb to fall for the trick.

Big John @ 46:

I have said it before and I will say it again. Amerika is a one party state.

Repubs and Dems are just siblings fighting over who gets to inherit their old man's money after he dies on the Tuesday following the first Monday of November every four years.

Say it again if you like, still doesn't make it so.

Lieberman equated Paris Hilton with "off-shore drilling."

"Obama’s camp has to do a better job at surrogate selection. Not all of them, but most have been just awful either going on the offensive or deflecting a false charge."

I think this is just wrongheaded...

The fact is that it really doesn't matter what surrogates say. It doesn't even matter what Obama says. He says something completely innocuous and it gets turned into the newest "controversy of the week". The problem isn't with the surrogates, it's with the media.

It all comes down to audience size. The bigger the organization, the more likely it is to be controlled by corporations with a motive to shape the news, the more likely they are to feed huge amounts of money into growing their audience, and the larger their audience grows.

We can all come here and preach the obvious truth to each other, but as long as multi-nationals, with no genuine allegiance to the concepts of Democracy or America, get to shape the information the vast majority of us take in, we're cooked. Control of the media was exactly how Hitler gained control of Germany.

So forget about "message control". You can control it all you want, but when, in 2003, the largest worldwide demonstrations in history warrant a 10 minute news cycle on CNN, and they report the NYC crowd as being in the 100,000 range, when by my own count it was obviously nearly 500,000, the issue of "message control" is moot.

Freedom of the press, is simply, those with the press have the freedom. The surrogates can say whatever they like. Either the corporate-owned media wants you in, and therefore will downplay your weaknesses (McCain), or they don't, and will inflate any statement by anyone they can associate you with to the point of overwhelming psychological disconnect (Obama).

Message control only works if you control the message. And we don't.

Ron @ 41:

constituent @ 37:

Ron @ 35:

constituent @ 33:
He may not be that bad but, he is not that good.

i respect your entries/judgement regarding these issues
i'm just going to disagree. these topics are nonsense and kerry knows it explained the trying to scare you motive....again to try to sway you but if your over the top then the talking heads say see how upset they are.
i would be curious to know how obama would rate kerry's appearance.

Kerry could have said that it wasn't said about him and he could of then defended Clark. He could of then said that he respected McCains service and let it go at that.

i agree with that point......all i can say is they and i mean they don't want to give this issue any more time because the public doesn't get it. some people want to decide their opinion on mccains prior service .why? because it's easy...and it's an easy response back to anybody who wants to challenge the public about mccain. it's free pass for some people....that's foolish

Antitheist @ 54:

The fact is that it really doesn't matter what surrogates say. It doesn't even matter what Obama says. He says something completely innocuous and it gets turned into the newest "controversy of the week". The problem isn't with the surrogates, it's with the media.

Amen, brother.

John Kerrry-- More proof that honorable military service does not qualify you to be president.

Rasputin @ 6:

Kerry's an ass kissing fool. Clark never denigrated McCain's service and went out of his way to state that repeatedly. What he said was being a pilot and getting shot down isn't a qualification for being President.

So either Kerry is an idiot or he has a hidden agenda in the VP stakes.

"Clark never denigrated McCain's service..." God forbid anyone, even so-called liberals, should ever dare question why it was all right for people like McCain to bomb the Vietnamese, who never threatened anyone in these United States, from 30,000 feet in the air. It should be remembered that McCain, whom Kerry is so quick to praise, volunteered to participate in Operation "Rolling Thunder", which devastated Vietnam's economy and infrastructure and killed and maimed many hundreds of thousands of its citizens. One would think that Kerry should have instead been showering his laudatory comments upon those soldiers who participated in the GI movement back then, as those soldiers realized the illegality and immorality of that ill conceived war, just as the present day occupations of Afghanistan and Iraq have been illegal and immoral.

I wish Kerry would just disappear. He was a terrible candidate in '04 and every time he opens his mouth there is at least a fifty-fifty chance that what comes out will be utter nonsense. He's an embarrassment, but then, how many Democrats today aren't?

PS On reconsideration, make that eighty-twenty.

Not that I trust him any further than I can throw a grand piano, but I voted for Kerry. Anybody running aginst him?

In other news.....successful media propaganda ploy causes Kerry's face to droop in joy.

Kerry is another in a long line of Democrats with no balls. They throw anyone under the bus to curry favor with the corporate media and to further their own standing.

It's rather sick when you think about the fact that the last two Dem tickets had Lie berman (who is now a neo-con and probably was then) and Kerry.

way to throw john kerry under the bus! hypocrits...

Its My Turn To Play Politician

I said it once, so I will say it again: Serving in a POW camp does not prepare you for being president of the United States. I can't see why the Democrats don't let the facts drive this argument about John McCain's experiences. For that matter, nor does driving a jet prepare you for being a president or kissing someone's ass. None of those things by itself, or together, prepare you for the oval office.

Here is what angered me about what John Kerry just did. Kerry is playing the numbers; he thinks most people would rather stay in denial on this issue because it risk being unpatriotic. He's suppose to a Democrat who's committed to the truth not some blown up sense of patriotism. To me, any logical person can see there is a problem with the point the right-wing media is trying to make. If we follow McCain's POW experience logic, related imprisonments would be an asset to being president not the punishment it was intended to be.

As far as I am concerned, McCain' experiences has only left him with a deep seated anger about America loosing the war in Vietnam. That is why he is so stuck on "winning" in Iraq. It has nothing to do with our nation's security. Its McCain's un-resolve ,multiplied by his capture and 5 years,that drives his opinion on the war. These are war mental injuries not assets.

Joseph

RichStraightWhiteAmericanMale @ 56:

Antitheist @ 54:

The fact is that it really doesn't matter what surrogates say. It doesn't even matter what Obama says. He says something completely innocuous and it gets turned into the newest "controversy of the week". The problem isn't with the surrogates, it's with the media.

Amen, brother.

that's it and the media relies heavily on paid sponsorship....i pay particuliar attention to MSNBC online...whose the sponsor? Boeing...my father is an electrical engineer at Boeing..so i take notice...obama is going against much more than we know....mccain is just the mascot

Remember Kerry was going to pick McCain for VP in 2004.

Maybe Kerry wants the VP slot with McCain.

This is simply very understandable. One Senator kissing ass to another Senator. Who knows? He might need McCain in the fiuture, if he is alive that is, No big deal. It's just plain ass kissing.

Rasputin @ 6:

Kerry's an ass kissing fool. Clark never denigrated McCain's service and went out of his way to state that repeatedly. What he said was being a pilot and getting shot down isn't a qualification for being President.

So either Kerry is an idiot or he has a hidden agenda in the VP stakes.

I'll tell you who the real losers are: Anyone who bothers to listen to any of this bullshit. The bottom line is simply this: Power to the people, period.

Way to swiftboat Clark, Sen. Kerry.

Sheesh!

Murray Rizberg @ 19:

PorridgeGun @ 13:

I can't believe this guy was my 1st choice for Democratic nominee in 2004. No wonder the Election was close enough for the scum to steal it. The ticket should have been Clark/Edwards.

That's what I said as soon as Clark threw his name into the hat back in the 2004 election - the only candidate who could defeat an incumbent president during war time is a man with an extensive and mighty military background. As usual, though, the Democrats chose poorly. With the exception of the ridiculously charismatic Bill Clinton in 1992, the Democrats haven't chosen a candidate properly since JFK in 1960. They're so clueless it's sad, really.

The thing with Wesley Clark in '04 was that he wasn't seen as trustworthy by the liberal base. Many people, including myself, thought he was just in the race to get Hillary on the ticket and into the White House. Michael Moore endorsed Clark of course, but it was that video of him praising Bush that turned people off. I also remember Amy Goodman confronting Clark on the campaign trail. He could've treated her like shit, but he answered all her questions and treated her with respect. He actually came across really well.

I also recall Peter Jennings, during one of the debates, more or less demanding that Wesley Clark throw Michael Moore under the bus for criticizing Bush and the Iraq occupation. Clark reponded to jennings hackery by saying Moore is entitled to his views and he was proud of his endorsement. Looking back it was typical Wes Clark.

Overall, I think there were too many questions surrounding Wesley Clark. That's why the majority of voters went with Kerry instead, whose liberal bonafides weren't in doubt. It also didn't help that the Clark campaign skipped the opening contests of the Democratic primaries, which were launchpad to the nomination. As for Clark being trustworthy, today, Wesley Clark is a huge favorite with the netroots. If Democratic voters knew in '04 what they know now, Wes Clark would've been the nominee.

Let's face it, the Democrats are still a little scared of what the republicans might say or do as they go about their negative campaign. It serves no use to throw an ally under the bus. Rather it is better to stand behind our alles and fight. Kerry did us and Clark a disservice.

harley @ 65:

Remember Kerry was going to pick McCain for VP in 2004.

Maybe Kerry wants the VP slot with McCain.

was that how that went for sure.......i was thinking mccain maybe wanted/volunteered for the position. i personally never heard a solid answer about that.

Dire Lobo @ 52:

Big John @ 46:

I have said it before and I will say it again. Amerika is a one party state.

Repubs and Dems are just siblings fighting over who gets to inherit their old man's money after he dies on the Tuesday following the first Monday of November every four years.

Say it again if you like, still doesn't make it so.

Republicans and Democrats are two wings of the same party.

Period.

Kerry is an acknowledged idiot and he personifies why the Dems will lose again. He would rather praise McKeating than stick up for Clark who said nothing wrong. The Neos shake in their boots at the thought of Clark as VP. Kerry, Shurmer, et al are only a small notch from Lieberman.

It hit me this morning, all the trivial things that are being talked about in the media regarding this campaign. It's exactly what Obama said, funny name, the color of his skin, etc, etc, etc. The media and apparently their audience, don't want to take the trouble to learn about and discuss the real issues, they would rather talk about who said what when about Obama being a black man. Of course he's an interracial man, but that doesn't keep tongues from wagging. I'm just disgusted with the trivial bs right now when so much is at stake for this country.

If I was going to vote for a war hero for POTUS, it wouldn't be a captain that crashed a jet plane. It would be for a General who was a hero and actually won a war.

Wesley Clark has more military experience in his little finger that John Kerry and John McCain have combined. He also has more political experience than either George Bush or Barack Obama. It's too bad the generals didn't gather for a coup in this country after the invasion of Iraq.

Has anyone from the Obama camp mentioned the McCain dollar bill ad yet? I've been waiting for someone to mention it on TV, but so far there's been nothing.

Joseph @ 63:

As far as I am concerned, McCain' experiences has only left him with a deep seated anger about America loosing the war in Vietnam. That is why he is so stuck on "winning" in Iraq. It has nothing to do with our nation's security. Its McCain's un-resolve ,multiplied by his capture and 5 years,that drives his opinion on the war.

Joseph

I think you hit the nail on the head.

jon @ 77:

Has anyone from the Obama camp mentioned the McCain dollar bill ad yet? I've been waiting for someone to mention it on TV, but so far there's been nothing.

Not that I've seen and I have emailed it to the news networks and campaign. I can only guess they are holding back for some reason. Can't imagine what that is.

Ron @ 75:

If I was going to vote for a war hero for POTUS, it wouldn't be a captain that crashed a jet plane. It would be for a General who was a hero and actually won a war.

in addition to that clark is much smarter than mccain...for some.. clark's weakness he is not a politician....if i remember correctly the media was saying he was riding the fence regarding advent of iraq conflict....maybe regarding giving the president the authority to declare war. personally i feel clark would be a good v.p. or cabinet pick

The reason Kerry was the dem. candidate in 04 was because the media manufactured the Dean scream and made everyone think Dr. Dean was some sort of idiot.

So we can't touch McCain because of his military record? Is that the new rule. This morning Bob Schrieffer said something to the fact that the left was trying to denigrate McCain's military record. This was during his closing words at the end of the show. He said that both sides were trying to destroy the other sides candidate. I don't recall anyone speaking for Obama who has tried to say anything to destroy McCain. That wasn't what Wes Clark was trying to do. Clark was stating the obvious as far as I'm concerned.

I didn't hear a word on any of the shows today about Ted Stevens and his seven indictments for fraud.

Kerry once again demonstrates why he was such a bumbling disaster of a presidential candidate. He won't stand up for what is right because either a) he doesn't understand the issue or b) he lacks a fucking spine.

John Kerry is apparently not content to merely sabotage his own run for the White House. Skull and Bones bastard.