Is Clark doing what Kerry couldn't do?

[Bread and Circus]

It is quite amazing that in the last month Clark has
made incredible strides in New Hampshire.

I know that right now he is being "left alone" there
but still...Kerry has duked it out in NH for over a
year w/ Dean in that state, yet he has come up w/ anemic
support. He may be on a rising tide, but you gotta hand
it to Clark, he is, dare I say, within striking distance
of Dean in NH.

I think this is great and a testament to Clark's quick learning
curve. If Kerry does super well in Iowa, then Clark may see
his momentum stalled but if Kerry doesn't mount a serious
threat to Dean in Iowa, this will be a Dean vs. Clark race
thereafter.

[KittyWampus]

1. We Will Just Have To Wait

and see. Do not discount Kerry.

[JI7]

2. don't count edwards out

edwards is still a major player in this.

[Kahuna]

3. I never counted Edwards out. I never counted anybody out...

It has been repeated over and over, people don't start paying attention until January of the election year. We are seeing that now.

[molly]

4. I know people that still have not decided

people that are active in DEM politics.

[mouse7]

5. All Clark has to do is pick one side of an issue to be on.

That's something Kerry could never do.

[molly]

8. Kerry has been consistent

you must have him confused with Dean?

[Jerseycoa]

6. New Hampshire won't be a cakewalk

The past year, oddly, will be forgotten. Kerry has mounted the best defense against Dean in Iowa and Edwards is looking promising. People like Edwards and Kerry has got his feet on the ground now. I'm not buying the Dean-Clark is the only race anymore. Dean looked good before people were paying attention and we have to see if that carries forward or not. But Clark has several opponents to best in New Hampshire.

[jumptheshadow]

9. No it won't be a cakewalk

Dean has a strong organization and Kerry may be right in the thick of things if he does well in Iowa. This is getting exciting.

[LuminousX]

7. Clark seems to have a higher appeal than Kerry

I mentioned in another thread that I think Clark, for a lot of people, is a safe 'default' candidate. His name recognition is finally up to a point that people here "General Clark, Democrat for President" and they think that it sounds pretty good.

Senators and Representatives just don't inspire people. They require people to look at long boring legislative history to see what the stance is.

Now as crunch time approaches, a lot of those people will switch from default mode to someone else, but some won't and that is good for Clark.

[dolstein]

10. You mean act and talk like a real human being?

Yep.

Kerry's problem was the same as Gore's -- neither behaved like a normal human being in front of crowds. Honestly, listening to either of these guys talk was a genuinely painful experience. You literally want to scream - throw away the (*&(*&(* script and tell us what you REALLY think! Just like Gore, Kerry's been programmed to act this way through decades spent in Washington. He may be a genuinely likable guy to those who really know him, but he'll never connect with the masses.

But Wes is the real deal. So is Howard, to an extent. I genuinely dislike the guy, but at least he talks like a normal person. I'll give him credit for that. And Edwards is improving (thank God). But Kerry's a lost cause.

[DemBones DemBones]

14. I like leaders who sound like BETTER human beings.

There are lots of people in the world who don't think very deeply or speak very well, yet are good people. But they're not leaders. Leaders are supposed to be above average.

I want leaders who are intelligent, well-educated, and very well-informed. I also like to have leaders who sound like leaders, who can give a good policy speech as well as a good campaign speech. Kerry can do that and do it well.

I understand that you want to know if a leader has a human side. I think they do but I also think they're all obsessive work-aholics. How can anyone who's not survive in politics today? And if they are obsessive work-aholics, they ought to be damned good at what they do (sincew their lives revolve around their work), which includes sounding like leaders and being specific about their positions on issues.

[David Dunham]

11. Kerry Is Doing Very Well In Iowa Now: Zogby: JK = First Place

[Jack_Dawson]

12. Clark is the Man

And wow did he make the right decision blowing off Iowa.

[sandnsea]

13. NH seems media driven

Kerry got no media except beatings for months. Clark has pretty much only gotten positive media. You can almost watch the poll numbers in NH shift by the national media. If Kerry does well in NH, alot of those people will start to believe Kerry can win again and will step back and re-evaluate. And I truly believe as this race shifts to NH, Clark will have to start answering tough questions about the Reagan years and what he truly thinks about that Presidency and why he kept voting for him. Democrats deserve these answers and ought to be howling for them before they elect an unknown entity as their nominee.

[DemBones DemBones]

15. The media have made this a Dean-Clark race. Now the people speak!

Surprise! People support Kerry and Edwards and Kucinich as well! (And Gephardt and Lieberman and Sharpton.)

The media can spin all they like but from now on the voters have a voice, too.

[ginchinchili]

17. Why should that threaten Clark's campaign?

Clark's talked about why he voted for Reagan and I'm sure he'll be glad to discuss it again. But I think for the other Democrats to use this angle on Clark will backfire. For one thing, it takes a lot of honesty and guts to run for the Democratic nomination and admit that you voted for Reagan. He didn't have to tell nor did he have to tell the truth. It just further demonstrates his strong character; he's got courage and honesty. More importantly, the one constant in this primary is that people want to replace Bush. One of the main ingredients in accomplishing this is to have broad appeal. Clark has a broader demographic than any of the other candidates.

[TrueAmerican]

16. If Kerry wins Iowa, he will have big mo

for NH. But, I see Gephardt winning Iowa with his union support.

So, it's good news for Clark, if Gephardt wins, bad news if Kerry wins.

Dean will be the big loser in Iowa. His campaign will collaspe if he does not win the state.

[Nashyra]

18. It's good news for Clark

if Dean just wins by a whisker, and if Kerry, Gephart or Edwards wins it's still good news for Clark. If it is a close race and Dean does not win by a blowout it is good news for Clark.

[Clark4VotingRights]

19. Well, whatever happens, I gotta agree...

Clark is a quick study.
(Understatement.)

[DemBones DemBones]

20. Looks like Kerry can do it after all!

This is from Josh Marshall at TPM:

"Today Zogby has John Kerry opening up a five point lead over Howard Dean and Richard Gephardt in Iowa. The numbers:   Kerry 24%, Dean 19%, Gephardt 19%, Edwards 17%.

Even more interesting however are the ARG numbers out of New Hampshire. Today's numbers there are Dean 28%, Clark 23%, Kerry 16%"

<snip>

"But, again, Kerry is the bigger story. He's moved up a point or two a day each day this week. And the internals on those numbers tell an interesting tale. As the ARG analysis says: "The drop in ballot preference for Howard Dean has stabilized and women voters who have switched from Dean are giving John Kerry a lift at the expense of Wesley Clark."

In other words, Dean has lost support. And most of it has gone to Clark so far. But Clark is having a real problem getting female voters who leave Dean to come to him. And they're going to Kerry."

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/


It's beginning to look as if the bumper sticker that's been around for a couple of months or more is prophetic. That's the one that says "Dated Dean, Married Kerry."