What Strategy Does Clark Need to implement?

[Joe the Revelator]

He has a slim chance of coming in as low as fourth in NH behind Kerry Dean and MAYBE Edwards. There is a bigger chance that he comes in third behind Kerry and Dean. What does he do now to get back to ( if the polls give Kerry a bump) being the second place candidate challenging for the lead?

[Catch22Dem]

1. Your scenario is plausable

But he could also win NH. What strategy does he need to implement? I think he's doing perfectly fine for now. Let's see what the Iowa results do to the NH polls.

[ShaneGR]

2. Hmmmmmm, my thoughts if I was Dean's advisor

About Dean, which was the original content of this thread.

1. Stop screaming
2. Attack George Bush and not the other Democrats, I think he got sidetracked with his attacks on all the "cockroaches", better known as his fellow Democrats. Dean garnered his support from attacks on Bush, and lost it when he focused on all the Dems.

[Clark Can WIN]

4. You funny.

:evilgrin:

[Catch22Dem]

5. Are we talking about the same Wes Clark?

Screaming? Don't attack other Dems? Attack Bush? HELLOOOOOOO, with all the candidate infighting, Clark sometimes seems to be alone in his public criticism of Bush. Haven't heard the dude scream...EVER.

[ShaneGR]

8. He edited the thread, basically this is a trick thread

I hit alert.

[Joe the Revelator]

17. Really, what are you talking about?

A. If i edited the thread there would have been a red script running across the top of it

B. What would i gain by editing the thread from Dean to Clark? Thats just stupid

C. Everyone who posted before you was able to comprehend what i typed.

[ShaneGR]

20. uh huh, whatever you say

Why do that?

[Joe the Revelator]

22. I really don't get it.

Honestly, what would i have to gain by editing deans name and subbing in Clark? It makes no sense at all. You misread, deal with it.

[tameszu]

6. Um, I assume that this advice is meant for Dean and not Clark?

S'OK; we all misread from time to time...

[Clark Can WIN]

3. He wins New Hampshire or comes damn close to it

simply by continuing what he has been doing. He's been rising like a rocket.

[Leilani]

19. No, he's starting to go down

& kerry is going up. Kerry & Clark are going after many of the same voters & this can hurt Clark.
However, Independents are a big factor in NH.
When McCain beat Bush, in some polls Bush was winning, yet McCain trounced him.

So who knows? But I think this race will go way beyond NH.

[ShaneGR]

7. HEY! YOU EDITED THIS FROM A DEAN TO A CLARK THREAD!

He originally asked what Dean should do, and then edited it to make it seem like the responses were about Clark.

[Joe the Revelator]

10. What?

[Tinoire]

12. You're getting paranoid dude- there's not one bit of red in that post n/t

[wtmusic]

9. Dump the 'New American Patriotism' line

Let's put patriotism in a fun, new package! :eyes:

[Jerseycoa]

13. Heh

I did notice all the flag waving tonight. Something new for your guy.

[Toucano]

14. Actually, that happened a few weeks ago.

The new slogan is "A Higher Standard of Leadership".

I like it more, too.

[Jerseycoa]

11. Kerry is a strong challenge

for Clark in NH. There's no doubt in my mind. After tonight, Dean is flat out gone, I suspect. Which is too bad from my perspective, because Clark would have slaughtered Dean. Clark has positioned himself very well in NH, where he's gained ground I think he can hold.

Yet there is not enough contrast between Kerry and Clark to offer the opportunity Dean provided. One possibility, though, is if Kerry's sharpened image which worked so beautifully in Iowa falls flatter in his own backyard due to familiarity. The security issues, the veterans, all that, Kerry owned in Iowa, but won't in NH. I would cut that in half. Clark will have to defend himself on the lobbyist thing and all the rest that Kerry will throw at him, but Clark's pretty good at defense and he's got Jamie Rubin out there now doing an outstanding job. If the charges against Clark can get resolved in NH, all the better, then he goes South with lighter baggage.

The problem for Clark is going to be Edwards, because he complements both Kerry and Clark, and because he shines on his own so well. If Edwards shifts straight to SC, that takes care of him in NH, but gives him more time to steal first base in SC.

But I don't see how Clark's strategy changes. He's set himself up as the challenger in NH and I see him continuing to do what he's doing. Third in NH was never going to be bad for Clark. Second is better. First is best. Nothing changes.

[Toucano]

15. Let the New Englander's fight it out in New England.

Shoot for third, like he has been and pray for second.

Stay positive like he has been but address each criticism straight-forwardly.

Continue to emphasize his modest origins. Do we really want to make the general election a choice between two billionaires?

Not a Kerry bash, just an observation.

[countmyvote4real]

16. Clark is doing great.

If anything he should limit the use of the "major league baseball" pitching metaphor. I heard it twice tonight in two different situations and it made him sound scripted.

Yes, I know that candidates have to stay on message and that's fine, but when something along the lines of an extemporaneous anecdote is repeated over and over (I don’t mean replayed.) it looks rehearsed and unnatural. It gives me pause in Clark’s case because he first caught my attention as a CNN commentator way before he was in the running when he seemed to shoot from the hip in any interview rather than falling back on a script. Maybe I wasn’t paying as much attention then or maybe I’m paying too much now. Then again, maybe it’s the delivery of the message/talking points in the various situations.

I have no quarrel with his credentials. He’s right at the top of my two preferences, but in tonight’s exchange with Bob Dole on CNN, Clark’s statesmanship seemed to blink. It appeared to me that he lost his cool and relied on a “script” to make his case rather than refuting Dole’s remarks with some charm. Maybe I’m too harsh, but this is the race of our lives. And I have no doubt that General Clark understands the stakes. If anything, this is a message to his political coaches and handlers to let Clark be Clark.

FYI, my #2 selection is John Edwards.

[Kathleen04]

18. Clark needs to

keep doing what he's doing in NH and get the campaign rolling in Feb. 3rd states that we're likely to do well in--ND, AZ, NM, and DE. I think Edwards is going to get a bounce in SC and OK, I think we should compete alongside him there while also focusing on those others.

[Clark4VotingRights]

21. I think he needs to be one of the smartest men ever to run for president!

And think his way into the white house! He needs to accumulate
the most impressive resume imaginable. Rack up academic achievements like graduating first in his class at West Point, becoming a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford, and earning Masters degrees in in areas that would be useful in the White House: Economic, Philosophy, and Politics.

Given the mess our country is in he needs to attain stunning
foreign policy experience, such as negotiating the Dayton Peace
Accords and serving as NATO's Supreme Allied Commander of NATO in Europe. Also, lead a multinational force to halt ethnic cleansing in Kosovo and return 1.5 million ethnic Albanians to their homes without the loss of a single American life. Be one of the few military
leaders ever to insist on using that institution for humanitarian
reasons.

Nice to have, but not essential:

-Earning the silver star for valor in battle.
-Working as a White House fellow.
-Be incredibly personable, humorous, self-deprecating, and compassionate.
-Have extensive experience working with African Americans and
care deeply about issues that effect them and us.
-Ideally, be a Southerner so he doesn't have to get
one on the ticket.

Oops, already done.

Ok...then I think he needs to sell his clothes on ebay.

I know! He can become one of the few four star Generals in the US!
And be a veteran military man to appeal to those demographics.
Oh wait...