Kerry Is Impatient With Democratic Oratory About Stolen Election

[KittyWampus]

July 2, 2003

He is impatient with Democratic oratory about the "stolen" election. "Stop crying in your teacups," he told one audience. "It isn't going to change. Get over it."

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/connelly/129019_joel02.html

[JI7]

1. he is right

people need to stop crying over it

[mhr]

12. He Is Wrong And This Is The Reason He Should Not Be Elected

The facts are that Jeb and Kathleen engineered a Bush victory in Florida by purging the voter rolls of African Americans.

Well documented, indisputable, go read Greg Palast.

Case closed.

Kerry should be better informed.

[Hawkeye-X]

24. No he isn't.

Kerry quickly loses AA support based on the stolen election whine, therefore sinks in the South. Congratulations to Kerry for alienating the disenfranchised AA voters.

Hawkeye-X

[jpgray]

2. Again, Kerry was one of the ONLY Dems to stand with Gore on the recount

And moreover, he echoed Gore's exact statement. Read Will Pitt's interview and then get back to me--the sentiment is "quit crying about it, start fighting it."

This is something quoted out of context that has been explained by the candidate several times. Read Pitt's interview.

[in_cog_ni_to]

3. He should be as outraged

as should every Democrat who voted in that election. Why isn't he? That's what I want to know. An election was STOLEN! He should be FURIOUS! :grr:

[RandomKoolzip]

4. Wrong.

Sorry, the 2000 election was a major miscarriage of justice, and is a precursor to more insane elction-riging shenanigans, unless we get the BBV crap taken care of. Sorry, John, far too many of us were ill-served and cheated at the booths in 2000. I won't get over it....this was a major incident, like 9/11.

[librechik]

5. well gee, guess I better just give up on the idea that seeking justice

can take a long time and an American who wants, say, civil rights for blacks, should stop being persistent and resolute about demanding accountability. Stop crying in your teacup. Let this one go. It's a minor thing and there's nothing we can do about it.

Election Fraud? Don't get your panties in a wad. Disenfranchised Florida citizens? Hey it's only one state, let it go. Having a criminal for a president?

VOTE KERRY!!


hmmmmm....

[WiseMen]

6. Peope need to take ACTION rather than whine. Kerry stood with Gore

Now he is going to run Bush out of the White House.

[goobergunch]

17. Where was Kerry on January 6, 2001?

During the joint session various House members rose to make a point of order, object to the counting of the electoral votes from Florida, or to make a motion. The presiding officer and chair, Vice President Gore, held that each case required a writing signed by both a Member of the House and a Senator. None were signed by a Senator and none were received. -- The Congressional Record, Volume 147, Page D14

http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getpage.cgi?dbname=2001_record&page=D14&position=all

That was the time for action.

[Samantha]

26. I do not remember Kerry standing with Gore

and I followed the campaign for 2 to 3 hours each day, start to finish. I do know Kerry actually considered challenging Gore for the nomination because he thought his (Kerry's) time had come. A number of things convinced him not to do this. Kerry did make the short list of people being considered for Gore's Vice President, but Kerry did not make the final cut. Some people have suggested that Kerry had a hint of scandal in his background, a scandal of a sexual nature. I personally do not feel it was anything significant. But thinking about those very specific times, Gore determined he could not afford even the hint of a sexual scandal to taint the campaign.

The Kerrey I saw step out and support Gore was former Senator Bob Kerrey. Bob Kerrey challenged Bush* on the AWOL issue. Bob Kerrey reviewed his military service, as well as that of Al Gore. He challenged Bush* to explain where he was during those missing months when he failed to report for duty. Bob Kerrey said Bush* owed the American people an explanation. We are still waiting for that explanation.

John Kerry said following the vote of the Electoral College in 2000, "I was not asked to sign the petition of the Congressional Black Caucus, but I would not have signed had I been asked." These very unfortunate remarks, I believe, at that time, rubbing salt into open political wounds, permanently alienated a core group of Gore supporters. Words like these also led to the Sharpton campaign. Sharpton said the Democrats failed to step out and protect the voting rights of the African-American voters and that is why an African-American must run for the top spot. Kerry remained silent on the issue because he calculated he could defeat an incumbent Bush* in 2004 much more easily than an incumbent Gore. In that calculation he threw to the wind the votes of 51 million Democratic voters without so much as an utterance of the unConstitutionality of it all. Kerry was looking after Kerry's best interests. And that is exactly why I will never vote for the man. If my vote were not important enough for him to speak out and try to protect it in 2000, he should not ask for it in 2004.

After all, it is the actions of the Bush* enablers that have greased the wheels of the George W. Bush* coterie of people, and Kerry stands tall among those enablers. Bush has done a lot to all of us, we all have a story, but he couldn't have done it so easily had Kerry, and other people like Kerry exhibited that fighting spirit they now so happily proclaim they possess. Where was his fighting spirit then?

Kerry has zero chance of uniting the base of the Democratic party due to his alienation of the African-American base and his insult to the Gore proponents. A Democratic nomination of John Kerry will hand the election to George Bush* inasmuch as many of us also in the anti-war compartment of this party will never step out to vote for someone who voted yes to the Iraq resolution.

I hope I have made it clear -- it's not just one thing but several -- that make it clear to me that I could never support a Kerry candidacy. If it comes down to Kerry versus Bush*, I'll write in Al Gore, or abstain from voting.

[Ramsey]

7. Get over it

That's exactly what the Pukes say to us. I cannot condone this condescension from one of our candidates.

The 2000 Selection was a travesty, and it should have been universally condemned. Just another pink tutu moment from a congressional Dem, I'm afraid.

[barbaraann]

8. I never get over any injustice. Never.

That's just how I am.

[jpgray]

9. (sigh) People don't even care about facts on this board

Sometimes I wonder why anybody bothers to post them.

[MoonRiver]

10. It's a turnoff, cause I'll NEVER get over it.

Still the best revenge is getting rid of Mr. Fraudulent Resident.

[WhoCountsTheVotes]

11. "Get Over It" - Just what the Republicans say

:eyes:

[Cocoa]

13. there's a pattern

take something that democrats are infuriated AT BUSH about, and turn it around on Kerry.

The stolen election is the ultimate example. What is more infuriating than that?

[adadem]

14. Again, Gore told us the same

thing using different words.

[rawtribe]

15. Boo!

I will get over it when Jeb Bush and Katherine Harris are held accountable for the theft of thousands of minority votes. If Kerry was turned away at the poles would he get over it? Would you? What little democracy we have left in this country is gone, if we get over it.

===============================================

"Timid men prefer the calm of despotism to the tempestuous sea of liberty." --Thomas Jefferson

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

16. He was distinguishing WHINING versus effective action

Kerry was tiptoeing on Sunday, but did go into how liberals shoot themselves in the foot.

Exhibit A, he said, was the enormous amount of effort and money Democrats had to spend in the Northwest in 2000 "to pull people back from the (Ralph) Nader precipice." Invested elsewhere, it might have won the day for Al Gore.

He is impatient with Democratic oratory about the "stolen" election. "Stop crying in your teacups," he told one audience. "It isn't going to change. Get over it."


As one who has worked in political circles for two decades until I got burned out last October, I might not have said it as he did, but I certainly would encourage people to channel their upset into effective action. Those that are angry at Kerry and actually ARE contributing elbow grease to other campaigns may not have liked what he said, but at least they got his fundamental message...complaining doesn't make as much of a difference, nor do defensive actions...taking intiative does.

[meow mix]

29. whining is also preemptive justification of taking action

shut down the "whining" and you might as well just sit on your hands.
humans depend on communication to determine actions? do they not?

kerry is suck.

[evil_orange_cat]

18. I agree with Kerry on this one...

crying about spilled milk isn't going to change anything... we should focus on the future, not the past.

[WilliamPitt]

19. ahem

WRP: In terms of the 2004 campaign, the central argument put up by a lot of people in the Democratic base who are against you is that you don’t “get it.” They see other candidates as fighting for their progressive values, and they see you saying “Get over it” after the election debacle in Florida, as quoted by the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. In contrast, your voting record in the Senate is clearly as progressive as the day is long. Where do you stand with the progressive community? Do you “get it”? Can you be their leader?

JK: I believe that I am the most consistent, most accomplished progressive fighter in this entire field. My record over 35 years of standing up and fighting for progressive causes is clear on with respect to women, with respect to the environment, with respect to children, education, health care, our role in the world, human rights, civil rights. My record is stronger, longer and deeper than any other candidate in this field with respect to the progressive agenda of this party.

When I say “Move on” from 2000, I’m as angry as anyone else. Votes ought to be counted. But my objective is to win. My objective is “Don’t get mad, get even.” They way you get even is to go out and take that agenda to the country and build a coalition around it. I think if you compare my record to the people in this field, I think it’s clear that I am the progressive candidate. I am the one who has stood up and taken the risks and fought for the agenda of my party with consistency.

I think the progressives in our party need to look and see who has the ability to take that progressive agenda and still stand up and beat George Bush. We don’t need to send the country a message. We need to send the country a President.

http://truthout.org/docs_03/122203A.shtml

[curse10]

20. thanks Will, for posting this in every thread that has this bull

:-)

[windansea]

21. don't get mad get even

my favorite expression!!

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

22. bookmarking this thread for this post

[jpgray]

23. Thanks Will--this is the interview I mentioned above. (nt)

[KittyWampus]

25. So NOW Kerry Can Bring Up The Stolen Election? What Hypocracy

because now apparently Kerry is trying to usethe Stolen Election to his advantage.

If we were supposed to get over it... then why even bring it up NOW?

Kerry uttered the words back in July, let him be held accountable for them.

And spend time trying to clarify... like all the other Primary Candidates have to.

[Terwilliger]

28. hmm

I wonder if he'll attempt sweeping voting reforms when he "wins"

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

27. Probably on orders from (DLC) Carville.

We wouldn't want to offend the "moderates" now would we?