What John Kerry lacks
Thursday, June 10, 2004 - Page A22
As 2,000 Democratic activists gathered in Wa****ngton last week to
plot
President George W. Bush's defeat in the coming presidential election, the
energy in the room was electric. The guest of honour leaped to the stage;
the crowd emitted a spontaneous roar. The speech was a barnburner.
Pity, for the Democrats, that it was delivered by Howard Dean.
With six months to go until the U.S. election day, Democratic
nominee
John Kerry's muted impact on the campaign trail has some Democrats deeply
worried. Mr. Dean has no trouble whipping crowds into an anti-Bush frenzy.
Neither does former vice-president Al Gore. But what's the matter with the
nominee himself? Mr. Bush is beset by a prisoner-abuse scandal, soaring
gasoline prices and a war that's proving far more costly than many
expected.
Polls show Americans growing progressively more skeptical of the
in***bent.
Why aren't they warming up to Mr. Kerry?
To some extent, the hand-wringing among Democrats is overdone. The
latest CBS News poll finds Mr. Kerry with 49-per-cent sup****t among
registered voters, compared with 41 per cent for Mr. Bush. The President's
personal approval ratings are mired in the low 40s, a nadir for his
presidency. Mr. Bush's recent efforts to recast his war leader****p in a
more
positive light have had limited effect.
That said, the Kerry campaign's inherent weaknesses -- some stemming
from the man, others from his message -- are becoming all too obvious.
First, the man. Whatever Bill Clinton had in abundance -- call it
charisma, charm or *** appeal -- Mr. Kerry lacks to an equal degree. Even
in
his home state, observers say, the senator is respected rather than liked,
let alone loved. Whereas Mr. Clinton as president struggled to keep his
humanity in check, Mr. Kerry at times seems barely human. His "band of
brothers" routine, in which former Vietnam comrades-in-arms praise his
leader****p and character, is politically effective. But it's no substitute
for likeability. Even Mr. Bush, charisma-challenged in his own right,
appears more comfortable in his skin.
Next, the message. As a Democrat facing a war president, Mr. Kerry
has
sought to capitalize on his Vietnam war heroism, which contrasts starkly
with Mr. Bush's spotty attendance in the Texas Air National Guard.
However,
his fellow veterans don't seem to be hearing Mr. Kerry's message. Polls
show
they overwhelmingly prefer Mr. Bush, by 54 per cent to 40.
That may be because of Mr. Kerry's astoni****ngly clumsy handling of
his anti-war activities after he returned from Vietnam, including the
question of whether he actually threw away his medals (he didn't). Or it
may
be because veterans simply don't know where he stands. Mr. Kerry sup****ted
the decision to go to war in Iraq, then voted against appropriations for
the
reconstruction. The Democratic nominee now insists America must stay the
course. But many Republicans, whose votes he needs to win the presidency,
will wonder whether he means it.
At the same time, many left-leaning Democrats are increasingly
uncomfortable with Mr. Kerry's hawkishness, which they deem too close to
the
White House. They see critics such as Mr. Dean and Mr. Gore spitting fire
at
Mr. Bush's foreign policy, on which he has based his entire bid for
re-election, while Mr. Kerry holds back.
Increasingly, the senator is in a bind. If he attacks Mr. Bush
full-bore, he risks alienating veterans and military families. If he
doesn't, he runs a growing risk of missing the wave of anti-Bush sentiment
that is fuelling liberal activism across the country. Bad news for Mr.
Bush,
counterintuitive though this may seem, is not necessarily good news for
Mr.
Kerry.
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