There are not so many days to the convention.
In that spirit here's a gumbo of thoughts, hopefully nutritious and delectable...
cooked up by kid o....
In a word, that was about as good a convention as we could have hoped for. Don't take my word on it...take a look at what GWB is doing:
a) reinventing his stump speech with some LAME new phrases
b) plotting more HATE for August
For all the GOP spin points said it was going to be a "hate" fest, for all they said we were "weird", we proudly flew our flag in an inclusive way and, as Mark Shields noted, we used the name George W. Bush a total of 12 times from the podium. Count em'. An average of four times a day in prime time. Hmmm, take that spinmeisters.
Here's my take on the five biggest strengths of the convention and the five things we could have done better.
Strengths:
- Kerry stood before the nation and proved he could be President and Commander and Chief....he looked it, he sounded it and he acted it. He is a changed man with that speech, nuff said.
- Team Kerry ran a tight convention. Tight on message, tight on visuals, tight on dishing out just enough red meat for everyone to be happy. Dems are unified and "pro-Kerry", swing voters who were paying attention got something to chew on. And, most importantly, a powerful signal was sent in how "tight" and well-run this convention was. They who run good conventions show they can run the country.
- Truly great speechmaking by too many names to mention.
- The key personalities inoculated themselves by being themselves at their best. Kerry was Kerry. THK was THK. and so on. At the end of the day, that level of personal honesty will help us down the road.
- Barack Obama gave us something to remember for the rest of our lives. That was special. It was also critical. A Black man stood up and gave the same patriotic, unifying message Kerry and Edwards did. We needed that, more than most would like to admit.
Weaknesses
- Edwards. I hyped him too much. He dissappointed by not rooting his speech in 2004 and the current situation in Iraq. He also was way too concerned about "appearance" to the point of visibly stage mangaing himself and his family both Wednesday and Thursay. A GOP critic called him "Johnny One Note"....he needs to reword his speeches for August. We need more from him. Thankfully, I think he has it.
- Kerry. John Kerry needed to pause just once during that speech and address the troops in Iraq. Too much VietNam by 25%, to little of our current soldiers by 50%.
- Sharpton. To be frank, he fired up the base...and hurt us with everyone else. Not critically, but significantly. Al is off-putting to non-Democrats. We needed 50% less of Al, and 75% more from Howard. Too bad.
- THK: Why a headline speaker? She came off weak. She needs a cause. Some one concrete thing to give an indication of what kind of first lady she would be. It would help folks focus on that issue instead of her.
- We didn't talk about the $87 Billion dollars. We should not be running away from this. On one level it is the key to the election.
Second Course: August
Here, and finally, are five things to look out for in August and down the home stretch.
#1: Fight the hate with humor, love and facts. Whether it's from the media, the GOP, or from some interloper here, the best thing we can do as Democrats is stay unified and positive and yet, persist in fighting the HATE.
Do I regret writing my previous diary...the band of assholes? Nope. Not in the least, because that's what they are. But I also firmly believe that if we are going to win the ultimate battle in this country, it's going to be by lifting up the discourse, and governing ALL of America. Sadly, this band of assholes is beyond lifting up. Too bad. Their days in power are numbered.
#2: Edwards: This is the moment John Edwards got picked for. To advoid this Johnny One Note line...which I think could gain some legs...he needs to rework his stump...rework his arguments..and I think he needs to address, specifically the Bush record. It's a presidential campaign against an incumbant for god's sakes, SOMEONE has got to substantively address their, ahem, results.
If it were up to me...I would have John Edwards explain exactly what was wrong with the $87 Billion appropriations right out of the gate. It's about foreign policy, it addresses his Senate vote and a GOP attack...and it is the single greatest GOP weakness.
George Bush asked us for a TON of money on top of what we'd already spent...and they flubbed up Iraq miserably. Edwards job should be to address this.
#3: Kerry:
Kerry needs to keep the "presidential" thing going. He's got it strong...he needs to keep it up. He needs to remember that every single President in history has been attacked ruthlessly by the other side. He's gonna get his, and he knows it.
He should not fall into the trap of "defending" himself from anything petty. He should let these wash.
However, if they attack or spin THK in ANY way whatsoever, he should hit back and HIT HARD. THK is off limits, and John should make that clear the second they cross that line. Nothing wimpy, nothing stentorian, just a clear, piercing. "Leave my wife out of this"
#4: The real heart of the matter
There is ALWAYS more to do on Congressional races. If all of us on dKos gave some dough..or some time...or did some GOTV in favor of our favorite swing state Congressional race, we will all have something HUGE to root for come election day.
I think we should all "adopt" a candidate in a swing state and do what we can. It is doubly effective. It helps drive GOTV in that state, and it helps Kerry / Edwards if they get elected.
#5: On the personal front. (as someone who's been burned before)
Have fun. Have a life. Be political...but be happy as well. We may very well win this thing....if things go terribly wrong we may not. But all politics is ultimately about building a world where you are a healthy, happy person....
not a slave to organizing, protesting, and following the news. Trust me. You are allowed to have a life. There is always more any of us could have done....don't fall into the zero sum game....it's bad for you and bad politics to boot.
Saturday night gumbo, all must my opinion.....with as much dirt as I could muster.