A Politically Weak President - WSJ's Al Hunt

(snip)


Most of all, it (the Kerry campaign) needs better strategic direction. (Why is John Sasso, one of the best political strategists in the business, being underutilized over at the Democratic National Committee?) The Bush operatives have zeroed in on their opponent's core weakness -- he's an opportunistic waffler. But the Kerry camp has yet to precisely target the core Bush weakness.

The Massachusetts senator has to convey a much better sense of where he wants to take the country, convincing voters he is a sure and decisive leader. Recent private Democratic polls show Sen. Kerry trailing President Bush on the matter of leadership by sizeable double-digits among swing voters in swing states.

He has to act steadfast in matters large and small. Despite the growing threat of Ralph Nader on the left -- bring our boys home -- it would be dangerous to be seen waffling again on Iraq. And somebody better tell him that his proclivity for politically correct responses -- he denies owning a gas-guzzling SUV, it's a family car -- resembles Al Gore's exaggeration problem four years ago. The Gore camp insisted it was a false rap (it really was), but when the candidate sloppily exaggerated in a presidential debate, it was a killer.

It may be largely a function of the season, but there is growing dismay among Democratic professionals around the country about the Kerry operation. Telling, they say, is the campaign's inability to fashion a slogan -- like JFK's "Let's get the country moving again," or Bill Clinton's, "It's the economy, stupid" -- that voters easily understand. "Together, we can build a stronger America" may be an awkward beginning of something -- stressing strength and the case that the incumbent has been a divider, not a uniter. Also it's worth remembering that the Clinton slogan wasn't formulated until July of 1992.

In the hand-wringing over his deficiencies, the Kerry strengths are sometimes overlooked. He has passed a critical threshold; most Americans think he's experienced and knowledgeable enough to be president, and he has commander-in-chief credentials. This isn't a campaign that needs to be overhauled, but it needs to add some smart and experienced talent that can address some clear flaws. If that's done, and the candidate responds accordingly and stops waffling, a good convention -- and an inspired vice-presidential choice -- can wipe out many of the negatives planted by the Bush campaign.

(snip)

URL for this article:
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB108380097903503469,00.html


The article also has a graph of May approval ratings of past elections:

2004:
Bush 48%
Kerry 45%

1992:
Bush 47%
Clinton 43%

1980:
Carter 50%
Reagan 42%

baby it ain't over till it's over...

It was an internal slogan, not something that Clinton or his campaign used in public. Hunt should know better.

If this the best the WSJ can do things are going well.

Democrats can never seem to find a unifying campaign theme they can return to again and again.

I like: "George W. Bush, what is he hiding?" Warned in advance about 911? Knew there were no wmd's? "He has a disturbing and long record of concealing the truth." We find out he got arrested for possession and it's "Not surprising because it's a pattern, you wonder what else he's hiding."

Could have been used to great effect in 2000 and may still in 2004.

lately. Even in this column where he supposedly is "worried about Kerry's message" he takes "pot shots" at Gore. That's a "tip off" that he's doing nothing but putting out a Repug strategy to criticize Kerry by looking like he's offering advice.

You would think these "hacks" like hunt and his wife Judy Woodruff would realize "they" don't control information anymore. Democrats have newer voices out there that we trust more than these dated semi Repugs. operatives. :grr: