Kerry Can't do Anything Right
Reported by Melanie - September 27, 2004 -
Carl Cameron used interesting words in his report from the Kerry campaign today (September 27, 2004) on Dayside w/Linda Vester.
(Read this in conjunction with the companion post, Bush Can't Do Anything Wrong.)
Reporting from Green Springs, Wisconsin, Cameron said Kerry was holding "one of these" town hall meetings "essentially to stay busy" while he prepares for Thursday's debate. He's "trying out" some of the "rhetorical devices" he "will likely use" in the debate. For the past month he's been trying to "hone his rhetoric" to make it "a little bit shorter and a little bit sharper" because the public is more familiar with Bush than with Kerry so the debate is "more important" for Kerry.
Cameron said the debate topics are foreign policy and the war on terror and Kerry "attempted" to answer, in the town hall meeting, the "rhetorical" question of whether or not it's right to change horses in mid-stream. Cameron said that, "in the context of that conversation," Kerry said that if "your horse is headed for the waterfalls or drowning it's a pretty good idea to change horses" and that Kerry "joked" that we need "a taller horse, one that can wade into deeper waters of trouble." Then, Cameron veered completely off course: "suggesting that even though the stage for the debate in Coral Gables on Thursday is designed to not show off Kerry's height advantage, he's trying to counter a stature gap and an advantage that the encumbant normally has, just pointing out that he's a few inches taller than President Bush." (COMMENT: Seriously Cameron, I doubt this is what Kerry was "suggesting." Interestingly, Fox did not air tape of this so we don't know precisely what was said, or how it was said.)
Vester asked how the "restrictive" debate rules will affect Kerry. Cameron, completely ignorning Vester's question, said in March, after the primaries, the campaign said they didn't expect to spend the summer "blasting George Bush every day" and strategists on both sides agreed a negative campaign wouldn't work during such a long campaign. They were going to sharpen and tighten up about now and Kerry has "sharpened his rhetoric considerably. His debate style has always been "very compative," and the Bush campaign doesn't underestimate that Kerry's a "very quick study and a very quick tongue." Cameron said Kerry has been "criticized for being a little bit windy, long winded and lacking a message," they're working on it. One of Bush's "top strategists" said Kerry was likely to "come out of the gate swinging" but Bush will try to show himself to be "more likeable."
COMMENT: Fair & Balanced?
