Bob Schrum, the consultant who managed the Kerry campaign in 2004, and who has managed to lose every presidential campaign he has been involved in, is publishing his memoirs. In his memoirs, according to this Boston Globe article, he writes that Kerry was skeptical of Bush and didn't want to vote for the resolution authorizing military force. According to Schrum, he was talked into by Jim Jordan, his former press secretary and his campaign manager in the early part of the 04 campaign.
This whole story, if true, illustrates the problem with listening to others when considering what you stand for and what you support and don't support. Obviously Kerry's instincts about Bush and the war vote were accurate. He was right to be skeptical. He was wrong, however, to let Jordan talk him into doing anything he didn't think should be done. If he had voted his conscience instead of Jordan's advice, he might be president today because he would have presented a lot clearer message on the war.
Years ago there was a advertising executive who worked on Republican presidential and state campaigns. He said that when he first got into consulting candidates would come to him and say, "This is what I believe. I want you help me get elected." Then he said that candidates started coming to him and said, "What do I need to believe to get elected?" He said that was when he got out of doing political campaigns.
Such candidates are not only found on the Republican side as the Globe article shows. Too many Democratic candidates and Democratic consultants are in politics because they want to be "in politics" not because there are certain things they want to accomplish or certain ideas they want to promote. Apparently John Kerry is one of those candidates. Kerry didn't deserve to be president, but the we certainly didn't deserve to have George W. Bush re-elected president.
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Don't know when this article was posted, but it's surely the reason why I was not totally behind kerry throughout that campaign....it's frightening to me that democratice candidates are so weak-knee'd....shame on them...(local officials, like Mike Kovak, excluded). And you wonder why folks lean towards the independents...I watched a focus group study on c-span last night who were being quizzed on the upcoming presidential, and felt sad that we have to rely on FOCUS groups instead of actual personal belief systems of potential leaders. I understand the concept, certainly, but for MARKETING products, not leadership. Diane Mambuca
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