This year will be the 5th presidential election in which I have voted. And it will be the first in which I will not vote for a major party.
I watched the Democratic party primaries with genuine interest, hoping they could produce a centrist candidate that I could reasonably support. What they gave us, however, was John Kerry, who, in my opinion, is giving excellent lessons in how to lose an election.
Barring a remarkable turnaround (basically, he'll have to win all three debates, in my opinion), Kerry has failed consistently to campaign on the issues. And most importantly, he has lacked a vision. Bill Clinton, for all the Republicans dislike about him, had a vision. Bush 2.0, for all the Democrats dislike about him, had a vision. If Kerry has a vision, he has failed to clearly present that vision to us, choosing instead to focus on what he perceives to be the failures of the Bush administration.
On the Yucca Mountain Nuclear Waste Repository, Kerry has taken a stand against it. But he has failed to express his support for any alternative plan for disposal/storage of the nuclear waste, making many Nevadans quite cynical about the sincerity of his opposition.
On the war in Iraq, he has expressed opposition, but he has failed to clearly outline his exit strategy. I am no military strategist, but I know that abandoning the country without a clear exit strategy is an invitation to chaos and further terror. What's done is done in Iraq, and we need to focus on cleanup.
On education, he has promised 500,000 new teachers, but he has not clearly outlined how he intends to have 500,000 new teachers trained and ready to begin accepting work assignments quickly. He has outlined how he will pay for them (more taxes for the rich), but that is about all he has done).
I have heard a consistent plea for Kerry to campaign on the issues; he has continued to turn a deaf ear to those pleas. It is not enough to want to be president; in doing that you simply share a dream with half of America's 10 year olds. No, you need to understand how to LEAD the country as well.
signing off,
Gideon MacLeish