http://www.nationalpost.com/world/story.html?id=4548950E-A173-48E9-A95E-D22E684A4684Doomsayers misjudge this President -With no viable competitors, Bush's popularity holds firm in runup to 2004 elections
Kelly McParland National Post Wednesday, November 05, 2003
...(Dean) Treated as a sort of Jimmy Stewart figure -- the plain-speaking country doctor from Vermont who's going to take a broom to all those professional politicians in Washington -- he's been featured on every magazine cover, accompanied by awestruck reports recounting his amazing discovery that you can raise lots of money over the Internet. Scam artists from Nigeria have known this for years, and no one wants to rush them into the White House, but never mind. Mr. Dean is the candidate du jour, and will stay that way until he stumbles.
Yet despite all the attention, and a year of hard campaigning, the best Mr. Dean has managed in Iowa is a stalemate with Mr. Gephardt, a worthy but wooden performer who makes Al Gore look sexy and who has tried on several earlier occasions to convince Americans they might like to make him their president. Or at least their presidential candidate.
In New Hampshire Mr. Dean has a solid lead over John Kerry, who doesn't have much of a platform beyond the conviction that, having been a senator long enough, it's time he took a shot at the top job. Both he and Mr. Dean are favourite sons in New Hampshire -- each representing a nearby state -- but Mr. Dean seems to be the most favourite because he has a clearer idea of why he wants to be president. He was opposed to the Iraq war from the beginning, and said so; Mr. Kerry supported the war, but now wishes he hadn't and is trying to wriggle out of having done so.<snip>
A third alternative is the absence of an attractive alternative. Mr. Dean has spelled out what he's against, but not what he's for. What would he do in Iraq: bring home all the troops and leave Iraqis to the chaos? Hand power to the first Iraqi administration that can manoeuvre itself into position, no matter how corrupt or lacking in credibility? Or shift it all to the UN for another decade of pointless jawboning?<snip>
kmcparland@nationalpost.com