Ohh, a political fracas! Wild horses could not stop me from contributing my 2 cents!
IAM endorses Gephardt, not the least of which is because he was the leading light against NAFTA. Gephardt folds like a cheap suit, so IAM
endorses .................Kerry, who not only is an elitist (they teach you at IAM school you can't be a good unionist AND an elitist) SOB, but voted FOR................NAFTA!
How come? Because the Dem powers-that-be, among them the AFL-CIO, after telling their membership this is the most critical election of our lifetime ( I actually happen to agree) are conducting business as usual.
Rather than consider a very electable but not solidly leftist Edwards, the Dems would rather be 'right' and lose with Kerry.
Bush will eke out a victory over Kerry because;
1. Kerry has a voting record more liberal than Teddy. Yeah, that's gonna play well in the South and the West. Oh, that's right, Kerry has already written off the South! :angry: Note to JFK. While it is mathematically possible to win the Presidency without the South, it has not been done in modern times. "You sir, are no JFK."
2. Business as usual is killing the working class. The 8% of swing voters up for grabs will see Kerry has no compelling vision for their economic well-being, and vote for a standing commander in chief. Or just stay home.
3. The Dems are talking as if just opposing Bush will carry the day. WRONG! They must be FOR something. A sure recipe for disaster.
4. Republicans are playing like a team - united, on message, aggressive. Dems are, as usual, divided. Think about this perfidy. Hillary wants to run in 08, hence Bush must win '04, and all Dems bloodied. Her play is Bush screws the pooch SO badly, even she is electable (I'd call it delusional). The only Dem she fears long-term is Edwards, soooooooooo, the Clinton machine, advisers and $$ guys support Clark. Think about it. With no Clark, Edwards wins a few more states, like Oklahoma, and is in striking distance of Kerry. Another perfidy. The country club Dems, like the DNC, don't particularly like Edward's populism (geez, we'd actually have to deliver). So, rather than let the primaries play out, all the Dem big guns are now supporting Kerry, to suck away the oxygen from Edwards and dry up the money.
Here's a little pop-quiz. Did any of the labor groups, or any other Democratic institution, poll their members as to their preferences, prior to endorsing Kerry?
With all due respect to my union, I have been paying attention to politics since I was 10 years old, and am quite capable of making up my own mind. After careful observation, I took it upon myself to meet with Edwards well before he announced, and well before the media began speculating about such an announcement. I told him then he was my guy for President. I have seen or heard nothing to change my mind.
I mailed another contribution yesterday.
