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Kerry's supporters cost the Democrats the election
Published on November 4, 2004 By Draginol In Politics

Like many, I had predicted that Kerry would win the election. But he didn't. And now the question is, why? We may never be able to offer a definitive answer to this but I will offer a theory that I think is pretty plausible.

Backlash

People get fed up. And they respond. In politics, that means they come out and vote.

For the past year, Kerry's supporters had made it pretty clear that anyone who supported Bush must be some kind of "moron", "idiot", "racist", "fascist", "red neck", whatever. They referred to the President as a "chimp" and other vile names. And these people, many who don't normally vote, got mad and they decided to come out to vote this time.

That's because the American people are not stupid. They're a vigorous, hard working, enterprising people who have helped make the world a vastly better place (and anyone who disagrees may want to look at 19th century Europe).  The contempt and hatred from Kerry's supporters made a lot of people who were only nominally Bush supporters into energized Bush supporters.

Millions of Americans simply don't want to be associated with Michael Moore and MoveOn.org and snobby Hollywood celebrities or uppity European elites. They got sick of having their views jammed down their throats. They got sick of the media flagrantly siding with Kerry. One might even say that the New York Times did a lot to help Bush win. Americans could see the unfairness in that these self-appointed elites got to have their say while they were expected to be quiet and take it. After all, why should some has-been Hollywood comedienne get to be on a panel on Hardball when millions of hard working Americans never go to have their voice heard? So they fought back with the only weapon they have: Their vote.

Kerry supporters increased the Bush vote one dinner party at a time. One little league game at a time. One office lunch room at a time. With their smug contempt for those who weren't as "enlightened" as they were. And their nasty attitudes towards Bush and his views on social, moral, and foreign policy, they effectively turned themselves into a Get out the vote drive -- for Bush.

Last week my son came home and told me that his friend's mom told him that if Bush won that he would be sent off to war. My son is 7 years old. My friend's mom is a middle-school teacher. Kerry himself would imply that Bush was going to reinstate the draft (January surprise nonsense).  Michael Moore spread the word that Bush was in bed with the Saudi Royal family. Foreign pundits claimed that Bush and Cheney were in Iraq for Halliburton's sake. 

And yet, without a trace of irony, Kerry supporters would argue that people who supported Bush had been swayed by all that "right wing" propaganda. As if the millions of public school teachers, who often are alone amongst their neighbors in their support for Democrats, do so strictly because of their free thinking ways and not because of the constant inflow of disinformation from the NEA (teachers unions).

And so every time a Kerry supporter, when confronted with a friend or neighbor who said they liked Bush (or didn't hate him at least) would say "Gosh, you seem like a smart guy, how could you not hate Bush?" they effectively energized someone who might have sat out the election because of Bush's deficit spending or other failings.

If you look at the actual returns state by state (especially county by county when compared to 2000) it becomes pretty clear. Kerry didn't do bad really. He got 5 MILLION more votes than Gore did.  It's just that Bush got 8 million more votes than he did last time. And most of those votes were from "average Americans" in rural or suburban areas.

In short, millions of Americans voted for Bush not because they were "fearful" of terror (the exit polls demonstrate that). No, they voted for Bush because they saw the smug contempt that Kerry's pretentious supporters have for the values and beliefs that they have. And they did something about it - they came out and voted.


Comments (Page 4)
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on Nov 05, 2004
Iron Bob, I find your comments about Republicans totally condescending and arrogant. You talk about us as if we were mindless idiots. You, however, out the goodness of your heart chose to actually communicate and even go to parties with Republicans. How kind of you. And you state that you talked to some of them. How difficult that must have been for you when you faced ridicule from your intellectual Democrat friends. What a martyr you are. Republicans everywhere thank you for being willing to lower yourself to our level and try to convert us. Attitudes like yours are going to cause a civil war. Just because I don't agree with you and your Democratic friends, doesn't mean I'm stupid or misguided or unenlightened.
on Nov 05, 2004

You can see even in some of these responses that many Kerry supporters really have not come to grips that their hate of Bush was some repellent to the majority of Americans that it helped turn out the Bush vote.

You can only call people "morons, idiots, red necks, homophobes, jesus freaks, racists, bigots, etc." so many times before they get fed up and decide to come out and make sure those people who say those kinds of things are thwarted.

on Nov 05, 2004
It was HIGHER this year than since 1968!

It doesn't matter, though. Only 65% (at most) registered voters actually voted this year. Had even 2 - 3% of the 35% who failed to show, voted Kerry, we probably would have a different Commander in Chief.
on Nov 05, 2004
You can only call people "morons, idiots, red necks, homophobes, jesus freaks, racists, bigots, etc." so many times before they get fed up and decide to come out and make sure those people who say those kinds of things are thwarted.

What pisses me off so much about this argument is that I know you're a lot smarter then this, Drag. .

Democrats called Republicans naughty names so they got angry and voted Bush like they never voted before. What a load. What really happened is Conservative Christians showed up to the polls forming a solid base in the midwest and south, any other voters played as buffer. Independents and young voters threw themselves at Kerry, but still failed to round out the Democratic turnout to a number like that of the Republicans. The worst part about this is not that many people voted because of "morals" or their wishing a continuence of their culture being represented in the persona of Bush but that the Bush administration will continue to fail to deliver the goods to these voters.
Prayer in schools, illegal abortion, a flamethrower in the hand of every child, etc., etc. will still be things that don't materialize in the Bush administration. Unaddressed problems such as the deficit, healthcare, jobs, and security issues will continue to be ignored, and Bush supporters will still say, "at least my guy is in office". Ridiculous.

on Nov 05, 2004
A little post-election humor.....

"Kerry and Edwards are taking a stroll around Capitol Hill when he
meets a little girl
carrying a small basket with a blanket over it. Curiously, Kerry asks
the girl, "What's in the basket?"
She replies, "New baby kittens," and she opens the basket to show him.
"How nice" says Kerry. "What kind are they?"
The little girl says, "Democrats."
Kerry smiles and pats the little girl on the head, and they continue
on.
About three weeks later, Kerry, walking around Capitol Hill with
another Congressional
colleague, sees the same little girl again with the same basket.
Kerry says to his colleague, "Watch this; it's very cute". As they
approach the little girl. Kerry asks the girl, "How are the kittens?"
She says, "Fine."
He then asks, "Again, what kind of kittens are they?"
This time she replies, "Republicans."
Somewhat abashed, Kerry says, "Three weeks ago you said they were
Democrats!"
"I know," she says, "But now their eyes are open."
on Nov 05, 2004
"I know," she says, "But now their eyes are open."

Open only to be price gouged out. Healthcare premiums, gas, outsourced jobs...the list goes on of expenses that have snowballed under this administration.

Enjoy paying for natural gas to heat your home this winter, if you get too cold, you may have to visit the hospital where you are uninsured, but because you can't afford gasoline, you simply die at home praying to God and wishing he'd give G.W. and the Republican legislature and bump on the head. Oh, come on! That's a joke! Right?
on Nov 05, 2004
Iron Bob, I find your comments about Republicans totally condescending and arrogant. You talk about us as if we were mindless idiots. You, however, out the goodness of your heart chose to actually communicate and even go to parties with Republicans. How kind of you. And you state that you talked to some of them. How difficult that must have been for you when you faced ridicule from your intellectual Democrat friends. What a martyr you are. Republicans everywhere thank you for being willing to lower yourself to our level and try to convert us. Attitudes like yours are going to cause a civil war. Just because I don't agree with you and your Democratic friends, doesn't mean I'm stupid or misguided or unenlightened.


The reason liberals I know don't want to talk to Republicans is that they are afraid all Republicans are as obnoxious and belligerant as you, "Proud to be an American".

And yes, it is difficult to have a constructive conversation with anyone who might vehemently disagree with you. I'm not a martyr. I'm not "lowering myself" to anyone's level. I'm just someone who believes that if people on opposite sides of an issue actually listen to each other, rather than hurling insults and wise cracks, we might actually have some progress in this country.

And I never said that Republicans are mindless idiots. I said that is the view of elitist Democrats. But I stand by my view that Republicans care more about the moral force of an argument than the logic of it. I don't think that is a sign of stupidity. It's a sign of idealism. I just wish Democrats could learn how to tap into that same moral force in their own arguments.
on Nov 05, 2004
O.K., I give up. I'll take my "obnoxious and belligerant" attitude and humor elsewhere, but if I haven't frozen to death or died uninsured in four years, I'll be voting again, and I'll remember the gracious way Democrats lose elections.
on Nov 05, 2004
I'm happy that the liberals haven't learned the error of their way. Republicans are going to keep winning!
on Nov 05, 2004

Reply #51 By: Deference - 11/5/2004 12:29:51 PM
It was HIGHER this year than since 1968!

It doesn't matter, though. Only 65% (at most) registered voters actually voted this year. Had even 2 - 3% of the 35% who failed to show, voted Kerry, we probably would have a different Commander in Chief


It DOES matter. "Only 65 % of the registered voters voted"! What you fail to comprehend is that the 65% is the LARGEST turnout of voters since 1968 too!
on Nov 05, 2004

I just think Bush has such a stranglehold on how Americans view politics that they aren't really able to think for themselves on the issues that matter, they just listen to what is presented to them without taking it upon themselves to research the issue.
Shwade, you are pointing out what draginol is getting at.  We conservatives are the ones who don't think for ourselves and educate ourselves to the issues...bull flop!  I am soooo sick of hearing that.  I am more educated to the issues and have taken more time to think for myself than most people I know.  Just because I have a different view on how things should be handled doesn't mean I know less about it than you.


Your point about conservatives defending Bush doesn't hold water in my experience either.  I know an awful lot of conservatives who will be the first to point out things that have gone wrong in the administration.  I am not saying all Republicans are well mannered but in my own experience there was a lot more condescension (you yourself exemplified) coming from the left.  I can understand the backlash that Draginol is talking about.  The constant condescension and insults didn't make anyone into a Bush supporter but it made Bush supporters make sure they and the other Bush supporters they knew got out to vote on Tues.

on Nov 05, 2004
What's interesting is reading how liberals and conservatives disagree on why Kerry lost. On this, I'll side with the conservatives I spoke to, some who I shared my opinion earlier in the year.

Kerry didn't make people feel good about supporting Bush at any time during his presidency--quite the opposite. Much like this thread creator suggested, people reacted negatively to the suggestion that they were supporting and idiot, probably because it implied something about themselves. To counteract this charge against Bush, they chose instead to go out and vote with him on his character.

A good example of campaign mismanagement was the Kerry team's work in the post-Fahrenheit 9/11 news coverage. I'm not sure how he could have handled it other than perhaps denying an evil agenda by Bush in public while Moore's film was very high profile. Kerry would have still drawn the large youth vote, but he would have echoed Bush's strategy: not talking-down the Swift Boat ads, but instead praising Kerry for his service to the country.

Now, none of that means that Bush isn't an idiot or that he's handled foreign policy very well, but sometimes you let the other side do your negative campaigning for you.
on Nov 05, 2004

What pisses me off so much about this argument is that I know you're a lot smarter then this, Drag. .

And so we have a text book example. Because my opinion doesn't coincide with Deference's enlightened views, I must not be thinking smartly.

I KNOW why I voted for Bush. I know what motivated me from a feeling of apathy towards Bush towards wanting him to win and that was having my views and opinions constantly ridiculed by the media, hollywood elites, and rank and file Kerry supporters.

While both sides behaved badly in various times, Kerry supporters were much worse.

Consider: # of times Kerry was interupted at the DNC due to some protester: 0 Number of times Bush's speech was interupted due to protesters: 3.

It just goes down the line throughout the year. The utter contempt the left had for the rights of conservatives pissed people off. 

I support US policy in Iraq. Am I on the pay-roll for Haliburton? A Nazi? A Chicken Hawk? Or just a deluded red neck? It's so hard to keep up with the reasons.

on Nov 05, 2004

But I stand by my view that Republicans care more about the moral force of an argument than the logic of it

. Well Iron Bob you must be new to JoeUser. Because anyone who has spent any serious time debating politics on-line will tell you that liberals are much more likely to appeal to emotions and it's conservatives who are much more likely to try to back up their arguments with facts and data.  The best liberals around here tend to do is post a link to some left-wing website that has patted out some distorted article on a given topic.

on Nov 05, 2004

I can understand the backlash that Draginol is talking about.  The constant condescension and insults didn't make anyone into a Bush supporter but it made Bush supporters make sure they and the other Bush supporters they knew got out to vote on Tues.

Precisely. Many MANY people I know were nominally for Bush but rarely bother to go out and vote. But this year they were so sick of the nastiness of the left that they went out, got registered and stood in line to vote.

Unlike the liberals in Hollywood, the average conservative doesn't get to have their views presented on TV very often so voting is the only way they get to express their political views.

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