Kerry holds his own on Endorsements

[sandnsea]

Democrats still love Kerry!

"Despite John F. Kerry's sagging poll numbers in New Hampshire, one of the state's top elected officials defied convention wisdom recently: Manchester's mayor, Bob Baines, publicly embraced the Massachusetts Democrat and endorsed his campaign for their party's presidential nomination.

It was part of a pattern in which 27 prominent Granite State Democrats have thrown their backing to Kerry this year, a half-dozen of them -- including former Governor Jeanne Shaheen -- since his poll numbers peaked in August. That total, according to a tally by the politicsnh.com website, is more than three times as many who are supporting former Vermont governor Howard Dean, and almost twice the number who are backing two other candidates, Representative Richard A. Gephardt of Missouri and Senator John Edwards of North Carolina.

That pattern holds true in Iowa, which kicks off the delegate-selection process with its Jan. 19 caucuses. Kerry is running third in the polls behind Gephardt and Dean, but has gotten the endorsements of 23 of 68 Democrats in the state Legislature, including Mary Mascher, the minority whip of the House, and Senator Dennis Black of Grinnell, whose district includes the Maytag appliance headquarters and its unionized workforce. The total is more than Gephardt's and Dean's combined.

<snip>

Kerry argues that his broad, continued string of endorsements is a tangible sign of his campaign's viability. "Why do these institutional players do that?" he asked yesterday during a meeting with Globe editors and reporters. "Because they believe I can beat George Bush, because they want to run on a ticket with me, and because they believe I speak to the sort of uniting part of our party."
http://www.boston.com/news/politics/president/kerry/articles/2003/12/12/in_endorsement_race_kerry_holds_his_own/

[Hep]

1. But but

Elected officials aren't supposed to give endorsements!

Good for Kerry.

[sandnsea]

2. Well thank you!

And now you know why I post so few positive Kerry threads! And I would like to kick my fellow Kerry supporters for not responding too!

Superdelegates are not supposed to endorse. Any other elected official is free to do whatever they want.

[oasis]

3. Please don't kick me, I just got here from my time zone. Great news

:-)

[NewYorkerfromMass]

4. consider me kicked

thanks (I think).

What I like about these endorsements is they show where the legislators who are in the trenches everyday place their confidence.

[Octafish]

5. Ouch!

Sorry, I missed the post. This I do know:

John Kerry would make the best President this country has had in two generations, at least.

[blm]

6. I concur...

Hey...I live on toddler time. ;)

[Armstead]

7. Ha,ha

"...because they believe I speak to the sort of uniting part of our party."

Kerry uniting the party? Ha.....ha.....ha,ha,ha.

[blm]

10. Most REAL Democrats know his record and the battles he took on

and appreciate him. Where has Dean been for 15 years? Complaining about the looney left and how Gephardt and Dukakis were too liberal for him. Dean was one of the conservative Dems pulling the party to the right, and if it wasn't for lefties like Kerry in the Dem party and in the DLC, then Dean's right wing would have won out years ago.

[Jerseycoa]

8. I've been feeling

Kerry's getting his footing back lately. I hate to say it out loud, but I do think it. He's a good man, a great senator, and would make a fine president, no shit.


:dem:

[Joe Lieberman]

9. Kerry is a very smart man.

I like his plan for universal health care.

[KaraokeKarlton]

11. Baine's son used to be my boss up until a couple of weeks ago

His son is a moderate Republican and he likes Howard Dean.

[sistersofmercy]

12. This is great for Kerry

Kerry will continue to build momentum, I believe.