If Election Hinges on Iraq, Kerry May Need Added Firepower (VP Clark?)

[papau]

http://www.latimes.com/news/columnists/la-na-outlook3may03,1,7898141,print.column

If Election Hinges on Iraq, Kerry May Need Added Firepower
Ronald Brownstein

May 3, 2004

<snip>But that doesn't mean Kerry will automatically benefit. Instead, he faces a paradox. The more Americans focus on Iraq, the more they seem to weigh credibility as commander in chief when choosing between the candidates.

And despite their anxieties about the occupation, far more Americans say they trust Bush rather than Kerry to safeguard the nation's security.

Kerry may narrow that gap somewhat as more voters learn about his experience as a combat veteran in Vietnam and his nearly 20 years on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. But that story alone probably won't solve his problem, especially with the Bush campaign spending so heavily on television advertisements that paint Kerry as weak on defense.

<snip>One of Kerry's best opportunities to send that message could come through his selection of a running mate. So far, though, there's little evidence that the campaign is thinking in that direction. The rumors in Democratic circles are focused almost entirely on those who would help Kerry most on domestic issues: Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina, Rep. Dick Gephardt of Missouri and Gov. Tom Vilsack of Iowa.

<snip>Even more intriguing is a name that has attracted even less attention: former NATO Supreme Commander and 2004 Democratic presidential contender Wesley K. Clark. The irony is that Clark probably would be generating more buzz as a potential vice president if he hadn't sought his party's nomination. The consensus in Democratic circles is that the retired Army general dimmed his prospects through an uneven performance on the campaign trail.<snip>

[papau]

1. dupe

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x515954

[quinnox]

2. This news was already posted down below but my opinion is

Clark would make a good vice-president. But I'm not sure he wants the job, yesterday I read a CNN transcript where he said he isn't interested.

[Adelante]

3. He isn't interested in talking to the press

He respects Kerry's wish for a private process. We do know that if Kerry asks, Clark will be there. He would never deny the country his service, wherever needed, and he will move heaven and earth for John Kerry, because he has pledged to get Kerry elected. I don't know that Wes wants VP or that Kerry wants him as VP, but Wes will do whatever it takes, no doubt there.