Kerry-Edwards Ticket Revives Populism Issue

[papau]

"'I brought my own rough rider from North Carolina. . . . He's a lawyer; I'm a lawyer. His name is John; my name is John. He was named People magazine's sexiest politician of the year; I read People magazine.'"

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-econ8jul08.story

Kerry-Edwards Ticket Revives Populism Issue
Analysts wonder whether there will be a tilt away from centrism in the campaign.
By Ronald Brownstein Times Staff Writer July 8, 2004

WASHINGTON — Does John F. Kerry plus John Edwards equal Al Gore?

Since he became the presumed Democratic presidential nominee, Kerry has toned down the fire-breathing populism that marked his primary campaign — a message that echoed Gore's controversial "people vs. the powerful" theme in the 2000 election. But in Edwards, Kerry chose a running mate who built his own presidential bid around a tough-on-trade populism that denounced the disparities between "the two Americas" and promised to "cut off at the knees" Washington lobbyists and insiders.

Now, analysts in both parties are wondering whether Edwards' selection signals a Kerry tilt away from his centrist, business-friendly rhetoric of the last few months toward his more polarizing primary rhetoric.

The evidence from the ticket's debut suggests Kerry may be pursuing a hybrid approach that accepts Edwards' "two Americas" analysis but focuses more on a promise to lift those on the bottom than excoriating those on the top.

Some Democrats think Kerry previewed this subtle adjustment when he announced his pick of Edwards on Tuesday. The Massachusetts senator spoke less about divisions in society than about "building one America, for all Americans." He continued spotlighting that message as he and Edwards campaigned together Wednesday.

Kerry's goal, aides say, is more to project empathy for middle-class aspirations than to stoke populist resentment of the interests Gore targeted.

Asked whether Edwards' selection showed that Kerry was returning to the sharper-edged populist message of the primaries, Tad Devine, a senior campaign strategist, said: "No. It is a signal that a fight for the middle-class and working families is at the heart of the domestic agenda. That's what this campaign is about … not as a matter of populism, but a matter of priorities."<snip>