John Kerry on the Campaign Trail

ByABC News
November 12, 2003, 7:56 PM

— -- ABCNEWS' Ed O'Keefe is on the trail with Sen. John Kerry as he runs for president. For the latest report, scroll down.

¿No más?

COLUMBUS, Ohio, March 2--Sen. John Kerry's day leading up to Super Tuesday felt more like a busy general election campaign swing rather than the continuing drama of a two-person nomination contest. In fact, to hear Kerry's trio of stump speeches delivered Monday in Maryland, Ohio, and Georgia, one might believe the only two-man race in the Senator's mind is against President George W. Bush.

In a 35-minute rally cry in which Senator Kerry never once even mentioned Sen. Edwards, the Massachusetts Senator instead focused on President Bush, promising, "This is going to be a campaign different from campaigns in the past. This isn't going to be some kind of, you know, we're like them, they're like us, wishy-washy, mealy-mouth, you can't tell the difference deal. This is going to be something where we're giving America a real choice."

But even as Kerry gave glimpse of the anticipated fall campaign to come to in his "Real Deal" spiel at Ohio State University, a young boy in the audience had had enough. Slipping from his mother's grasp, his sneakers plunked to the ground and he began a silent protest.

Cupping a hand over each ear, the young boy paced along the rear security barrier, finally realizing only a direct plea would win his mother's attention. Standing at her waist, the boy looked up and cried, "No más! No más! No más!"

Fortunately for Sen. Kerry, the boy did not represent the feelings of the nearly 500 gathered to see the frontrunner on his third trip to Ohio in twelve days.

It is clear, however, the Kerry camp hopes the Junior Senator from Massachusetts racks up big wins on delegate-rich Super Tuesday, forcing the Senior Senator from North Carolina to do his best Roberto Duran in acknowledging either the statistical inevitability or stark reality of Kerry's nomination crown.

In some part, the Kerry camp would like to conclude the nomination phase of the election for all the expected reasons. Facing a $4.5 million onslaught of BC04 ads, now is not the time for any potential Democratic nominee to be draining near-empty coffers of precious resources on the battle when the war is yet to come.

But, it's also a question of energy. Sen. Kerry has been campaigning at a near constant pace since December of 2002, hardly even taking a break to recover from prostate cancer surgery early the next year.

Kerry, a meticulous and articulate speaker, tires more easily and is beginning to make small mistakes on the trail.

In Dayton, Ohio last week, the Senator twice referred to Ohio as Iowa and on Monday he ruffled some Buckeyes when beginning his remarks, "We're here at Iowa State, Ohio State. I've got to get it out right."

The Senator is also reverting back to an old habit of stepping on or rushing signature lines, causing events to quickly fall flat.

And new material is sloppy such as when the Senator, in attempt to make an Oscar connection, joked, "Did you see Peter Jackson, Lord of the Rings? (It) cleaned up, obviously. I learned that Peter Jackson used 25,000 extras (to make the film). He's created more jobs than George Bush has, ladies and gentlemen."Unfortunately, a majority of those 25,000 jobs were created in New Zealand where the "outsourced" trilogy filmed.

Nevertheless, the Senator proved he's still quick on his feet. At an otherwise lackluster early morning rally in Baltimore, Sen. Kerry introduced his youngest daughter Vanessa Kerry, receiving a rowdy chorus of baritone cheers in response to the 27-year-old Harvard Medical School student's wave.

The Senator, appearing for a moment more like a father than a presidential candidate, warned, "Hey, guys, you gotta talk to me first."

At Kerry's final event at the Tabernacle in Atlanta, Georgia, Kerry's voice was noticeably cracking, his throat strained from the most aggressive multi-stop, single day of campaigning in some time.

On Super Tuesday, Sen. Kerry will be in the last place the potential Democratic presidential nominee wants to be: Washington, DC. Kerry returns to Capitol Hill, a place at which the 4-term Senator has worked countless days over the last 19 years, but one which he has not seen much of lately.

Kerry has not appeared on the floor of the Senate since Nov. 24, 2003, when he participated in the Medicare prescription drug debate. This time, Senator Kerry heads to the Hill, Secret Service detail in tow, on 1,151-delegate rich Super Tuesday to vote on gun liability legislation.

On Wednesday, Kerry heads to Florida, a March 9 primary state and, obviously, an important general election state as well.

The Natural

BUFFALO, N.Y., Feb. 29--To look at Sen. John Kerry, one might expect a town hall meeting in Buffalo's Ellicott Square Building, better known as the hotel at which the mysterious Harriet Bird (Barbara Hershey) inexplicably shoots Roy Hobbs (Robert Redford) in The Natural, to be, well, a bit unnatural.

Instead, the 6'4" long-jawed politician works best in the round, surrounded by question-filled voters, rather than delivering more Senate-inspired podium pontificating.Building on the cinematic theme, the Kerry advance team benched U2's "A Beautiful Day" in favor of Randy Newman's "The Whammer Strikes Out" as the Senator entered to speak with (not at) 600 mostly upstate New Yorkers. The often long-winded Senator Noted the occasion saying, "We're going to make history here tonight. This is the shortest speech I'm going to give in this campaign."

Indeed, Kerry lived up to his promise, clocking in at just over two minutes.

The Senator spent the remaining 54 minutes of his sole pre-Super Tuesday upstate swing taking 11 questions from the eager crowd.

Aside from talking trade to a hall filled with union banners and several "FTAA Sucks" t-shirts, Kerry responded to a question on the perils of the Patriot Act by declaring, "The biggest problem with the Patriot Act is two words: John Ashcroft."

While the Ashcroft knock is standard, the Massachusetts Senator then went on to suggest a "panel of distinguished jurists" whose purpose would be to "guarantee rights are being protected" might be one way, in addition to repealing several controversial provisions before renewing the Patriot Act, to both protect national security and preserve civil rights.

Kerry mentioned former Senator George Mitchell (D-ME), former Senate Majority Bob Dole (R-KS), and former Senator Warren Rudman (R-NH) as those who might serve on such a panel.

The final questioner of the night asked Kerry if he would be willing to listen and include Independent candidate Ralph Nader in any presidential debates.Senator Kerry began by insisting he would appeal to "those who felt disenfranchised" in 2000 and concluded, "I don't think this is a year that we can afford to let anybody take away any votes and allow George Bush to change the Supreme Court down the road."

While those are Kerry's strongest words on Nader to date, the Senator did not answer the direct question on allowing the former Green candidate in the traditionally two-candidate debates.

Later, Kerry, whose staff has become increasingly superstitious as the possibility of actually winning the nomination grows, bucked luck and tried his hand at numerology.Having just reunited with a fellow Vietnam veteran, Kerry described the identifying numbers of his two swift boats.

"One of them was 44 boat, and the other was the 94 boat," the Senator described.

"And it occurred to me this afternoon…I am running to be the 44th President of the United States and I was on the 44th boat. I think that's a pretty good sign. And the other boat I was on was the 94 boat, and that has a 4 in it, and I'm running in November 04 and that's a pretty good sign," Kerry concluded.

Aside from the numerological assertion that Kerry will still be running in November, staff members steadfastly refuse to discuss mid-March schedule, or even take questions assuming Senator Kerry as the hypothetical nominee.

Kerry, however, showed no fear in making predictions. The Senator, whose recent campaign stops in Los Angeles and Brooklyn have drawn the likes of Leonardo DiCaprio and Christie Brinkley, boldly stated as he walked up his campaign charter plane, "Lord of the Rings. That's the one. Best Picture, Lord of the Rings. You can take that to the bank."

Unfortunately for Senator Kerry, he was unable to join the press corps Oscar pool as he was unable to post the $5.00 entry fee. When an identity protected press traveler asked the candidate, who narrowly avoided a discussion of his extensive means in Sunday's debate, to ante up, Kerry admitted he had no money and to emphasize his point, reached into his pockets and pulled the insides out.

Alas, whatever Senator Kerry's predictive powers, it is now certain Kerry will campaign through Super Tuesday with stops in Maryland and Georgia. Senator Kerry will also make his first appearance in the Senate since last fall, bringing Secret Service and a 50-person press corps in tow as he votes on the assault weapons ban Tuesday. The Kerry campaign holds its "Super Tuesday celebration" in Tampa, Florida, and the Senator intends to campaign in each of contested 3/9 states regardless of Tuesday's outcome.

King in Queens

NEW YORK CITY, Feb. 23 The Democratic frontrunner takes a few liberties now and then. Some, such as screeching a 10-car motorcade from Harlem to Queens in 26 only to delay the day's final event by 45 minutes, come with the title.

Others, such as claiming the endorsement of Senator Daniel Inouye as Kerry did at an avail in Atlanta Saturday night despite the Hawaii Senator's public pledge to stay neutral might be an overeager leap.

But then there are those, such as offering a pre-buttal to the president's first overtly political speech of the campaign season, that apparently come with the potentially brutal 2004 general election turf.

Before a sparse crowd gathered at the Alhambra Ballroom in Harlem, Kerry said, "The president (Monday night) will lay out his vision I believe the president will run away from his own record because he doesn't have a record to run on."

Kerry, who rarely ever mentions his lone remaining major Democratic nomination foe, added, "It's interesting. We have George Bush on the run because he's going to get out there tonight and start his campaign even before we have a Democratic nominee."

The event concluded with Coldplay's "Clocks," but regardless of frontman Chris Martin's endorsement of Kerry, the Grammy-winning song was quickly skipped for Stevie Wonder's "Sir Duke."

The Senator's second stop took him to Queens, where the record repeated. In a press avail, Kerry again charged, "I think George Bush is on the run and I think George Bush is on the run because he doesn't have a record to run on."

He also said, "(Republicans) have even named their multi-million dollar television advertising (campaign) 'Operation Carpet Bombing,'" although no evidence exists to support this claim and the Republican National Committee denies it.

Kerry was also asked by a television news producer whether or not he felt it is appropriate that Senator Edwards' stump speech focuses on economic and domestic issues, making little mention of national security.

He deflected the opportunity to criticize Edwards on a subject on which he often critiques the president, offering only that he "wouldn't comment on any other candidates' strategies."

The Kerry campaign does intend, however, to counter Edwards in the three markets where the North Carolina Senator has begun to air television ads.

Starting Tuesday, Kerry will go up with the ever-popular "Del" or "A Good American," an ad featuring one of Kerry's swift boat mates describing the Senator's service in Vietnam. "Del" will run through Super Tuesday in Ohio, Georgia, and upstate New York including Rochester, Buffalo, and Syracuse but not Albany.

Two new ads one on the economy and one Georgia-specific featuring former Senator Max Cleland and Rep. John Lewis are also in production.

Kerry Communications Director Stephanie Cutter would not disclose the specific amount of the buy, labeling it "pretty significant."

Cutter insisted other states could be added to the buy and deflected the notion that the move is intended to counter Edwards.

"It made sense to go up in those states," Cutter said, later adding the Kerry campaign "always knew" they would advertise in Ohio.

"It's a significant state," Cutter remarked. "It embodies everything that's wrong with this country."

Kerry attended three closed fundraisers in New York City Monday evening. He begins a two-day trip to Ohio Tuesday, with stops in Youngstown, Cleveland, and Toledo.

Disengage Autopilot

ATLANTA, Ga., Feb. 22 Prior to Sunday, the Kerry campaign's post-Wisconsin week was Notable more for what did not happen than for what did.

Senator Kerry did not expand his pre-Super Tuesday travel schedule, campaigning only in Ohio and Georgia between two down days in his home state of Massachusetts. In that same time, Senator Edwards busily made his way to five of the 10 contested March 2 states.

The Kerry campaign did not go up with ads even symbolically anywhere, despite moves by the Edwards camp to go on the air in both Georgia and Ohio.

And Kerry did not utter the Senator "E"-word without prompting, preferring to cast himself as President Bush's opponent rather than focus on the last man standing nomination battle ahead.

In Wisconsin, Kerry looked tired and sounded hoarse, suffering the effects of an almost constantly strained throat in spite of a lighter schedule. Several news outlets observed that Kerry's Middleton, Wis., victory speech fell flat and that a subsequent event in Ohio felt forced.

But on Sunday, a well-rested, Christophe-coifed Kerry emerged in Georgia re-focused and energized. Before an overflow crowd seated inside and even stretching outside the Coca Cola Roxy Theater in Atlanta, Kerry limited his opening remarks to just over 10 minutes, reserving a full 55 minutes for 18 questions from the crowd.

In rapid-fire Q&A not present since Iowa, the often long-winded Kerry limited most responses to one to three minutes and drew affection from the crowd without once delivering his signature line: "Bring it on."

On only one occasion did Kerry appear more Brahmin and less common when during a question on troubled youth, Kerry capped his statement which included an assertion that he recognizes the difference between crack and powder cocaine by insisting, "This is not palaver."

Kerry did, however, riff on some more popular themes, invoking some familiar but far from copyrighted phrases.

When discussing trade, Kerry said, "We need a president who knows what it's like to be part of an America that's struggling to get by today."

And when asked by an incoming college freshman to give a post-Kerry administration economic forecast, the Senator would only promise his economic plan would center on "putting people back to work."

Kerry reserved his strongest criticisms for the Bush administration, not his primary Democratic opponent. Kerry baited the Bush administration to continue the publicity-wielding debate concerning the Senator's defense votes which the Kerry camp has deftly turned into a squabble over Kerry's military service record.

Asked by a local reporter if the Bush-Kerry campaign exchanges on defense were over, Kerry replied, "It depends on them. If they're going to try to question my commitment to the defense of our country, then I'm going to fight back, because they did that to Max Cleland, they did it to John McCain and I'm not going to stand for it."