John Kerry on the Campaign Trail

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

Kerry beats back questions about campaign, dog puppet

Nov. 12 — Senator Kerry began his Veterans Day in Arizona, still feeling ripples of campaign manager Jim Jordan's dismissal. He ended the day in California, on a couch next to Jay Leno, after being mocked by a sharp-tongued dog puppet, though making an impressive (albeit late) national television appearance.

The day started with a simple message, quickly overtaken by internal events made external. And in between, the candidate ever sharpened a strategic and rhetorical end game. Such is the new reality of a campaign struggling to collect its dirty laundry tossed suddenly into public view.

On Tuesday, after dropping by a pre-parade breakfast, Kerry rallied 150 faithful at a Phoenix meet-up. "We deserve, and Veterans deserve, a president who doesn't just go to Arlington and lay a wreath on Veterans Day," he said. "We need a president who protects the interests of veterans every day."

The Senator then faced the Arizona press, which asked one question about vets and five on his campaign's viability. Not 30 minutes before the Gibbs/Chidlow departure announcement, ABC News asked Kerry if he anticipated any further staff changes. He responded, "I can't tell you what will or won't happen at all. I'm just going to keep moving. I'm not doing the staff. I'm running as a candidate and I have great confidence in Mary Beth Cahill and Governor Shaheen — complete confidence. They'll make whatever decisions they'll make."

Following the brief avail, Kerry made his way past a gigantic Uncle Sam air balloon, several high school groups, and a military jeep to his spot in the parade cue. Eyeing Democratic Governor Janet Napolitano, Kerry walked over for a short chat.

The Senator began the conversation saying, "We've been having a little trouble lately." Napolitano calmly replied, "What are you going to do? These things happen."

As Kerry shuttled back and forth, working both sides of the two-mile Central Avenue parade route, news of the tendered resignations of campaign spokesperson Robert Gibbs and Deputy Finance Director Carl Chidlow trickled out.

Shortly afterward, Senator Edward M. Kennedy, er, beg you're pardon, Senator John F. Kerry's campaign made another significant staff change: communications ace Stephanie Cutter joined the Kerry camp, departing her plum post as DNC 2004 Convention Communications Director.

At the conclusion of the Cutter announcement, Kerry added simply, "I am sorry that Robert and Carl are leaving the campaign but I am grateful for their hard work and extraordinary contributions."

Ever the trooper, Kerry headed to California, where he appeared on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" and held a fundraiser in Los Angeles. Playing second fiddle to "Ross the Intern" and "Triumph the Insult Comic Dog," Kerry, dressed in blue jeans and a leather jacket, rolled (literally) into the broad studio on a Harley.

While blunt political strategist Triumph assessed, "The poop I made in the dressing room had more heat than John Kerry," the Massachusetts Senator performed well under the constraints of short-answer-only television.

Leno asked about the staff shake-up, to which Kerry, who obviously takes his morning dose of Howie Kurtz seriously (LINK), offered, "It's kind of a Grady Little/Pedro, eighth inning thing. Sometimes you've got to go to the bullpen."

After the unusual bit of "inside baseball" chit chat on a late night talk show, Kerry turned to the issues, where he was able to talk about education, the economy, and expectations in Iowa. The Senator even got to chime in on the 'Dated Dean, Married Kerry' strategy, pitching "We want people to start seriously thinking about who can be president."

And on foreign policy, Kerry kept it (gulp) short and simple. Leno asked how the United States could prevent Iraq from becoming Vietnam; Kerry answered sharply, "By getting the president off his high horse and performing diplomacy."

He also asked why other countries aren't coming on board in Iraq, getting an equally strong response from the Senator, "If this money is all for Halliburton, (other nations are) going to say, 'To hell with you.'"

Kerry unveils new manager and ad

Nov. 11 — Senator Kerry emerged Monday from the Paralyzed Veterans of America center in Des Moines, Iowa, the first stop on his one-day, four-stop pre-Veterans' Day tour, determined to stay on message.

Unfortunately for the campaign, from the moment the Associated Press ran its bulletin at 3:44 am Monday, only two questions dominated the day: Why did Kerry fire campaign manager Jim Jordan and what does it mean for his beleaguered campaign?

In the day's brief, solitary avail, Kerry skipped the first question and would only offer, "I wanted to change the dynamic" 10 times to numerous variations of the second. Labeled disciplined at best and desperate at worst, Kerry refused to elaborate on how or why this move would actually change the dynamic of his campaign.

He did say his bid remains in good shape, saying, "We're confident, we're moving forward." Kerry said they were entering a "new phase" and mentioned polls in Iowa showing movement in his favor and repeated predictions of the self-described "dynamic change." "You guys watch over the next weeks and you'll see it."

The Senator soldiered on, toting nearly 60 of the 1,000 committed-to-Kerry Iowan Veterans on the remaining three legs of his whirlwind bus tour. Speaking to crowds in Marshalltown, Cedar Rapids, and Iowa City, Kerry pushed concurrent receipt, health care for veterans and reservists, and fully funding education programs for military families.

By that time, however, a majority of the national reporters and even most locals had broken off to file stories plum full of details on the abrupt yet long-rumored crash of air "Jehr-den."

Back on the bus, the now Cahill-guided camp announced that the Senator became the first candidate to use footage of President George W. Bush on the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln in campaign commercial.

In an ad entitled "Aircraft Carrier," the image of flight suited Bush appears as an announcer says, "Who can take on George W. Bush and change the direction of the nation?"

The 30-second ad runs in Iowa and New Hampshire, and Kerry campaign spokesperson Robert Gibbs calls it a "significant" buy.

Kerry campaigns in Phoenix, Arizona, this morning before appearing in a Veterans Day parade. Kerry then heads further west where he hopes to make a splashly triumph (get it?) on the "Tonight Show with Jay Leno."

Kerry reacts to Dean's decision, gets pressed by high school student

Nov. 10 — Senator Kerry emerged from the VFW in Rochester, New Hampshire, on Saturday having heard the news he expected all day: his chief rival Howard Dean had become the first Democratic candidate in history to reject public financing, allowing him to spend without limit in pursuit of the Democratic crown.

"I'm disappointed that campaign finance on the Democratic side is coming apart," Kerry said. "[Dean's decision is] a reversal of his own statements and a reversal of his signing of legal statements."

Kerry, one of the wealthiest members of Congress, then added of his own campaign finances, "It may well involve personal money. You know, if we're out of the system, we're out of the system."

Maine Democrats had long since seen the sight of two Democratic heavyweights locked in a nomination battle charging into Saco to win their hearts and minds between chicken dinner and a chocolate dessert.

Kerry and Dean remained relatively civil if not chilly in their dislike from a distance. As expected, Dean rapped "Washington insiders" for not getting the job done and supporting programs such as No Child Left Behind and military actions such as the Iraq war.

Shortly after Dean's raucous introduction, Kerry took a seat in the rear of the room sitting at the last seat on the table. Never once clapping for his opponent's stump, Kerry gave the appearance of listening casually in between scribbling notes for his upcoming speech.

When Dean concluded, he headed straight down the center of the crowd, nearing the exit and Kerry. As the anticipated "moment" inched handshake by handshake closer, the cameras gathered and pens poised over paper. Alas, as Dean reached Kerry's table, Kerry turned his back toward Dean and chatted with restaurant workers at the bar.

After a videotaped introduction from former Senator George Mitchell, Kerry literally climbed the tables over the path down which Dean had just exited. Delivering a full-throated stump, Kerry appealed to the need for a "strong and right" candidate who will rally against "special interests in Washington," plug the loophole-filled tax code, and repeal the high end of the Bush tax cuts in favor of health care, education and other programs.

No matter how hard we try, pressing, pushing, carefully selecting just the right words for a query, sometimes no journalist can compare to the honest nature and direct words of a kid with a cause.

At Alvirne High School in Hudson, New Hampshire, on Friday, senior Kaylan Sweet asked Kerry, "Why … do politicians not answer the questions?"

The 19-year Senate vet asked for clarification and Sweet explained the he had watched Tuesday's "Rock the Vote" event in Boston and felt all the candidates at one point or another "didn't really answer (the questions) directly."

Kerry responded, "Remember my one about gays in the military? Remember my one about smoking pot? … Ask me any question you want to ask me, right now, and I'll give you a direct answer."

Sweet asked a question about education and mentioned his pending application to Boston University where he hopes to study, naturally, television.

Kerry outlined his education proposals and added, "And the final thing I'm going to do is, I'll make a phone call to (Boston University), if you're a good guy, and I'll help you get in."