One reason Edwards would be a better general-election candidate than Kerry is that the former has a pleasant, sunny demeanor, while the latter is stiff and dour. Americans seem to like their presidents to be men of good cheer; since at least 1980, the more lightsome candidate has beaten his grimmer opponent every time.
ScrappleFace.com has a funny riff on this theme: "The North Carolina Senator . . . captured 95 percent of the votes of people who had seen Mr. Kerry speaking on TV," according to the satirical Web site. "Mr. Kerry won big among former Al Gore supporters who believe that 'talking slowly without moving one's face' is the key to defeating Mr. Bush."
Kerry has the dubious and perhaps unique distinction of being a presidential candidate whose speeches have actually been used as an instrument of torture against Americans. The Los Angeles Times reports on Kerry's April 22, 1971, appearance before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which we noted last week:
Dressed in his combat fatigues and ribbons, [Kerry] told Congress that U.S. soldiers had "raped, cut off ears, cut off heads . . . randomly shot at civilians . . . in a fashion reminiscent of Genghis Khan." He later acknowledged that he did not witness the crimes himself but had heard about them from others. . . .
Paul Galanti learned of Kerry's speech while held captive inside North Vietnam's infamous "Hanoi Hilton" prison. The Navy pilot had been shot down in June 1966 and spent nearly seven years as a prisoner of war.
During torture sessions, he said, his captors cited the antiwar speeches as "an example of why we should cross over to [their] side."
Whereas those who've attended Edwards events report that he's a captivating speaker, listening to Kerry speak is like being in captivity. |
