<<BTW, what's this nonsense about Kerry chasing women?>>
boy you know nothing about kerry!
<< He had, for lack of a better description, a maturity problem. He would regularly dispatch trusted friends to inform young women in bars, ''The senator would like to meet you.'' >>
from:Changes in Kerry
By Brian McGrory, Globe Columnist, 1/14/2003
The John Kerry I know is forever on the cusp of greatness, frustratedly wondering why the spotlight always shines on somebody else.
The John Kerry I know lives in a state of distraction - concerned about staff, fretting about tomorrow's schedule, privately ruing how unworthy rivals are pulling ahead.
He is at once appealing and maddening. He gives insightful speeches questioning Democratic dogma like affirmative action and teacher tenure, then fails to build a foundation for legislative change. He enjoys good restaurants, but once there rarely talks about anything but his career. He can seem oddly normal, but is compelled to constantly reinvent himself.
He is dogged to an unusual degree by two questions: Who is he, and why? Indeed, his friends have spent more than a little time lately talking about Kerry as ''a changed man'' - the implication being that he's not the undisciplined opportunist that so many critics believe him to be. He is committed to this race until the end, they say. He is doing the pick and shovel work for which he has never been known. He is focused like never before.
I'm suspicious. He's nearly 60 years old, and at that age, at any adult age, you are who you are, no?
But a few facts seem to bear it out. Four years ago, the typically indecisive Kerry wrung his hands for so long over whether to challenge Gore that he stammered his way right out of the race. This time around, he was nearly first at the door. He is basking in positive national publicity with surprising ease and grace. Washington insiders regard him if not at the very top of the field, then unquestionably planted in the first tier.
Time to see for myself.
I met Kerry last week in a restaurant called Bistro Bis in the Hotel George on the Senate side of Capitol Hill. He did his typical barroom thing - could he have a taste of a dark beer he didn't recognize? Any snacks available? Hey, you look great.
Minutes later, he was off and running. ''I think I've changed,'' he said. ''I think I've grown up a lot. I think I'm a better politician today than I used to be. I learned it's more about people than issues, it's about relationships.''
He recited his tired lines of woe about never having a political mentor, about always having to go it alone. Then he added: ''The last 10 years, I hope it's been a great growth period. I hope, I hope, people tell you I'm a lot more approachable, that I'm a lot calmer.''
Yes, they do, but everything is relative. Years ago, Kerry regarded himself as above the needs of rank-and-file state activists and mayors. He had, for lack of a better description, a maturity problem. He would regularly dispatch trusted friends to inform young women in bars, ''The senator would like to meet you.'' He would think nothing of whining and shouting at reporters if he didn't like what they were about to write.
Last week, in contrast, he talked about his failed marriage and his current one, about the perspective that comes with the experience of age. ''Things roll off me a lot easier than they used to,'' he said.
He mentioned the ''weight and responsibility'' that accompany a presidential campaign, and how it all makes him feel ''more grounded.''
Experts lay out a plausible march to the nomination. John Edwards is too young and unknown at a time when experience counts most. Joe Lieberman is too pious. Dick Gephardt is, well, Dick Gephardt. That mostly leaves Kerry, touting his own battlefield credentials, his strong foreign policy portfolio, and his intellectual appeal. A race against George Bush amid a failing economy could be 1992 all over again.
The John Kerry I know isn't presidential material, but maybe it's too hard to keep up with him. Maybe he really is a changed man seeking to lead a changed world, which in the year 2004, for better or worse, may prove to be just enough. |
