KERRY ’08….I’ve never trashed John Kerry for his losing effort in 2004. He ran, he lost, let’s move on, etc. Still, I do wonder how he’s managed to retain the notion that perhaps he ought to run again in 2008. Today, Garance Franke-Ruta suggests that it’s because some self-interested parties have been whispering sweet nothings in his ear:
The problem, as it was recently described to me by a young local politico, is that both of Massachusetts’ senators have been so long-serving….Secure incumbency at the top has created stasis throughout the entire system, leaving young ambitious would-be pols to either wait for someone to retire or try to knock off long-time incumbents just to get to the statehouse. If Kerry would just move on, by trying to move up again himself, then Barney Frank, Ed Markey, Marty Meehan, and Steve Lynch could all potentially contend for his seat, and a domino effect could be unleashed across the system. For that to happen, though, the first domino has to fall, and Kerry has to run for president again.
So if you wonder who on earth is encouraging Kerry to take another crack at it, the answer has to include: Massachusetts politicians.
So they don’t want him to run and win. They want him to run and lose. I guess I’ll buy that since I can’t think of any other reason anyone would be encouraging him in this quixotic quest.
