Kerry needs to be aggresive during debates
By Maurice Ndole
Thursday’s debate may be the last opportunity for Democratic presidential
candidate John Kerry to impress Americans.
Kerry must go into the debate knowing he needs it more than Bush.
He must unleash his best argument against President Bush if he is to turn
around the unfavorable opinion polls that have caused Democrats heartache
for the last few months.
He should not underestimate the president because he is more intelligent
than most people think.
Kerry must distinguish his foreign policies from Bush’s right from
the start.
He should also borrow the abrasive persona Al Gore had and use absolute
hard-hitting phrases like “he lied,” instead of ambiguous
ones like “he misled.”
He must plant doubt in the voters’ minds about Bush’s leadership
by casting Bush as a reckless leader who has stubbornly made America unsafe
as a result of a series of unwise and expensive decisions in the war on
terror. He must also tell Americans how he would do things differently
in Iraq.
Kerry should borrow Bill Clinton’s sleek style and convince Americans
that Bush has confused and complicated the war on terror and antagonized
our allies beyond salvage. He should use the findings of the 9/11 commission
report and the harsh realities in Iraq and Afghanistan to support his
argument.
The senator should use one of his rhetorical question opportunities in
the debate to accuse the president of neglecting the search for Osama
Bin Laden and going to Iraq without a realistic plan to win the war.
I hope, for Kerry’s sake, that the question about Vietnam comes
up. Considering it’s not the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth firing
the questions, he should take the question with glee. He should use the
opportunity to solve several problems; clarify his actions in Vietnam,
both during and after the war, and blunt any future attacks from the Swift
Boat Veterans for Truth, who are partially responsible for his current
low ratings.
He should hope the same question is posed to Bush and hope that he stammers
through it. Bush’s National Guard days are certainly not his best.
But he should not bet on Bush fumbling, because he will be anticipating
the question.
Kerry has to be ready to respond to Bush branding him a flip-flop. He
should blunt the attacks by pre-empting them on the first opportunity.
He should counter by accusing Bush of misunderstanding him and taking
his views out of context.
He should further turn the debate into Bush’s record on domestic
issues like healthcare, jobs, oil prices, outsourcing and the huge budget
deficit.
He should blame all America’s economic strains on Bush’s tax
cuts and decision to attack Iraq without an exit plan.
Kerry must also inject some humor into the debate; natural humor—
not one of those forced jokes, which sound awkward making him the brunt
of the joke. He should not be afraid to make fun of Bush.
He should return the favor to the Bush advertisement poking fun at him
windsurfing to poke fun on Bush falling off his bike.
To win the debate, Kerry needs the aggressive drive of filmmaker Michael
Moore, with Clinton’s pleasant delivery.
He must take charge, look relaxed and act presidential.
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