This is one of the most inciteful threads I've ever read on this forum.
There have been many excellent suggestions here, but there is 1 fundamental think I can't quite agree with. At the time, Edwards looked like the best bet. Looking back, it would be easy to say that choosing him was a major mistake, but he looked like the strongest candidate during the nomination process except of course for Kerry himself. Many people forget that. I'm still a little split on Edwards. I can't entirely say he was the best choice, but just because he didn't shoot off his mouth and bash the other side doesn't mean he didn't or couldn't do some good campaigning. I think he has some potential, but was just aq little too inexperienced. It's almost a shame what happened to his political career(at least for now). I would have to disagree with the choice of Gephart. I don't think much of his speaking capability or inspiring nature. I think he would have been under the radar similar to Edwards, only he wouldn't have an excuse.
Nobody can hope to win without a positive message. Kerry really didn't offer one. His message was simply that he was not George W. Bush.
Heading into the campaign, I thought Kerry had a huge advantage in that he wasn't George W. Bush. I couldn't imagine how he 1. could have done worse than Gore or 2. how people who didn't vote for Bush would actually vote for him this time. I honestly thought the election could be a slam dunk for the Democrats, and that's not just because of the D-OH in my profile. I thought if the Democratic candidate were breathing, he could defeat Bush. I underestimated the value of what Dazzleman just pointed out. Kennedy had an objective: Go to the moon. FDR had an objective: End the Great Depression. Nixon had an objective: "I have a plan to end Viet Nam." Whether or not you agree with their solutions, that greatly helped them in their campaigns.
Still a little split on the Edwards thing, but a great thread otherwise. Especially that point about the organization of the Democratic Party and the campaign management.
