Dear John,
As a registered Democrat and a person that voted for you (in the general election anyway)… I beg you… please stop running for President. Oh, don’t be coy. We all know what you’re up to.
I’m sure you’re a swell guy and you mean well, but I’ve got to tell you… when you put together the folks that ran for the Democratic nomination in 2000 and 2004, you’re about number four on my list. When you throw in another name (a likely opponent in ’08 with a familiar last name) you drop to fifth.
Let’s face it, you lost to a Republican party that ran on one of the most socially conservative platforms since the civil rights movement. When you consider that the country as a whole has gotten more socially liberal since then (no fault divorces, reproductive rights, “Title Nine,” employee-workplace protections, and stricter environmental protections all becoming law and gaining acceptance as the norm since then)… you’re really saying something. The middle ground was there for the taking. All you had to do was show them and your own party that you could lead them. It’s time to face up to the fact that you didn’t. It’s not really your fault… any more than it’s your fault your last name is Kerry and you were born in Massachusetts. No one can teach charisma and you can’t learn it (I don’t think). If it makes you feel any better, most of the rest of us don’t have it either… not me anyway.
So don’t let the Peter Principle get you down… you did alright in your previous incarnation as a U.S. Senator. It’s not such a bad fall back position is it?