Relaxed and charming, Kerrey had his audience of faculty, staff and students laughing with his political insider's observations.
“This presidential campaign is wearing me out,” Kerrey said, adding it's not the candidates themselves but the odd, sometimes-goofy, and often-stunning revelations that have spun out from the campaign trail.
“There has been more surprises in this campaign,” he said.
The practiced storyteller used his comedic timing to march through his list of the events that have kept him tuned into the soap opera-like stump season:
First there was news, early on in the campaign, that Sen. John McCain of Arizona had run out of money and essentially dropped off the horizon. McCain is now the presumptive Republican nominee.
Then former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee “comes out of nowhere” to become a Republican contender. Then comes Texas Congressman Ron Paul taking the limelight from Huckabee, who was pushed aside with McCain's near-miraculous, certainly surprising recovery.
“I was calling him ‘Dead Man Walking,' and then all of the sudden, he's back,” Kerrey quipped, adding sarcastically: “Due in large part to the brilliant political strategy of Rudy Giuliani.”
On the matter of Republican candidate Ron Paul, Kerrey said with dramatic flair: “He's a phenomenon in this campaign. He was the darling of the Democrats because he was driving the Republicans mad. He's articulate and intelligent and had liberals and conservatives agreeing with him.
“For the Republicans it was maddening to watch. And now his endorsements matter in this campaign; he's become a national figure.”
As the political waters churned, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama sailed on to the scene as a Democratic contender.
“It's not his talent that was surprising - he's one of the most talented people I know. Four years ago he was running for Senate,” Kerrey said. “When he broke beyond 20 percent (voter support) he became a serious contender ... and he keeps on getting better.”
Obama's arrival caused another surprise, the fall of Democratic contender New York Sen. Hillary Clinton's popularity, which was perplexing, Kerrey said because “her last name is gold and you couldn't have a better surrogate than her husband, Bill.
“If I were running for president, I would have a sex-change operation in order to get Bill as my surrogate.”
When his audience stopped laughing, Kerrey said he is more than impressed by Clinton.
“She is shockingly talented. She is really smart, knows every issue cold,” he said. “She's really impressive.
“And her recovery has been remarkable.”
Kerrey said he's currently captivated by the unprecedented public debate raging between Obama and his former minister, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, who made headlines this spring for previous inflammatory statements on race from the pulpit.
The debate is in many ways the most important one Obama faces, not only because it threatens to derail his campaign, but because it is an important issue of our time, Kerrey said.
“It feels like we are watching something very important - that we whites are watching something very important,” Kerrey said. “There is a generational battle going on in the African-American community.”
When the Democratic National Convention takes place later this summer, Kerrey said “odds are in favor of Obama to be the presidential nominee of the party.”
Of course, anything can happen between now and then, and the entire campaign season has proved it is all about surprises, Kerrey said.
A question from the audience voiced concern over the fallout of the tight race between Obama and Clinton. Specifically, the audience member wondered if Obama does win his party's nomination, will Clinton supporters be so disheartened that they don't show up to vote in the November presidential election?
Obama or Clinton, Kerrey said, “whoever the winner is, it's their responsibility to unify the party and they will have to show tremendous respect to the other.”
Kerrey was on campus to give the inaugural Stan Kimmitt Lecture on Public Service, named in honor of Kimmitt, who was born and raised in Montana and became a Washington, D.C., insider as secretary of the U.S. Senate and aide to Sen. Mike Mansfield of Montana.
Since 2001, Kerrey has served as president of the New School, a legendary, progressive university in New York City whose goals are to prepare and inspire its undergraduate and graduate students to bring actual, positive change to the world.
Reporter Betsy Cohen can be reached at 523-5253 or at bcohen@missoulian.com.campaign
|
 |
 |
Add your comment now! Write your comment in the form below.
(Email address is for verification only. If you'd like to email a story, look for the link above)