From the 2004 Clark Archives

Reprinted from Seacoast Online | D. Allan Kerr |
Original Publication Date : January 10, 2004

"Gen. Clark a rising star for Democrats"

To rip a page from the lore of Springsteen, I saw the future of the Democratic Party last week and its name is Wesley Clark.

Original Link: www.seacoastonline.com /news/01102004/col_kerr/69611.htm

This isn’t to predict Clark will win the White House, the party’s presidential nomination or even the New Hampshire primary - this time around, anyway. But if the Democrats are going to win back the hearts and minds of mainstream America, this retired four-star general is the guy to do it.

To be honest, this is not the column I thought I’d be writing. Just a few days ago I was pretty sure I was going to say these things about John Kerry. And I still think Kerry is an admirable guy - in many ways an amazing guy - and in terms of all-around experience he may well be the best-suited candidate from either party to assume the White House. But for whatever reason, Kerry’s campaign so far has not been able to excite or inspire.

Clark’s Bruce Springsteen moment occurred right here in Portsmouth last Saturday, at the South Church on State Street. His appearance, billed as a "Conversations with Clark" event, was scheduled to start at 3 p.m., but since every politician I’ve ever seen is at least a halfhour late I took my time moseying over there. My mistake.

By the time I arrived, so many people were crowding into the sanctuary entrances I couldn’t even see Clark, although I could hear him speaking from inside. People were sitting on the floor in the front hall, staring down at their shoes as they strained to listen. The balcony upstairs was just as packed- standing room only. I found out later the event was supposed to be held in the church basement downstairs, but the crowd was nearly four times larger than anyone expected.

I’d seen Clark one other time, when he gave a speech on the front steps of Dover City Hall back in September, right after he made his decision to jump into the race. I don’t know if the general has improved as a campaigner or if I simply had outlandish expectations last fall, but the candidate I saw then didn’t seem at home behind a lectern.

Maybe he was just more comfortable in the relaxed South Church setting, dressed casually in a maroonish turtleneck and pacing in front of the crowd with microphone in hand. At any rate, this time around the guy had a rock-star magnetism that captivated his audience. They listened in earnest silence when he spoke, applauded enthusiastically when he made a welcome point.

I knew Clark was smart because they don’t give Rhodes scholarships to boneheads. I figured he’d possess a strong dose of confidence because NATO Supreme Allied Commanders aren’t known for timidity. But I wasn’t prepared for his humor, humility, accessibility and genuineness.

When outlining his biography for audiences Clark discusses his graduation from West Point, but doesn’t mention he graduated first in his class; describes briefly how he was wounded in the jungles of Vietnam, but doesn’t bring up how he handled himself with such courage and grace he was awarded the Silver Star.

He takes questions from the crowd and doesn’t duck any of them. His answers seem sincere and natural, quite unlike those of other candidates whose responses sound rote. His New American Patriotism sounds like the perfect antidote to the "compassionate conservatism"

Bush promised America but delivered only to his friends with fat checkbooks.

He takes questions from the crowd and doesn’t duck any of them. His answers seem sincere and natural, quite unlike those of other candidates whose responses sound rote. His New American Patriotism sounds like the perfect antidote to the "compassionate conservatism" Bush promised America but delivered only to his friends with fat checkbooks.

Perhaps most remarkably, Clark didn’t take a single shot at any of his fellow Democratic presidential contenders. I don’t even remember him mentioning any by name. He banged around George W. like a jug-eared piñata, but even then said ‘W’ seems like a nice person.

The closest he came to slamming his Democratic opponents was when someone asked what made him stand out from the field. Clark cited his many years of leadership experience, both on the battlefield and during peace.

"If you want to hire a lawyer, then get a lawyer," he said. "If you want to hire a doctor, thenget a doctor. But if you want to hire a leader, then get a leader."

Yeah, I know the current hipster trend is to jump on the Howard Dean bandwagon, but when you get right down to it Dean’s pretty much a gimmicky flavor-of-the-month who’s already going stale. He’s been adept at stoking the passions of the Democratic electorate, but you get the sense his followers are swept up in the idea of taking part in a movement while they aren’t really sure where it’s going.

This isn’t to say Dean doesn’t have a place in Washington, D.C.; I would love seeing the good doctor in the U.S. Senate. Imagine having him and Kerry and folks like John McCain on hand to keep those toads of Congress in line?

I guess the big difference between the two is while Dean ignites anger and self-righteousness,

Clark seems to spark hope. The eyes of the crowd at South Church last week glimmered as though they were staring at a savior delivering them from another four years of the Bush regime, like Moses come to deliver his people from Pharaoh’s reign.

And when Clark was done, they rose to their feet and slapped their hands together. This wasn’t a polite ovation - this was LOUD. This sounded like a room full of people who’d found someone they could believe in, and for whom they’d be willing to take to the streets.

There’s been a lot of talk lately of a "Stop Dean" movement among Democrats, which would be unfortunate. If your only reason to vote for someone is because he is not someone else,
then he hasn’t really earned your vote. Don’t give it to him.

But if you’re looking for someone with an authentic, hard-earned understanding of the world and the consequences of war, with the intellect, commitment and compassion to lead us in the right direction, and the strength of will and fearlessness to defend us and ours, then I can’t imagine a more deserving choice for president than Wes Clark.