From Howard Dean’s shouts to Jimmy Carter’s drawl, disparate voices of the Democratic Party sang the praises of John Kerry on Thursday in an orchestrated display of harmony.
With his shirt sleeves rolled up above his elbows and his ruddy skin glistening in the spring sunshine, former Vermont Gov. Dean endorsed and embraced the lanky Massachusetts senator who, not so long ago, was his bitter rival for the nomination.
“We had a tough campaign,” Dean conceded at a Unity Rally at George Washington University. But after “focusing on the things that divide us, now we are going to talk about the things that we have in common.”
Their over-riding shared goal, Kerry and Dean agreed, is to send President Bush “back to Crawford, Texas.”
In the evening, former Presidents Carter and Bill Clinton, 2000 presidential nominee Al Gore and most of Kerry’s other primary rivals assembled for a dinner expected to raise $11 million in campaign funds.
Recently returned from a vacation, Kerry met privately Thursday morning with Dean and Dean’s supporters and donors. Then, in nearly matching blue shirts, Kerry and Dean spoke to the students at GWU, located a few blocks from the White House.
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An election that matters
With the presidential election more than nine months away, many Americans say their level of interest in the race now is higher than it was during the same period four years ago, according to a poll released Thursday.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SURVEY
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How much have you thought about the campaign?
65%
said “quite a lot” in March 2004
48%
said “quite a lot” in spring of 2000
Does it really matter who wins the election?
63%
said yes in March 2004
45%
said yes in June 2000
But despite the increased interest, the presidential race wasn’t the top story of the month among those polled.
News you follow very closely
Situation in Iraq: 47%
High gas prices: 47%
Release of “The Passion”: 37%
Presidential campaign: 35%
SOURCE: PEW RESEARCH CENTER FOR THE PEOPLE AND THE PRESS