1. He seems to have a better grip on reality on some issues.
2. All the polls seem to indicate the country is not going in the right direction, why not give another a chance.
3. There needs to be a return to ballance in the ballance of Powers. Since the GOP will probably manage to hold on to a majority in Congress, it will serve the interest of the American people better to have a Democrat in the White House.
4.I have serious doubts about his ability to convince allies to join us in Iraq, but living abroad I can tell you that a change would likely be good for our standing arround the world.
5. His economic plan makes more sense to me. Running huge deficits forever is not a solution.

Now I take it that you asked this question in sincerity, and that no flames are going to be permited in this thread, if not, kindly delete this comment, cause I am in no mood to be insulted, I am simply supporting you and Wizbang by offering my sincere opinion.

The Republican Congress would hate him so completely that the resulting legislative gridlock would stop the profligate spending in its tracks.

Kerry will better protect our constitutional liberties and rights. Along with those rights, he will better defend the separation of Church and state. He is for religious freedom, not religious control of government.

Kerry was a fall-back candidate for me--an "anybody but Bush"--until I saw him on the Daily Show. There it was clear that this guy's not just smart, but balanced. There's a kind of middle-aged gravitas to him, not a heaviness so much as a calm self-awareness: a sense of "I know who I am and don't have to fake it." That's pretty rare in politics. I've seen the same John Kerry in the debates, and feel really comfortable about giving him my vote.

I've also been extremely impressed with how his campaign has handled all the Machiavellian Karl Rove bullshit the Bush campaign has thrown at them. That shows his ability to surround himself with good people who know how to work the system and get the job done.

Kerry would exhaust all diplomatic options before going to war with any country.

John Kerry will show respect for science and the scientific community. He will base his policies off of scientific fact, rather than faith-based fantasy.

I support John Kerry in part because:

His understanding of REAL threats, including the fact that when the US invaded Iraq all that was initially secured was the Oil Ministry and air fields, not nuclear facilities nor ammo dumps. This understanding alone elevates my trust that he actually has safety in mind, not domination.

He's actually read the Constitution. plays it straight with people instead of invoking code words, i.e. Dred Scott, and will protect the separation of church and state instead of invoking radical right wing agendas nor skewing the courts toward radical agendas. His agenda is to protect the Constitution as written by the founding fathers.

He won't be trying to run the country as a business with Enron-like creative financing lining the pockets of the CEO's and raiding retirement plans.

Norml's 2004 Presidential Candidate Report Card though revised from an earlier report, still show Kerry's position more inline with the majority opinion of Americans.

The support and renewed respect he will gain from the international community will bolster cooperation and intelligence sharing, most of which is lost now.

I plan to elect Kerry for the following reasons:

- To put an end to the secrecy and blatant lying that is the hallmark of the present adminstration.
- Because he recognizes the interdependency of nations and has a far better chance of creating a viable diplomacy with other nations.
- He thinks before he leaps.
- He understands fiscal responsibility.
- Kerry understands the civil rights dangers of the Patriot and will push to amend the more serious breaches.
- His desire to fully fund the federal promises of Homeland Security, taking economic pressure off the States and to fully fund the No Child Left Behind Act.
- His plan to rescind some of the tax cuts irresponsibly made by the present administration in order to fund the above. (Rescinding those taxes should not be considered a raise in taxes, because it is not).
- Because Kerry understands the basis of the separation of church and state.
- The US desperately some sort of national health care program and Kerry plans to approach that.
- I think putting restrictions on the outsourcing of American jobs is vital and Kerry has specific plans to deal with it.
- He has the capacity for learning and is willing to adjust his position according to the realities on new data.

A Note to Republicans: We are the Progressive Blog Alliance -- and we are your worst nightmare.

In addition: Kerry understands that the war on terror cannot be won with the power of our military alone. Contrary to the spin in the conservative echo-chambers of the net, Kerry will not make the US "pass a global test". However, Kerry DOES promise to use America's diplomats, intelligence , economic power, and the values and ideas to prevent a new generation of terrorists from emerging.

Here's two:

John Kerry is:
1) Someone who can put together two sentences without butchering the English language. ("In France, every Frenchman knows his language 'A' to 'Zed'...)
2) Not hung up on fear of medical technology (stem-cell research).

Jay, have you seen the documentary on Kerry that is playing in theatres right now, Going Up River? (Yes, the one by the same documentarist who made Pumping Iron about Schwartzenegger.) I highly, highly recommend it.

The documentary reveals Kerry as a young man, serving in Vietnam, and then coming home to play a pivotal leadership role in Vietnam Veterans Against the War. The courage, integrity, leadership and vision he domenstrates...also moved me from the ABB crowd firmly into the Pro-Kerry camp. The movie is all original footage with original audio (including Nixon tapes) plus interviews with the people involved. I can't speak highly enough about it.

The characteristics that Kerry demonstrated in the beginnings of his public career come up again in his little known battle in the Senate against banks that were laundering drug cartel money--banks that were co-incidentally tangled up with many prominent republicans. (Here is one summary from The Washington Monthly; a search on Kerry+BCCI will yield far more.) There is speculation that certain political players have had a vendetta against Kerry since his investigation of BCCI in 1987, which embarrassed a number of political people in this country.

If you don't have enough reasons to vote for Kerry, take a look into the BCCI story.

John Kerry promises to:

-Extend the Superfund (which reportedly saves $17 billion over ten years)
-Collect royalties for mineral rights on Federal lands (reportedly saves $1 billion over ten years)
-Cut electricity use by the Federal government by 20 percent in 10 years (reportedly saves $14 billion over ten years)
-Cut subsidies to high-income corporate farmers, something that desperately needs to be done.
-Freeze the Federal travel budget (reportedly saves $10 billion over ten years)
-Reduce the number of contractors employed by the Federal government by 100,000 (reportedly saves $50 billion over ten years).

The Federal government apparently employed 5.6 million contractors in 1999 - more than three times the number of civil servants. The Kerry-Edwards plan claims that it will reduce the number of contractors by 100,000.

John Kerry cares about women's issues. He was an original co-sponsor of the Women's Health Equity Act, and promises that as president, he will increase funding for breast and cervical cancer research and treatment, require insurance plans to cover contraception and fight for a meaningful Patients' Bill of Rights to guarantee women direct access to their OB/GYNs.

John Kerry promies that he will only nominate individuals to the federal bench whose records demonstrate a respect for the full range of constitutional rights, including the right to privacy and the right to choose.

As president, John Kerry promises that he will reverse the XXXX-XXXXXX rollbacks to our Clean Air Act, plug loopholes in the law, and take aggressive action to stop acid rain, and use innovative, job-creating programs to reduce mercury emissions and other emissions that contribute to global warming.

He promises to end corporate welfare "as we know it," and roll back the XXXX tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans. He also plans to cut taxes for businesses that create jobs here in America instead of providing incentives to move overseas.

John Kerry would like to eliminate The "Disabled Veterans" Tax. Hundreds of thousands of disabled military retirees are being taxed on their disabilities.

He wants to combat homelessness. Studies have estimated that more than 23 percent of homeless men in America are veterans. As president, John Kerry says he will work to ensure that veterans get the support they need to find housing and jobs. In 2001, John Kerry helped to pass the Heather French Henry Homeless Veterans Assistance Act, an ambitious effort aimed at completely ending homelessness among veterans.

There are at least a hundred more great reasons to ponder at http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/policy.html

Hi, my name is Ben H. Houston II, and I too am with the Progressive Blog Alliance. There are many reasons to support our next President, John Kerry. First of all John Kerry realizes that Osama Bin Laden and al-Qaida are the culprits behind 9/11. Our next President will concentrate on capturing Osama Bin Laden and when we have an opportunity to capture him, he won't delegate that duty to Afghan warlords. Our next President will follow the advice of military experts when they tell him that we need more troops, or they tell him that we need to take advantage of an opportunity to capture a terrorist like Abu Musab al Zarqawi. [See this link: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4431601/]

Our next President will restore fiscal responsibility to this nation by cutting out tax loopholes for corporations that actually encourage them to go offshore and by requiring those who have benefitted the most from all that America has to offer to sacrifice by paying the same share of taxes that they paid in the 1990s, when our national economy prospered. This tax policy will also allow the federal government to fund some of the current federal unfunded mandates like "No Child Left Behind", releaving the pressure on state and local governments who have had to increase taxes on the poor and middle class during the past four years. [See this link: http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000039&refer=columnist_wasik&sid=aUfkWACqky5c]

The next President of this great country will increase fuel efficiency standards and begin real efforts to find alternative sources of energy to oil so that we can become less reliant on Middle Eastern oil. This investment in and commitment to new environmental technology will also spur the economy by creating jobs in the short term, and making us much more energy efficient in the long term. It will also help us clean up the air in this nation, especially in certain smog filled cities like LA, Phoenix AZ, Atlanta GA, or my hometown of Knoxville, TN.

I hope that this is helpful.

What distorted quote, Nick? Are you saying that Senator Kerry didn't say that he would ensure that the US would pass the "global test" before committing troops?

Yeah he did Boyd, but what he meant was a test of morality. Are we doing the right thing. Are we within our legal rights under international law. Have conservatives determined now that the U.S. should be able to attack anyone we want to becuase we suspect they may be a danger. If so, what kind of example are we setting for the world, especially when KNOWN dangers like Korea go unattacked. I have never had a conservative yet explain to me WHY we attack Iraq and Not Korea. No, what happens is, they go into spin mode, talking about what Clinton did. Anything that is wrong in the world is Clintons fault, or so goes the rationale. Well I for one am not buying it.

Why John Kerry?

He's committed to a pay as you go principle for government spending - fiscal discipline.

He's committed to giving states the right to decide whether or not to authorize gay marriage.

He's committed to winning the war on terror and doing what's necessary to win - doubling special forces and adding 40,000 active duty military.

He's committed to building alliances where possible to increase our ability to win the war on terror.

He understands that the war on terror requires action across multiple fronts - military, diplomatic, intelligence, and international cooperation.

He's got the experience needed to shut down terror financing, as evidenced in his unpopular fight to close down BCCI.

He respects the military, including the military command and knows the huge price paid by grunts when civilians try to run wars from afar.

He has experience in the other branches of government - judicial (as a prosecutor) and legislative (as Senator) - and will better be able to work with them.

He has the integrity to separate his personal religious beliefs from his role as a leader.

He's got a record of standing up for what he believes in despite strong pressure to back off - from the days of his war protest, the BCCI investigation, uncovering the arms for hostages scandal, normalizing relations with Vietnam, and more.

He understands that terrorism is not primarily state sponsored but is committed to confronting states that are in league with terrorists - militarily if necessary.

He believes that America truly can win the war on terror, that we don't have to live in fear, that we can protect the homeland and create an offensive network to cripple terrorist networks. He understands that the cooperation of the international community makes this more likely.

He is committed to protecting the environment in a business friendly way.

He has a long and active interest in supporting small businesses as a key economic engine of the country.

He knows that there's a health care crisis but is smart enough to avoid a government run program, while leveraging the power of the government to provide coverage for uninsured kids and price breaks for the rest of us.

He's prepared to address the problem of corporate welfare fairly.

A single party running the executive and legislative branches has been disastrous.

And that's just an off the cuff response from another member of the Progressive Blog Alliance.

Why Kerry for President? Here are my two cents:

1. Fiscal responsibility with a social conscience. Kerry has a better grasp of both the need to reduce our record-breaking federal budget deficits and of what it will take to get there. At the same time he’s made it crystal clear that he wants those who are middle-income to thrive – something we have not been doing for some time. The plans to improve the health care situation (from accessibility to proper health coverage to dealing with runaway prescription medication costs), to shore up programs such as social security struck me as solid. That we in the low and middle-income levels will not be squeezed further by taxes is a plus. He seems realistic about what can be accomplished in four years – an even bigger plus.

2. Character. Kerry has been willing to stand up and be counted when the situation has called for him to do so. Agree or disagree with the stands he’s taken on such issues as the Vietnam War, but be rest assured that the man means what he says. He may have come from a well-off background, but he sure doesn’t come across as sheltered, and I have every confidence that he’ll be willing to stand up and face his dissidents, his political opponents; that he’ll have the courage to admit when he’s been wrong. He has a very stoic temperament that will suit him well given the turbulent times in which we live.

3. Experience and knowledge. With around two decades as Senator, the man has been an active participant in passing legislation and strikes me as well-prepared to handle the rigors of Presidential life. I’ve been impressed with the role he played in helping to stop money laundering to terrorists a number of years ago, and I’ve been impressed with his understanding of the importance of maintaining friendships internationally. Kerry’s life experience as a soldier will undoubtedly influence his approach to foreign policy, and I have every confidence that he will use all tools at his disposal to protect America’s interests and security without unnecessarily endangering the lives of our men and women in uniform.

4. Realism. My own bias is toward political leaders whose domestic and foreign policies are data driven as opposed to dogma driven. Kerry strikes me as someone who will lead based on facts rather than on faith, who will make his case on whatever issue based on its merits rather than appealing to authority. Realism is a huge plus for me as I see it as a means to reduce the probability of disastrous policy outcomes in no small part due to the ability to recognize mistakes and correct them long before a situation can get out of hand.

5.Civil rights and liberties. Having seen the excesses of the last four years, I view a Kerry administration as our best hope at curbing the more invasive facets of the Patriot Act. Kerry strikes me as having a good grasp of the importance of protecting our safety without sacrificing our Constitutional liberties.

I intend to vote from John Kerry because:

His record on the environment is second to none and demonstrates he is a strong advocate for environmental protection.

Kerry understands that it's important to wage an effective war against terrorism. He has the experience, drive, and intelligence to make better foreign policy decisions that will make America more secure and prevent a new generation of terrorists from emerging.

Kerry will not place special interests of any particular sector over the good of the people.

He will work to repeal the areas of the Patriot Act that infringes or invites the infringement upon our civil liberties.

I want a president that will focus on rebuilding our economy and pass tax cuts that benefit all Americans, not just the very wealthy.

Kerry will fight to erase disparities in health care and make high-quality, affordable health care available to all Americans.

One more thing - the global test. Is it expecting too much that we be able to make a credible case to the world before preemptively attacking/invading another country? Is this so unusual?

At no time in his career as a Senator or during the campaign has Kerry said he'd cede control of our military, our decisions, our anything to France or any other country or organization. He has definitively stated that he believes we have the right to act preemptively. He also believes that we are safer when we have the support if not the cooperation of the global community and that a preemptive act should be one for which we can credibly make a case. You'll note that he didn't say once we've made that case, others have to agree with us. It simply has to be defensible.

If this 'global test' thing is the best line of attack on Kerry, an attack based on a clear and total misrepresentation of his consistent position, then he really is an incredibly strong candidate.

And before I completely forget, I'm also part of the Progressive Blog Alliance.

1) John Kerry supported a balanced budget while in Congress - that kind of concern for fiscal solvency is quite appealing in a time of record deficits (run up by - oh, can't mention him, sorry).

2) John Kerry has shown a commitment to sound science in his support of stem cell research.

3) John Kerry has shown a willingness to take politically unpopular positions out of moral conviction, in his opposition to the FMA and flag-burning amendments, both unnecessary amendments used only for political division.

4) Whether facing enemy fire in Vietnam, saving an acquaintance from choking, or facing harsh attacks in a campaign, John Kerry has, over his life, shown a keen ability for exhibiting calm under pressure, certainly a positive quality for a leader.

5) John Kerry understands the need for strong alliances with our allies to help track down rogue terrorist groups all over the planet with the assistance of local authorities, while not sacrificing America's own national security interests. Our leadership needs to strike this balance.

6) Under a Kerry presidency, I will finally have some degree of faith that the decisions of government regulatory agencies are done in the interest of citizens rather than simply being the rubberstamped decisions of certain industries.

I do NOT belong to the Progressive Blog Alliance. I'm a freelancer.

1 - Kerry knows what he's talking about. That's different.

2 - Kerry/Edwards' tort reform will actually reform the law to keep nuisance suits to a minimum rather than a push a 'reform' that will protect corporations from the consequences of their illegal decisions. Their plan will work for us.

3 - More foreign leaders endorse him, which means he can do what he said he could do--build a real coalition.

4 - He understands what's wrong with the PATRIOT Act and how to fix it.

5 - He has a genuine sense of humor.

6 - He understands what's wrong with the Kyoto Treaty and has a pretty good idea how to fix it.

7 - He's actually been in combat, not just seen it on tv, and that means he won't throw life away except as a last resort.

8 - He understands that if you have to use the military to fight terrorists, you send the military after the actual terrorists. He knows that if a threat is coming from Canada you don't send the Army to Mexico, and that's a step in the right direction.

9 - None of his advisors is a neocon.

10 - John Edwards will be the Vice President, and he's the one I want in charge if something happens to the president.

I could go on but I don't want to overoad you.

Reasons to vote Kerry:

to disavow unilateralist military adventurism;
to repair America's standing with the other major powers;
to support stem cell research;
to support abortion rights;
to support greater access to health care.

From another member of the Progressive Bloggers Alliance

I am voting for John Kerry because of science. Stem cell research, yes, but more importantly -- do you know that right now many scientific panels that are supposed to provide hard data (not partisan interpretations) to Congress and the president are headed by industry honchos? These are scientists who, when working for tobacco companies, "proved" cigarettes are not addictive or harmful, or that drugs later shown to be harmful were safe.

Right now science is being trumped by belief. You have to respect what Kerry said in his response to the abortion question. Essentially, that he has his beliefs but he's not going to force others to hold the same beliefs. That's pluralism, that's America, that's what the terrorists are against. And dismissal of science is a necessary step for those who rule by ideology.

Put in the simplest terms: this country is deeply divided. It is irresponsible for someone who was elected by less than half the voters to legislate a single set of beliefs without compromise. John Kerry will compromise, defend your beliefs and mine. Science and judgment over broad visions that many do not share.

I'm voting for John Kerry because we need a president who will restore our national prestige and trust in the eyes of the rest of the world.

This message was brought to you by the PBA.

I'm a centrist Democrat, liberal on social issues, and conservative on the budget. And I believe the science on global warming, so environmental stewardship is important to me. Given all that, with over two decades of public service, John Kerry:

-- has an almost perfect voting record on the environment, as measured by the Sierra Club.
-- has a perfect voting record on women's issues, as rated by women's rights groups.
-- is not in bed with GOP interests, and so we will get back a divided government that will force reasonable compromise (the GOP will retain at least one chamber of Congress for sure).
-- voted for balanced budgets, even though unpopular at the time.
-- served two decades on the Senate foreign relations committee, and knows more than nearly anyone about keeping foreign alliances together.
-- actually fought and killed for his country; he showed he has the guts to pull the trigger when needed.
When I learned about Kerry's record, I became enthusiastic about his candidacy. The U.S. would be lucky to have him as its leader.

I am going to vote for John Kerry because he understands that America is a great, diverse, and wonderful country.

I am going to vote for John Kerry because he loves his country enough to fight for it.

I am going to vote for John Kerry because I know that four years from now this country will have a stonger say in world affairs through cooperation, respect, and diplomancy than through unilateralism and bullying.

I am going to vote for John Kerry because I prefer my girls to grow up in a world where they will have a safety net if something bad happens to them.

I am going to vote for John Kerry, not because I'd rather have a beer with the guy (I have friends for that) but because I believe he's intellectually up to the task.

I'm going to vote for John Kerry out of the purely selfish reason that my life will be better off four or eight years from now with him as president .

John Kerry -
1 - Scientific Literacy - not only does he respect science - he's smart enough to understand its implications when real scientists explain them to him (whereas GWB can't even pronounce "nuclear")
2 - Abortion - respectful of the Catholic and Evangelical Christian faith that life begins at conception - but more respectful of our constitution, which prohibits having religous doctrine dictate policy which affects everyone. Kerry is for making abortion safe, legal, and rare - which is the only policy that most people can actually agree on.
3 - Supreme Court - a justice may serve for 30 years or more. Those appointments matter, and the next four years will probably involve 3 or 4 appointments (Rehnquist (84 before end of next term), Stevens (88), O'Conner (78), Ginsburg (75), Ke