Googling the Kerry — Weld Race of 1996
Supposedly Kerry’s 1996 re-election race is one of the crucibles of Kerry’s political life — a tough-fought race where Kerry was down and out, but came storming back and showed his mettle and demonstrated what he is made of. The pundits have drawn comparisons of his recent comeback from the dead in the 2004 Democratic primary race to this 1996 campaign.
So, with that in mind, a google search through Usenet posts for the names “John Kerry” and “William Weld”, constricted to January 1, 1996 to December 31, 1996 so as to highlight everything from relatively early prognasticating as the race clearly shaped up to post-mortem analyses of what just happened brings us:
184 results. 72 non-repetitive.
… And On to what’s there…
1996/01/19 Early State by State Predictions
: MA Tossup/Leans D John Kerry (I)
I can’t wait for this one to get going.
Back to MA, it may be likely that William Weld can become the John Chafee of the state; a popular liberal-moderate Republican Senator in a Democratic state.
1996/02/01 The ‘Heinz’ meme that is being repeated in right-wing media right now took place in 1996 too.
We have a senate race in Massachusetts in which the candidates spend most of their time accusing the other of being richer! (William Weld and John Kerry, who recently married Theresa Heinz, heir to the ketchup fortune.
Imbecilic _Boston Herald columnist Howie Carr calls Kerry “Senator Kerry-Heinz” now.
1996/04/10 The poll result looks mighty similar to the poll result we have in Kerry — Bush right now.
Dem: Sen. John Kerry
GOP: Gov. William Weld
General: Kerry v. Weld (44%-44%)
The “Clash of the Titans”. Ooooh, this should be fun!
4/9/96 Unofficial Summary of the Rush Limbaugh Show… he’s repeating himself 8 years later
Theresa Heinz, wife of Senator John Kerry (D-MA), who’s
being opposed for re-election this year by Governor William Weld
(R-MA), had the following to say about her husband at the kick-
off rally for his campaign: “If there is anything that I can do as a woman and as his wife to make his life richer after 12 years of celibacy, I promise you, I
will.”
Rush suspects this must be the true meaning of Heinz’s motto “57
varieties.”
09 April 1996 More Limbaugh
Rush celebrates the Governor’s ability to come back with a good reply for each attack. Rush wishes the rest of the Republicans would respond this way.
Governor Weld details the Senator’s voting record. The Senator has voted to raise taxes, make life easier for criminals, and voted with the president against the balanced budget. Senator Kerry had no response to this.
1996/06/10 Doing business with Burma.
A tough ”selective contracting” bill targeting companies that do business in Burma is expected to cross the desk of Massachusetts Gov. William Weld soon, but it’s unclear whether he’ll sign it into law. […]
Ruled by a military junta, Burma has been under intense scrutiny for human rights violations. The country’s most vocal opponent, Nobel Prize Winner Aung San Suu Kyi – who was under house arrest for six years – has called for an economic boycott of the Southeast Asian nation. […]
Analysts say Gov. Weld, a Republican, may be reluctant to make waves because he is challenging Democratic Sen. John Kerry this year in one of the nation’s most hotly contested Senate campaigns.
1996/06/17 Polling
Your poll is *way* out of date. A recent WBZ poll after the June 3 debate showed a plurality thought Weld won, and Weld led 43% to 40%. Other recent polls show similar very small margins, but with Kerry ahead. In short, update your MA assessment.
1996/08/11 Weld Distances Himself from Party
1996/08/21 Polling
a recent poll by the Boston Herald showed Sierra Club-endorsed Senator John Kerry (D-MA) trailing Republican nominee (and Mass. governor) William Weld 38 to 46%.
1996/09/17 That Gay Marriage Thang
It should be noted that Wellstone voted with Jesse Helms on the gay marriage bill; in fact, *every* Senate Democrat who faces a socially conservative challenger in 1996 sided with Helms. (Only John Kerry, who faces social left-winger William Weld, opposed the Republican leadership on this issue.)
1996/10/12 Not much new here
The race in Massachusetts is probably the most compelling and certainly
the most widely reported Senate race in the country. It is between two
political powerhouses: Sen. John F. Kerry, a Democrat running for his
third term, and Gov. William Weld, a Republican who was re-elected in his
heavily Democratic state in 1994 with more than 70 percent of the vote.”
1996/10/24 Kerry Leads
Weld’s cleanup of the “miracle” left by Mike Dukakis has won him grudging respect from almost everyone in Massachusetts, but is it reasonable to expect that a liberal state will expel a liberal Democrat and help elect Trent Lott as Majority Leader?
1996/10/28 Right-wing view of Iran-Contra And, a Left wing.
1996/10/31 Perot endorses Weld.
Weld “gives the people what they want, what they have a right to expect,” Perot said. “Conservative and responsible stewardship of public funds, a clean and safe environment, excellence in education, and freedom to lead their own lives at they see fit. In the federal government, the special interests carry the day, not the interests of the people. We need a man dedicated to the people.”
Before becoming governor, Perot said, Weld “made his mark as a
prosecutor of public corruption, a lawman who could not be stopped by partisan power plays or big money. And with today’s never-ending stream of scandals
drowning out our federal government, we need people like Bill Weld in Washington today.”
It was Mr. Kerry, a legitimate American patriot, who exposed
Perot’s bizarre claim several years ago that the Vietnamese were holding
live Americans from the Vietnam War…even though the evidence was
overwhelming that the charge was ridiculous, and that, in fact, the
Vietnamese, more than any of our former adversaries, were making great
efforts to provide information on the location of remains of American
service personnel killed in that war. Perot has never forgiven Mr. Kerry
for exposing him as a bombastic know-it-all who confuses salesmanship with
knowledge and wisdom.
1996/11/05 Election Night
two-term Democratic Senator John Kerry defeated his Republican challenger, Governor William Weld by a solid margin. And Democrats are leading in the state’s only two G-O-P House seats.
1996/11/07 Grateful Dead
was watching the news this morning, and on came the victorious Mass. Senator John Kerry, addressing his supporters the night before. He said to the cheering crowd: “As the Grateful Dead used to say, and sing, “What a Long Strange Trip It’s Been.”
I must confess that I just wasted my time putting this post together. I learned next to nothing. What little I learned: the “Heinz wears the pants in the family” meme is a long-running meme. I don’t know how this race carries into the 2004 race. Hm.