Kerry Analyzes Consequences of Election

The presidential election should not be over until Florida's votes are recounted, Senator John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) said in an address last night at the Kennedy School of Government's ARCO Forum.

Kerry expressed his faith in due process and said it was time for a reevaluation of the American political system.

"Rest confidently, one of these two [candidates] will peacefully raise their hand in oath...come Jan. 20," he said. "No one can convince me that we don't have the time for due process."

Kerry, a Yale graduate who in his 16th year as senator has become one of his party's best-known names, acknowledged that there have been mistakes made on both sides in the election turmoil in Florida.

Amidst the palpable anticipation of the large audience, Kerry approached such touchy subjects with calmness, noting that one of his listeners could "grow up to hold the most powerful position in the land: Secretary of State for Florida."

In this election, Kerry said, partisanship has replaced statesmanship.

"If the Florida legislature flexes its muscles [and ignores the recommendations of the state Supreme Court], it could poison the situation," Kerry said.

He also discussed campaign issues that he thought were not given their due prominence.

"The campaign missed an opportunity to touch on the aspirations and hopes of Americans for their political system," he said. "It was absent of poetry, history, what campaigning should be about."

From campaign finance reform, to child poverty, to pollution emission standards, the senator engaged in a conversational and, he said, mainly unscripted profession of his policy goals and ideas.

"People didn't get a sense of the candidates," Kerry said. "They weren't sure if Bush was ready or who Gore was. Those concerns gave people ambivalence."

He also expressed concern at the way that America's impatience with the election process reflected on its image on the international stage, exhorting the American public to resist pollsters' insinuations that Gore is perceived as "testing the patience of the electorate."

He also voiced reluctance to blame Green Party candidate Ralph Nader for stealing the election from Gore, saying that he has great affinity for Nader's perceptions. At the same time, he said that it was disingenuous of Nader to portray the election as a Tweedledum-Tweedledee choice.

"Americans who care about the Supreme Court, who care about a woman's right to choose, know that this election has real consequences," Kerry said.

Kerry also expressed concern at the state of foreign affairs.

"At a time after the Cold War and America is now the sole world superpower, we have a Congress, half of whom don't have passports and brag in their districts that they do not travel outside the country. America is walking away from its responsibility and that has to change," Kerry said.

Kerry won plaudits for his candor.

"It was nice to see someone so genuine and sincere in his beliefs, even though it may have cost him the vice presidential nomination," said Venu Nadella '04.

Kerry, who was on Al Gore's short list for the vice presidential candidacy, told The Crimson afterward that he did not seek the position.

"It wasn't something I expected, but when I realized how real it was, I became excited about the potential challenge and chance to talk on a national basis," Kerry said. "I would hope that if I was a part of [the race], it wouldn't have been this close."

When asked about whether he would accept a position in a Gore Cabinet, Kerry responded, "That is a tough situation. The Senate is very tight this year."

"There would only be a few--maybe only one--Cabinet position I would consider and I don't see that in the cards," Kerry said. "I am focusing on my 2002 reelection now and we will see how this unfolds."

Kerry expressed his optimism about the upcoming session of Congress. The Nov. 7 election created a split of 50 Democrats and 50 Republicans in the Senate.

"Congress wants to find a constructive path," he said. "There's still not as much [cooperation] as one would like. Because of a lack of mandate in the election process, there will be a lot of hard feelings."