Here is what I would like to see at the debate on
Thursday. IMO, Kerry has been damaged by: (1) flip-flop label and (2) Swiftboat ads.
He needs to turn his boat into the flip-flop allegations and show that Bush is the major flip flopper in the war on terror and Iraq.
Examples would include:
(1) Nation-building FF
(2) WMD flip-flops (Cheney comments on al Queda Iraq-9/11 links
(3) The importance of Osama Bin Ladin
(4) No cooperation with the UN in Iraq -- Cooperation with the UN in Iraq
(5) We cannot win the war on terror -- we can win the war on terror.
Kerry needs to preemptively strike by flipping the flip-flop label. It will show the ridiculous of Bush's labeling of him, and will be viewed as bold (all the democratic commentators should be ready afterwards to say that Kerry turned his boat into Bush to reveal the hypocrisy!)
The key: it has to be done before Bush strikes with the flip-flop label. Not only will it expose the hypocrisy, but it will also blunt Bush's flip-flop tactics (in fact this is an old litigation trick -- its better to present and spin bad evidence yourself so your opponent cannot frame the issue).