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Political affiliation: Democratic Party |
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Born:
December 11, 1943
Denver, Colorado |
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Personal:
Married to Teresa Heinz; two
daughters --Alexandra and Vanessa. Three stepchildren. Catholic. |
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Occupation:
U.S. Senator |
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Education:
Bachelor's degree, Yale University,
1966; law degree, Boston College, 1976. |
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Experience:
Navy
officer, awarded Silver Star, Bronze Star with Combat "V,"
three Purple Hearts for Vietnam War service, 1966-70; spokesman,
Vietnam Veterans Against the War, 1971; Middlesex County,
Mass., prosecutor, 1976-78; lawyer in private practice, 1979-1982;
Massachusetts Lieutenant governor, 1983-85; U.S. Senate, 1985-present. |
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John Kerry
SNAPSHOT
U.S. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., won the Democratic
nomination for president in July, the only Democrat left standing in a field
that at one time numbered 10. In winning the nomination, Kerry survived several
shake-ups of his campaign after former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean spent most of
2003 as the frontrunner. But the Iowa caucuses, and an ill-timed scream, doomed
Dean, and forced out Sen. Richard Gephardt. And Kerry rolled on Super Tuesday,
forcing his primary competitor, Sen. John Edwards, out of the race. In June,
Kerry named Edwards his choice for vice president.
Kerry did not get a large bounce after the Democratic National Convention in
Boston, and then in late August, the Republican Convention in New York, coupled
with a strong ad campaign by Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, heavily damaged
Kerry, who never recovered from a sharp drop in the polls, even though the final
election result was close.
Gephardt quits presidential race
Dick Gephardt, the former House Democratic
leader and 14-term congressman, said Tuesday he was abandoning his
second bid for the presidency after a poor, fourth-place showing in
the Iowa caucuses.
(01/20/2004)
The campaign of Wesley Clark
Host Gary Eichten and his guest discuss democratic presidential candidate Wesley Clark's campaign, and how he'll fare in the New Hampshire primary. After sitting out Iowa, both Joe Lieberman and Clark, a retired general, will get their first taste of primary combat next week in New Hampshire.
( 01/20/2004)
The Iowa caucuses: results and analysis
After the blizzard of ads, the blanketing of the state by most of the Democratic candidates, Iowans caucused and made their choices. What's next for the following important primary, New Hampshire.
( 01/20/2004)
Kerry shakes up race and staggers Dean with decisive win in Iowa
Democratic presidential candidates vied for victory Monday across the chilly precincts of Iowa, the first step in the battle to face President Bush this fall. John Kerry was leading in preliminary results of an Associated Press survey of Iowa Democrats taken as they entered the caucus sites.
(01/20/2004)
Practicing politics at an Iowa caucus
More than 100 people crammed Decorah's City Council chambers Monday night to participate in the Iowa Democratic caucus. For this precinct, in a small northeastern Iowa college town, it was the best-attended caucus in recent memory.
(01/20/2004)
The Iowa caucus
Democratic presidential candidates are making their closing pitches in Iowa before Monday's caucuses. Host Gary Eichten talks with Iowa State University political scientist Jim McCormick and with Minnesota operatives for the four leading Democratic candidates who have been working in Iowa. He also speaks with Midwest George Bush Chairman Vin Weber, who is in Iowa for the caucuses as well.
( 01/19/2004)
Variety of issues drive Iowans to caucuses
On Monday, Iowa Democrats will meet in close to 2,000 precinct caucuses around the state. Because Iowa gets to go first, some political observers say the views of Iowa residents play a disproportionate role in choosing a candidate for president. But the issues Iowans are concerned about --the war in Iraq, jobs, and education-- are the same ones on the minds of many Minnesotans and other Americans.
(01/16/2004)
Braun quits presidential race, backs Dean
Former Illinois Sen. Carol Moseley Braun dropped out of the presidential race Thursday and endorsed Howard Dean as "a Democrat we can all be proud to support." Braun, the only woman and one of two African-Americans in the race, left the field four days ahead of the Iowa caucuses. Her departure left eight men vying for the Democratic nomination to challenge President Bush this fall.
(01/15/2004)
Upper midwest to be "battleground" in 2004 race
Minnesota and the other upper midwestern states are destined to be a battleground in the 2004 presidential race. A panel discussion at the new Center for the Study of Politics featured Norman Ornstein, resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, Vin Weber, midwest chair of the Bush re-election campaign, Tim Penny, 2002 Independence Party candidate for governor of Minnesota, and Ted Mondale, Minnesota state coordinator for the Howard Dean campaign.
( 01/15/2004)
Minnesotans help campaign in Iowa
On January 19, Iowans will gather in town halls, schoolrooms and supper clubs to begin the process of selecting a Democratic presidential nominee. Minnesota's caucuses won't be held until March 2, and some Democrats think the nomination could already be decided by then. But that doesn't mean Minnesotans are frozen out of the process. Hundreds have crossed the border to help campaign in Iowa for their favorite candidates.
(01/15/2004)
Kucinich brings campaign to North Dakota
Dennis Kucinich brought his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination to Fargo Tuesday. Despite a poor showing in the polls, the Ohio congressman believes he still has a shot at the party's presidential nomination.
(01/13/2004)
Republican politics and policies
Host Gary Eichten and his guest discuss national politics and Republican policies. President Bush is grabbing headlines with ambitious proposals to send Americans to the moon and Mars and to revamp immigration policy. But his election-year agenda is costly and controversial, alarming some of his conservative supporters who wonder how a nation with record budget deficits and an expensive war on terrorism will find the money.
( 01/12/2004)
Wesley Clark visits Superior
Democratic presidential candidate Wesley Clark stopped in Superior, Wisconsin, over the weekend. The retired general has been gaining in the polls against front-runner Howard Dean in the last couple of weeks.
(01/12/2004)
The Bush dynasty
A Twin Cities speech by former Republican political strategist Kevin Phillips. He is author of a new book, "American Dynasty: Aristocracy, Fortune and the Politics of Deceit in the House of Bush. Kevin Phillips spoke at the University of Minnesota's Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs.
( 01/09/2004)
Democratic challengers meet in radio-only debate
Howard Dean accused President Bush of
pursuing a policy that will "allow North Korea to become a nuclear
power" on Tuesday, as a Democratic presidential debate turned into
an all-out assault on President Bush's foreign policy.
(01/06/2004)