Don Plusquellic experienced presidential campaigns in unique ways, particularly when he served as president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors and John Kerry was the Democratic candidate for president. The following is from Chapter 12: “The Larger Stage.”
When months after the 2004 presidential election Plusquellic’s cell phone rang, he did not know what was appropriate to say when he answered and learned who was calling. He thought this might be another joke between friends — [Fort Wayne Mayor] Paul Helmke or another needler.
“Mayor,” the caller said, “this is Senator Kerry.”
Plusquellic had doubts. But he could not identify the voice as that of a buddy who might want to pull a payback prank. So he stalled for time.
“You’re breaking up,” Plusquellic replied. “I can’t hear you.”
“It’s Senator Kerry, mayor,” the voice repeated. “How are you?”
By this point Plusquellic had determined it sounded like Kerry. He decided to play along. “I’m fine,” Plusquellic informed Kerry. “What’s going on?”
Kerry told Plusquellic he would like Plusquellic’s opinion as to why Kerry lost Ohio and thus the presidency. Plusquellic felt uncomfortable giving it because it would be difficult to be respectful and honest at the same time.
“And I’m trying to be respectful,” Plusquellic said. “He’s still a senator.”
Plusquellic tried to come up with an answer that would cover the bases, honest yet respectful. “Senator,” Plusquellic said, “you probably know this: I’ve been around awhile. I’ve been with a lot of winning candidates, and I’ve been with a few who have lost. Nobody really wants to get back into this [after the fact].”
“No, I’m serious,” Kerry insisted. “I really want to know. Okay?”
Plusquellic could not dodge answering and it is not in his nature to tell even a defeated presidential candidate what he wants to hear to make the conversation easier.
“Senator,” Plusquellic said, “let me put it this way: if you had listened to people who actually live in Ohio, who grew up in Ohio, who [have known] and dealt with the Billy Bobs in Ohio all their [lives], you would be calling me as president of the United States.”
Kerry fell silent. Plusquellic, pleased with the answer he had hit upon, was pumping his fist up and down in the air and saying to himself: Yes!
Finally, Kerry spoke. “I don’t know what you mean,” he said.
“I don’t really think you want to hear …,” Plusquellic said.
“No,” Kerry again insisted, “I really do.”
“Okay,” Plusquellic said, warming to his task, “let me lay it out for you. First of all, I gave you that information.”
Plusquellic was referring to the Columbus Dispatch reports on how poorly homeland security fund distribution had been handled by Ohio. To Plusquellic the connections were obvious: Republican president sends money to Republican governor whose administration botches getting the money into the hands of cities that need help in addressing security issues — and this assessment comes from a Republican newspaper.
“That’s better than a Democratic think tank,” Plusquellic told Kerry. “That proves that [George W. Bush, who] is out there as a wartime president [promising heightened security] — well it ain’t working in Ohio where you needed the votes.
“But let me go back: you decided to come out of the convention as a war hero. I was in a loge [when Kerry gave his speech accepting the Democratic nomination] and I saw people with tears in their eyes and I felt the same way. The feeling as we left there was: this is a real hero we could be proud of and we’re going to go out and work like hell for him. Whether it was right or wrong, you chose that path.
“I happen to think it was right.”
Plusquellic reminded Kerry that to combat the attacks on his valor and credibility, Plusquellic had laid out a response, using part in his introduction of Kerry at Firestone Stadium. When he shared it with Kerry’s campaign staff members, they scoffed.
“You go on TV, just you alone, looking straight at the camera,” he told Kerry, “and you say, ‘Mr. President, with all due respect, you and your political operatives take those misleading ads off [the air]. Because if there is one truth about the Vietnam War … if there is anything important about what happened in the Vietnam War 30 years ago . . . I was actually there, Mr. President, and you weren’t. I watched our soldiers die … around me and, yes, I killed for my country, because that’s what I was asked to do. Now you and your political operatives take those misleading ads off.”
Plusquellic wasn’t finished.
“Senator,” he said, “here’s what would have happened: the White House would have denied responsibility for the ads and 50 percent of the people in the United States would have said — the president’s a liar.… Nobody believes that the candidate doesn’t have some control [over those ads]. They would have been back on their heels … on the defensive.
“And here’s the most important part, Senator. In Ohio, here’s how this goes down: you would have been standing up to the president of the United States in a very respectful way. You would become a man, because people would say: Boy, he stood up to Bush.
“Two, you would have pointed out the obvious — that you served.
“Three, and this is going to be hard to understand and it almost sounds weird but trust me on this: the Billy Bobs like people who kill people. If you’re a soldier and you’re over there fighting for the good ol’ USA, the red, white, and blue, for mom and apple pie — they like that. And you [delivering] the subtle message that you had to kill people — I’m telling you, you win Ohio — and it’s hands down — and you become president of the United States.”
This was hard to hear and a lot to digest. More, perhaps, than Kerry wanted to hear.
When he spoke, Kerry said, “I sure wish I had …”
Plusquellic knew the rest. It was why he told Kerry that no one really wants an honest appraisal of what went wrong with a campaign.
What Kerry actually wanted — the purpose of the call — was to get on the agenda for the final conference of mayors meeting at which Plusquellic would preside as president.
“You know, senator,” Plusquellic told Kerry, “I don’t mean any disrespect, but I have a real difficult time thinking I can [put you on the agenda]. We have a lot of business to take care of, issues that we tried to talk to you about before the election, and I just don’t think I can justify doing that.”
The message: You had your chance — and blew it.