Behold: the Every Day Guy!

Booed at Fenway
John Kerry's pitch to Red Sox Nation was a bust. But the real problem is that he's trying to be someone he's not.
by Jonathan V. Last 07/26/2004 12:00:00 PM

Boston
FOR AS LONG as politicians have been throwing out first pitches, fans have been booing them. So it was no surprise last night when the crowd at Fenway Park let Kerry have it. As soon as it was announced that Kerry would be throwing out the ceremonial first pitch, the Boston faithful began booing.

This was somewhat surprising, since many people in the stands were carrying posters with "Team Kerry" and "For a Stronger America: Kerry-Edwards." After the initial wave of booing, some applause mixed in. Then Kerry threw a weak pitch from the grass in front of the mound. It bounced over home plate. The booing came back in force.

All was then quiet on the Kerry front until the 7th inning, when a woman waving a "Team Kerry" poster was put on the Jumbo-tron. The crowd instantly, and vigorously, booed again. Team Kerry shouldn't be overly concerned with the boo birds, but they might be a little worried about how uncomfortable Kerry seems with middle-America events, like sports.

Kerry has long claimed allegiance to the Boston Red Sox and the New England Patriots. Yet last week, ESPN's Peter Gammons reported that, Kerry claimed to be a big fan of "Manny Ortez." Having fused the names of Boston's two biggest sluggers, Kerry then compounded the error by correcting himself and saying he meant "David Ortez." No word on what either Manny Ramirez or David Ortiz thought of the slip up.

But so what if Kerry is too
much of a blue-blood to be into sports? Teresa Heinz Kerry is no sports devotee either, but she's up-front about it. In 2002, when the Pittsburg Steelers met the Patriots in the NFL playoffs, much was made of the rivalry in the Kerry household.

Teresa, it turns out, is a life-long Steelers fan. But she happily admits that "I don't know football from Cheyenne." In an interview with the Boston Herald in January 2002, she went so far as to describe how much she dislikes the place where her beloved Steelers play--Heinz Field. "I think it's a terrible field," she said, adding, "I don't think it's a terrible stadium. I think it's a terribly built wind tunnel."

The week before the game, Teresa left one of the Steelers' trademark Terrible Towels on Kerry's favorite easy chair--a cute, low-grade prank.

In response, the Herald reported that "Kerry said he tried to get even by hauling his puffy Patriots parka out of the closet" when he took the couple's dog, Cim, for an after-dinner walk around Georgetown. Bet that showed her!

John Kerry should take a lesson from his wife. You don't have to be one-of-the-guys to be elected president. But it helps if you don't try to be someone you're not.

Jonathan V. Last is online editor of The Weekly Standard.
*********************************************************
Try to remember, though, that John Kerry knows about the plight of the working man.  Having never held a private sector job in his life, he knows what it's like to work for a living.  Since he married into millions (twice), it must be as easy for everyone else, or he wouldn't be wanting to raise taxes so consistently.  Since he has obviously had to pay his health care costs for the last 30 years out of his own pocket, it shouldn't matter that his health care plans for the country would necessitate increasing taxes per household by $2000 per year.  (It should be pointed out that this is every household, not just the ones who pay taxes now.)  He believes in a strong national defense, which is why he pledged never to deploy US troops overseas without the approval of the United Nations.  He wants to increase America's prosperity, which is why he proposes to tax the people who earn more and generate more jobs.  He has great integrity, which is why he has yet to solidly state what his personal opinions are on issues without including a way to back out.  He is a Catholic with closely-held personal beliefs, which is why he has abandoned the policy of the Roman Catholic Church banning abortion. 
 
I waffle on abortion issues, myself, but I'm not running for office.  Two words for you, folks: CAVEAT EMPTOR.