The Magazine

The Great Divide

The 2004 race will pit a September 10 candidate against a September 12 president.

Feb 16, 2004, Vol. 9, No. 22 • By FRED BARNES
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GEORGE W. BUSH is a September 12 person. John Kerry is a September 10 person. The difference is real. A September 12 person was traumatized by the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon on September 11, 2001. A September 12 person believes the world we thought existed before the attacks doesn't exist anymore. A September 12 person is convinced the world has fundamentally changed. A September 12 person favors a full-scale war on terrorism, including the use of military force for regime change in Iraq.

In contrast, a September 10 person was outraged by the attacks but not traumatized. A September 10 person thinks the world still exists as we perceived it before the attacks and thus hasn't fundamentally changed. A September 10 person regards the fight against radical Islamic terrorism as chiefly a matter of law enforcement and intelligence. Full-blown military engagement is not required.

The difference between the two types is significant politically as well as substantively. If September 11 and the war on terror are not salient issues in the campaign, Kerry benefits. To the extent they are, Bush gains. At the moment, Kerry has the upper hand. In the latest Gallup poll, terrorism is the fourth biggest worry of voters, trailing the economy, jobs, and anxiety over Iraq. And when voters in exit polls in Democratic primaries this year are asked which of six problems facing America is most important, it usually comes in sixth.

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