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"Fratricidal Fire"  2004 Democratic Presidential Candidates political cartoon.

July 28, 2003 … “Democratic Contenders Take Aim – at Each Other…Skirmishes among the presidential hopefuls are seen as a way to ‘create conflict and drama’ and break up a nine-candidate muddle.” – Los Angeles Times headline. Excerpt from coverage by the Times’ Mark Z. Barabak: “For months, they pounded away at President Bush over the sagging economy. More recently, they have challenged his truthfulness about the case for war with Iraq. Now the Democrats who hope to replace Bush are broadening their target: They're sniping at each other. Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman is assailing Missouri Rep. Richard A. Gephardt's health- care plan. Gephardt is criticizing Massachusetts Sen. John F. Kerry on trade. Kerry faults former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean for his lack of defense and foreign policy experience. The fratricidal fire comes — not coincidentally — after the July 15 release of the latest campaign finance statements, which served as a kind of midyear report card on the presidential hopefuls. Dean surprised many analysts by collecting the most money during April, May and June. Kerry finished second in fund-raising — and has the most cash on hand — but he and Dean now are squaring off for support from many of the same voters. Gephardt fared poorly in the money-collecting contest, falling short of his second-quarter goal by about $1 million. Lieberman met his fund-raising expectations, but only after a last-minute scramble that ended with a shuffling of his campaign staff. So with a sudden need to recalibrate their strategies, several candidates have seized on the same approach — attack. It is a way to ‘create conflict and drama,’ said party strategist Jenny Backus, who likened the candidates to contestants on reality television…There have been earlier skirmishes. In May, at the candidates' first formal debate, Kerry and Dean went at it from the start, resuming a fight Kerry had picked a few days earlier over Dean's readiness to serve as commander in chief. Lieberman and Gephardt also mixed it up, along with North Carolina Sen. John Edwards, in a back-and-forth over Gephardt's $2-trillion health-care proposal. The reviews were largely negative, though, with some party leaders saying the tussles only diminished Democrats while leaving President Bush unscathed. Most of the candidates reverted to more gentlemanly form in the weeks that followed. Recently, however, that reserve has eroded, as the contenders feel increasing pressure to break from a nine-candidate muddle. ‘It's an inevitable part of the process,’ said Steve Elmendorf, a Gephardt strategist. ‘You've got a bunch of people running for president and you've got to convince people to 'vote for me.' And part of that process is explaining how you're different from the other individuals. In some ways, I'm surprised it's taken this long.’ At a recent Gephardt appearance in Iowa — widely viewed as a must-win state for him — he assailed Dean and Kerry for backing the North American Free Trade Agreement. The setting was a union hall, which was no accident — NAFTA is anathema to organized labor, a key to Gephardt's success in Iowa's Jan. 19 caucuses. A few days later, Lieberman took up the trade issue at a manufacturing plant in New Hampshire, criticizing ‘some Democrats’ — clearly Gephardt — for ‘trying to build walls around our economy.’…In an interview, Lieberman said his criticisms were part of ‘a healthy discussion and differentiation’ among the Democratic hopefuls. ‘These nominating contests are truly struggles for the heart and soul of the party,’ he said. ‘We would be irresponsible if we didn't air our differences.’”