Who was that masked Democrat?

Liz Cox Barrett of the CJR Campaign Desk dissects a couple of the recent hangwringing pieces about the Kerry campaign, one by AP's Ron Fournier and one by the New York Times' Adam Nagourney, which purport to detail the fears of Democratic stategists and activists, only to find that "...it turns out, what many of these Democrats fear the most is ... going on the record with AP or the New York Times."

"These pieces," she finds, "fall into a pattern that has become almost predictable lately -- present the reader with a legion of anonymous Democrats "worried" about one aspect or another of the Kerry campaign, along with quotes from actual named Democrats disputing the premise."

The most noteworthy exception to the general rule of anonymity among the concerned? Donna Brazile, who will seemingly say anything in exchange for a prominent quotation, and whose standing as a critic of campaign strategy stems mainly from her role as the mastermind behind the Al Gore debacle in 2000. Frankly, if Donna's worried, I feel somehow encouraged...

Meanwhile, Nathan Newman earns his colors in the Upper Left Don't Panic Posse with these observations:

"Kerry has raised $80 million from 400,000 different people- $34 million of it over the Internet. He's survived the largest barrage of negative political advertising in history from the Bush campaign (something like $50 million in ads in the last month), yet Bush hasn't been able to open up a lead.

"Kerry is not the most dynamic speaker, no question, but he'll wear well with people over time. Unlike Gore, who I knew would annoy people so much he'd blow the election, Kerry will plod along, absorb Bush's attacks, then close hard at the end. That's been his pattern in tough races in Massachusetts-- notably when he dispatched Bill Weld-- and was his pattern in the Democratic nomination fight.

"And if you want to see where the campaign is making inroads at the grassroots, don't watch the official Kerry campaign, watch the 527s run by the unions. Folks are so busy trashing Kerry that are missing the growth of the most massive grassroots Presidential campaign in history."

Really folks. Don't panic. We're doing well.