WASHINGTON – Just one of 100 again, Sen. John Kerry remained far from the spotlight Tuesday on his first workday back in the Senate after losing his bid for the presidency.
No longer the Democratic candidate but rather just the junior senator from Massachusetts, Kerry granted interviews to hometown reporters and joined the depleted corps of fellow Senate Democrats as they elected the party’s new Senate leaders.
His colleagues thanked him, congratulated him and wished him well.
“Every time his name was mentioned, there was enthusiastic applause. Literally, every time his name was mentioned,” said Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich.
Reflecting on his loss, Kerry said he was not sitting around thinking about it. “You’ve got to go on,” he said. “Do I find it some mark of failure or distress? The answer is no.”
Kerry described himself as a “fighter,” and added, “I can envision a lot of years of fight ahead of me.”
Sen. Joe Lieberman, D-Conn., a former vice presidential candidate who lost in 2000 and a one-time presidential aspirant who fell short in the spring primaries, spoke from experience in offering Kerry words of support.
“He has a lot to be proud of, and I hope he’ll find what I did – that it was great to have the U.S. Senate to come back to,” Lieberman said.
Senators predicted that Kerry would find an expanded role as he eased back into his old job.
“Obviously, he brings some experience, and people are interested in what he has to say,” said Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Neb., pointing out that nearly half the country, if not quite enough to elect him president, voted for Kerry. President Bush received 60.5 million votes to Kerry’s 57.1 million.
Kerry didn’t make any remarks on the Senate’s pending legislation nor did he deliver any speeches at the Democrats’ meetings. He met privately with Sen. Tom Daschle, D-S.D., the former minority leader who, like Kerry, lost on Nov. 2. Kerry also thanked other Democrats one-by-one for their support.
Kerry got a two-minute standing ovation from his staff, whom he thanked for giving “your heart, your soul and even your vacation time,” one aide said.
“Sen. Kerry is not a shrinking violet,” said Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada, the Democrats’ newly elected leader. “We are looking for John Kerry to find what he wants to do. We are sorry that he’s not in the White House, but we’re glad that he’s back on Capitol Hill.”
Kerry also met with his policy staff to talk about health care, energy and other legislation that might build on themes from his campaign.
Not since George McGovern lost a bid for the presidency in 1972 has a senator returned to the Senate as a defeated presidential candidate, according to the Senate Historical Office.
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