"I will be a Commander-in-Chief who will never mislead us into war [like George W. Bush]," John Kerry declared during the Democratic National Convention in July 2004. "I will have a Vice-President who will not conduct secret meetings with polluters to rewrite our environmental laws [like Dick Cheney]... I want an America that relies on its ingenuity and innovation -- not the Saudi royal family."

After deploying such barbs throughout his speech, Kerry kept a straight face as he approached his conclusion, expressing the hope that his opponent engage in a high-minded campaign of "big ideas, not small-minded attacks..."