Here's some interesting quotes from Senator John F. Kerry:
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On the Iraq War:
“George, I said at the time I would have preferred if we had given diplomacy a greater opportunity, but I think it was the right decision to disarm Saddam Hussein, and when the President made the decision, I supported him, and I support the fact that we did disarm him.” ABC News, Democrat Presidential Candidate Debate, Columbia SC, 4 May 2003
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“I voted to threaten the use of force to make Saddam Hussein comply with the resolutions of the United Nations.”
Sen. John Kerry, Remarks At Announcement Of Presidential Candidacy, Mount Pleasant SC, 2 September 2003
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CHRIS MATTHEWS: “Do you think you belong to that category of candidates who more or less are unhappy with this war, the way it’s been fought, along with General Clark, along with Howard Dean and not necessarily in companionship politically on the issue of the war with people like Lieberman, Edwards and Gephardt? Are you one of the anti-war candidates?”
KERRY: “I am -- Yes, in the sense that I don’t believe the president took us to war as he should have, yes, absolutely.”
MSNBC’s Hardball, 6 January 2004
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On the PATRIOT Act:
The PATRIOT Act was passed nearly unanimously by the Senate 98-1, and 357-66 in the House. (H.R. 3162, CQ Vote #313: Passed 98-1: R 49-0; D 48-1; I 1-0, 25 October 2001;, Kerry Voted Yea)
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“Most of [The Patriot Act] has to do with improving the transfer of information between CIA and FBI, and it has to do with things that really were quite necessary in the wake of what happened on September 11th.”
Sen. John Kerry, Remarks At Town Hall Meeting, Manchester NH, 6 August 2003
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“We are a nation of laws and liberties, not of a knock in the night. So it is time to end the era of John Ashcroft. That starts with replacing the Patriot Act with a new law that protects our people and our liberties at the same time. I’ve been a District Attorney and I know that what law enforcement needs are real tools not restrictions on American’s basic rights.”
Sen. John Kerry, Remarks At Iowa State University, Iowa City IA, 1 December 2003
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The provisions of the PATRIOT Act were pretty clear from the beginning. Why would Senator Kerry vote for something he disagreed with? Or did he just not read it? Or understand it?
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On the first Gulf War
(two different letters to the SAME constituent):
"Thank you for contacting me to express your opposition ... to the early use of military force by the US against Iraq. I share your concerns. On January 11, I voted in favor of a resolution that would have insisted that economic sanctions be given more time to work and against a resolution giving the president the immediate authority to go to war.’
--letter from Senator John Kerry to Wallace Carter of Newton Centre, Massachusetts, dated January 22 [1991]
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"Thank you very much for contacting me to express your support for the actions of President Bush in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. From the outset of the invasion, I have strongly and unequivocally supported President Bush’s response to the crisis and the policy goals he has established with our military deployment in the Persian Gulf.’
--letter from Senator John Kerry to Wallace Carter of Newton Centre, dated January 31 [1991]
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On critisizing the President over the Iraq War:
In March 2003, Kerry Promised Not To Attack President When War Began. “Senator John F. Kerry of Massachusetts … said he will cease his complaints once the shooting starts. ‘It’s what you owe the troops,’ said a statement from Kerry, a Navy veteran of the Vietnam War. ‘I remember being one of those guys and reading news reports from home. If America is at war, I won’t speak a word without measuring how it’ll sound to the guys doing the fighting when they’re listening to their radios in the desert.’”
Glen Johnson, “Democrats On The Stump Plot Their War Rhetoric,” The Boston Globe, 11 March 2003
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But Weeks Later, With Troops Just Miles From Baghdad, Kerry Broke His Pledge. “‘What we need now is not just a regime change in Saddam Hussein and Iraq, but we need a regime change in the United States,’ Kerry said in a speech at the Peterborough Town Library. Despite pledging two weeks ago to cool his criticism of the administration once war began, Kerry unleashed a barrage of criticism as US troops fought within 25 miles of Baghdad.”
Glen Johnson, “Kerry Says Us Needs Its Own ‘Regime Change,’” The Boston Globe, 11 April 2003
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You know, if you're going to stick your foot in your mouth, at least have the presence of mind not to do it in front of the same newspaper reporter.
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On the environment (both quotes made 22 April 2004):
At a Houston “Earth Day” rally, John Kerry told his supporters that he truly dislikes gas-guzzling SUVs because they are poor for the environment. Because of this, he once proposed a 50-cent gas tax increase. Kerry said that he supports increasing fuel economy standards to 36 miles per gallon by 2015 in order to reduce America’s dependence on foreign oil. He also said that he has talked to Ford about making a hybrid car his new “campaign car.”
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During a conference call the same day, Kerry was asked whether he owned a Chevrolet Suburban. He replied, “I don’t own an SUV…the family has it. I don’t have it."
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Actually it has been revealed that “the family” also owns a Land Rover Defender, a Jeep Cherokee, a Jeep Grand Cherokee, and an Audi Allroad.
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Don't look at me - I own a Saturn that gets 35 mpg in the city.
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And if your computer has the ability, listen to these sound bites that come directly from the Senator's mouth.
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Look, I don't agree with everything the President has done. But at least I know where he stands - firm within his convictions.
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I consider myself a fairly intelligent person, but am I missing Senator Kerry's message? What do I not get? I don't know what his convictions are, let alone know how he's going to handle a particular situation. He takes all sides of an issue. A leader cannot do that. That to me indicates a follower, not a leader.
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