Wow. I just read Kerry’s rebuttal. It sounds like Michael Moore and Terry McAwful co-wrote it:
For the past week, they have attacked my patriotism and even my fitness to serve as commander in chief.
Well, here is my answer to them. I will not have my commitment to defend this country questioned by those who refused to serve when they could’ve and who misled America into Iraq.The vice president called me unfit for office last night. Well, I’m going to leave it up to the voters to decide whether five deferments make someone more qualified than two tours of duty.
Let me tell you in no uncertain terms what makes someone unfit for office and unfit for duty. Misleading our nation into war in Iraq makes you unfit to lead our country. Doing nothing while this nation loses millions of jobs makes you unfit to lead this country. Letting 45 million Americans go without health care for four years makes you unfit to lead this country.
Letting the Saudi royal family control the price of oil for Americans makes you unfit to lead this country. Handing out billions of dollars in government contracts without a bid to Halliburton while you’re still on the payroll makes you unfit lead this country.
Dean
Just curious:
By Kerry’s lights, was Clinton qualified to lead the country?
Did Clinton mislead us into war over Kosovo? (Yes, there were killings. No, there was not genocide, nor killing fields.)
Were jobs being exported during his administration? (Remember the tag line that the Japanese are making computer chips while we’re making potato chips?)
Did the Clinton Administration formulate a plan to provide health care to the mill-ee-yuns and mill-ee-yuns of Americans who lack it?
Did the Saudis NOT control the price of oil during the previous Administration? Did something happen on January 20, 2001 to give them that power?
And which Administration signed the first wave of contracts with Halliburton? (See LOGCAP program.)
And if getting a deferment disqualifies you from the Presidency, what does avoiding the draft altogether do? Does that make it better or worse to send the armed forces into battle?
Look, w/ Bubba in the hospital, the point isn’t about him. The point is that Kerry’s charges apply to a whole slew of people, including Democrats. The guy is clearly playing w/ fire.
Terry
As Hugh Hewitt put it, John Kerry’s ravings Thursday night “…[are] reason enough, I think, to reject debates with this fellow, whose apparent problems and insecurities about the past are every day becoming more apparent. Wild accusations that every responsible member of his party’s leadership know to be false must be sending shock waves through that group this morning.” Can you imagine Joe Lieberman reading Kerry’s remarks? Or even Bill Clinton? Kerry’s lost it, and that he did so on a night when George Bush reminded America why our enemies fear his leadership.
Also, note that Drudge has just put up a link to Time Magazine’s new poll result, which shows that Bush has opened up a double digit lead over Kerry. With more performances like last night’s, Bush may get an even further “bounce” in the next poll!
JPS
John, was it you who posted the new Official Seal of the Democratic Party?
JohnO
JPS, that seal has been around since the last election during the recount. It’s still applicable.
Jay
John, think about what it looked like live. It was awful. He rambled, since he didn’t have a telemprompter, he had to fumble around with index cards which caused moments of silence when there was no applause.
It was really, really bad.
Glen England
Whether it’s Moore or somebody else, I hope Kerry has gotten new writers. The last couple of weeks have been leaden, and he’s been way too slow off the mark on the Swift Boat Liars. (Or should that be Perjurers? They attest to things that did not happen and contradict official documents. Sam Watterson could make a mosh of them.)
Looking forward to President Kerry’s inauguration…
Declan
Don’t hold your breath Glen.
Justin O.
I think this is the strategy Kerry needs to take, to fight back on the ridiculous attacks. It was one of the best speeches I have ever heard a presidential candidate give on a campaign.
bains
I heard the clip on the news and was immediately struck by Kerry’s choice of words. “Refused to serve” during that period means draft dodgers.
Bush chose an option available to many affluent familys and joined the Guard. Cheney chose to seek deferments. Neither were ordered to serve a combat tour, thus neither can be considered to have refused service.
On a secondary note, given that Mr. Kerry maintains that his post-service antics were and still are the right and noble course, isn’t chosing NOT to serve in Viet Nam along with all the other war criminals the proper decision?
Sorry, I keep forgetting that neither rules, nor logic, are salient (or even requried) when Democrats are talking.
M. Scott Eiland
“I think this is the strategy Kerry needs to take, to fight back on the ridiculous attacks. It was one of the best speeches I have ever heard a presidential candidate give on a campaign.”
Hey, the moonbats liked it! I agree–more of the same, Mr. Kerry. Only get the whine a little more insistent and shrill next time–swing voters *love* that.
Slapshot
Bains wrote: “Bush chose an option available to many affluent familys”. True, but the Guard option was open to everyone, not just the “affluent”. Several of my non-affluent buddies wound up in the guard during that period of time.
beloney
Does anyone know how to find out if the Veeps deferments had anything to do with a wife and family? Thanks
Steverino
It was one of the best speeches I have ever heard a presidential candidate give on a campaign.
That’s either naive hyperbole or shameless hype.
No one at the Republican Convention questioned Kerry’s patriotism, despite what Kerry alleged. And Dean already debunked the rest of Kerry’s speech.
Kerry’s speech was shrill and petulant, and will be seen by voters as the first whiff of desperation in his campaign.
CadillaqJaq
“Whiff of desperation” is too mild… Senator Kerry is standing knee deep in his own excrement. I can’t wait until the debates; if he repeats that late night scenario, he’s doomed. (Hell, IMO he’s doomed anyway…)
Curious: I wonder if WJBC started getting chest pains AFTER Kerry’s late night speech.
Yoda
This was really cruel. I mean, Kerry starts ripping on everyone who avoided the draft -like Clinton and Cheney and the next day Bill has to go in for heart surgery.
I can’t see what Kerry would gain by trashing Clinton like this.
As for Haliburton, when Bush calmly explains during the debate that the alternative to closed contracts was to award bids -of American taxpayer $$$ – to French companies, I just HAVE to watch John squirm on national TV.
Gary B.
Kerry got to see the same intelligence President Bush did regarding Iraq. If he’s not going to accept responsibility for his vote on Iraq, who will he blame if he was CofC? He wants accountability from Bush, but he never admits to doing anything wrong himself. The secret service agent knocked him over, he didn’t fall. He’s never wrong in his mind.
wild bird
As usial moore is already celebrating the end of the GOP well here a word from wild bird dont be ready to eat you cake becuase the baker has,nt made it yet and would just as soon bake for someone else rather than a egotistical big mouth and idiot like micheal(magaphone mouth)moore and just try that a s a tounge twister
Jane
He seemed a little drunk to me.