and the material that will destroy him is right out there easy to find. For all Kerry's ability to draw veterans in IA, as soon as he gets elevated, much of his Vietnam veteran support can easily be stripped off. There even websites such as Vietnam Vets against John Kerry
here's the guts of it:
"Kerry attended a February 1971, VVAW conference bankrolled by Jane Fonda, the group's most prominent promoter. Over 125 self-proclaimed Vietnam veterans testified at a Detroit Howard Johnson's about wholesale rape, torture, and murder they claimed U.S. soldiers of committed in Vietnam. Kerry later said he found the accounts shocking and irrefutable. "
Somehow methinks for many Vietnam era vets the association with Jane Fonda is going to cause some problems. I'm actually almost surprised that no one put this in under the radar literature alrady -- porbably because Kerry had until perhpas 8 days ago tanked so badly no one thought it mattered. But the video is out there, folks. And if people think Howard "ranting" [which he wasn't] is a problem, so is this.
It isn't fair, 'cause the guy has a record since on lots of issues that ain't bad. But it certainly can be used to undermine his argument that he can stand up to Geroge Bush on issues of national security.
DISCLOSURES - I am a Vietnam era vet, Marines, serving only stateside. I found much of Kerryls posturing in 1971 very dstasteful, and was not at al surprised to discover that the medals he threw over the fence in his big display were not his (which he still has) but belonged to someone else. I viscerally do not like the guy, even though I find his overall voting record quite acceptable . I think he postures far too much. I would reluctantly hold my nose and vote for him against Bush, but I would enver either give him money nor campaing for him. I would not put on a pin or a bumper sticker on my car. Why? Because I think he twists the truth about as much anyone I have seen run for president. I remember how he broke the mutual non-aggression pack (volunatry limits on spending) he had with Bill Weld when Weld was about to defeat him. I see how he is a hypocrit on his own attack ads, how he on the one hand attacks Lieberman and Gephardt for undermining "another resolution" that he and some other senators wante to vote for on the war and then attacks Dean by saying that that same resolustion, Biden-Lugar, would still have let the president go to war without coming back to Congress. Which is it??
That said - Kerry is not electable, but could win anyhow, because in my opinion the real story of the past two weeks may not hae been the self-inflicted {and it really wasn't] disintegration of Howard Dean, but rather the beginning of the self-immolation of George Bush. Anyone looked at shrub's pollling data in the past week? Then there's O'Neill, McCain tonight, and to me the reaaly stupid statement Bush made that "I've done more for human rights" than any othe president (Lincoln, Wilson, FDR, Jimmy Carter are pikers next to him, right?)
Yeah, I know I said I'd stay off posting until Friday, but I can't sleep with my sinus infection, so I thought I'd simply "vent" for a few minutes.
So ignore my dreck, or rate me as a troll. Frankly I don't care.
But I cannot stand Kerry. And I don't care whether or not his campaing or his wife was behind the pushpolling, 'cuase I know the quality of the attack ltierautre he has been mailing.
it doesn't take a Chris Lehan e to effectively play "gotcha" - Kerry's been doing finde on his own since C-L lost the computer and then went to Clark. I can respect a man who wants to play hardball politics and own up to it. I think someone who does it and then pretends he hasn't and acts indignant when someone does it to him, such as the issue of abolishing Ag, is a flaming hypocrit. I'd like to see someone who inspires, who wants to lead us to something positive, who thinks beyond his own self-interest to something larger. I support Dedan because I think that has really been the gust of his message, although I think he stayed on stump speech far too long. And I think I could support Edwards because of his understanding that the argument of the Koerner Commission is in many wasy still true (oh am I dating myself!).
Anyhow - I don't think Kerry is electable, but if he gets the nomination, which I hope to God he dosn't, then he may just be lucky enough that Shrub may become even less electable than he is.
G'nite all.