President Bush joined prominent Republicans yesterday in blasting Senator John F. Kerry for comments they said demeaned the intelligence of US troops, after Kerry gave a speech at a political rally where he said that students who don't perform well "get stuck in Iraq."I've viewed the "botched joke" a few times, and at least once in an extended play with his beating on the Bush administration for Iraq. The problem is, I don't see how his statement ever attaches to being an attack on Bush. If it was a botched joke, he should just have the humility to say so and move on. Instead he's screaming that he's being swift-boated again, which he is in a way. He's being held to his actions as others have viewed them and responding inappropriately.But Kerry, insisting the comment was a "botched joke," struck back with a furious, nationally televised press conference at which he attacked the entire GOP for divisive campaign tactics.
"This is a textbook Republican campaign strategy: Try to change the topic; try to make someone else the issue; try to make something else [that was] said the issue, not the policy, not their responsibility," Kerry said. "Well, everybody knows it's not working this time, and I'm not going to stand around and let it work."
"Let me make it crystal clear, as crystal clear as I know how: I apologize to no one for my criticism of the president and of his broken policy," Kerry said in Seattle, where he was campaigning for congressional candidates yesterday. "If anyone owes our troops in the field an apology, it is the president and his failed team."But then this isn't the first time he's been vilifying the troops. There was that comment last year about the troops terrorizing the Iraqis which got ignored by the MSM. (Funny that they are using this time, though it definitely sells more advertising to have something like this out there.) It's even sort of humorous that he's so very shrill about the Rethugs piling it on over his statement. What exactly did he expect they would do?
Of course, the Boglobe gives Kerry the out by explaining the joke for those of us not clairvoyant enough to catch the missing pieces.
"Do you know where you end up if you don't study, if you aren't smart, if you're intellectually lazy?" Kerry was to say. "You end up getting us stuck in a war in Iraq. Just ask President Bush."Sure, I can see that as plausible, except that he's gone on the warpath rather than apologizing for having his tongue engaged with his brain was off.The comment came in the midst of a series of attempts at humor. Just before his comments on education and the war, he said that Bush once lived in Texas but now lives in a "state of denial."
The speech received relatively little media attention Monday, with local newspapers covering it and including -- but not highlighting -- the comments on education and the troops. But as clips from the California rally spread via conservative blogs and Youtube.com, Republicans lashed out.Funny, I heard, several times in the MSM yesterday, how much better the Dems are at the internet stuff than the conservatives. Contrasting those statements with this makes me think the MSM is pushing an idea that isn't in touch with reality.
Novak actually puts it in perspective.
John Kerry certainly came out swinging at Republicans with his press conference on Tuesday, and while the TV airwaves and Web logs are now ablaze with commentary, Robert Novak cut through the hoopla on Fox News with this simple statement: "I think the biggest damage was done to his presidential campaign because I don’t think he looked very presidential with his performance.”Well, let's hope this dents Kerry's ego a lot. Maybe he'll learn some humility.
Novak also opined that it was never a good idea to "let politicians ad-lib too much ... particularly when they’re like John Kerry.”He explained that Kerry, while in Los Angeles, "sees all these kids there and he says, ‘You gotta study. What’s the worst thing that can happen to you if you don’t study? You get stuck in Iraq.’
"He wasn’t trying to insult the troops, he was trying to make a point and it was stupid,” said Novak. "Now, there are two things [Kerry] could have done. He could have said, ‘I apologize, I misspoke,’ or he could go on the offensive. Why did he go on the offensive?
3 comments:
Responding to Will's comment... If you click through you get a Rolling Stone piece on the all-powerful, horribly partisan Republican congress. Which has exactly WHAT to do with Kerry's comments?
Yes, Washington is extremely partisan, and it's not good. Yes, the Republican-controlled congress has not treated the public money as respectfully as we would like, and in many ways the Republicans deserve to lose this time around - because they're spending like DEMOCRATS!! So I don't think putting the Dems in is going to be a big fix. They'll keep spending and raise taxes to do it, which will slow the economy. Oh yeah, they'll save some money by cutting off funds for the Iraq war, but if you don't see the problems with that then you need to go read another blog, 'cuz this one is clearly working off a different reality than the one you inhabit.
I'd love to have alternative to voting Republican, but unfortunately, the Dems haven't given me one.
The thing that gets me is that it would have been so simple to say something like, "I apologize to the troops for my mistatement that can be taken out of context." After that he can still do the exact same foaming at the mouth rant that he did, but it'll sound like conviction & resolution, etc. Instead he comes off whiny & pathetic.
Why would I go to Rolling Stone for commentary of any sort? Frankly, I doubt there is a single sole in that rag that has a clue.
All powerful Republican congress is a fucking joke. The Dems have been so extremely disruptive with their tactic of blocking legislation while providing nothing of their own, that I find it highly unlikely that the Repugs could be seen as all powerful in any way. In fact, the huge spending has had rather strong support from the Dems.
Now someone want to tell me why having the Dems gain control of any part of the congress would make it better? Oh sure, the BDS crowd will have their revenge for what the Repug congress did in impeaching saint Bill, but that is even more moronic than what the Repugs did.
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