Kerry Kennedy Reality Check

Republican National Committee ^ | June 22, 2004

[RWR8189]

KERRY KENNEDY REALITY CHECK:
While John Kerry And Ted Kennedy Blindly Attack, President Bush Leads Global Non-Proliferation Effort
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WANT TO ELEVATE NONPROLIFERATION TO TOP OF GLOBAL AGENDA – PRESIDENT BUSH ALREADY DID

President Bush And His Fellow G-8 Leaders Had Already Declared That Spread Of WMD And International Terrorism Constitutes “The Pre-Eminent Threat To International Security.”  (“G-8 Nations Declare Support for WMD Nonproliferation Regime; North Korea, Iran specifically identified as problem countries,” State Department, 6/2/03)

ü      G-8 Declaration On Nonproliferation.  “We recognise that the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and their means of delivery poses a growing danger to us all. Together with the spread of international terrorism, it is the pre-eminent threat to international security.”  (“G-8 Nations Declare Support For WMD Nonproliferation Regime; North Korea, Iran Specifically Identified As Problem Countries,” State Department, 6/2/03)

ü      G-8 Nations Back President’s View On Proliferation. “Bush won G8 backing for his view that the spread of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and terrorism are ‘the pre-eminent threat to international security (and) a growing threat to all of us.’ The leaders of the United States, Russia, Japan, Germany, France, Britain, Italy and Canada explicitly urged North Korea and Iran to curb their nuclear programmes, accept tougher U.N. inspections and renounce atomic weapons.”  (Paul Taylor, “Analysis: G8 Summit – A Franco-American Draw,” Reuters, 6/3/03)

In December 2003, Kerry Promised To “Elevate Non-Proliferation To The Top Of The Global Agenda.” (John Kerry, Address to the Council on Foreign Relations, 12/3/03)

At This Year’s G-8 Summit, U.S. And G-8 Partners Announced “Action Plan” To “Prevent, Contain, And Roll Back Proliferation.”  “At Evian, we recognized the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems, together with international terrorism, as the pre-eminent threat to international peace and security.  This challenge requires a long-term strategy and multi-faceted approaches. Determined to prevent, contain, and roll back proliferation, today, at Sea Island, we announce an action plan to reinforce the global nonproliferation regime.  We will work together with other concerned states to realize this plan.”  (“G-8 Action Plan On Nonproliferation,” The White House, 6/9/04)

Now Kennedy Claims Administration Neglects Non-Proliferation Threats.  “Sen. Edward M. Kennedy will deliver a speech today charging the Bush administration's ‘single-minded focus on Iraq’ and consequent neglect of North Korea and Iran put America at greater risk of a nuclear terrorist attack. ‘Each neglected threat is an opportunity for terrorists to obtain the material they need to attack us with nuclear weapons,’ Kennedy says in a draft of the speech. ‘The great and overwhelming danger we face in the months ahead is a nuclear 9/11, and we hope and pray that it is not already too late to prevent.’”  (Noelle Straub, “Ted K Speech To Rip Bush Over Nuclear Attack Risk,” Boston Herald, 6/22/04)

DISMISS SUCCESS OF LIBYA DISMANTLING NUCLEAR PROGRAM

Kerry Asserts Deal With Gadhafi Was Deliberately Delayed.  KERRY: “And the deal with Gadhafi, mostly, might I add, pursued and brokered by Tony Blair and the British, could have been achieved some time ago. It’s now happening partly to make it look like it’s causal with respect to the war on terror. I disagree.” (CNN’s “Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer,” 12/21/03)

Kennedy Rejects Notion That Administration Policy Helped Persuade Libya To Begin Dismantlement.  AUDIENCE MEMBER: “How do you interpret the administration's view on Libya and Qadhafi giving up his nuclear weapons? I mean, they now say this shows that this is an effective policy, that the Middle East will be changing. I don't particularly buy this. I'd like to hear your interpretation.”  SEN. TED KENNEDY (D-MA): “I basically reject it.”  (Sen. Ted Kennedy, Remarks To Council On Foreign Relations, Washington, DC, 3/5/04)

USA Today Editorial Agrees That Threat Of Bush 2002 Pre-Emptive Strike Doctrine May Have Played Role In Discouraging Nuclear Proliferation.  “While the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists has not changed its 57-year-old clock officially, the world is breathing easier. India and Pakistan are beginning to talk peace. North Korea hints it may follow fellow rogue states Libya and Iran in allowing nuclear inspections... Though time will be the ultimate judge, certainly a case can be made that these tentative peace overtures were spurred by the threat of Bush’s 2002 pre-emptive strike doctrine. It warns those who might use nuclear, chemical or biological weapons that they are vulnerable to a first strike from the U.S. A similar argument is made by many historians who credit President Reagan’s military buildup and ‘Evil Empire’ rhetoric for pushing the Soviet Union toward collapse.”  (Editorial, “Assertive U.S. foreign policy produces diplomatic payoff,” USA Today, 1/12/04)

REJECT MULTILATERAL EFFORTS TO PERSUADE NORTH
KOREA TO DISMANTLE ITS NUCLEAR PROGRAMS

Kerry Criticizes The President For Not Holding Bilateral Negotiations With North Korea.  Kerry:  “And as president, I will engage Iran and I will renew bilateral negotiations immediately with North Korea, and I will seek a new international protocol to track and account for existing nuclear weapons and to deter the development of chemical and biological arsenals in the future.”  (John Kerry, Address to the Council on Foreign Relations, 12/3/03)

Kennedy Claims Administration Is Ignoring Crisis And Won’t “Even Talk Directly” To North Koreans.  “How long can the Administration continue to ignore North Korea? How will a war with Iraq affect our ability to deal with this escalating danger? In his zeal on Iraq, the President has refused to call the situation on the Korean peninsula what it is – a genuine crisis. He has refused to even talk directly to the North Koreans to try to end its nuclear program.”  (Sen. Ted Kennedy, Remarks To United Methodist Church Legislative Conference, 3/4/03)

But Kerry And Kennedy Dismiss Ongoing Multilateral Diplomatic Process In Which Republic Of Korea, Japan, People’s Republic Of China, And Russian Federation Are Playing Vital Roles.  “The United States, North Korea and four other nations agreed Tuesday to discuss a freezing of the North's nuclear program and inspections that would lead to its eventual dismantlement, a South Korean official said. Some of the governments were working on plans to offer the North aid in exchange for suspending its clandestine efforts to develop nuclear weapons. The agreement was reached in two days of negotiations on an agenda for six-nation talks that start Wednesday in Beijing.”  (Soo-Jeong Lee, “Nations To Discuss Freezing North Korea Nukes,” The Associated Press, 6/22/04)

[theDentist]

They have morphed into Senator Kerredy!