Flash Back - Post 911 John Kerry Blamed US Insensitivity for Attacks

Fox News Sunday | 9-16-01 | John Kerry

[tallhappy]

Given Jon Kerry's now front running status, I thought it would be important to go back and look at his immediate post 911 comments on Fox News Sunday. He rolled out the classic blame America line and implied we were contributory in provoking attacks by our hostility and policies that alienated people. Here's the interview transcript:

SNOW: Senator Kerry, earlier on the broadcast -- I want to go back to something you mentioned earlier. Earlier on the broadcast, Attorney General Ashcroft was talking about a series of changes he thinks we need to do to improve our domestic vigilance.

You referred to a bit of that when you were discussing money laundering. We have a series of laws to deal with drug dealers in terms of seizing their property, seizing their assets, the kinds of intelligence we can do on them, what we can do with their money and so on.

Do we need to apply that immediately to terrorists? And furthermore, do we need to be able to expand the FBI's ability to do domestic counter- intelligence?

KERRY: There is no question that we will have to change some of the laws in order to deal with terrorism. A lot of us have been trying to do that for some period of time in various sectors, and we've met with resistance because it was deemed to interfere with the normal course of business or, in some people's mind, to weigh too heavily on one side of the balance of how we view our freedoms of the country. But this, I think, has changed that. I'm confident Congress will respond.

But let me say one other thing we need to do, and some people will not probably appreciate this, but I think it's an honest statement of what the United States needs to do.

Globalization and technology have changed the perception of the United States in the world. And there are many of us who feel that we have not been doing enough or sensitive enough to the way in which we are perceived by many countries. We need to not only be tough here, we need to not only respond and ferret out Osama bin Laden, but we need to also listen. We need to also be thoughtful in some of the policies so that we can build friendships and build relationships around the globe and not be alienating quite as many people as we have, I think.

And also, we have to be be particularly sensitive to the rest of Islam and the Islamic world. This cannot be done in a way that lumps everybody into the same pool. There are distinctions here. Osama bin Laden is a perversion of Islam. In fact, the Taliban, many of the leaders of the Taliban are not even trained deeply in religiously. They don't have a deep background in religious training. They have taken Islam and they are changing Islam.

And what Islam itself needs is almost a reaffirmation, if you will. It needs to stand up and speak to the world about its peacefulness and its ability to be part of the solution, not part of the problem.

And we need to be certain that we don't make matters worse in the ways in which we choose to do this. I think that is absolutely essential. And there's much we can do in our foreign policy, in my judgment, to be much more proactive, much more thoughtful and much more sensitive to the needs of the rest of this planet.

Originally posted Sept. 17, 2001

[tallhappy]

As front runner Kerry needs to be asked in high profile interviews what he meant. Does he really still say that our policies that he claims alienated people contributed to the 911 attacks?

[eyespysomething]

Would those be Clinton/Democratic policies?

[Ukiapah Heep]

"Why do they hate us?" megasobs.

[Peach]

What a good find on Kerry.

Howlin - you may want to use your ping list for this one.

[INSENSITIVE GUY]

Being "sensitive" is okay if your half a man!America has been too sensitive and that is what has caused this problem.Being "sensitive" is a sign of weakness and our enemies percieved this,thus the attacks.

[68skylark]

And there are many of us who feel that we have not been doing enough or sensitive enough to the way in which we are perceived by many countries.

So he's saying that the people on those airplanes, and the folks working in the World Trade Center & Pentagon were not sensitive enough? They didn't listen enough? They weren't kind enough? Kerry's comments seem like a horrible thing to say about these people.

I'm glad you posted this. It's a horrible thing to read, but with Kerry as the front runner we can't turn away from his abhorant words.

[prairiebreeze]

Kerry's a typical UN-clinging apologist. He holds America totally responsible for the worlds perceptions but doesn't require any accountability to the those people in the world who hate American in regard to their own role and choices they make in their determining their "perceptions" and ideas about America.

Kerry has the unfortunate juvenile desire for everybody to "like" him. He extends that dangerous attitude toward America. He evidently thinks that if enough "meaningful dialogue" can just occur between fanatical murderous terrorists and us, then we will convince them to give up their hatred and like us.

Kerry and his ilk are a danger to freedom-loving people everywhere. And the fool doesn't even realize it!

Prairie

[prairiebreeze]

He holds America totally responsible for the worlds perceptions but doesn't require any accountability to the those people in the world who hate American in regard to their own role and choices they make in their determining their "perceptions" and ideas about America.

Lets try that again. He holds America totally responsible for the worlds perceptions but doesn't require any accountability of those people in the world who hate America regarding their own role and the choices they make in determining their "perceptions", ideas and hatred about America.

Prairie

[rageaholic]

Kerry -- speaks loudly and carries a small stick.

[self_evident]

"Why do they hate us?"

We will have won the war on terror when we see that headline.... in Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Egypt.

[Mo1]

So he's saying that the people on those airplanes, and the folks working in the World Trade Center & Pentagon were not sensitive enough? They didn't listen enough? They weren't kind enough? Kerry's comments seem like a horrible thing to say about these people.

That about sums it up

[samtheman]

KEYWORDS: 911; BLAMEAMERICA; JOHNKERRY;

[backhoe]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1062437/posts
John Kerry- some selected, informative links...
various FR links | 01-21-04 | The Heavy Equipment Guy

[Finalapproach29er]

BTTT

[My2Cents]

The Democrats and the left (...but I repeat myself) reflexively blame America first whenever something tragic happens in the world. Blame America first!...and they wonder why we question their patriotism.

[livius]

to be much more proactive, much more thoughtful and much more sensitive to the needs of the rest of this planet.

Well, why don't we ask the Muslims to be more sensitive to our needs (not to be killed, for example)? Oh, I guess they're different...my mistake.

Kerry is going to need a big Barf Alert throughout his entire campaign.

[My2Cents]

Kerry's a typical UN-clinging apologist.

Perhaps he should be running for Secty. General of the United Nations, not President of the United States.

BTW, whenever you hear Kerry refer to "America's allies," insert "France" right there.

[Jorge]

This is bad for Kerry.

[afraidfortherepublic]

I don't hate many people, but I just hate people who try to blame 9/11 on the US. 9/11 was perpetrated by a bunch of criminal sickos, and we should never forget it. And we should not let the Kerry's of the world try to shift the blame to the US.

We were ATTACKED, Senator Kerry. At least "W" understands that fact and knows what to do about it. "W" has more leadership in his little fingernail than Sen. Kerry and all his whining compatriots have in their whole beings.

[afraidfortherepublic]

And, furthermore, the Islamic population doesn't understand our mea culpas. They only understand a show of strength. Witness Gadaffi!