Kerry as President (Earth to conservatives! Time to face reality!)

Town Hall ^ | February 28, 2004 | Herbert London

[quidnunc]

As unlikely as it may be, consider the possibility that John Kerry is the next president of the United States.  What are the likely policy shifts should this occur?  How would Kerry be different from President Bush?

Although these questions are speculative, the likely outcomes are easily predictive.

Based on Kerry’s positions expressed in the Senate and on the campaign trail his stance is known and presumably would serve to guide his policy prescriptions.

While Kerry did vote for the war in Iraq, he voted against the appropriations for that nation’s rehabilitation.  During the campaign, Kerry continually noted that this nation cannot cut and run from Iraq, but he believes the situation should be “internationalized.”  That is a euphemism for greater involvement of the U.N.

What Kerry does not note is the utter failure of the U.N. to play a systematic and coherent role in Iraq or anywhere else in the Middle East.  Moreover, Germany and France, the nations Kerry contends we should have cultivated for the war effort are vehemently opposed to U.S. hegemony in the region.  And if recent accounts are at all accurate, the leaders of these nations have been compromised by financial arrangements with Saddam Hussein.

Yet this position is consistent with his impulse for multilateralism in general.  Kerry is persuaded the United States should be encouraging a world community of interests, one that recognizes the importance of alliances.

What he overlooks is that most western European states are eager to challenge America’s world dominance.  They consider multilateralism the ropes that can subdue an American Gulliver.  Without the military means to pursue their interests, European states rely solely on diplomacy, which, as the prelude to war in Iraq indicated, has its limitations.

-snip-

[kcar]

Guess you are thinking filibusters only work one way?

[jpf]

Edger you have it backward, by raising taxes the damage is done and spending will inevitably increase. By cutting taxes you limit the ability of the government to spend more in the future. It's like cutting the blood vessels to a tumor, it withers on the vine.

[nopardons]

Then you aren't paying much attention. And why do you want Rove to " sweat " ?

[kcar]

No they just not make permanent the "irresponsible" tax cuts. That's all, and then they find the latest urgent reason to make government "investments" in the future.

[kcar]

Rove sweating: Making him realize that the assumptions used in calculating conservatives don't have anywhere else to go so let's court the middle via socialist entitlements like prescription drugs for the elderly was a cynical algorithm that might need to be re-examined before using the next time.

[Bud Krieger]

How many moderate/undecided voters are going to vote for John Kerry?

Lets be honest, it`s the moderates that will determine who the next President will be.

The moderate swing voters "are not" radical liberals. Pres. Bush "is not" a radical Conservative. John Kerry "is" a radical liberal.

It is not hard to see how this will eventually play out.

Pres. Bush gets re-elected by a comfortable margin.

[jpf]

Hmmm, see here's the thing. We're at war, we have just come out of a recession and you want to worry about the deficit? Now? What irresponsible tax cut? The tax cut was the right thing to do and it still is.

Do I wish congress would cut spending, sure, will John Kerry cut spending, not on your life!

[Tailback]

Kerry terrifies me also. The reason why is this old quote from the Clinton years.

"Stroke of the pen, law of the land. Cool huh?"

Kerry will simply outflank congress and give everything the trial lawyers, envirowhackos, homosexual lobbyists, and one-worlders want on a silver platter.

[concerned about politics]

If Kerry were to be elected, he'd turn our nation over to the UN anti-Christ in a heart beat. "They're all yours."

[nopardons]

Anyone, claiming that they're a Conservative, but won't support the president and wan ts Rove to " sweat ", deserves being taken as irrelevant and ignored. You don't much care for the fact that the GOP is looking to expand the base, is pandering to more moderate groups? TOUGH! What do you expect them to do, when people like you are undependable?

If anyone needs, desperately, to reexamine themselves and their actions, it's the Custer Conservatives!

[kcar]

I don't consider the tax cuts irresponsible, if and only if the purpose was to truly limit future spending - but if so, when's the future start?!. The use of that term in quotes was a role-playing thing relative to what the stinking Rats will say.

As a caveat: assume nothing I have said was to make the Rats anything more noble than that which oozes from a slug. I just expect better from W. Want to keep pressure on so he knows that.

[My2Cents]

So, you're suggesting that Republicans take up the unconstitional tactic of filibustering court nominations?

[kcar]

I am first and foremost dependably me, dependably free. Expanding the tent is a wonderful idea. But what's wrong with doing so by touting the benefits of individualism rather than the new entitlements to this new "group"? Why bribery first, not truth and justice. That sells the philsophy of freedom too cheaply by my math.

[jpf]

The future is starting. It took decades to build the monster, why do you think 3 years is enough to tear it down?

Bush couldn't anticipate a war 3 years ago and NEWSFLASH, it aint won yet. We have to get good job growth, bag that SOB Bin Laden, win an election, get a few more Senate seats...then we can work on the deficit and government spending. It's a process, a slow grinding process, but it has begun.

[Atchafalaya]

Bill 1805 with amendments passed, I abstain my vote. AWB passed, I abstain. The War on Terror or judicial nominees; that should have been taken care of by the legislators and Senators that are already in place. It hasn't happened; they are obviously not up to the job or they need some serious prodding. It's feet to the fire time!

[kcar]

Yes. If filibustering was the new modus operandi of the Rats in blocking the will of the POTUS for four Republican years, why not for the next four?

Of course, I am earnestly hoping W rallies behind his base making all of this hardball academic. But should he lose - I would expect Rebublicans to grill Kerry's nominees tierlessly.

[nopardons]

You just don't know nor understand politics or human nature.Every party goes after a base. If and when that base becomes not enough for them to win an electron, expansion is the key.

Depending upon how far to the right you are, what you might imagine will convince others, might, could, won't at all.America is divided into varying degrees of left and right, with the mushy middle deciding whether a Dem or a GOPer wins. That's just how it is .

[Owen]

Folks, we've already done this again and again. There is no winning, ethical or logical strategy for voting third party or staying home. When they say we have nowhere else to go, you know what? They are right. And you know something else? We've known it and don't like it only because we don't like being forced into things.

But forced we are.

You can't play the "we'll hold Congress game, so I can vote against Bush". Why not? Because, as has been said so often, the GOP Senators are gutless. They won't stop Kerry court nominees. They will acquiesce. You know this is true. All of you. It is you that called them gutless. They will cave every time, just like they did for the Clinton government shutdowns. Result: You have no choice. You have to vote Bush or Kerry will stack the courts with judges who will leap forward to allow Gay Marriage.

Kerry will apologize to France. You know this is true. You will have to watch it on TV, and know you caused it when you stayed home or voted 3rd party.

Kerry will deepen the institutionalization of Roe v Wade, especially if he can get a couple of USSC nominations and then let the challenges move forward. If the USSC rules on this again, we will NEVER again be allowed to challenge it. You'll have yourself to blame.

I could go on, but all of you with brains already have the picture. We really have no choice. It is not just vote for Bush; it is man the volunteer phone banks and GOTV efforts.

[gonzo]

"...'Nuff said!..."

Yikes, sweetie! Long time! Glad yer still here, babe..............FRegards

[kcar]

Oh I understand human nature well enough. That group appears to be a kept group - ignore them and go after the swingers. So, why be a kept people? Why annouce you've got nowhere else to go? Stupid. When they ask for your vote ask them will do to earn it, else you're a chump.