Posted on 05/26/2004 9:51:29 PM PDT by kattracks
Edited on 07/12/2004 4:15:32 PM PDT by Jim Robinson. [history]
After months of nothing but praise for John Kerry's Vietnam War service, President Bush's campaign spokesman publicly made light of it, drawing a stern response yesterday from Democrats who called the remarks an insult to all veterans.
Terry Holt, appearing on MSNBC's "Hardball" program Tuesday, was being pummeled by questions from host Chris Matthews about why, if Mr. Bush supported the Vietnam War, he didn't join up and fight.
(Excerpt) Read more at washtimes.com ...
Forget this Kerry service crap. Talk about the future and move on. This is all Kerry has and wants to draw us into that swamp.
It's a losing issue for him and a losing issue for us.
Well, Kerry doesn't have to get snippy about it.
When was the last time a democrat apologized for anything? To heck with apologies no one is sincere when offering one and no one ever accepts one as adequate.
Boo-hoo. They snipe, snipe, snipe endlessly for months on end, with the MSM's help, about Bush's National Guard service... then when someone finally fights back, they run screaming to the fax machines with tomorrow's talking point.
Oooooh. Sweet!
kerry says, "My Name is John F. Kerry, I love to perform fellatio on and with our enemies, that how I will get along with everybody in this world!!!!"!!!!
Terry Holt, you idiot. Don't you know the way you show fundamental respect for the sacrifice veterans of military combat duty have given our country is to accuse them of committing atrocities!?
Dammit. When will we learn?
Kerry served in Vietnam? Wow, he should start mentioning that more in his speeches.
And as a reaction we get:
Mr. Kerry's campaign was outraged, and demanded an apology.
"What Terry Holt said last night was an intentional effort to diminish John Kerry's military service," Kerry campaign chairwoman Jeanne Shaheen said. "Not only was it wrong, it shows a fundamental disrespect for the service and sacrifice veterans of military combat duty have given our country."
and
"No one who serves in this country's military -- not John Kerry, nor the men and women serving in Iraq today -- should ever have their patriotism or their courage questioned by one of George W. Bush's political agents," DNC Chairman Terry McAuliffe said.
And yet not one word about
was being pummeled by questions from host Chris Matthews about why, if Mr. Bush supported the Vietnam War, he didn't join up and fight.
Let the record reflect that neither Chris Matthews OR Terry Holt EVER implied that Bush supported the Vietnam War.
Now, is it me, or is this an EXTREME overreaction on the part of the Kerry people.
And if you agree with me that it is, does anybody have a clue why?
It wasn't an insult to all veterans, just Kerry you twits.
Here's the entire interchange: you tell me who got trashed:
Here is the transcript as posted by MSNBC:
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: My question is, do you think the American people are primarily focused on the success or not success of the president right now, and sometime late summer theyre going to decide if they dont like this president or they dont like what hes doing, theyll take a good look at John Kerry? I dont think theyre taking a good look at him yet.
HOLT: Well, I think that John Kerry has yet to make his case. And the more that people know about John Kerry, the lesswell, in fact, maybe the more confused they are by his positions.
But he has a little bit of time to finally decide who hes going to be. But I wonder if they are going to like what they see when they finally get it.
(CROSSTALK)
DEVINE: Can I answer that question?
MATTHEWS: No, Ive got to ask you the questions. Thats my job.
DEVINE: Sure.
MATTHEWS: Let me ask you this about your candidates warmth factor.
DEVINE: Yes. Go ahead.
MATTHEWS: Ive known John Kerry for a long time. And I like him. I think hes a great, smart, tough guy, with flaws, like everybody else.
DEVINE: Sure.
MATTHEWS: But I also think hes never going to be Mr. Warmth. Hes never going to be Bill Clinton, the hugging guy that loves to grab people. Well, thats one advantage, maybe, but hes not going to be like that.
But the fact is...
(LAUGHTER)
MATTHEWS: Even youre laughing.
(LAUGHTER)
MATTHEWS: The question is, can he be measured on the oldthe cuddly scale? Is that a fair way to judge your candidate, on the cuddliness scale?
DEVINE: Sure.
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: You really like the cuddly factor with him?
DEVINE: I think he can win on that basis.
Listen, people who know him like him a lot. First of all, hes got a group of veterans who have traveled around with him since they served together in Vietnam.
MATTHEWS: Right.
DEVINE: And these guys are devoted to him. Loyalty counts with them so much.
Second, the polls suggest otherwise. His favorability in the CBS poll I think went up four or five points in the last month, while the presidents went down, the likability.
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: Why is he nailed on the flip-flop thing whenever you ask the poll question? Is that just negative advertisement or is that his history?
DEVINE: Listen, theyve spent $74.5 million on television, almost all of it negative, and thats been their message. And obviously people got that information. We dont deny that.
(CROSSTALK)
HOLT: John Kerrys own words.
(CROSSTALK)
DEVINE: Its not going to affect...
(CROSSTALK)
HOLT: I voted for it before I voted against it.
DEVINE: It is not going to affect their voting decision, though.
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: But what about that devastating bite you just mentioned, where youve got John Kerry saying, I voted for this $87 billion for reconstruction in Iraq, and then I voted against it. It sounds crazy.
DEVINE: Chris, they put about $50 million behind that. And look
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: But he said it. But John Kerry said it.
(LAUGHTER)
DEVINE: But so what? Bush has the lowest
(CROSSTALK)
HOLT: But, Tad, its indicative of his personality.
(CROSSTALK)
HOLT: He cant give people a straight answer. And nobody can understand how you could be for it and then against it. And, in fact, he said voting against that bill would be irresponsible just weeks before he did that very thing.
(CROSSTALK)
DEVINE: If thats so powerful, why is the president going through the floor?
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: Let me ask you a question about a choice in John Kerrys life.
HOLT: Yes.
MATTHEWS: John Kerry went to Vietnam. He volunteered. Why didnt the president volunteer to go to Vietnam? Hes for the war.
HOLT: Well, the president flew
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: No, but why didnt he volunteer to go to Vietnam if he was for the war? Shouldnt people who support wars go and fight them?
HOLT: But, in fact, he was one of thehe served in the National Guard honorably for his country.
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: But why didnt he go and fight in the war? He believed in it.
HOLT: Well, everybody made a decision about how best they served. He served as a fighter pilot in the Texas Air Guard.
MATTHEWS: No, but if you believe in a war, shouldnt you fight it, rather than someone who doesnt believe in it, a draftee getting drafted in the war?
HOLT: But in John Kerrys case, he went to Vietnam. He took his own photo camera, by the way, so he could get some good pictures.
(CROSSTALK)
DEVINE: He was getting shot at.
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: He had some souvenirs to bring home.
HOLT: As soon as he came home, after just a few short months, he began running for political office on an anti-war campaign.
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: I know a lot of guys who went through school. They are all hawks. They said, Im for the war in Vietnam. And you know what the problem with a lot of these hawks? Theyre all conservatives and all that stuff. And I said, how come youre not going to the war if you believe in it? And they all said the same thing. Well, I participated in the system. They got draft deferments.
HOLT: Thats not what the president said. The president served and was honorably discharged.
MATTHEWS: You dont want to give John for being one of guys that fought?
(CROSSTALK)
HOLT: ... Vietnam. His service was honorable. But upon coming back...
MATTHEWS: Do you realize, if everybody did what your guy did, the president of the United States did in Vietnam, if everybody did what he did, no one would have gone to Vietnam. There wouldnt have been a war.
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: A lot of people served honorably.
MATTHEWS: No, Im saying, if everybody did what the commander in chief right now did during the Vietnam War, there wouldnt have been a war, because nobody would have gone. Isnt that a contradiction?
HOLT: Were at war today.
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: Would he go to war today? Would he have volunteered today?
(CROSSTALK)
HOLT: The president did go to war today, not because
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: Would George W. Bush have volunteered today and gone to fight in Iraq? Would he have volunteered today?
HOLT: Oh, come on. Does that sound like a hypothetical question to you? The president is leading this nation.
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: No, no, because hes gung-ho for the war. Would he, if he were a young man, go fight in this war?
HOLT: The president is leading this nation in a war on terrorism.
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: You cant answer the question. Youre afraid to be quoted.
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: Say to me right now
(CROSSTALK)
HOLT: Youre asking me a hypothetical question. And thats not the right kind of a question to be answered.
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: If the president were a young man, would he go fight in this war?
(CROSSTALK)
HOLT: Hes committed troops.
MATTHEWS: You wont answer it.
(CROSSTALK)
MATTHEWS: If I were you, I would say, of course he would served and go fight for this country.
HOLT: Hes been to Baghdad on Thanksgiving.
MATTHEWS: Let me ask you this. Do you think the president, commander in chief today, who is leading other men into battle, would go fight that war if he were a young man today, yes or no?
HOLT: I think he would.
MATTHEWS: Great. Thank you. Great answer.
(CROSSTALK)
Whats fellatio mean?
#14. performing oral sex. After All it is the demoCommiecRATS who have proclaimed it is not sex!!!!
I think our people need to be asking more about those atrocities Kerry says he committed in Vietnam. Now there's a part of his record that's relevant. No need to talk about his photography crew there - unless they filmed the atrocities he committed.
Hey JeffinK... no one is listening to you whine.
drawing a stern response yesterday from Democrats who called the remarks an insult to all veterans.
Yeah yeah...... an insult to all veterans. What about the insults the RATS now hurl at our ACTIVE DUTY folks. These bastards will stop at nothing. I have HAD IT. I am now officially VERY TICKED OFF!!!!
Talk about hitting a raw nerve!
It is a fact that John Forbes Kerry brought both an 8 mm movie camera and other cameras with him, put on is uniform, and had others film him in "re-enactments" at certain places while on his 140+ day bug out tour of Vietnam.
This photo was posed on one such re-enactment. It is being used right now on his website.
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