Posted on 10/31/2006 1:52:37 PM PST by Rennes Templar
Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry’s “botched joke” about students needing to study hard or risk becoming “stuck in Iraq” has ignited a political firestorm over the war exactly a week from the election.
Kerry lashed out at the White House at a press conference in Seattle this afternoon for attacking him for his comments. The White House, however, called on Kerry to apologize for troop-bashing. A defiant Kerry refused.
“Let me make it crystal clear, as crystal clear as I know how,” Kerry said. “I apologize to no one for my criticism of the President and his broken policy. If anyone owes our troops in the fields an apology, it is the president and his failed team.”
Kerry then admitted “my statement yesterday, and the White House knows this full well, was a botched joke about the president and the president’s people, not about the troops.”
Yesterday, at a rally for California Democratic gubernatorial candidate Phil Angelides, Kerry told a cheering Pasadena City College audience: “Education, if you make the most of it, you study hard and do your homework and you make an effort to be smart you can do well. If you don’t, you get stuck in Iraq.”
Video snippets of the speech have popped up on www.youtube.com, prompting irate calls by mothers of U.S. soldiers to Boston radio talk stations.
U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) issued a statement today calling on fellow Vietnam veteran Kerry to say he’s sorry.
“Senator Kerry owes an apology to the many thousands of Americans serving in Iraq, who answered their country’s call because they are patriots and not because of any deficiencies in their education,” McCain said in a statement posted on drudgereport.com.
And the White House also called on Kerry to apologize.
“Senator Kerry not only owes an apology to those who are serving, but also to the families of those who’ve given their lives in this,” White House press secretary Tony Snow said. “This is an absolute insult.”
Kerry, a decorated Vietnam veteran, fired back, saying the president and his administration are the ones who owe U.S. troops an apology because they “misled America into war and have given us a Katrina foreign policy that has betrayed our ideals, killed and maimed our soldiers, and widened the terrorist threat instead of defeating it.”
“This is the classic GOP playbook,” Kerry said in the harshly worded statement. “I’m not going to be lectured by a stuffed suit White House mouthpiece standing behind a podium.”
Kerry is a Vietnam Vet? Who knew!
"It's like he strapped on a belt of C-4... and bolted straight into DNC headquarters!"
ROTFLMAO!! Some Freeper on here has this tagline.
John Kerry = the reusable political suicide bomber!
My son is going into the Air Force after high school in '07. He tested the highest in the Indianapolis area on the DLAB in known recent history. He'll be an airborne linguist, taught any language the AF needs for him to learn to help find the terrorists creeps. Kerry knows to speak French and probably VietNamese. My son has more regard for his country and more pride in the military than JFK will ever imagine.
sw
Well, the headline writers were certainly enjoying themselves.
....and he means it.
If he's smart (and there's no sign of it) he'll apologize quickly. Like Senator Durbin the turbin the longer this draws out the more it puts the Defeatocrats lack of vision on the War on display.
Let's hope he does nothing for several days. Let the heat build.
I went to college before I joined the Army. I joined the Army to pay off my college loans, which they did.
John Kerry --- Resign.
May the good lord be with your son always!
High level meetings ongoing now at Dim think tanks as to how to spin out of this one.
I feel so good now, I am going trick-or-treating with my daughter, even though it is going to be 2 degrees in Montana tonight!
Kerry said in his statement. that he was sick and tired..
I called his office in Boston, and said I agreed with that part of his non apology statement.. that he was in deed "sick and tired" and he should resign..
"If he's smart (and there's no sign of it) he'll apologize quickly. Like Senator Durbin the turbin the longer this draws out the more it puts the Defeatocrats lack of vision on the War on display."
...He'll apologize for people taking it out of context. He would never give a blanket apology.
"“my statement yesterday, and the White House knows this full well, was a botched joke about the president and the president’s people, not about the troops.”"
It was directly about the "troops". And Kerry is himself a botched joke.
You're right. He's a great kid. He says after 18 years of living at home that the 10 day survival training will be a piece of cake.
Nah the MSM is NOT ALREADY taking his side are they?
Can't be!
And we say to sKerry, this is classic liberal avoid blame/slam the truth tactic perfected under the Clintoons and used by liberals ever since.
Launching ROFLcopters.
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