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Democrats ditch bungling Kerry
The Times ^ | November 2, 2006 | Tom Baldwin

Posted on 11/01/2006 3:39:26 PM PST by MadIvan

Democrats stampeded over each other yesterday to disassociate themselves from John Kerry, their presidential candidate two years ago, who has handed Republicans an election lifeline with remarks implying US troops in Iraq are there because they are stupid.

Senator Kerry, speaking to a group of students in California on Monday, said: “You know, education, if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well. If you don’t, you get stuck in Iraq.” A video of his speech was placed swiftly on the internet and then seized upon by the White House, which has been desperate to switch the focus of voters away from the mounting toll of death and destruction in Iraq before Tuesday’s crucial elections for control of Congress.

On Tuesday night, in scenes reminiscent of the 2004 presidential contest, George Bush demanded that Mr Kerry apologise for his “insulting and shameful” remarks. Yesterday a number of top Democrat candidates joined him in calling on Mr Kerry to say sorry.

Harold Ford Jnr, who is running for the Senate in Tennessee, said: “Whatever the intent, [he] was wrong to say what he said.” Jon Tester, the party’s senatorial candidate in Montana, said: “He owes our troops and their families an apology.” Senator Hillary Clinton called the remarks inappropriate.

At the same time Democrat candidates across the US cancelled scheduled campaign appearances with Mr Kerry, whose distant hopes of another presidential candidacy in 2008 have now all but evaporated.

Mr Kerry on Tuesday had insisted that it was Mr Bush who should apologise. But yesterday he said: “Of course I’m sorry about a botched joke. I mean, you know, it’s pretty stupid.”

He claimed that his remarks had been aimed at Mr Bush for being “intellectually lazy” in getting “us stuck in a war in Iraq” — but he had fluffed his lines.

Instead, he said the mock-outrage of the White House was the latest example of the Republican campaign of “smear and fear” that had characterised attacks on his military record in Vietnam during the 2004 presidential contest, as well as his gaffe that he had voted for Iraq war funding before voting against it.

Yesterday Dick Cheney, the Vice-President, twisted the knife with a direct reference to this when he told a campaign rally: “Of course, now Senator Kerry says he was just making a joke. I guess we didn’t get the nuance. He was for the joke before he was against it.”

Mr Kerry has previously attacked the so-called “chicken-hawks” who have cast aspersions on his military record, while never seeing combat themselves. Yesterday he made no reference to how Mr Bush had avoided service in Vietnam, perhaps because it would have meant conceding that the President had got better grades than him at Yale.

# President Bush said last night that he wanted Dick Cheney, the Vice-President, and Donald Rumsfeld, the Defence Secretary, to remain in his Administration until the end of his term.


TOPICS: Front Page News; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: 2008over; benedictarnold; democrat; devilincarnate; dickhead; election; frenchlooking; gaffe; gigolo; hanoiswarherokerry; iaintfondajohn; ichabodcrane; kerry; kerrydumbiraqgaffe; lurch; lyingdirtyscumbag; ratsonasinkingship; stuckiniraq; terayzasboytoy; unfit; whereisterayza
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To: lonestar

Ha ha, right on Lonestar. Good correction.


41 posted on 11/01/2006 4:01:58 PM PST by Redhd2
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To: MadIvan
Democrats ditch bungling Kerry

Democrats bungle ditching of Kerry

42 posted on 11/01/2006 4:01:58 PM PST by vamoose
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To: MadIvan

OKAY Ivan LOL!

I thought maybe you didn't

So Fleet Street has pick it up OH well you know NOW LOL!


43 posted on 11/01/2006 4:02:36 PM PST by SevenofNine ("Step aside Jefe"=Det Lennie Briscoe)
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To: Southack
First they ditched Gore, then Lieberman, now Kerry. One wonders if Edwards will likewise join the Democratic unmentionables along with McGovern (who wasn't even invited to the 2004 Dem convention in his home state!) and Dukakis?!

Don't forget the reason we had sKerry running in the first place is because Dr Dean's campaign imploded after he made an a$$ of himself with his "I have a Scream" speech.

44 posted on 11/01/2006 4:03:49 PM PST by YankeeReb
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To: Cobra64

OMG now I hearing Corba this actually got pick up by my local radio station here in SO CAL KFI 640am OH MAN now Libs would hate Los Angeles MORE


45 posted on 11/01/2006 4:04:06 PM PST by SevenofNine ("Step aside Jefe"=Det Lennie Briscoe)
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To: Southack
First they ditched Gore, then Lieberman, now Kerry.

The Democrats didn't ditch Lieberman. He is still a registered Democrat and is receiving contributions from the RATS. Lamont Gets Little From Senate Dems.

Lieberman, a three-term incumbent, is highly regarded in Washington circles, and his campaign finance report showed his Democratic donor base remains eager to give him money."

A Democrat political analyst stated the following:

"Democrats know they can't afford to alienate Lieberman," said political analyst Jennifer Duffy, not only because they want his cooperation on legislation if he wins, but because of the potential that Democrats will win Senate control next month by a 51-49 majority.

Lieberman publicly stated he hopes the Democrats take control of Congress. He is pandering to the Connecticut RINO's for their votes so he can help his party after his reelection. Unfortunately the CT RINO's are falling for it hook, line and sinker.
46 posted on 11/01/2006 4:06:26 PM PST by Man50D (Fair Tax , you earn it , you keep it!)
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To: MadIvan

2008 is now over for Kerry... He should retire and write books: "My Botched Life" and "Confessions of a French-American Gigolo"...


47 posted on 11/01/2006 4:06:36 PM PST by citizencon
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To: Positive

"Wonder who is English impaired?"

Remember Lurch is the learning impaired, he got straight Ds his first year, and only one weak C. That is not the record of anyone except one that is mentally challenged.
Oh, by the way the C was in, yep you guessed it, " FRENCH!".


48 posted on 11/01/2006 4:11:44 PM PST by True Republican Patriot
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To: Argus
Fantastic comparison...WOW
49 posted on 11/01/2006 4:14:05 PM PST by ThreePuttinDude ()...On 9-11 & 7-7 Islamic missionaries came a callin'.....()
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To: MadIvan
This is great! It's like kicking an ant hill and watching them all scurry about. They don't know what to do. Some are coming to Kerry's defense with mind-bending pretzel logic that would have had Goebbels scratching his head, others are condemning Kerry for being a colossal buffoon or are attacking each other, still others are lashing out at Bush and the GOP with eyes crazed and mouths foaming. Even CBS "News" said they were hoping the issue would go away.

I need more popcorn!

50 posted on 11/01/2006 4:14:18 PM PST by Mad_Tom_Rackham (Vote REPUBLICAN on November 7th!)
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To: A CA Guy

Do one that says: Karry, we kan't reed. Pleaze appolgize in front of a camera and microphone.


51 posted on 11/01/2006 4:14:41 PM PST by Shocked2
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To: Question Liberal Authority

Hah you're right, according to their own logic Dems are no longer allowed to even acknowledge the military.


52 posted on 11/01/2006 4:15:23 PM PST by Teflonic
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To: Mad_Tom_Rackham
I hear that President Bush has wiretapped Kerry's phones as well.

Christian news and commentary at: sacredscoop.com ...

53 posted on 11/01/2006 4:16:36 PM PST by CottShop (http://sacredscoop.com)
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To: MadIvan
He claimed that his remarks had been aimed at Mr Bush for being “intellectually lazy” in getting “us stuck in a war in Iraq” — but he had fluffed his lines.

They're even botching the spin.

54 posted on 11/01/2006 4:18:26 PM PST by Riley (The Fourth Estate is the Fifth Column.)
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55 posted on 11/01/2006 4:18:53 PM PST by devolve ( classic_moments_in_political_kohns)
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To: MadIvan
[Instead, he said the mock-outrage of the White House was the latest example of the Republican campaign of “smear and fear” that had characterised attacks on his military record in Vietnam during the 2004 presidential contest...]

Attacks which he could have easily defeated had he signed a DOD-180 to release his military record in Vietnam. Why endure all those attacks when the problem could have been solved with a simple act? The only plausible answer is that he would have suffered MORE by releasing those records. Case closed, Mr. Kerry.

56 posted on 11/01/2006 4:18:54 PM PST by Mad_Tom_Rackham (Vote REPUBLICAN on November 7th!)
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To: Man50D
"Democrats know they can't afford to alienate Lieberman," said political analyst Jennifer Duffy,

They know it NOW because he's been double digits ahead in the polls ever since Lament won the primary. They were ready to throw him under the bus right after Lament, aided by the nutty leftist loonies on their lib blogs, managed to get him through the primaries. "We have to support the dem primary winner" was the mantra, and to hell with Lieberman. But now that Lieberman's so far ahead, they're all his best buddies again. Bah. Those people have NO principles.

57 posted on 11/01/2006 4:19:08 PM PST by hsalaw
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To: ThreePuttinDude

It is incredibly apt, isn't it? Right down to wanting to be a writer and marry a rich broad. All it lacks is Jose Ferrer to tell Kerry off and chuck his champagne in his kisser. Somebody ought to.


58 posted on 11/01/2006 4:19:29 PM PST by Argus ("These guys play dirty, and they will play dirty ALL THE WAY, FOR KEEPS.")
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To: MadIvan

It sounds like Little Georgie Soros took Hanoi Boi to the woodshed for a "come to Gaia meeting."


59 posted on 11/01/2006 4:21:28 PM PST by FlingWingFlyer (This just in! Islamofascists say they will not "change direction" after U.S. elections.)
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To: MadIvan
Mr Kerry has previously attacked the so-called “chicken-hawks” who have cast aspersions on his military record, while never seeing combat themselves. Yesterday he made no reference to how Mr Bush had avoided service in Vietnam, perhaps because it would have meant conceding that the “intellectually lazy” President had got better grades than him at Yale.

LOL

60 posted on 11/01/2006 4:22:42 PM PST by Echo Talon
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