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Sen. Leahy Slams Sen.-elect Chambliss as 'Draft Dodger' (The Fun)
NewsMax ^
| 11/13/02
| Limbacher
Posted on 11/13/2002 2:27:19 PM PST by Tumbleweed_Connection
Sen. Pat Leahy, D-Vt., didn't sound too happy during a home-state Wednesday morning radio interview over the fact that his party had lost control of the Senate, especially when he called one of the incoming freshmen Republican senators who will soon take over a "a draft dodger."
Responding to a caller on WVMT Burlington's "Charlie and Ernie Show", Leahy complained that President Bush had won the Senate by supporting the Republican candidate in Georgia, who, Leahy added, "was a draft dodger who attacked Sen. (Max) Cleland on his patriotism."
In one of the biggest upsets of last week's election, Rep. Saxby Chambliss, R- Ga., defeated Cleland, a victory that left Democrats stunned.
The Vermont left-winger, who will loose his chairmanship of the Senate Judiciary Committee within weeks, went on to attack Chambliss as someone who had "avoided the draft several times."
In fact, Chambliss never received a draft notice. Instead, like millions during the Vietnam war era, the Georgia Republican took advantage of student deferments and eventually received a medical deferment due to a knee injury.
Leahy leveled the "draft dodger" charge after a caller asked if Democrats were likely to return to the bipartisanship that dominated Congress immediately after the 9/11 attacks.
A recording of Leahy's comments obtained exclusively by NewsMax shows the top Senate Democrat fuming:
"I don't think anybody agrees more with the fact that we need to work together. I have been disappointed in both ends of Pennsylvania Ave. The president has to make efforts also to do that. As you know, the president and his own advisors have said they took the most partisan attempts ever in an election, and it paid off for them. He won a lot of seats.
"He supported a man, for example, in Georgia who was, well, the best way to put it - was a draft dodger who attacked Sen. Cleland on his patriotism. And the president joined in that. Sen. Cleland lost both legs and an arm in Vietnam. But the man who avoided the draft several times won.
"Now, it's going to take a little bit to get over that kind of partisanship. In this case the president won his point but I think you have to ask, at what cost? And I think that attacking the patriotism of one of the most decorated war heroes in our country - doing these kind of things - that's going to take a little bit for that to wear off."
TOPICS: Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: chambliss; clinton; leahy
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To: Tumbleweed_Connection
Leahy...what a maroon. Of course, what can one expect from a state that is known for its sap?
41
posted on
11/13/2002 2:48:31 PM PST
by
My2Cents
To: jbg
"For years, Cleland believed he had dropped the grenade that nearly took his life. But Lloyd assured him it was another Marine, who had straightened all his grenade pins, who dropped the explosive that Cleland stumbled upon.
'It took such a load off my mind," Cleland said. "When I first got the call, I just didn't believe it.'"
From:
http://www.savannahnow.com/stories/113000/LOCbooksigning.shtml
42
posted on
11/13/2002 2:50:23 PM PST
by
Chemnitz
To: Mike Fieschko
Wasn't Cunningham featured in an old gun camera video where he got some ungodly number of kills in one day?
To: MadIvan
Silent Cal. You know, my county library system does not even have one book about Coolidge and there are 10 libraries in the system. I went looking for a book called "Coolidge and the Historians". I eventually found it in one library in the State. Great book Too!
44
posted on
11/13/2002 2:51:20 PM PST
by
kylaka
To: cardinal4
The president and his advisors never said anything of the sort. The president went out and supported members of his own party. Never once in his standard stump speech did he mention Democrats. When he spoke of the Homeland Security Bill, he would always say a good bill was passed by the House but it was stuck in the Senate, which was (and remains) true. Every statement attributed to Leahy in this article is a LIE -- not the article, but Leahy's statements.
45
posted on
11/13/2002 2:52:21 PM PST
by
Wolfstar
To: Tumbleweed_Connection
"Leahy complained that President Bush had won the Senate by supporting the Republican candidate in Georgia, who, Leahy added, 'was a draft dodger who attacked Sen. (Max) Cleland on his patriotism.'"This is not true. Chambliss clearly said:
"I'm not questioning your patriotism. I'm questioning your judgment."
Is Leahy saying that he doesn't know the facts here??? If he doesn't, why not??? Is he intentionally distorting the facts??? Is he ignoring the facts??? Is it merely an honest mistake on Leahy's part???
The truth is easily available to everyone--including Leahy.
To: jbind
Every ad I saw questioned nothing about his patriotism. They questioned his voting record.
47
posted on
11/13/2002 2:53:28 PM PST
by
cksharks
To: Tumbleweed_Connection
Since Leahy's statement was not made on the Senate floor and that what he said was a lie, cannot he be sued for slander?
Leahy = leaker
Trajan88; TAMU Class of '88
p.s. Vermont's very own Ben & Jerry's ice cream SUCKS... go for the real stuff... Blue Bell from that little creamery in Brehnam, TX (not far away from God's country... aka Texas aTm Aggieland).
48
posted on
11/13/2002 2:54:05 PM PST
by
Trajan88
To: Tumbleweed_Connection
He took time out of his busy schedule leaking classified information to do this interview?
Comment #50 Removed by Moderator
To: SJackson
Another Catholic abortion supporter. Kennedy, Pelosi, Kennedy Townsend, Patrick Kennedy and a host of others supporting abortion. When will these bishops call them up on the abortion issues. I am really sick of it. An email campaign to each diocese would not hurt.
To: Tumbleweed_Connection
A bloated ego releasing a lot of hot gas.
To: jbind
Cleland voted FOR partial birth abortion.
I question the character of anyone who votes for that.
To: jbind
To be quite honest I found political ads that implicit questioned Cleland's patriotism to be simply grotesque. I believe the phrase is, put up or shut up! Just who is being grotesque?
54
posted on
11/13/2002 2:55:06 PM PST
by
F-117A
To: RetiredArmy
I thought you might like this.
To: jbg
Sadly, the story is less heroic than his propagandists would have you believe. As LT Max Cleland, an Army Infantry Platoon Leader, was exiting a helicopter on a combat assault (not under fire), one of his fragmentation grenades accidentally came off his web gear. He noticed it and turned to look for it. Unfortunately, the pin had come out and the spoon had flipped, approx 3-4 seconds earlier. By his turning around, his body position shielded some of his men nearby from the fragmentation. He was less than a foot from the grenade when it detonated.
He was awarded a Soldier's Medal for "shielding his soldiers" and a Purple Heart for wound received in action. I believe he also later received a Silver Star, but it was a generic award not necessarily tied to the incident, but sort of a Platoon Leader Good Conduct Under Fire Award. This was very common in Vietnam.
Max Cleland did his duty. Nothing more and nothing less. That in and of itself is more than most and something we neglect to recognize. But to call him a hero, frankly weakens the term for those who really measured up to the term in a Homeric sense. He further denigrated those who really are heroes by overemphasizing his service and trying to make it something more than it was.
To: Tumbleweed_Connection
"He supported a man, for example, in Georgia who was, well, the best way to put it - was a draft dodger who attacked Sen. Cleland on his patriotism. And the president joined in that. Sen. Cleland lost both legs and an arm in Vietnam. But the man who avoided the draft several times won. Didn't Leahy support a draft-dodger (Clinton) over a man who lost use of a limb in war (Dole)? Or did he support Dole in 1996?
To: RonF
I think they've just changed the rules. You can't collect a disability check (that is supposed to make up for lost income) at the same time you are getting paid for a full-time job.
This is something that probably should have been done a long time ago. There are some insurance companies that would allow such a thing (under a specific set of circumstances that I could explain if you'd like), but this kind of insurance is extremely expensive.
To: Texbob
Beady eyed Daschle I think it was Rush who described Daschle as mortician-like! Mortician with beady eyes .. Ya, that'll work!
g
To: Tumbleweed_Connection
Leahy is a thuggish man. Revenge is a dish best served cold, and it got very cold in Leahy's office after he found out he lost his chairmanship.
60
posted on
11/13/2002 2:57:36 PM PST
by
Hacksaw
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