Posted on 08/27/2003 7:25:25 AM PDT by bedolido
WASHINGTON (Talon News) -- Sen. John Kerry is a veteran of the Vietnam War. He mentions this fact in nearly every speech before supporters and his presidential campaign website currently has six images or stories on its main page devoted to his military background and his support for our troops. Republican National Committee Chairman Ed Gillespie this week challenged that support.
"Candidate Kerry's rhetoric doesn't match up with Sen. Kerry's voting record," Gillespie charged on Monday. "Before he was a presidential candidate, Kerry voted to slash billions in defense spending and supported proposals to cut everything from Navy submarines to Air Force fighter planes. If Sen. Kerry's cuts to our armed forces had become a reality, the men and women in our nation's military would be dangerously underfunded in facing the security challenges in the world today."
Kerry urged veterans to support his candidacy this week when he spoke before the Veterans of Foreign Wars convention in San Antonio. Next week, he will formally announce his presidential bid. His announcement will be made with the U.S.S. Yorktown behind him.
Tuesday, Kerry released a statement attacking President George W. Bush's handling of the war in Iraq. "In Iraq even more than Afghanistan, our post-war planning has failed to do the job, and in the process, we've over-extended our troops and our reserves," Kerry said.
"When we decide to go to war, the only exit strategy is called victory -- mission accomplished. We must succeed ultimately in our goals in Iraq -- because to not succeed would have extraordinary negative consequences for the war on terror. So with characteristic American determination and grit we will see this through and we will make America and the world safer and more secure as a result," Kerry continued in his release in response to President Bush's speech before the American Legion in St. Louis.
Gillespie defended Bush's record and attacked Kerry's. "President Bush's policy of preemptive self defense has made Americans safer. Senator Kerry's latest conversion on national security comes too late to be taken seriously," Gillespie said on Monday before embarking on a swing through Maine to raise money for Republicans in that state.
To defend his accusations, Gillespie released research on Kerry's votes. In 1996, Kerry introduced legislation that if successful would have cut the Department of Defense by $6.5 billion. His bill failed to attract co-sponsors and never reached the floor for debate.
Gillespie also released information that dates back to his early political days. "Running for Congress in 1972, Kerry promised to cut defense spending," Gillespie wrote. The Lawrence Eagle-Tribune wrote in 1972: "On what he'll do if he's elected to Congress, Kerry said he would 'bring a different kind of message to the president.' He said he would vote against military appropriations."
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