Posted on 03/11/2004 5:13:11 PM PST by AmericanMade1776
Whopper of the Week: John Kerry Did he pretend to be Irish? By Timothy Noah Posted Friday, March 7, 2003, at 3:34 PM PT
"[John] Kerry acknowledged that some voters in Massachusetts, the nation's most Irish-American state, may have had the impression that he had Irish roots. He said that he knew of no Irish ancestry and that he had always tried to correct misstatements whenever he learned about them.
"Numerous publications, including the Globe, have stated that Kerry is Irish-American.
Continue Article
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"'I'm sure some people see the name and say, "Hey, I think it's this or that," but I've been clear as a bell,' Kerry said. 'I've always been absolutely straight up front about it.'
[…]
"Kerry 'has never indicated to anyone that he was Irish and corrected people over the years who assumed he was,' [spokeswoman Kelly] Benander said."
—Michael Kranish, "Search for Kerry's Roots Finds Surprising History," in the Feb. 2 Boston Globe.
''For those of us who are fortunate to share an Irish ancestry, we take great pride in the contributions that Irish-Americans …"
—Senate floor statement by John Kerry, March 18, 1986, as quoted in Frank Phillips' and Brian C. Mooney's "1986 Statement Counters Kerry's Stand on Heritage," in the March 6 Boston Globe.
"As some of you may know, I am part-English and part-Irish. And when my Kerry ancestors first came over to Massachusetts from the old country to find work in the New World, it was my English ancestors who refused to hire them."
—Draft remarks prepared for Kerry in 1984, quoted by Phillips and Mooney in the March 6 Globe. Kerry was lieutenant governor of Massachusetts at the time.
"[I]n 1982, at the state Democratic convention in Springfield, his campaign gave his convention floor workers emerald-green T-shirts and hats featuring the logo, 'Up Kerry'—a takeoff on the rallying cry for the first president of the Republic of Ireland, Eamon de Valera, whose supporters cried, 'Up de Valera!' "
—Phillips and Mooney in the March 6 Globe.
Discussion. The question before the jury is whether Kerry has systematically sought to con Massachusetts voters (a great many of whom are Irish) into thinking that he's Irish. Kerry's spokesperson, Kelley Benander, told the Globe the erroneous Senate floor statement was staff-written and that Kerry neither recited nor saw it. (It's common for members of Congress to submit written floor statements in lieu of going to the Senate floor and saying the words out loud, and these statements are indeed often written by staff members.) Neither Kerry nor Benander nor Jonathan Winer, the Kerry aide who wrote the draft remarks prepared for Kerry when he was lieutenant governor, recall the speech being used. (But they don't seem specifically to recall it not being used, either.) As for the Irish-themed Kerry campaign paraphernalia, Benander said it was meant to attract Irish-American voters, not to con people into thinking Kerry was Irish.
Still, it's striking that the Globe was able to find two separate instances where Kerry's own staff thought he was Irish and a third where Kerry's campaign invited the public to believe he was Irish. (Benander's explanation about the hats and T-shirts fails to persuade because Kerry wasn't visiting an Irish neighborhood. He was at a state convention attended by people with all sorts of backgrounds.) And it is striking that Kerry has never attempted to correct various references to his Irish ancestry that have appeared in the Globe, which is the most important newspaper in his state.
Chatterbox's bottom line is that a political candidate and officeholder is responsible for whatever goes out under his name. So the Senate statement alone qualifies this as a Whopper. As to the larger question of whether Kerry habitually tells opportunistic lies about his background, or anything else, the jury's still out. But you can bet the Globe, and everyone else, will be watching.
[Correction, March 15: Winer, who was not contacted by the Globe for the story, says it misreported (secondhand, via Benander) his recollection about the 1984 draft comments. The Globe said Winer didn't remember Kerry giving the speech. Winer says he does remember that Kerry did not give the speech. "He refused to use it," Winer e-mailed Chatterbox. "Told me it wasn't funny." Chatterbox notes that Winer does not affirm that Kerry further said, "And besides, I'm not Irish," so he presumes that didn't happen.]
(Excerpt) Read more at slate.msn.com ...
hehe !
Just recently, as Kerry was making political profit from the Iraqi prisoner Abuse Scandal, Kerry proclaimed that, if he were CinC, he would take responsibility for the actions of those under his command. A noble position and one which is expected of a Commander of troops.
But can we believe this statement?
I contend that we can not. When called to answer for his public speeches regarding the so called Benedict Arnold CEO's, he passes the buck to "overzealous speech writers"! This from the man who claims he follows Harry Truman's rule of the buck stops here.
The hypocrisy of this is further illustrated by that fact that John Kerry is not even responsible for what he says! What he says is dictated by others and is totally beyond his control. Shouldn't a presumptive leader of the free world be the one dictating to his speech writers what he wants to say and not the other way around?
Funny!!
the only thing they share is their hair style
the only thing they share is their hair style
He is like the Jewish kapos that were hired by the nazis to watch over prisoners in the concentration camps. They were often as mean as the nazis-he is a nazi
yeah so i have a question if he never claimed to be Irish then how come some remarks made by him for political reasons said just that like when he talk about Irsh people and said "us"
And does the man not bear a striking resemblance in a butch sort of way, to Nancy Kerrigan, the kneecapped figure-skater? Instead of worrying about this bloody spalpeen's problematic ancestry, we should be worrying about what appears to be a somewhat serious attempt to win the presidency.
And if you are unliucky enough to inhabit Massa chusetts, you should also be worried about Barney the Bugger of Bayonne succeeding Ketchup Boy as your Senator.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
