Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Kerry's showing he just can't take the heat
Chicago Sun Times ^ | 9/04/2004 | Mark Steyn

Posted on 09/04/2004 7:40:42 AM PDT by RepublicanPizza

Both candidates gave speeches late on Thursday night. George W. Bush was more or less expected to. John Kerry didn't have to, but reported for duty even though nobody wanted him to. Unnerved by sagging numbers, he decided to start the post-Labor Day phase of the campaign three days before Labor Day. The way things are going, Democrats seem likely to be launching the post-election catastrophic-defeat vicious-recriminations phase of the campaign round about Sept. 12.

At any rate, less than 60 minutes after President Bush gave a sober, graceful, droll and moving address, Kerry decided to hit back. In the midnight hour, he climbed out of his political coffin, and before his thousands of aides could grab the garlic from Teresa's kitchen and start waving it at him, he found himself in front of an audience and started giving a speech. As in Vietnam, he was in no mood to take prisoners: ''I have five words for Americans,'' he thundered. ''This is your wake up call!''

Is that five words? Or is it six? Well, it's all very nuanced, according to whether you hyphenate the ''wake-up.'' Maybe he should have said, ''I have four words plus a common hyphenated expression for Americans.'' I'd suggest the rewrite to him personally, but I don't want him to stare huffily at me and drone, "How dare you attack my patriotism."

(Excerpt) Read more at suntimes.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: kerry
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-48 next last
To: Congressman Billybob

The whole thing was great but that last paragraph nailed it.


21 posted on 09/04/2004 8:06:28 AM PDT by tiki
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: All

Kerry's late night performance was at best rambling, almost incoherent but mainly an attack. It is obvious he either didn't watch the GOP convention, or his bomb throwers were so angry they misunderstood everything that happened. The DNC was furious about Zell and called his speech HATE...there was no hate in Zell's speech. He came armed with facts...the actual voting record Kerry made in Congress. He named off the things Kerry voted for and then against. Almost every weapon system was voted out by Kerry. That is not hate. That is the truth. The poll numbers which the press is now repeating 51/41 for W were taken BEFORE HIS OUTSTANDING SPEECH! Now put that in your pipe and smoke it, Mr.Kerry! The true numbers haven't even been announced yet, and the Swiftboaters come out with a new ad today!!!!!!!!WOW Could it be said that Kerry and his elitist liberal buddies, the mainstream press, can't handle the truth?????????


22 posted on 09/04/2004 8:07:04 AM PDT by cousair
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 12 | View Replies]

To: Made in USA

Ret. Admiral Stockdale


23 posted on 09/04/2004 8:07:12 AM PDT by Southern62
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: RepublicanPizza; RhoTheta
If you want passivity and wallowing in victim culture, the Dems will do. If you want to win this thing, Bush is the only guy running.

This is something that has bugged me for the last couple of years: The Left keeps complaining that we've squandered the "good will" that the rest of the world felt toward us for the events of 9/11.

What they're actually pissed about is that the Right stole their ability to bask in victim-hood. The "good will" from the rest of the world wasn't general "good will" at all: it was temporary sympathy, pity, and compassion one naturally feels for a victim.

This is fine as an initial reaction, but the problem is you can't sustain "good will" when it is based on empathy for a temporary event-- especially when the Left seems hell-bent on blaming the incident on ourselves. As soon as the Left is successful at convincing the world that we brought the attack on ourselves, the "good will" would naturally dissolve.

So, even if the "good will" could naturally be sustained, the Left can't have its cake and eat it too.

24 posted on 09/04/2004 8:10:14 AM PDT by Egon (It's starting to look like the Poodle has finally screwed the pooch.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: RepublicanPizza
If ''return to normalcy'' means four years of a grimly humorless, touchy, self-regarding Kerry presidency, I'll take the war.

That's my second-favorite line.

25 posted on 09/04/2004 8:11:15 AM PDT by 68skylark
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Egon
I agree. Your comments are well-stated. Libs are constantly confusing emotion with action -- I can think of dozens of examples. They'd rather have the useless "goodwill" of the world than tangible victories in the war on our enemies.
26 posted on 09/04/2004 8:13:50 AM PDT by 68skylark
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 24 | View Replies]

To: ken5050

I just heard parts of Kerry's Saturday morning radio address.

He apparently cannot tell the difference betwee truth and fiction, so the debates are going to be difficult to watch.

GWB - in the real world, discussing real problems:solutions.

JFnK - parallel universe where mouthing a response makes it so


27 posted on 09/04/2004 8:21:06 AM PDT by maica (BIG Media is not mainstream. We are right. They are left, not center.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: Verginius Rufus
Admiral James Stockdale

Oh, God, the memories.... I was a Perot supporter at the time, I regret to admit, and I remember the VP debates getting ready to start. On comes Admiral Stockdale, and he announces, "I'm Admiral James Stockdale! Why am I here? Uh, why AM I here?" Then he kind of trailed off into some mumbling. He never composed himself after that. It seemed a good start but before he finished his third sentence, the debate was over for him.

God forgive me for voting for Ross Perot anyway.

28 posted on 09/04/2004 8:31:51 AM PDT by webheart
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: cousair
The DNC was furious about Zell and called his speech HATE.

When leftists are confronted with logic, they can only respond emotionally. They hate it when that happens.

29 posted on 09/04/2004 8:35:24 AM PDT by webheart
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 22 | View Replies]

To: 68skylark; Egon

I agree with your statements .. And .. Rush has said for some time that dems/libs believe more in "intentions" than they do in actions.


30 posted on 09/04/2004 8:37:37 AM PDT by CyberAnt (Sen.Miller said, "Bush is a God-fearing man with a good heart and a spine of tempered steel")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 26 | View Replies]

To: Made in USA

Admiral Stockdale.


31 posted on 09/04/2004 8:45:06 AM PDT by Prost1 (Why isn't Berger in jail?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: RepublicanPizza
"How dare you attack my patriotism."

Do a Google search on ... John Kerry, Nicaragua ... and see if you can find Kerry's patriotism.

32 posted on 09/04/2004 8:58:40 AM PDT by TigersEye (Let's hear about your Senate record already, John!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: RepublicanPizza

--------------------------------
To print out and wear as a Campaign Button, go HERE. Over 4,000 hits as of 9/4! Feel free to reuse this anywhere you wish...
Donate to Swift Boat Vets for the Truth HERE.

33 posted on 09/04/2004 9:00:36 AM PDT by sonofatpatcher2 (Texas, Love & a .45-- What more could you want, campers? };^)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: RepublicanPizza

If the pressure remains on Kerry and he continues to act like he did Thursday night, at some point point he is going to really show it and his campaign will be over just like when Senator Muskie cried when he got angry over the fact that a NH paper was saying nasty things about his wife. If Kerry is going to fall apart in a political campaign, what is he going to do when he's got to make a decision like whether to shoot down a hijacked airliner heading for the Capitol.


34 posted on 09/04/2004 9:09:24 AM PDT by Dave S
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: RepublicanPizza

Unbelievable.

Even Senator Muskie knew the rules well enough not to give a midnight speech like this.

One of the many problems of the protest generation is that they just don't think the rules apply to them. In the old days, politicians had a certain dignity, even the worst of them. Clinton broke that rule when he started to campaign on talk shows with his clarinet. Now they think anything goes.


35 posted on 09/04/2004 9:57:34 AM PDT by Cicero (Marcus Tullius)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Made in USA
I can't recall who Perot's running mate was but he kept mumbling and walking away from the stage during the debates.

Wasn't it someone named something like Lamm?
36 posted on 09/04/2004 10:10:38 AM PDT by aruanan
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: RepublicanPizza
Congratulations to Mark Steyn for another great piece.
We are so fortunate to be able to read all these articles by conservatives around the world through the Internet.

It's time for the Muslims to start "taking out their own trash" before this whole terrorism mess turns into the 21st Century Crusades!!!

Semper Fi,
Kelly
37 posted on 09/04/2004 4:18:54 PM PDT by kellynla (U.S.M.C. 1/5 1st Mar Div. Nam 69&70 Semper Fi http://www.vietnamveteransagainstjohnkerry.com)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: aruanan

Admiral Stockdale
"Who am I and why am I here?" LMAO


38 posted on 09/04/2004 4:20:17 PM PDT by kellynla (U.S.M.C. 1/5 1st Mar Div. Nam 69&70 Semper Fi http://www.vietnamveteransagainstjohnkerry.com)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 36 | View Replies]

To: Made in USA
I can't recall who Perot's running mate was
Admiral Stockdale
"Who am I and why am I here?"
39 posted on 09/04/2004 4:22:10 PM PDT by kellynla (U.S.M.C. 1/5 1st Mar Div. Nam 69&70 Semper Fi http://www.vietnamveteransagainstjohnkerry.com)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: kellynla

That was a good question he asked because I couldn't remember his name.


40 posted on 09/04/2004 4:26:19 PM PDT by aruanan
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 38 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-48 next last

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.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson