Wednesday, September 9, 2004, Sen. John F. Kerry
(D-Mekong Delta) delivered a powerful and (if he is
elected) historic speech in Cincinnati, Ohio,
highlighting the _resident's pre-war lies about
Iraq...You won't hear much about this speech from the
propapunditgandists of the US regimestream news media,
because its content does not jibe with their
Rove-scripted caricature of JFK as a "flip-flopper."
They would prefer that you walk around with the notion
that he has an ambiguous or mutable position on the
war. He does not...Here is the proof...It provides the
CONTEXT and CONTINUITY that the US regimestream news
media has failed to provide you...Remember, the
_resident did not lead you into Iraq on his own, the
US regimestream news media trumpeted his triumphalism
and his lies without the least circumspection...
Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mekong Delta): Twenty-three
months ago, President Bush came here to ask the
American people for our support. And he promised then
to make the right choices when it came to sending
young Americans to Iraq.
Here in Cincinnati, he said that if Congress approved
the resolution giving him the authority to use force,
it did not mean that military action would be
“unavoidable”. But he chose not to give the weapons
inspectors the time they needed to get the job done
and give meaning to the words, going to war as a last
resort.
Here in Cincinnati, he promised “to lead a coalition.”
But he failed to build a broad, strong coalition of
allies and he rushed to war without a plan to win the
peace.
Here in Cincinnati, from this hall, on that night, he
spoke to the nation, and promised: “If we have to
act, we will take every precaution that is possible.
We will plan carefully. We will act with the full
power of the United States military. We will act with
allies at our side and we will prevail.”
But then, George W. Bush made the wrong choics. He
himself now admits he miscalculated in Iraq. In truth,
his miscalculation was ignoring the advice that was
given to him, including the best advice of America’s
own military. When he didn’t like what he was
hearing, he even fired the Army Chief of Staff. His
miscalculation was going to war without taking every
precaution and without giving the inspectors time.
His miscalculation was going to war without planning
carefully and without the allies we should have had.
As a result, America has paid nearly 90% of the bill
in Iraq. Contrast that with the Gulf War, where our
allies paid 95% of the costs.
George W. Bush’s wrong choices have led America in the
wrong direction in Iraq and left America without the
resources we need here at home. The cost of the
President’s go-it-alone policy in Iraq is now $200
billion and counting. $200 billion for Iraq, but they
tell us we can’t afford after-school programs for our
children. $200 billion for Iraq, but they tell us we
can’t afford health care for our veterans. $200
billion for Iraq, but they tell us we can’t afford to
keep the 100,000 new police we put on the streets
during the 1990s.
Well we’re here today to tell them: they’re wrong.
And it’s time to lead America in a new direction.
When it comes to Iraq, it’s not that I would have done
one thing differently from the President, I would’ve
done almost everything differently. I would have
given the inspectors the time they needed before
rushing to war. I would have built a genuine
coalition of our allies around the world. I would’ve
made sure that every soldier put in harm’s way had the
equipment and body armor they needed. I would’ve
listened to the senior military leaders of this
country and the bipartisan advice of Congress. And,
if there’s one thing I learned from my own service, I
would never have gone to war without a plan to win the
peace.
Support Our Troops, Show Up for Democracy in 2004:
Defeat Bush (again!)
http://www.johnkerry.com/pressroom/speeches/spc_2004_0908.html
September 8, 2004
Remarks on Bush’s Wrong Choices in Iraq That Have Left
Us Without the Resources We Need at Home
Remarks of John Kerry
For Immediate Release
Cincinnati, OH - Yesterday in Iraq, we marked the most
incalculable loss of all. Yesterday, we reached a
tragic milestone. More than 1,000 of America’s sons
and daughters gave their lives in service to our
country. More than 1,000 sons and daughters, husbands
and wives, brothers and sisters who will never come
home to live the lives they dreamed of. We honor
them, we pray for them and for their families, and we
owe it to their memory and all our troops to do what’s
right in Iraq.
I also want to speak directly to the more than 150,000
troops currently risking their lives as far away as
Iraq and Afghanistan. Your country is proud of you.
You are the most dedicated, capable military we’ve
ever had. We are united as a nation in our support
for you. We pledge to stand with your families as you
stand on the front lines for ours. You are the best
of America. And you perform magnificently every day.
We thank you for your service and your sacrifice.
Twenty-three months ago, President Bush came here to
ask the American people for our support. And he
promised then to make the right choices when it came
to sending young Americans to Iraq.
Here in Cincinnati, he said that if Congress approved
the resolution giving him the authority to use force,
it did not mean that military action would be
“unavoidable”. But he chose not to give the weapons
inspectors the time they needed to get the job done
and give meaning to the words, going to war as a last
resort.
Here in Cincinnati, he promised “to lead a coalition.”
But he failed to build a broad, strong coalition of
allies and he rushed to war without a plan to win the
peace.
Here in Cincinnati, from this hall, on that night, he
spoke to the nation, and promised: “If we have to
act, we will take every precaution that is possible.
We will plan carefully. We will act with the full
power of the United States military. We will act with
allies at our side and we will prevail.”
But then, George W. Bush made the wrong choices. He
himself now admits he miscalculated in Iraq. In truth,
his miscalculation was ignoring the advice that was
given to him, including the best advice of America’s
own military. When he didn’t like what he was
hearing, he even fired the Army Chief of Staff. His
miscalculation was going to war without taking every
precaution and without giving the inspectors time.
His miscalculation was going to war without planning
carefully and without the allies we should have had.
As a result, America has paid nearly 90% of the bill
in Iraq. Contrast that with the Gulf War, where our
allies paid 95% of the costs.
George W. Bush’s wrong choices have led America in the
wrong direction in Iraq and left America without the
resources we need here at home. The cost of the
President’s go-it-alone policy in Iraq is now $200
billion and counting. $200 billion for Iraq, but they
tell us we can’t afford after-school programs for our
children. $200 billion for Iraq, but they tell us we
can’t afford health care for our veterans. $200
billion for Iraq, but they tell us we can’t afford to
keep the 100,000 new police we put on the streets
during the 1990s.
Well we’re here today to tell them: they’re wrong.
And it’s time to lead America in a new direction.
When it comes to Iraq, it’s not that I would have done
one thing differently from the President, I would’ve
done almost everything differently. I would have
given the inspectors the time they needed before
rushing to war. I would have built a genuine
coalition of our allies around the world. I would’ve
made sure that every soldier put in harm’s way had the
equipment and body armor they needed. I would’ve
listened to the senior military leaders of this
country and the bipartisan advice of Congress. And,
if there’s one thing I learned from my own service, I
would never have gone to war without a plan to win the
peace.
I would not have made the wrong choices that are
forcing us to pay nearly the entire cost of this war –
$200 billion that we’re not investing in education,
health care, and job creation here at home.
$200 billion for going-it-alone in Iraq. That’s the
wrong choice; that’s the wrong direction; and that’s
the wrong leadership for America.
While we’re spending that $200 billion in Iraq, 8
million Americans are looking for work – 2 million
more than when George W. Bush took office – and we’re
told that we can’t afford to invest in job training
and job creation here at home.
But for the Bush administration, helping Americans
find a good job has never been the priority. The
first time we’ve heard much about it at all was during
this campaign. And at that convention in New York
last week, they actually told us that outsourcing jobs
was good for America. That shouldn’t be a surprise
because that’s what they’ve been doing for four years
– and if they get another chance, that’s exactly what
they will do for four more years. That’s the wrong
choice; that’s the wrong direction; and that’s the
wrong leadership for America.
As president, I will set a new direction. I will
close the tax loopholes that reward companies for
shipping jobs overseas. Instead, we’re going to
reward companies that create and keep good jobs here
in the United States of America.
Because of this President’s wrong choices, we’re
spending $200 billion in Iraq while the costs of
health care have gone through the roof and we’re told
we don’t have the resources to make health care
affordable and available for all Americans. Today, 45
million Americans have no health insurance at all – 5
million more than the day George W. Bush took office.
And after four years of no action, no concern, and
hardly a mention of those struggling to afford health
care, the President finally told us last week that he
actually had a plan. Well, we only had to wait
twenty-four hours to find out what that was. Because
the very next day he raised Medicare premiums 17
percent – the biggest increase in Medicare premiums in
the history of that program. And here’s the kicker –
a lot of that money is nothing more than a windfall to
the insurance companies and HMOs. They’re charging
17% more for Medicare while making America pay $200
billion for a go-it-alone policy in Iraq. That’s the
wrong choice; that’s the wrong direction; and that’s
the wrong leadership for America.
As President, I will set a new direction. George W.
Bush believes when it comes to health care, the big
drug companies come first, the insurance companies
come second, and you come last. Well, I’m going to
put you first. Our plan will take on the waste and
greed in the health care system and save the average
family up to $1000 a year on their premiums. Our plan
will help small businesses deal with the most
expensive cases. Our plan will cover all children.
When I am president, America will stop being the only
advanced nation in the world which fails to understand
that health care is not a privilege for the wealthy,
the connected, and the elected, it is a right for all
Americans.
Because of George W. Bush’s wrong choices, we’re
spending $200 billion in Iraq while we’re running up
deficits that threaten Social Security. In fact,
they’re raiding the Social Security Trust Fund to pay
for their mistakes in Iraq. At that convention in New
York last week, George Bush said that he actually had
a new idea. And you know what it was? The bad, old
idea of privatizing social security -- and cutting
your benefits. That’s the wrong choice; that’s the
wrong direction; and that’s the wrong leadership for
America.
As President, I will not privatize Social Security. I
will not cut benefits. I will not raise the retirement
age. Because when you’ve worked for a lifetime,
America owes you what you’ve earned.
And because of this President’s wrong choices, we’re
spending $200 billion in Iraq instead of investing in
making America energy independent. George W. Bush’s
energy policy is to trust the big oil companies and
the Saudis. In fact, a national news magazine just
reported that a senior member of the Saudi Royal
family said that as far as they’re concerned, in the
U.S. Presidential election, “It’s Bush all the way.”
I want an America that relies on its own ingenuity and
innovation, not the Saudi Royal Family.
We’re going to invest in technology and the vehicles
of the future, so that no young American will ever be
held hostage to our dependence on oil from the Middle
East. That’s the right choice; that’s the right
direction; and that’s the right leadership for
America.
Because of this President’s wrong choices, we’re
spending $200 billion in Iraq while we’re told that we
can’t afford to do everything that we should for
homeland security. I believe it’s wrong to be opening
firehouses in Baghdad and closing them down in the
United States of America. It’s wrong to cut money for
our first responders. It’s wrong to let 95% of the
cargo that comes into this country get by without ever
being physically inspected. That’s the wrong choice;
that’s the wrong direction; and that’s the wrong
leadership for America.
As President, I will set a new direction. We’re going
to defend this country here at home. We’re going to
do all we possibly can to protect it from another
terrorist attack. And we’re going to make homeland
security a priority, not a political slogan.
My friends, today we are bearing the cost of the war
in Iraq almost alone – $200 billion and counting.
Nearly two years after George W. Bush spoke to the
nation from this very place, we know how wrong his
choices were. He says he “miscalculated.” He calls
Iraq a “catastrophic success.” But a glance at the
front pages or a look at the nightly news shows the
hard reality: Rising instability. Spreading
violence. Growing extremism. Havens for terrorists
that weren’t there before. And today, even the
Pentagon admits, Entire regions of Iraq are controlled
by insurgents and terrorists.
I call this course a catastrophic choice that has cost
us $200 billion because we went it alone, and we’ve
paid an even more unbearable price in young American
lives.
We need a new direction. I know what we need to do in
Iraq. We need to bring our allies to our side, share
the burdens, reduce the cost to American taxpayers,
and reduce the risk to American soldiers. We need to
train Iraqi military and police – we need to train
them more rapidly, more effectively, and in greater
numbers to take over the job of protecting their own
country. That's what I’ll do as Commander-in-Chief –
because that’s the right way to get the job done and
bring our troops home.
You know, the President said one thing in his
convention speech that’s true. He said we all need to
challenge the soft bigotry of low expectations. But
you know, it’s George W. Bush who has set low
expectations -- and met them. He doesn’t believe that
America can be strong in the world while we also make
progress here at home. He believes we have to choose
one or the other. That’s a false choice – and I
reject it. I believe we can lead in the world and
lead America to greater progress and prosperity than
we’ve ever known before.
Half a century ago, from here in Union Terminal,
thousands of soldiers waved one last goodbye to their
families before heading off to the Second World War.
In that war, their bravery, and leaders who made the
right choices, brought victory over tyranny and
prosperity here at home.
When I’m president, America will once again stand up
to our enemies without destroying or denying our best
hopes here at home. We will strengthen our military
to meet new threats and we will build and lead strong
alliances. We will build a stronger America, with
good jobs, better wages, health care for all, and
energy independence. With the right choices and the
right leadership, we will set a new direction for
America. We will build an America stronger at home
and respected in the world. As Franklin Roosevelt
once said, “The only limit to our realization of
tomorrow will be our doubts of today.” Well, I
believe there are no limits for tomorrow. But we need
to make the right choices today. With your help, we
will restore the true greatness of our nation and set
a new direction for our future.
Thank you, God bless you, and God Bless America.
Posted by richard at September 9, 2004 12:36 PM