Kerry For President! (He Supports The Troops AND Served in Vietnam!)

John "I Support the Troops of Ghengis Khan" Kerry reassures Bush voters that they made the right choice in 2004 by delivering this updated support for the troops at a campaign rally for Gubernatorial candidate Angelides in California:

“You know, education, if you make the most of it, if you study hard and you do your homework, and you make an effort to be smart, uh, you, you can do well. If you don’t, you get stuck in Iraq.”

The Captain wonders whether other Dems will denounce this.  As if!  Michelle Malkin is doing great outrage.

Here is a local paper covering the same event, giving us a bit of crow reax:

Hoping to breathe life into a flagging gubernatorial run, Democrats on Monday turned out a cast of party all-stars for Phil Angelides at a Pasadena City College appearance.

Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, state Assembly Speaker Fabian Nu ez and California Sen. Barbara Boxer all gave the California treasurer ringing endorsements, while telling about 370 PCC students that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger does not have their best interests in mind.

...But while the students showed proper enthusiasm for Angelides by waving his signs and wooing and booing at the right places, the energy in the room clearly belonged to Kerry. He took the stage to roaring applause and left it only to be mobbed by students and reporters.    

Kerry charmed the crowd with tales of surfing at Mission Beach and got laughs for a series of one liners, including telling the crowd he had just returned from Texas, "Where the president used to live - now he lives in a state of denial."

Kerry then told the students that if they were able to navigate the education system, they could get comfortable jobs - "If you don't, you get stuck in Iraq," he said to a mixture of laughter and gasps.

I want to say that having listened carefully to the audio, it is possible that Kerry was misunderstood - he did not say "if you study hard... you can do well. If you don’t, you get stuck in Iraq".  What he said was, unless you study hard "you get stuck with Democrats".

Well, maybe.

MORE:  This may simply be a well-done spoof site, but here is Kerry's "response".  Shorter Kerry - Your mother wears Army boots but you never did.  And Rush Limbaugh is fat.

As Teresa might say, quel clown.  Jiminy, Kerry had a choice: (a) apologize, get beaten for a news cycle, and move on, or (b) try to tough it out and turn this into a multi-day beat down.  Hey, (b) works for me.

Hot Air has more, including a CNN clip - apparently CNN is pushing this hard.

John McCain thinks Kerry owes the troops an apology:

Senator Kerry owes an apology to the many thousands of Americans serving in Iraq, who answered their country’s call because they are patriots and not because of any deficiencies in their education. Americans from all backgrounds, well off and less fortunate, with high school diplomas and graduate degrees, take seriously their duty to our country, and risk their lives today to defend the rest of us in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere.

They all deserve our respect and deepest gratitude for their service. The suggestion that only the least educated Americans would agree to serve in the military and fight in Iraq, is an insult to every soldier serving in combat, and should deeply offend any American with an ounce of appreciation for what they suffer and risk so that the rest of us can sleep more comfortably at night. Without them, we wouldn’t live in a country where people securely possess all their God-given rights, including the right to express insensitive, ill-considered and uninformed remarks.

KERRY'S SIDE:  From the Huffers we see that Kerry simply can't tell a joke - he meant to deliver a Bush-basher with "You end up getting us stuck in a war in Iraq" as the punchline.

Fine - Kerry should apologize for not being able to speak English as well as the typical recruit.  But enough already with Kerry delivering "Bush is dumb" jokes.

FROM HOTLINE:  Hotline asks a couple of presumably non-rhethorical questions:

Do Republicans really believe that Kerry wasn't talking about Pres. Bush? (We believe that Kerry was referring to Bush because he's used a similar formulation in our presence before and quite clearly meant to call Bush a dummy.)

Aren't Republicans being a bit intellectually dishonest by taking Kerry out of context?

As to the "context" question, the quote was clear enough and Kerry's non-apology was absurd enough.  Kerry's backdoor explanation - the quip was a Bush-basher that went awry - is probably true, but how would we have known that (Kerry has not used a similar formulation in our presence)?

As to believing that Kerry meant this as a troop-basher - well, it is hard to believe that he would have reflected carefully and said this.  However, Kinsley's definition of a gaffe applies - this appears to be a perfect case of a politician telling the truth.  Let me break it to Hotline gently - I think there are plenty of Republicans who don't believe the Democrats (and particularly the Democrats of Kerry's anti-war generation) have a visceral respect for the military.

Possible data points would include:

(a) Kerry's Winter Soldier testimony - many Swift Vets saw his characterization of the troops in Vietnam as murderous rapists akin to the army of Ghengis Khan as something like the opposite of support.

(b) Charles Rangel's call for a draft.  I understand he had many motivations, but his basic message is that the poor get stuck with serving because "the rich" have better choices.  That is quite consistent with Kerry's message of 'study hard, don't get stuck in Iraq'.

(c) Has Hotline checked the availaibilty of ROTC on Ivy campuses?

(d) Kerry is a liberal Northeasterner.  White Northeasterners are under-represented in military recruiting (Go West, and South, young man!).  I daresay that wealthy white liberal Northeasterners are very under-represented in military recruiting.  In Kerry's milieu, people don't enlist and their sons and daughter don't enlist.  Kerry himself only enlisted after his deferments ran out. [Lots on recruiting here; more in the CS Monitor.]

Look, it may not be fair to characterize Democrats as believing that military service is a last choice rather than a first choice, but I think many Republicans believe that of Dems, and not entirely without reason.  Consequently, I did not read Kerry's remark and immediately think that he could not have meant it.  As an alternative example, if Kerry had been quoted as mocking black people I would have immediately assumed his mouth had disconnected from his brain, as has happened before.

Comments

[clarice]

Ford and Tester have demanded Kerry apologize..This is killing them.

[hit and run]

Jane: YOu know we really will have to thank John Kerry for making the week prior to the election so much fun for us.

Posted by: Jane | November 01, 2006 at 09:03 AM

Cynical, of course, and not fair to you or other MA residents, and perhaps a bit tongue in cheek, Jane, but in a lot of ways I hope Kerry is never defeated and never stops running for the Senate.

Now, if there is some other way for him to continue to be identified with the Dem party and to have easy access to microphones, I'm all ears.

[Neo]

“You know, education, if you make the most of it, if you study hard and you do your homework, and you make an effort to be smart, uh, you, you can do well. If you don’t, you get stuck in [fill in the blank].”

Iraq This option seems to have two interpretations: 1) you end up in the military and are sent to Iraq or 2) you become the POTUS and make bad decisions. Either way, the real problem here is not just that John Kerry said this poorly delivered joke, but that he even ever thought that it was funny. The first case shows disrespect for the military, a position that John Kerry himself was part of, and the seconds case shows disrespect for the office of POTUS, a position that John Kerry seems to want. Both seem to show that John Kerry hates himself or at least what he has been and wants to become.

saying it wasn't deliberate, but you should apologize anyway
To start, John Kerry should look into a mirror and apologize to himself for being such a sorry SOB.

Walmart This would have been the PC option or at least will fly well in Democratic circles.

McDonalds This option is widely known to be true.

[JohnH]

Clarice: It's true that the Wash Post and other old, old media are not covering Kerry. But Drudge has beautiful headlines that speak volumes, and he has had over 16 million hits in the last day.

[hit and run]

Neo, well dun! I tried to write the same thing earlier today that you have in your Iraq paragraph, but couldn't close the deal.

Too analytically astute without the snark. Not my cup o' tea.

[clarice]

The fun continues. The AP reports Dean is defending Kerry.

Some military have responded to Kerry's slur:
http://www.620wtmj.com/images/uploaded/Help%20Photo20061101105508.JPG

And Noemie Emery strikes back:
(excerpt)"Dear Senator Kerry,

We have not yet met, but I feel moved now to write you, in view of the latest assault on your honor, and the cruel blows being dealt you by fate. Your life has been hell since the last election, when those hanging chads in Ohio tricked all those people into voting for Buchanan, or Nader; and the fact that you lost the rest of the country by 3 million votes proved that the fraud had been everywhere. And before that were those baseless attacks by those 200-some veterans, paid off by Karl Rove in l970, on the chance that 34 years later he'd be running George W. Bush for president and needed to soften you up. Everyone knows they had no case whatsoever (beyond the fact you were calling them rapists and killers), just as everyone knows how tasteless it is to mock your lifestyle. Everyone knows how hard you work for your money, how much you deserve it, and how hard to must be to find not one, but two women with quite so much dough. (If you were only a woman, people would see your story as the fairy tale it is.)

Even worse, it is mean, false, and mendacious to say that you were trying to call our brave men in Iraq and in uniform mentally challenged, when it was clear as day that you meant this to apply to the president, who ran rings around you when you last met in electoral combat; and whose grades in college were higher than yours.

With this in mind, it's no surprise you went postal. Who in your position wouldn't have? Anyone would have called the president's spokesman "pathetic" and referred to the "right-wing nut-jobs," as you did in the formal statement you put out to the press.

What was especially moving was this emotional note in your statement: "I'm not going to be lectured by a stuffed suit White House mouthpiece standing behind a podium, or doughy Rush Limbaugh, who no doubt today will take a break from belittling Michael J. Fox's Parkinson's disease to start lying about me just as they have lied about Iraq."

http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/012/888glctv.asp

[Jane]

Cynical, of course, and not fair to you or other MA residents, and perhaps a bit tongue in cheek, Jane

Sheesh not fair at all. DOn't forget we still have Ted Kennedy!

[shaman]

So I see you all over here at JOM also get to enjoy that special brand of INSANITY that only Dale in Atlanta can provide.LOL

[Bob]

Updtae on the AOL poll

How do you view Senator Kerry's remark? A deliberate insult 58% A botched joke 33% I'm not sure 9% Total Votes: 162,393

Looks like things are getting worse the more the moron speaks. Almost 2 to 1 think he deliberately insulted the troops... but yet our moonbat friends don't think this is an issue!

I guess we can expect Kerry to now claim that the average American is stupid too... I think he already said that one!

[Jane]

Clarice,

That is just superb!

[Bob]

sheman... It's even more insane then the Wellstone Funeral... Rove has really outdone himself. Wouldn't you agree?

[Jane]

Looks like things are getting worse the more the moron speaks.

He is speaking again this afternoon.

In the meantime Tony snow just decimated him - and the MSM in the process.

[maryrose]

I also heard him on Imus this morning and yes he sounded pathetic. Imus thinks he's a loser and has always supported Joe Lieberman. Colmes just looked liked an idiot last night. They are trying to defend the indefensible-stop digging.

[Sue]

http://hotair.com/archives/2006/11/01/lazy-and-uneducated-photo-of-the-day/>I love our military. They have my warped sense of humor. ::grin::

[Sue]

Someone at Hot Air pointed out they could get in trouble for that picture, if it isn't photoshopped. I tell ya' what, if it is real, and they get into trouble, there will be an outcry the likes of which Donald Rumsfeld has never seen. Leave them fightin' warriors alone!

[Jane]

Sue,

That is just GREAT!

[Patton]

Its OBVIOUS to anyone who HAS served in the military..and I and John Kerry have, unlike some.

That PHOTO IS FAKE. First of all, the vehicle in the picture should be a short yellow school bus and it case you doltz hadn't noticed.....
THEY ARE HOLDING THE SIGN UPSIDE DOWN!!

[Jane]

Oh I so want to drape that pix in a banner over the MA Pike!

[arrowhead]

Sue,

That is priceless!

[BD]

Kerry just played true to form - his arrogance knows no bounds.

Anyone of good will would see how people of good will could believe his words insulted the troops.

The apology is easy to read:

"I can understand how people thought I was insulting the troops."

"I wish I'd spoken more clearly, because I have the utmost in respect for them and the difficult job they do and I would never want them to have reason to think otherwise."

"While it was not my intention, my words have caused offense and I am sorry for that."

"P.S: Bush is stupid."

But Kerry's too arrogant to ever apologize for insulting the troops, intentionally (as in his testimony before Congress) or unintentionally.

He's just better than them.

[PeterUK]

"Enlist our allies in the fight? Good idea in Iraq; bad idea in Afghanistan. Reasoning? None".

The French had a deal,the Russians had a deal,as for the rest,they were washing their hair that night.

[Jane]

PUK,

Every time I hear a plea for Dafur, I keep wanting to ask george Clooney et al, why Darfur is different from Iraq.

These people rely on us not paying attention.

[PeterUK]

"On the local (Massachusetts) morning news this morning they reported that they took a poll and 80% of people polled said Kerry should apologize".

Was that for his recent gaffe,or simply in general terms?

Change his name to John F.Sorry?

[PeterUK]

Jane,
George would go,but for the insurance premiums on his profile.

[Jane]

PUK,

I've now recieved a copy of that banner in email from 3 people who I've never heard a political word from before.

Can you say "LEGS" baby?

[maryrose]

Yes this has legs as well it should. Anytime a politician shows his true colors we should take notice. Kerry's 08 hopes are gone...Though in his arrogance he will be the last to know.

[Bob]

yes the gift that keeps on giving...

"When I returned from Southeast Asia, I told the Truth"

John Kerry on Imus this morning

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T26l5gkMu-g&eurl=>Imus segment this morning

[Sara (Squiggler)]

People like the Lindy who posted above do not understand that there are about 250 Vets who support John Kerry. They were the Winter Soldiers. Misfits and unwashed druggies who lied and got dishonorables. The rest of the millions of Vets, of all wars, despise this man. To call a man who was trained as a military fighter pilot a draft dodger is ignorant. To call a man who has spent nearly his entire life serving his country including as Secretary of Defense, a draft dodger is ignorant. Now, to call a man who shoots himself in the foot and claims getting a kernel of rice stuck in his butt as a combat injury a war hero is ignorant.

This is not going away. No one is accepting this was a bad joke in light of Kerry's past history of maligning those who serve. You don't embrace Code Pink and lead the Winter Soldiers and then be considered a friend to Veterans. Sorry. And again, you don't go to Vietnam and serve 4 mo. when others had to serve the same tour for 14 mo., and you don't spend 9 mo. in the Navy, when the standard commitment was either 3 or 4 years depending on your specialty, and be considered an honorable veteran. Unfortunately, the arrogant elitist have so little respect for the military, they have no idea what should have been that wasn't and are easily hoodwinked. Vets are not fooled. Sayanora John Kerry and good riddance. You were rubbish in 1971, you are rotting rubbish today.

[Bob]

It's got legs alright!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85xpMfECnjs&eurl=>Tony Snow throws a lifeline!

[Sara (Squiggler)]

If John Kerry told the truth, how come men like my husband, who served in the exact same Navy, at the exact same time, and at the exact same place as John Kerry, did not see the same things he did? Because John Kerry did not tell the truth then, just like he hasn't told the truth about his hero status or his combat injuries. John Kerry is a coward who wouldn't recognize truth if it bit him in his tender purple heart A$$.

[Bob]

Apparently sara, JF'n didn't get his head boxed in enough by the SB Vets. The "Truth" was told after he returned, and fortunately it didn't come out of his mouth - he LIED, and it's that simple!

[Kay Thomas]

Personally I think I agree with Kerry when he calls Bush dumb.
Kay T.