Wednesday, November 2: Howard Kurtz has a Kerry reaction round-up. Thanks for the shout out!
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Update: From the horse’s mouth.
Commenter Larry says:
“I very seldom agree with you but I come back to your blog because I think essentially you’re an honest person. Your response to the Kerry situation is the same as most Republicans would respond to the latest gaffe from Dennis Hastert or John Boehner. The fact that you would give the benefit of the doubt to a man you dislike is a testament to you as a person and a thinker.”
Later…OK, so Instapundit linked to this post, which guarantees that many eyes will see it. It’s sad that I have to direct new conservative readers to the comment policy, but there you go. Politics makes some people irrational.
I’m also a conservative defending, if you will, John Kerry, who is unpopular with conservatives and Republicans. Some folks are offended because I said the conservative response was “fanatical.” You really shouldn’t get your knickers all twisted up because of something I wrote, but if you must…
No matter who are, how long you’ve been reading this blog, or how much you “love” me, I stand by this post and everything in it. If John Kerry’s aide made up the story about the prepared remarks, then he/she is a liar and Kerry really intended to insult the troops. If the aide’s story is true, then what I said is true: Kerry botched a joke. Until I see evidence to the contrary, I’ll err on the side of believing that in this instance, Kerry intended to insult Bush, not the troops.
One risk of running a public blog with open commenting is that people tend to dump all their frustrations on a blog just because there is a comment section. If you have issues with liberal bloggers and media defending Kerry, Kerry’s previous remarks about the troops, his military record, etc., I suggest you take it up with them, not me. This post is about Kerry’s mangled remarks from two days ago, and no other statement. If you’ve actually taken the time to follow the links in this post, you know exactly what I think of John Kerry and why.
Misread the post, read only half of it, don’t follow links, twist my words — liberals do it and conservatives do it. I’m used to it. But read and comprehend the post before you comment.
Even later (12:00 p.m.)…And commenters are still doing what I asked them not to do: posting links and ranting about Kerry’s previous statements about the troops. Some people just have a hard time focusing. All that MTV-style TV. Then again, who said conservatives were careful readers?
12:24 p.m.: Kerry apologized today for the botched joke. Satisfied? All is well with the world now… 
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I don’t like John Kerry.
During the last presidential election season, I mocked him for his condescending attitude toward “the poor” while living it up on his second wife’s first husband’s money. I excoriated him for misquoting and misapplying Scripture to criticize George Bush’s policies (and here).
I made fun of him for hanging out at black churches at election time and preaching diversity while his own campaign staff lacked diversity. I laughed at his so-called education policy, criticized him for being “pro-choice” even though he acknowledged that life begins at conception, and realized how utterly daft he was when he tried to ban the Swift Boat Veterans book that exposed his war stories as lies. (John, banning or even trying to ban a book guarantees readership.)
I called Kerry a racist for trying to appeal to blacks with talk of government programs and said that if he ever talked that way to me, “but for the daily struggle of living a Christian life, I’d curse him to his face.” And meant it. I was walking on clouds for months after he lost the election.
I’ve said much more about Kerry. Just check the Liberals-Kerry category if you really want to know. The point is, I don’t like him. I think he’s an arrogant, dishonest, unprincipled, pandering, condescending expensive suit. He’s a liar, and he annulled his 18-year marriage to the mother of his children. I think that stinks.
And, perhaps worst of all, he won’t apologize to the troops for giving the impression that he thinks they’re stupid, and he won’t humble himself and tell critics exactly what he was supposed to say! It’s not enough to go on the defensive and call Republicans “hacks…willing to lie.” Correct the record! According to a “Kerry aide,” he was supposed to say this:
“I can’t overstress the importance of a great education. Do you know where you end up if you don’t study, if you aren’t smart, if you’re intellectually lazy? You end up getting us stuck in a war in Iraq.”
That’s a clear reference to Bush, who Kerry implies is dumb. But it came out like this:
“You know, education, if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well. If you don’t, you get stuck in Iraq.”
I’m trying to figure out why Kerry has not released his prepared speech to the press. It would clear up this whole mess (I contacted his office yesterday and requested a copy – still waiting). Instead, Republicans and conservatives have jumped all over this. As a conservative, I’m embarrassed that my “brethren” are willing to use our troops to score points for the mid-term elections. It was a botched joke, for crying out loud. Let it go!
Military men and women and their families are up in arms. Democratic candidates are canceling Kerry’s appearances. The White House is playing hard-ball instigator. The conservative blogosphere has lost its collective mind.
Think about it, people. Do you really believe that John Kerry, a war veteran, thinks American troops are dumb or would say so publicly during a war in the midst of an election cycle? When I first heard about his remarks, I knew instinctively that he couldn’t have meant that. And I can’t stand the man!
Calm down. Get a grip. Take a pill. Blog about something that makes sense. Kerry’s mangled remarks aren’t worth it, in my view. So you rally your readers against him and enjoy the thrill of yet another blog swarm. But it’s based on nothing.
Are there any voices of reason on the Right???
(Photo source: Ann Johansson/Associated Press)
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Shawn, I respect the stand you’ve taken. I appreciate that you take Senator Kerry (or at least his aides) at their word.
I think you might consider that the reason Kerry won’t release the prepared text of his speech is the same reason he wouldn’t (and won’t) release his original DD214. Because he’s lied about both, as he has about so many things.
I think John Kerry read that speech word for word. That’s why he was absolutely indignant in his first response, and only later (with a carefully reorchestrated explanation in hand) gave the rendering upon whihc you’ve remarked.
One last point. George Bush doesn’t go around calling his opponents stupid, as Kerry and the vast majority of Dems do about Bush on a regualr basis. He certainly questions their judgment, as he should.
As my wife remarked this morning about the whole affair: even if what he meant to say was President Bush was stupid, that’s still an absolute disgrace for a sitting US Congressman.
Tough to argue with that, either.
sorry, but i dont see how anyone could think it was about Bush. the word Bush or President was not used or even implied by Kerry. what he may have meant to say is not the issue. the issue is what he actually said. clearly the troops got the message, and have responded. clearly other non radicals like McCain (a kerry friend) and other Dems got the point.
read clarence page, not a right wing or conservative. he talks about how the comment parrallels a phrase often used during vietnam.
LaShawn,
I do not like Kerry. I think he is a blow-hard and a fake. Nevertheless, he is a Senator, former Presidential candidate, and a fairly smart man. Thus he deserves respect – at least until he shows us why it should be withdrawn. Well, he took the opportunity with the way he handled himself over the “apology” for his remarks.
Through his intemperate “apology” we got a look into the soul of John Kerry, and it appears to be shriveled – sort of like the Grench’s. Republicans are liars and wing nuts and.. so on. What invective! He is still sore over his loss, and took the opportunity to let everyone know it. I know it kills him, but by spewing his invective for all the world to see, what he showed us was a small man overcome with rage. So overcome that he could not do the politically correct thing and make a simple “my bad†apology and let the matter die. Definitely, still not fit for command.
what i do find interesting, is because of Kerry’s tone he is not looked at as dumb. The peopel who attack Bush for his verbal miscues, seem to want to excuse Kerry. Lets not forget Kerry had lower grades than Bush at Yale. so MAYBE this si an example of Kerry’s lack of intelligence. that he cannot even tell a joke right, and does not even realize it until somebody else points it out.
One other thing, now that I’ve read the full “prepared comments.” They end with the line Just ask President Bush.
Did he say that during his speech? It’s not been reported anywhere that I’ve read. The youTube is cut off pretty quickly, but the newscast that had Kerry’s comments had abotu 1 sec of Kerry silence after “Iraq”.
Assuming he “forgot” the last line, too, makes his whole story even less credible than it was before, IMHO.
I’m with you, LaShawn, I do believe Kerry is incompetent enough to botch a simple dig at the president.
However, take a careful read of his “appology”; did he appologize for (inadvertently) insulting the troops or was he sorry that he botched a joke?
LaShawn: What you said.
I’m pretty much with you. I was inclined to give Kerry the benefit of the doubt on his speech from the get go, which is why I haven’t mentioned it at all on my blog. That said, his reaction to perfectly justified questioning of what his comment meant was inexcusable. His press release, which is hardly disquishable from a typical KOS rant, blaming everyone from Bush to Limbaugh for his mistake was unbecmoing of United States Senator. All he had to do was say, “I messed up, I’m sorry”. Instead he went nuts. His childish antics are the true story here, not his botched joke.
Kerry has officially Jumped the Shark.
I don’t think it was a ‘botched joke.’ If you have noticed, most democrats who make verbal gaffes retreat into the ‘it was a joke’ excuse. I get a little tired of the double standard. If a republican were to tell kids in the projects that very same thing, only end it with ‘drug dealing gang bangers’ there would be an outcry for that person to resign, to apologize, to make a donation…I think it is high time we hold the Idealistic Liberal Wingnuts to the same standard.
Kerry and Clinton still don’t seem to get it. They can disagree with President Bush’s policy, but do NOT dis the people that have to uphold it.
When the left was in charge and Bosnia and Kosovo were the conflicts du jour, there was still an overt contempt for the military…to the point of making examples of leaders who called Clinton names. They were not allowed to use the excuse of a botched joke or ‘misspeaking.’
I will giver Kerry credit on one point. He didn’t deny saying it, just got upset when his remarks were taken at face value.
“Think about it, people. Do you really believe that John Kerry, a war veteran, thinks American troops are dumb or would say so publicly during a war in the midst of an election cycle? When I first heard about his remarks, I knew instinctively that he couldn’t have meant that. And I can’t stand the man!”
I believe that Mr. Kerry has repeatedly lied about and slimed the troops, so I don’t see why it’s hard to believe that he’d do it again.
That said, I’m willing to believe it’s a botched joke. All he has to do is apologize to the troops and state what he was supposed to have said.
Apologizing for botching a joke is not the same as apologizing to the troops. Accidentally or not he put them down and that’s the issue. He needs to apologize for that.
Maybe his handlers need to put a tighter leash on him? He’s probably used to getting a pass for most things that come out of his mouth.
In a way it’s nice to see the reaction to Kerry, since the opposition does worse to republican/conservative gaffes. Still, giving Kerry some benefit of the doubt, *after* he apologizes to the troops, is the high road.
Still looking for that apology, but not holding my breath.
Why should Kerry get a pass. George W didn’t when he stood on the deck of the aircraft carrier with the “mission accomplished” banner behind him.
Whether or not JFK (sigh) did or did not intend to insult the volunteers who make up our active and past duty military forces is of little import.
Did he let the suave veneer painted on him by his lovley heiress bride slip and let out the truth about his and his party wing’s true feelings of disgust and self loathing towards everything American? Maybe.
In the end though, John F. Kerry does not have to answer to mere mortals in the blogoshere, because he knows that he can spend the rest of the week in his palatial dwelling (I did mention that he marries well) and sleep unconcerned about all the outrage. Massachusetts, you see, will send his sorry @&$#$ back to the senate regardless of the qualities of imbicility and arrogance he may possess (and demonstrate with amazing frequency). If they keep sending Ted Kennedy, then Kerry is a lock for life.
Conservatives would probably also be ‘less fanatical’ if Kerry would not be ‘fanatical’ himself concerning the War in Iraq. If Democrats can’t find a better platform than simply being against the War in Iraq, knocking our President and our troops, they’re going to be wide open targets for any misteps on the topic.
Murtha’s early statements about Haditha were treated similarly, even if that’s not what he intended. He may have even been RIGHT in the end, but you MUST be more thoughtful and sensitive on these topics, these are the lives of our soldiers. As a soldier AND a student, I found Kerry’s comments obnoxious at best, offensive at worst. EVEN IF he was intending to only make a jab at the President.
Personally, I think it’s the cheering and clapping these politicians get when they make harsh, senseless statements about Bush and Iraq that they love. Knowing this, they will continue to say them. Until they can get cheers for saying something exciting, informative and useful that’s NOT Bush or Iraq bashing, you’ll continue to get the Conservative Knee-Jerk reactions.
John Kerry apologized for being “misinterpreted”.
Another classic “it is everybody else’s fault” apology!
Now John Kerry has apologized. Not that earlier news story that said he had apologized without providing any quotes. A “real” apology from him is out now that satisfies my requirements of an apology from him.
Though I still don’t believe he “botched the joke.”
Unlike most people, my opinion doesn’t ebb and flow with what others think, not even “99%” of my readers. I believe Kerry mispoke, and I stand by it. Fortunately, your disappointment in my response won’t change my opinion or the purpose of this blog, which is to provide a forum for my views. And then you have the nerve to end the comment with “love” and “God Bless.” Priceless. – Admin
lashawn,
i give you a lot of credit for being willing to overlook and forgive a joke in poor taste that went bust.
however, since you describe yourself as 1)someone that does not care for sen kerry and 2) has studied his prior gaffes, i feel you are giving him more credit than is due.
he blew it on this situation twice. once when made his remarks, and then again when he vented on his critics without acknowledging or apologizing for the reaction his comments had with our armed forces and their families.
as others posted, if it had been someone else campaigning that blew their “punchline”, it would be blip in the local news cycle.
however, we are talking about “john f kerry reporting for duty”; the reluctant decorated war hero trying his hand at “joking”.
based on his years of derisive remarks towards the u.s. military, as far as the current reaction goes, i’d say he had it coming.
i concede you are a bigger person than i for being willing to turn the other cheek.
Well, that was fun, everyone! Thanks for commenting. Time to move on…
If you’re still in the mood to discuss…something, check out yesterday’s post, “Democrats: Court Winners, Election Losers”
http://lashawnbarber.com/archives/2006/10/31/democrats-court-winners-election-day-losers/
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