[lit-ideas] Fw: More on A Case for Kerry
- From: "Stan Spiegel" <writeforu2@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 6 Oct 2004 13:14:17 -0400
Marlena -
Thank you, thank you, thank you. That piece by Donald Sensing made me aware
of Kerry's credentials much more than I was before. Now I cfan talk much
more persuasively about my candidate than I ever could before. Keep sending
things like that to this list.
Stan Spiegel
nauseous with worry over the upcoming election
Portland, Maine
----- Original Message -----
From: <Eternitytime1@xxxxxxx>
To: <lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Wednesday, October 06, 2004 10:38 AM
Subject: [lit-ideas] More on A Case for Kerry
>
> Hi,
>
> I really hope no one minds me sharing these things. I am, of course,
open
> and desire all sides of thought.
>
> Maybe no one else has read them?
>
> Here is an article that showed up on a blog-contest to see who can write
an
> essay on why Kerry should be elected which did not bash Bush. This was
the
> winner...hopefully the links to the first sourced articles also show
up...if
> not and you want them, let me know.
>
> Kind of interesting...
>
>
> Have a great day,
> Marlena
>
> _http://www.donaldsensing.com/2004/08/case-for-kerry.html_
> (http://www.donaldsensing.com/2004/08/case-for-kerry.html)
> The Case for Kerry
> by Scott Forbes
> In the past several months I've _spoken_ (http://au.democratsabroad.org/)
or
> _written_ (http://www.ravenna.com/~forbes) to hundreds of Americans
about
> the upcoming election, and registered hundreds more to _request their
> absentee ballots_ (http://www.overseasvote2004.com/) . Many have already
made up
> their minds, but some are still on the bubble: They have serious doubts
about
> both Kerry and Bush, and are trying to weigh their options.
>
> There are plenty of sources out there (credible and otherwise) making the
> case against either candidateâ?¦ and we all have first-hand knowledge of
Bush's
> performance in office, so a discussion of his merits is more reminder
than
> introduction. That leaves only the case for John Kerry â?" the case that
says
> Kerry will not only be better than Bush: He'll be a good, strong, capable
leader
> by any measure.
>
> The War on Terror
>
> Of all the doubts I've heard about Kerry, the one I hear most from swing
> voters is less about the candidate and more about Democrats in general:
Some
> people don't trust any Democrat to lead the nation in war. For these
voters, the
> anti-war activists in Kerry's camp are a cause for deep suspicion â?" as
are
> Kerry's credentials as a Vietnam War opponent, in spite of his decorated
> service record. If I can trust Kerry to fight the terrorists, these
people say, I
> can vote for him. But how can I be sure that Kerry will walk the talk?
>
> Well, one reason why John Kerry's combat record is under so much scrutiny
> (and why so much effort is being made to tarnish it) is because it shows
how
> Kerry behaves under fire: _He turns toward the enemy and attacks_
>
(http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/specials/elections/chi-040821rood,1,1611
037.story?coll=ch
> i-news-hed) . What Kerry did on a Swift boat isn't proof of what he'll do
in
> the Oval Office, and some of our finest _wartime_
> (http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/fr32.html) _presidents_
> (http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/al16.html) were men who
never saw battleâ?¦ but Kerry's valor in
> the face of death speaks volumes about his instincts and his character.
In
> Vietnam, John Kerry believed in taking the fight to the enemy â?" and he
did.
>
> In the Senate John Kerry made his mark as an investigator, rather than as
an
> author of legislation: Instead of giving us Kerry Scholars or Kerry IRAs,
> John Kerry used the Senate's oversight powers to shine a light in dark
places.
> In a three-year investigation from 1988 to 1991, in spite of attempts to
> block him by powerful interests on both sides of the aisle, Kerry was
responsible
> for bringing down the _global terrorist financing network_
> (http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2004/0409.sirota.html) that
was a forerunner to
> today's Al Qaeda. Ten years before anyone else in Washington paid notice
to
> shadowy networks of international terrorist financiers, Kerry was
shutting down
> the bank where Osama kept his money.
>
> John Kerry's plan for winning the war on terror is _a comprehensive
> long-term strategy_ (http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/national_security/)
that uses
> all the tools at our disposal: From _strengthening our military_
> (http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/national_security/military.html) to
_reforming our
> intelligence capabilities_
> (http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/national_security/intel.html) , from
_expanding Nunn-Lugar_
> (http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/national_security/strategy.html) to
_effectively preparing for post-combat operations_
> (http://www.johnkerry.com/pressroom/speeches/spc_2004_0227.html) ,
Kerry's
> plan for ending the terrorist threat is thorough and compelling.
>
> And, perhaps most importantly of all, John Kerry understands that our key
to
> victory in the fight against terrorists is to defeat the enemy's ideas.
> Kerry's war on terror will do more than just _roll the boulder uphill_
> (http://www.mythweb.com/encyc/entries/sisyphus.html) : His most powerful
weapons will be
> _fundamental American principles_
> (http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/national_security/democracy.html) of
democracy, human rights and the rule of law. And,
> Kerry's election will deprive the terrorists of the strongest weapons
they
> have: From the _tortures at Abu Ghraib_
> (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A33789-2004Aug25.html) to
the _nepotism and cronyism_
> (http://www.newyorker.com/fact/content/?040607fa_fact1) of our
hand-picked Iraqi
> government, America's case for democracy has been compromised by actions
that run
> counter to our democratic principles. By making a break with these
un-American
> policies, John Kerry restores our ability to fight the terrorists on all
fronts â?"
> to not only defeat today's terrorists, but to stop would-be sympathizers
> from turning into new recruits.
>
> The War in Iraq
>
> Thirty years ago the pundits said "only Nixon could go to China" â?"
today
> only John Kerry can win the peace in Iraq. Kerry changes the political
> dimensions of the conflict in ways that Bush cannot: As a Democratic
president, Kerry
> can change the world's perception of Iraq, from being viewed as an
> essentially American struggle to being accepted as a global peacekeeping
challenge.
>
> Kerry and the Democrats have a legacy of using America's military might
to
> achieve humanitarian goals. From Somalia to Kosovo, the Democrats sent
> American troops in harm's way not for short-term strategic reasons, but
in
> altruistic, multinational efforts to stabilize countries and prevent
ethnic strife.
> For what we need right now in Iraq, the Democrats have a stronger hand
> politically (and a more seasoned foreign policy team) to achieve it.
>
> The Bush administration has stated a goal of _maintaining America's
military
> dominance_ (http://www.psr.org/home.cfm?id=nss_fact_sheet) , and
supported
> the view that our military should only be used to pursue our own
strategic
> interests. By choosing and openly declaring these values, the Republicans
have
> lost a degree of freedom: Their appeals to other, more idealistic values
are
> perceived through a cynical filter. Fairly or unfairly, charges that
America's
> interest in Iraq is strategic and selfish stick to the Republicans. The
> Democrats are largely immune to these attacks, and can make a far
stronger appeal
> to idealism when seeking support for U.S. peacekeeping in Iraq.
>
> In principle, a Democrat should have been able to open relations with
> Communist China as easily as a Republican. In practice, only Nixon could
go to
> China â?" and _only Kerry can win the peace in Iraq_
> (http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/national_security/iraq.html) .
>
> Deficits, Taxes, and the Economy
>
> My favorite bird in Washington, the deficit hawk, has been kicked out of
the
> nest by a flock of cuckoos. The cuckoos pretend to be deficit hawks,
until
> they take office â?" and then they _bribe the people with their own money_
> (http://www.tocqueville.org/) . Or, rather, they bribe us with our
children's
> money, since our kids will inherit the deficits we accrue.
>
> (http://www.ravenna.com/~forbes/images/deficit.jpg)
> Sources: _Congressional Budget Office (1990-2003)_
> (http://www.cbo.gov/showdoc.cfm? <br />index=1821&sequence=0) ,
_Congressional Budget Office (2004
> projection)_ (http://www.cbo.gov/showdoc.cfm?index=1944&sequence=0) ,
_Citizens
> for Tax Justice_ (http://www.ctj.org/pdf/gwbdata.pdf) , _Friends
> Committee on National Legislation_
> (http://www.fcnl.org/smith/congress_defense_bud401-04.htm) .
>
> I think even staunch conservatives will concede what kind of bird George
> Bush has been, so the question is whether John Kerry will be a
responsible
> steward or another cuckoo. And the irony here is that Kerry has already
shown his
> colors on that scoreâ?¦ and he's paid a fairly high price for taking the
> fiscally responsible road.
>
> Back in September 2003, President Bush requested an additional $87
billion
> in supplemental appropriations for Iraq and Afghanistan â?" funding for a
> post-war reconstruction effort that administration officials had _promised
would be
> paid for by the Iraqis_
(http://democrats.senate.gov/~dpc/pubs/108-1-345.html)
> . At the time, I _blogged_
> (http://www.ravenna.com/~forbes/index.cgi/2003/09/) :
> I would stand up and cheer right now if anyone in Congress demanded
fiscal
> accountability in response to Bush's request for another $87 billion in
Iraq
> reconstruction money. If any member of either party insists that Bush
either
> raise taxes or cut spending by $87 billion, I'll be a fan for life.
> â?¦and John Kerry took me at my word. He co-sponsored _an amendment to
the
> appropriations bill_
(http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d108:SP1796:) that
> suspended $87 billion in tax breaks for the wealthiest one percent of
> Americans, instead of forcing our children to foot the bill; the amendment
was
> defeated, on a largely party-line vote, and then Kerry voted against the
bill
> that financed Iraq's reconstruction with deficit spending.
>
> In the world of dirty gotcha-game campaigning, Kerry has taken a lot of
heat
> for that vote: First it was used as an allegation that he didn't support
the
> troops â?" and then, when he pointed out the amendment he co-sponsored,
that
> was used to accuse him of flip-flopping. But the truth of the matter is
that
> Kerry proposed and supported an alternative to deficit spending.
>
> You can argue, if you wish, that Kerry and the other Democrats only
oppose
> deficit spending when Republicans are in favor of it â?" but ultimately
that's
> an argument in favor of electing Kerry. If you think it's important to
tame
> the deficit, and you believe deficit reduction only happens when one
party has
> the White House and the other has control of Congress, then the only way
to
> achieve your goal this year is to put John Kerry in the White House.
>
> John Kerry's _plan to restore fiscal responsibility_
> (http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/economy/fiscal_responsibility.html) cuts
taxes for 98 percent of
> Americans, restores the _PAYGO_
> (http://www.c-span.org/guide/congress/glossary/paygo.htm) rule for
revenue and spending bills, and supports an innovative
> strategy to _end corporate welfare as we know it_
> (http://www.dailystar.com/dailystar/relatedarticles/30177.php) . Kerry's
team of economic advisors includes
> former Treasury secretary _Robert Rubin_
>
(http://www.businessweekasia.com/magazine/content/04_31/b3894006_mz001.htm)
and billionaire investor Warren
> Buffett; in matters of economics, job creation, and fiscal policy,
Kerry's
> credentials are impeccable.
>
> Conclusion
>
> I've run out of space, and I haven't even touched on Kerry's plans for
> _energy independence_ (http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/energy/) ,
_homeland
> security_ (http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/homeland_security/) , _health
care_
> (http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/health_care/) , the _environment_
> (http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/environment/) , and countless other
issues where John Kerry
> offers a compelling vision for our country. Kerry is more than just the
> Anybody in "Anybody But Bush" â?" he's a capable, talented leader, with
good ideas
> about how to face the issues and challenges of our time. I believe John
Kerry
> should be our next President, and that a vote for him is more than just a
> vote against Bush: It's a vote for a better future, and for a stronger
America.
> sorry this is so late in the day getting online - my internet service has
> been out for much of the day.
>
> by Donald Sensing, 6:30 PM. _Permalink_
> (http://www.donaldsensing.com/2004/08/case-for-kerry.html) _Comment (46)_
> (javascript:HaloScan('109373666945424766');) |
>
>
>
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