Statement by John Kerry on the Transfer of Sovereignty in Iraq

[mom cat]

http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=165-06282004

Statement by John Kerry on the Transfer of Sovereignty in Iraq

6/28/2004 4:59:00 PM


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

To: National Desk, Political Reporter

Contact: Mark Kitchens of John Kerry for President, 202-464-2800, Web site: http://www.johnkerry.com

BALTIMORE, June 28 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Sen. John Kerry made the following statement today on the transfer of sovereignty in Iraq:

"Today's newspapers are full of stories about how the President and the administration are trying to repair relationships with NATO and with allies, and obviously, I hope that that repair job can be done as rapidly and as successfully as possible.

"On the day of the transition of sovereignty to the Iraqi people, I want to start by saying that our troops have conducted military operations with extraordinary courage and skill. And they have been doing a magnificent job under very difficult circumstances. We owe them all of them and we owe their families a great debt of gratitude for their service and their sacrifice.

"As we look forward today, there are very important challenges so that we can finish our mission and get our troops home as rapidly as possible. We have to focus on the top level priority of providing adequate security It is absolutely stunning that of the $18 billion that we approved last year for the reconstruction of Iraq, only $400 million has been spent.

"90 percent of the coalition on the ground is American 90 percent. And 90 percent of the cost is being borne by the American people. I believe it is critical that the President get real support not resolutions, not words, but real support of sufficient personnel, troops and money, to assist in the training of security forces in order to be able to guarantee a rapid real transition, and most importantly, in order to be able to provide adequate security on the ground. You must have security on the ground in order to be able to proceed forward with the reconstruction and the political transformation. It is vital to do the hard work and statesmanship and diplomacy necessary to get that. I hope the President

[NMDemDist2]

1. <sigh> wont' it be nice to have a REAL president again

one who is thoughtful and intelligent and can actually string a sentence together?

[Jacobin]

2. As long as he doesn't do an "LBJ" on us

Which I greatly fear.

:cry:

[mike_c]

3. amen....

Did you see "Fog of War?" There was a clip of LBJ giving a speech: "we will prevail in Vietnam because America doesn't lose wars...." Sheer hubris.

[Dirk39]

4. I puke...

"On the day of the transition of sovereignty to the Iraqi people, I want to start by saying that our troops have conducted military operations with extraordinary courage and skill"
John Kerry

"Turning to Iraq, information is as usual slight, but not entirely lacking. A study by the London-based health organization MEDACT last November, scarcely mentioned in the US, gave a rough estimate of between 22,000-55,000 Iraqi dead"
Noam Chomsky
http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=40&ItemID=5660

"And they have been doing a magnificent job under very difficult circumstances. We owe them all of them and we owe their families a great debt of gratitude for their service and their sacrifice."
John Kerry

"The occupying army immediately took action to destroy unions, breaking into offices and arresting leaders, blocking strikes, enforcing Saddam's brutal anti-labor laws, and handing over concessions to bitterly anti-union US businesses. Sooner or later the US union bureaucracy and the National Endowment for Democracy will probably move in to "build democratic unions," replaying a dismal record that is all too familiar elsewhere."
Noam Chomsky

What a magnificient job. At least according to the principles of Nuremberg, the american soldiers didn't do a magnificent job under very difficult circumstances. They are simply criminals, who commited the


Nuremberg:
"Principle IV
The fact that a person acted pursuant to order of his Government or of a superior does not relieve him from responsibility under international law, provided a moral choice was in fact possible to him.

Principle Vl
The crimes hereinafter set out are punishable as crimes under; international law:

1. Crimes against peace:
1. Planning, preparation, initiation or waging of a war of aggression or a war in violation of international treaties, agreements or assurances;
2. Participation in a common plan or conspiracy for the accomplishment of any of the acts mentioned under (i)."

I'm glad that I don't have to vote between Bush and Kerry,

Hello from Germany,
Dirk

[Almost_there]

5. Does a declaration of war negate Nuremburg "crime against peace"?

I'm not well enough schooled in the Nuremberg laws to know for a certainty, but, I thought that a declaration of war, or even an international declaration against a state would cancel out any potential for Nuremberg.

We are not trying Saddam for invading Kuwait, since he did so in a declaration of war, right? Otherwise, wouldn't that have been levied against him? I thought that the Nuremberg "crime against peace" was more for use of illegal weapons (banned chemical / biological) and to those who break peace treaties.

Simply declaring war and waging war isn't really banned, since there is an international and understood protocol for performing such, right?

I just don't really know enough, but, I don't think the act of waging war itself is illegal under Nuremberg, I thought the "crimes against peace" are for such protections of killing of obvious innocents, such as hospitals, as marked in war time protocol, churches, again as marked, schools, and prisoners of war.

I was just thinking back to a poly-sci class where the professor said declaring war isn't illegal in and of itself. And bushy went and got his fake paper from the UN indicating a date that "hostilities may begin", making it legal in his petty little mind, and perhaps to Nuremberg. I can't even remember all the arguments of last year, and maybe what you've got is completely correct, please help.

~Almost

[Dirk39]

7. Hello from Germany!

This was an original quote from the Nuremberg Principles:


"Principle Vl
The crimes hereinafter set out are punishable as crimes under; international law:

1. Crimes against peace:
1. Planning, preparation, initiation or waging of a war of aggression or a war in violation of international treaties, agreements or assurances"
http://www.nuclearfiles.org/etinternationallaw/nurembergprinciples.html

"It is indeed the most illegal thing, a country can do and the USA has signed to that principles.
Article VI of the Nuremberg Charter defines "Crimes Against Peace" as "planning, preparation, initiation or waging of war of aggression, or a war in violation of international treaties . . . or participation in a common plan or conspiracy . . . to wage an aggressive war.

A week before the unprovoked Nazi assault on Poland, Hitler promised his generals he would provide "a propagandistic reason for starting the war." He then justified a "preemptive" strike based on lies about a non-existent Polish Army attack against Germany.

The Nazi attack date had been set for more than a year. "The victor will not be asked afterwards whether he told the truth or not," Hitler told his generals. "In starting and waging a war it is not right that matters, but victory."

After Hitler's deceptions were revealed at Nuremburg, the surviving Nazis based their defense on the claim of "preventative war," claiming a need to protect Germany from a pending Polish attack. They were the last, until Bush, to use that rationale.

It didn't work. For this attack, ranking Nazi commandants, starting with Hermann Goering, Hitler's Number Two, were convicted and sentenced to death. That charge and that alone was deemed sufficient to warrant hanging.

Unless Saddam Hussein launches an attack on the United States very soon, any American attack on Iraq without UN approval would be on a legal par with the Nazi attack on Poland."
(This was written March 05, 2003)
http://www.dangerouscitizen.com/Articles/265.aspx




This speech of Kerry is simply disgusting.
- They have massmurdered ten thousands of innocent people
- They have destroyed what was left of the infrastructure
- They let the American Taxpayers pay for the reconstruction and let big corporations, who nearly don't pay any tax make huge profits with the reconstruction
- They didn't "fight terror", they have enforced it.

And Kerry says: how wonderfull.
Let him buy some flowers for sweet Lyndie England, I don't care.

Dirk

[paulk]

10. what the hell do you expect him to say?

Our army sucks, the USA sucks, I suck?

Vote for George Bush?

The guys trying to get elected, for crissake!

I mean, really, do you have anything to say here, or are you just out to trash Kerry?

[Mechatanketra]

14. He could say nothing.

I doubt that is going to cashier his entire campaign.

He could say, rather than that we owe our soldiers our gratitude, that we owe them our apologies and regrets, for spending their lives in a pointless and bloody waste that only makes them the targets of the world's rightful scorn and anger. If there's any scrap of worth left in the American people, that wouldn't wreck his campaign.

But he's not gonna do that, because this was his war too. And not because he was tricked or lied to or sincerely persuaded that America was in danger -- at this late a date, he's still unable to make the jump from "the war was handled badly" to "the war was a bad thing to do", and that suggests so strongly as to be nigh-outright stated, it's because he wanted it. Only God and Kerry know why, but he wanted it.

I don't ask that people not support Kerry. I don't ask that they not vote for him. Short of the Republicans all being visited by three ghosts some evening and begging Dick Durbin (or whoever) to be their nominee, I'm going to vote for Kerry. But what I do ask is that people not inflate Kerry up into something he's not, that as soon as he's in office he's going to get back the brain, heart, and spine that disappeared when the war drums started beating. And I do ask that people not engage in rhetorical bullshit like demanding everyone drink the war Kool-Aid or 'admit' they're supporting Bush.

[paulk]

20. why don't you wait to judge Kerry

until after he's elected -

That's what bothers me - the anti-Kerry krew who seem to know all about the kind of president Kerry would be, and go out of their way to criticize him based on that knowledge.

None of us have any idea what kind of president Kerry will be and it seem pointless and counterproductive to trash him beforehand.

[Name removed]

23. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[paulk]

25. your reply is the most offensive I've ever recieved

here at DU.

This isn't a role playing game, Mechatanketra. Would you speak to me this way face to face?

[Forkboy]

28. I would

What are you gonna do,beat someone up for not kissing your ass?

[Media_Lies_Daily]

31. Good lord. Another PUP (pumped up poster)....what the hell is going...

...on here? Is there a full moon or something? Are you shooting up 'roids, or are you feeding them to your keyboard?

[Forkboy]

32. Hey,paulk was the one questioning if the poster would say that to his face

I would,and I suspect you would to.I'm not looking for a fught,or challenging the clown,just asking him if that's HIS intention.

Get it? Got it? Good!

[paulk]

45. I don't expect ass kissing

I expect people to show a modicum of respect, whether it be places where there are no real world consequences, like role playing games and anonymous message boards, and situations like face to face, where there sometimes are.

[Mechatanketra]

49. You got a modicum of respect.

Just not an iota more. I gave you at least the same degree of respect you showed Dirk; I assumed you merely said something thoughtless, which happens to all of us now and then, instead of being perenially thoughtless -- there is a difference -- and I went on to explain exactly how it was a stupid statement. Not only would I say the same thing to your face where there are "consequences", I'd frickin' say the same thing in court or a newspaper under hazard of perjury or libel charges, because it's true.

And, again, I haven't made veiled sneering about your profile comments as a form of pseudo-psychoanalysis, which you apparently can't let go of. Taking cheap shots against my recreational life is far more of a "personal attack" than anything I said on this thread, since it has nothing to do with the topic or discussion and only has bearing on me personally.

If you have a problem with my "anonymity", fine: my name is Bryant Berggren, and I live in Ottawa, IL -- any more information I'm obligated to present to avoid further smears?

[Mechatanketra]

39. Uh, sure, whatever.

Because obviously, the hobby I chose to mention in my profile entirely encapsulates the perspective from which I post anything.

Believe me, if we were speaking face to face, things would be very different -- namely, I don't have any motivation to be brief face to face. If I hear someone beating a valid and fair point (such as "Does Kerry even get that this was not a 'good guy' war for us?") about the head and shoulders with a pile of straw men ("I mean, really, do you have anything to say here"), I'm not particularly worried if I offend the haybaler in question -- any more than you seemed particularly bothered by the notion when you jumped into this thread.

[Media_Lies_Daily]

30. You need to get a grip, pal. Ever since FratBoy took over in December....

...2000, it's ALWAYS been "anybody but Bush". Where were you when most of us came to that realization? Let me tell you something, and you can take this to the bank...getting FratBoy out of the White House is as REAL as anything you'll ever have to deal with for the rest of your life.

And can the personally insulting crap, okay? There's no point in posting that kind of nonsense.

[Mechatanketra]

38. I could swear the message tree says this is a response to me ...

... even though it has zip-all to do with anything I said.

Once more for the cheap seats: Nothing short of a police blockade is going to stop me from casting a vote for Kerry this November. I'm not some Naderite shill telling people to throw their vote away in protest. So as convenient as it would be to dust off the well-practiced "anyone but Bush" sermons, they aren't relevant here.

As for the "personally insulting crap" -- hey, it's real simple. People stop saying stupid things, and I'll stop calling it stupid. But "wait until X is in office before you judge him" is stupid -- it is, in fact, Fratboy-level stupid. The whole point of having a campaign season is for people to come to some judgement about the candidates before they get into office, because by that point, it's too late to complain.

[Zhade]

50. Hear, hear!

The whole point of having a campaign season is for people to come to some judgement about the candidates before they get into office, because by that point, it's too late to complain.

So well-said -- and so easily forgotten in our (admittedly understandable) desperation to get b*sh the hell out of office.

Fear may blind some to your points, but I for one appreciate them on this board.

And "haybaler" is one of the best words I've read lately.

[Dirk39]

35. Before and After...

If this only becomes the common rule all across the world for job-interviews...

"I don't give a sh*t about working for you and I just can't stop to praise and praise and praise the stupid idiot, who has ruined your company before, and I go down on my knees in praise of every stupid crime he has commited, every stupid lie, he has told, and I will even call the puppet regime, he has installed in Iraq, which is supported by about 0,9% of the citizens there, "sovereign"


O.K, o.k., you got the job...
Must be the lesser evil you are,
Dirk

[JohnKleeb]

41. thank you

[PassingFair]

27. Whoa, Bravo, Mechatanketra!

I, too, will vote for Kerry. But he is VERY obviously complicit in the invasion of Iraq. One the bright side, he will probably broom the religious right from their always wobbly pedestals, and that alone is worth the trip to the polls, in my opinion.

[JohnKleeb]

40. damned if you, damned if you dont

Whatever the case, this is making me more moderate in tone, still a far leftist very much at heart but my tone is moderate, really I'd love Kerry to say what I believe in, but if people thought Kucinich was too left, then they'll think my views are totally insane. :shrug: people expect perfection from candiates.

[kimchi]

13. Right now, America can't handle the entire truth.

If we could, Dennis Kucinich would be the nominee.

You have to understand that lies and innuendo pass for news these days. Moore's film hit the right note, correctly patriotic in pointing out that Bush does not have America's best interests in mind.

The only goal most of us have right now is to stop Bush. Kerry WILL beat Bush; but not by deprecating the troops when they are deployed. We must face the reality of this war but we can't with Bush still desecratin'. I think Kerry is just the right person to be able to start a dialog on the lessons of war, should he rise to the occasion that history presents.

[King_Crimson]

44. Here's a little somethin concerning Nuremberg...

and it IS rather lengthy but informational none the less

http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/imt/imt.htm

[Sugarbleus]

11. war criminals???????????????????//

I seriously beg to disagree. :grr:

[Dirk39]

26. Hello,

According to international law and the nuremberg-principles, both officially respected by the USA, there is not any kind of doubt that they are war criminals.
And they have much more access to information than soldiers ever had before.
According to international law, every single U.S. soldier, who is in Iraq belongs to prison. That's all I did say and it's simple and plain true.



If you have re-written international law to make it fit the crimes of the Bush-Gang and the lies and bigotry of John F. Kerry, please let me know.

Dirk

[Dhalgren]

46. Hey Dirk. When you're right, you're right.

We can love "the boys" in uniform all we want, but if they were Russian troops behaving the exact same way after illegally invading, we'd sure say they were war criminals - and everyone knows that that is true. Let's not confuse truth with anti-Americanism. If telling the truth sounds like anti-Americanism, then we are in trouble - and, of course, we are.

[FlemingsGhost]

6. Again, I can't believe this is the best Democrats can offer.

"How do you ask a man to be the last one to die for a mistake?"

I'm curious, Senator Kerry. How *ARE* you going to ask?

[Dirk39]

8. wipe away our memories

"They relived the absolute horror of what this country, in a sense, made them do.

They told stories that at times they had personally raped, cut off ears, cut off heads, taped wires from portable telephones to human genitals and turned up the power, cut off limbs, blown up bodies, randomly shot at civilians, razed villages in fashion reminiscent of Ghengis Khan, shot cattle and dogs for fun, poisoned food stocks, and generally ravaged the countryside of South Vietnam in addition to the normal ravage of war and the normal and very particular ravaging which is done by the applied bombing power of this country.
(snip)
We wish that a merciful God could wipe away our own memories of that service"

John F. Kerry

God did listen to you very well, Mr. Kerry and wiped away your memories, completely.

Dirk

[Massacure]

9. I wonder who was responsible for editing this?

I see three grammar mistakes. That isn't good when it is picked up by a 16 year old.

[Rose Siding]

12. In the words of Jon Stewart

-he could look like he gives a shit

[Pastiche423]

15. Ah, sweet Jon

He has such a perfect way w/words.

[leQ]

21. amen to that

his 'giant mess-o-potamia' skits are great.

[burrowowl]

16. Why in the hell should

others pay for what the U$ and the UK did all on their own?
Why should everybody help to make Haliburton richer!?
Why should Americans? Hopefully America will wake up!

[gate of the sun]

17. when will Kerry stand up?

and say something real and tangible to those who know and feel the war was wrong and the handover absolutly bogus.

Once upon a time many, many people supported the war and called us evil doers who were against it "leftists". Now as the war has proceeded and the "torture" pictures and other issues have come to light more and more are concerned or against the "war" in Iraq. Yet the democratic candidate still doesn't feel safe in expressing shit in regards to any alternate view Like this handover is anything but.

[paulk]

18. It's in the interest of every American

that Iraq NOT continue down the road to complete disaster, especially Kerry, who, if elected, will inherit this mess. Kerry doesn't need to point out the farce this handover is, that will become all too apparent in time. Cheerleading for it's demise would be seen as unpatriotic by most Americans, especially as US troops die every day for Bush's mistakes.

[gate of the sun]

33. strong leadership won't be his forte

he'll be more like a janitor cleaning up.......is that right? Is that what you want? I mean I see your point for playing the game. Right now I suspect there is more than 50% of the people in this country who'd like to hear some truth coming from somewhere.

[Media_Lies_Daily]

29. Let's get FratBoy out of the White House first. Kerry may have to say...

...quite a few things that some of us are not going to want to hear, but the primary goal over the next four months is to ride FratBoy and his NeoCon sidekicks out of DC.

[gate of the sun]

34. Sure ,Sure we want that weenie out of office

but that doesn't mean we want our boy to act like one too.

[Zhade]

51. Why would he?

He voted for the war, bullshit "no he didn't!" cries notwithstanding.

I've asked this question several times, and never received a logical reply: if Kerry was so instrumental in "bringing down" the criminals of Iran-Contra** (an exaggeration if there ever was one), how could he not realize that the b*sh administration, which is packed with and advised by pardoned I-C criminals, was lying about Iraq?

I knew. Nine out of ten posters who will read this post knew. How could he not?

Answer: he couldn't NOT know.

**Additionally, knowing what he knew of Negroponte's part in I-C, how could he vote to approve Negroponte for Ambassador to the UN?

I predict 1) silence or 2) self-righteous straw men about my (nonexistent) "Naderite, pro-b*sh" stance.

[CWebster]

19. Security?

What if the "insurgents" are simply Iraqis fighting for their true liberation from the occupiers and their proxies?

Does security mean an iron fist to provide for US objectives in Iraq?

What is Kerry talking about?

[Bandit]

22. administration are trying to repair relationships with NATO and with allie

Why do relations need repairing? Why is the Media not asking this question?

[Dr Fate]

37. Like many DUers, they are too busy focusing on attacking Democrats.

Just look at this thread- if DUers are more interested in attacking Democrats than asking this important question, then what do you expect from the media???

[G_j]

24. hey John..

have you read this story? Don't you think you should say something about it????

http://www.guardian.co.uk/print/0,3858,4957988-103681,00.html

Billions of revenue from oil 'missing'

Stephen Bates and Richard Norton-Taylor
Monday June 28, 2004

The Guardian

A Christian charity has accused the coalition authority in Iraq of failing to account for up to $20bn (nearly £11bn) of oil revenues which should have been spent on relief and reconstruction projects.
At the same time, the Liberal Democrats are demanding an investigation into the way the US-led administration in Baghdad has handled Iraq's oil revenues. The coalition is obliged to pay all oil revenues into the Development Fund for Iraq, but according to Liberal Democrat figures, the fund could be short by as much as $3.7bn.

Sir Menzies Campbell, Lib Dem foreign affairs spokesman, said yesterday: "This apparent discrepancy requires full investigation".

Christian Aid, in a report today, claims that the US-controlled Coalition Provisional Authority, which hands over power to an interim administration in Iraq this week, is in flagrant breach of the UN security council resolution which gave it control of the country's oil revenues.

Resolution 1483, passed in May 2003, stated that the money should be spent in the interests of the Iraqi people and independently audited, but an auditor was appointed only in April.

..more..

[Dr Fate]

36. Good statement.

We are going to need NATO & UN help to clean up Bush's mess.

Like it or not, it looks like there will be some nation building to do in Iraq- and it needs to look like a world effort rather than a US occupation...

Kerry's statement highlights what everyone knows- Bush is a FAILURE at diplomacy & real coalition building...

[Dirk39]

42. Sorry....

clean = fulfill

"it needs to look like a world effort rather than a US occupation..."

!"to look like": It doesn't need a Sigmund Freud to understand this, doesn't it?

Yes Bush is a FAILURE: imperialism, illegal wars and the destruction of countries with the money of American taxpayers and the following reconstruction for the profits of American Corporations could be performed much better by Kerry. Some European and Japanese non-tax paying corporations might be invited too. The democrats are so multilateral.

And even the sovereign Iraqis might support "their" government much more, I guess about 1% instead of 0,9% would support the puppet regime, if Kerry would decide, what's the sovereign government in Iraq is allowed to do, instead of Bush.

Sarcasm off,
Dirk

[Dr Fate]

43. So we should just make the Iraqis pay for rebuilding then?..

Are you suggesting we leave Iraq as George Bush has left it?

Or follow a more Truman or Marshall model as Kerry is suggesting?

While your sarcasm & references to Freud are humorous, you offer no solution that I see.

[Dhalgren]

47. I say we get the hell out and begin paying reparations!

The Iraqis are grown up humans, they don't need the Great White Man to tell them how to have a country! Hand it back to them, leave immediately, and start paying for our crimes - that's the way to proceed, unless empire really is what ALL of the US is after.

[Dr Fate]

48. The same grown up humans who looted the museums?

And have little or no concept of being "free?"

You would have us repeat the same mistake that GW Bush made when he abandoned Afghanistan and left it for Bin Laden.