Heres what I think about the whole Kerry deal

[JohnKleeb]

I think most democrats and critics of Bush have more of a problem not with the fact that Bush wasnt a great student at Yale but the fact that Bush brags about his medicority, I have never seen Kerry say hey look at me I was a medicore student and I am now a senator. If I go far in life, I won't deny the fact that I wasnt a great student but I will say that I tried my best to overcome that, and I think thats the attiude one has to have in regards to things like that, thats my problem with Bush, its not that hes an idiot, he thinks its funny to brag about being a poor student, he acts like he went from rags to riches, when he was more fortunate than you and I will ever be. Funny coming from a man whose party supposely believes in hard work and self reliance, then again self reliance means to the poor screw you and dont expect help from the government but to rich little heirs and heiresses, oh you can have your inheirtiance and go to the most prostegious colleges in the land. Just my take on this guys, I dont care that Bush was a medicore student really, I care that he's ignorant and thinks its funny to brag about being a poor student, its so childish. I also think its telling that Kerry was and is portrayed as a cocky arrogant man while Bush is portrayed as modest and humble though its Bush who seems to love to brag about how he "became" president despite bad grades. I say it again but we should focus on the fact Bush brags about his poor grades not the fact he had poor grades.

[dogday]

1. CNN only compared John Kerry's first year to Bush's three years

John Kerry's grades were low the first year but improved over the years. If they had been fair, they would of compared the same amount of years instead of giving Bush an advantage. Still the same MSM I see....

[JohnKleeb]

4. Thats crap too

but dont you think the most important thing is that we dont see Senator Kerry braging hey look at me I wasnt a great student and now I am a senator, we do see Bush at colleges saying you can be like me and be a poor student and become the president of the US. I think thats the main problem with this whole deal, Bush has the arrogance to brag about how stupid he was in college yet you have a guy like Kerry who seems to have overcame that. I havent been the best student ever but I wont brag and say yeah I was medicore, in fact its a shame that I Was.

[snowbear]

2. Are they also reporting the Naval records he disclosed?

Al Franken mentioned these grades briefly today, but he said the "big news" was the military records he turned over.

They showed that a lot of the swiftboaters who were bashing him during the election, had praised him BIG TIME in the Navy.

Franken was shocked that Kerry didn't release the info on the swiftboaters during the election and thought the freshman grades were a big woop-te-doo..

Since they showed many of the swiftboaters that were never exposed as liars during the campaign, WHY did Kerry wait until now to turn his military and school records over?

:shrug:

[JohnKleeb]

6. Oh yeah a lot of them were by his side in his race against Weld

I dont really care about the election right now, past is done and theres really nothing to be done about it but we can stop shit like this in the future by exposing the hypocrisy of all this.

[Mass]

7. So Franken does not listen

Kerry released these recommandations. They were there during the campaign.

As the Boston Globe said, there was nothing new in what was released by the Navy.

Sad day when who should be our supporters repeat what the RWers said.

[NYCGirl]

19. No, perhaps you misunderstood. What Franken was referring to was the

Form 180 records that Kerry was pressured to release during the campaign.

If he had, Franken postulated, it would have shown, in official Navy forms, the Swiftees to be liars. It would have benefitted Kerry to have them released last year.

Edited for typo.

[Mass]

22. What he had was official Navy records as well

and if you believe that that would have stopped the SBVT, you are too optimistic. They have already said they do not believe this is a true record.

The basic point is exactly that. Kerry said he published everything and he did. Should AAR say that rather than continuing an useful criticism.

[NYCGirl]

24. And now ALL the records are public, and perhaps the Swiftees would

continue to lie, but EVERY LAST ONE of the Navy records would be available to prove them completely wrong.

[Mass]

25. If that makes you happy.

I guess today is Kerry bashing day.

[NYCGirl]

26. This is hardly Kerry bashing. It's simply a mystery why this wasn't done

sooner. Period.

[NYCGirl]

34. And I'm obviously NOT THE ONLY ONE who thinks this way:

I guess salon.com is Kerry bashing, too?

http://www.salon.com/politics/war_room/archive.html?blog=/politics/war_room/2005/06/07/kerry2/index.html

When the Swift Boat Veterans began slandering him for his service in Vietnam, Kerry put some of his Navy records up on his campaign Web site. But he didn't sign Standard Form 180, the document that would have allowed the Navy to release his entire military file to the press. In a "Meet the Press" appearance in January -- two months after the election was over -- Kerry vowed that he'd sign the form. When he didn't, the Republicans continued to hound him for it -- and, given his pledge to sign the form, not entirely without justification.

Well, Kerry finally signed Standard Form 180 on May 20, and the Boston Globe has now reviewed the documents the Navy produced as a result. The Globe's conclusion: An "earlier release" of the documents "might have helped" Kerry's campaign because they contain a "number of reports lauding his service" -- including commendations from some of the veterans who attacked him during the campaign -- and because releasing them could have put to rest suspicions that Kerry was hiding something.

That's not the way a losing presidential candidate thinks, however. In a written response to questions from the Globe, Kerry said he didn't release the records during the campaign precisely because the Swift Boat Veterans were making such a stink about them. "The call for me to sign a 180 form came from the same partisan operatives who were lying about my record on a daily basis on the Web and in the right-wing media," Kerry said. "Even though the media was discrediting them, they continued to lie. I felt strongly that we shouldn't kowtow to them and their attempts to drag their lies out."

Hindsight may be 20-20 and all that, but when you've got the ammunition to shoot down your opponents' claims, maybe -- just maybe -- it's a good idea to use it before the election is over.

[karynnj]

35. They were on his web site

He mentioned them, surrogates entioned them and they were referred to about 140 pages of stuff on the web site.

[NYCGirl]

36. How could they be? He signed the Form 180 release in May of this year. NT

[sandnsea]

10. Wait and see

Come back in 30 days if you haven't gotten the answer.

The Swifties will just come up with new spin and Kerry will be bashed even further. It'll be most interesting to see how much Rovian spin the left chooses to grab on to.

[LaurenG]

16. Maybe he didn't really want to be president n/t

[SharonAnn]

3. Kerry was accepted into Law School and Bush was refused.

[JohnKleeb]

5. Shows that he improved over time, I hope I can go to law school

[saracat]

8. What is missing here is how and why the grades were what they were.

Kerry wasn't stupid. He just didn't apply himself.(How many times have we heard that?) But why didn't he apply himself? Lookat what he was involved in. Debating Society, Student Government, various political groups. He was overextended and I believe admits that. I fully relate to this as I did the same thing. The quality of his extra curicular activities indicates an intellectual inclination. A superficial intellect or a lazy person would not be attracted to those activities. Contrast that with Bush who was just lazy and only participated in Frats, drinking and cheerleading, and you have a different picture. Add to the fact that the mediocre grades were not even the ones he earned, but those provided by a beholden insitution who was afraid to flunk him for fear of losing their benefactor and one has a better understanding of the grade issue and the fact that they are in no way the same!

[JDPriestly]

9. How did Kerry get into law school

with those grades? Is it because his degree was from Yale? Did he have amazing LSAT scores? Remember, Bush could not get admitted to law school. I had to have decent university grades and a high LSAT score to get into law school. What happened?

My grades were much higher. I went to a major university a few years before Bush and Kerry did, not an Ivy League school, but a highly respected university, and I worked 20 - 30 hours per week while taking a full load and graduating on time. What was the deal? Was Yale that much tougher?

[Mass]

12. Who cares???

[LittleClarkie]

18. He didn't get into anything prestigious

it was Boston College. They make a big deal out of that as well. Something about Bush going on to higher learning and Kerry not. I could never figure out what they meant. Kerry got a law degree, Bush a business one. Did Bush get the business degree at Yale? Is that what they're crowing about? Because I don't know what they mean when they say Kerry didn't go on to higher learning he did.

He took some time in between, though. He didn't go to law school til after the Navy and trying to become a Congressman.

Still, he was a prosecutor who never lost a case.

And somehow, the Right thinks this all means Bush is smarter. Riiiight. I don't think so, Tim.

[Mass]

21. BC is a good school, in fact.

less well known than other, but a very good school as well, but really who cares.

[LittleClarkie]

23. I didn't mean it wasn't good

but how hard would it be to get into the law program there? Just curious, just for the sake of the info. It doesn't matter much to me re: Kerry.

[theboss]

30. Going to Yale helps

I had middling grades, good LSAT scores, and an Ivy League degree. I had friends at state schools with better grades and slightly lower LSAT scores.

I got letters from second and third tier law schools telling me that if I applied, I would be accepted and given aid. My friends had to sweat to get into the same schools.

[Pirate Smile]

33. It was a bad Freshman year, not his entire college career.

[Mass]

11. I think it is an error for us to focus on these grades

We are simply doing the RWers jobs. They dont want people to hear that Kerry did not lie about VietNam, so they focus on the grade.

What we should focus on is that the SBVT are liars.

[theboss]

15. It's a little late for that, isn't it?

The Swift Boat Vets are part of our political past right now; they are having tea with the Daisy girl and Willie Horton.

We could have used this information....10 MONTHS AGO!!!!!!

[Mass]

17. WE HAD THE INFORMATION 10 MONTHS AGO

Kerry released this records 10 months ago. Nothing new was released today.

[theboss]

27. Were the commendations from the Swift Vets released?

He released part of his records. He did not release everything.

This is everything.

That fact that he was controlling the release made it appear that he had something to hide...when he did not.

[Mass]

29. Yes, BG even reported on that at the time,

[theboss]

31. Link?

Because I don't recall that.

I still don't understand why Kerry let there be any mystery at all.

[Mass]

32. Sorry, you need a subscription to BG to link articles that old\nt.

[rhett o rick]

13. There are a lot of American's that can associate with bumbling GWB

rather than an intellect like Gore.

[theboss]

14. The bottom line is this: Kerry's created a problem where there need not be

I am utterly utterly confused why he didn't release this stuff last year.

The grades are a little shocking, especially since it was "intellectual" Kerry versus C-student Bush. And, yes, I cited Bush's grades when criticizing him so I feel a little stupid right now. But frankly, that never should have been a debate anyway.

What I don't get is why he didn't use the records to attack the Swift Boat vets. He could have put them on the defensive immediately.

I like to think I have good political instincts....and I like Kerry a lot....but sometimes, I'm completely befuddled by him.

[Mass]

20. HE DID!!!!

I am sorry but you are buying the RW spin.

The BG said there was nearly nothing there that was not released previously.

[theboss]

28. Right....so...why didn't he release it all?

When a politician only releases a part of his records, he appears to be hiding something. Kerry wasn't. So, why did he not release it all?

Also, I do not think the commendations from the Swift Vets were released before. And Kerry certainly didn't hammer them with it.