The difference between us and George Bush is one of vision. Where we see a pristine wilderness or a scenic coast, George Bush sees an oil field. Where we see a beautiful mountaintop, George Bush sees a strip mine. Where we see a pristine old growth forest, George Bush sees toothpicks. And where we see an opportunity to join the global community to fight global warming, George Bush sees a chance to curry favor with his buddies in the oil business.
They don’t think you are going to notice. They think that the American people can be misled by false names. Chop down mountainsides of old growth trees and call it Healthy Forests. Increase the pollution in the air and call it Clear Skies. They believe as long as they use the right words, the American people can be deceived. But we don’t get fooled that easy.
http://www.oneworld.net/article/view/77182/1WASHINGTON -July 14, 1999- A coalition of over 100 Representatives and Senators announced their intention to pass the Act to Save America’s Forests, legislation to reverse a century of wasteful and destructive logging practices in the federal forest system.
The Act’s authors, Representative Anna Eshoo and Senator Robert Torricelli, joined with lead cosponsors Rep. Carolyn Maloney, Rep. Michael Forbes, and
Sen. John Kerry, as well as Save America’s Forests Executive Director Carl Ross, to mark the reintroduction of the Act in the U.S. House and Senate with the highest level of support in the bill’s legislative history.
"I want to thank Representatives Eshoo, Maloney, and Forbes, and Senators Torricelli and Kerry for their courageous work in Congress to stop the wasteful destruction of our national forests. This new, unprecedented level of support shows that the Act to Save America’s Forests can run the gauntlet of logging company lobbyists and become law," said Ross.
http://www.saveamericasforests.org/news/Release071499.htm___________________________________________________________________
Review Existing Trade Agreements. John Kerry will also order an immediate 120 day review of all existing trade agreements to ensure that our trade partners are living up to their labor and environment obligations and that trade agreements are enforceable and are balanced for America’s workers. He will consider necessary steps if they are not. And John Kerry will not sign any new trade agreements until the review is complete and its recommendations put in place. He believes all new trade agreements must have strong labor and environmental standards.
http://www.johnkerry.com/pressroom/releases/pr_2003_0922b.htmlRemarks by Senator John Kerry at the Detroit Economic Club
September 22, 2003
Two months after he took office, President Bush was in Kalamazoo. There he said – quote – “if our trading partners trade unfairly, they’ll hear from us.” But for nearly a thousand days, all they’ve heard is the sound of silence, the quiet of a wink and a nod. Instead of raising his voice, George Bush has been sitting on his hands.
You heard it here again last week. Secretary Evans complained about China’s promises to stop their trading abuses. And over and over again, he said, “We’re still waiting.” Well how long do we have to wait? How many jobs do we have to lose until this Administration stops waiting? How much of our manufacturing base do we have to see whittled away before this Administration uses the laws and tools that are sitting there available? We need to stop waiting and start acting.
But just this summer, this Administration said they opposed efforts to increase the funds for enforcing China’s trade agreements. They said the money just was “unnecessary.” Sounds like the Cabinet members need to come out here for some more town meetings.
As President, I’ll take on the countries that are manipulating their currency to undermine American exports. These countries are supposed to be playing by the same rules as we do and they’ll feel the full force of our trade laws if they don’t. I will open markets in key export areas for manufacturing – like Japan and China. I will make sure that if we have to lower our tariffs, our competitors have to do the same. We don’t need idle talk – we need action – and we need it now.
I’ll order an immediate 120 day review of all existing trade agreements to ensure our trading partners are living up to their labor and environmental obligations – to make sure these agreements are enforceable and to put us on a level playing field. And I will not sign any new trade agreements until the review is done and its recommendations are in place.
And I will appoint a U.S. Trade Representative who is an American patriot and who will put American jobs first.
http://www.johnkerry.com/pressroom/speeches/spc_2003_0922.html__________________________________________________________________
You have talked in the past of smoking pot when you returned from Vietnam. What do you think of the way the pot laws are prosecuted today?
We have never had a legitimate War on Drugs in the United States, ever, and we won't until we have treatment on demand for addiction and until you have full drug education in our schools. The mandatory-minimum-sentencing structure of our country is funneling people into jail who have no business being there.
And every year, the number of people arrested for marijuana offenses goes up.
I've met plenty of people in my lifetime who've used marijuana and who I would not qualify as serious addicts -- who use about the same amount as some people drink beer or wine or have a cocktail. I don't get too excited by any of that.
Would you favor decriminalization?
No, not quite. What we did in the prosecutor's office was have a sort of unspoken approach to marijuana that was almost effectively decriminalization. We just didn't bother with small-time use. It doesn't rise to the level of nuisance, even. And what we were after was people dealing with heroin and destroying lives, and people who were killing people. That's where you need to focus.
http://www.johnkerry.com/pressroom/clips/news_2003_1202a.htmlDuring the Manchester forum, broadcast live on C-SPAN, GSMM member Linda Macia, who suffers from several debilitating illnesses for which conventional medications have not provided relief, thanked Kerry for his July 2 statement of support, provoking audience applause. She then asked Kerry about the Drug Enforcement Administration's raids on patients using medical marijuana under California law.
JOHN KERRY ON MEDICAL MARIJUANA
Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) has publicly stated he would stop the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) raids on seriously ill medical marijuana patients as president. Kerry has previously said he favors federal legislation to allow people with cancer, AIDS, and other serious illnesses to have medical marijuana, with their doctors' approval. This un-retouched photo of Kerry shows him taking a symbolic toke while listening to "Puff the magic dragon. "
Kerry recently co-authored a letter asking the Drug Enforcement Administration to approve a proposal from the University of Massachusetts Amherst to manufacture marijuana for FDA-approved medical marijuana research. In the October 20 letter to DEA Administrator Karen Tandy, Kerry criticized the National Institute on Drug Abuse's "unjustified monopoly on the production of marijuana for legitimate medical research." The letter also notes, "Federal law makes clear that the ... bulk manufacture of Schedule I and II substances must be provided `under adequately competitive conditions.' ... The current lack of such competition may well result in the production of lower-quality research-grade marijuana, which in turn jeopardizes important research."
During a Kerry town hall meeting in Henniker on September 20, Granite Staters for Medical Marijuana (GSMM) asked Kerry, "Would you stop the raids, as president?" Kerry responded by saying simply, "Yes."
http://www.americanmarijuana.org/kerry.html____________________________________________________________________
When I researched the genetically manipulated organisms I realized that you must be a Kuch fan. Nothing in the Senate on this however.
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