Boston Globe: Kerry leads attack on 'divisive' speech

[whometense]

Some well-deserved love from the hometown paper.

Democrats say Rove exploiting 9/11
Kerry leads attack on 'divisive' speech
By Rick Klein, Globe Staff | June 24, 2005

WASHINGTON -- Senator John F. Kerry led a chorus of top Democrats yesterday in condemning White House political chief Karl Rove for saying that political liberals wanted to ''prepare indictments and offer therapy" to terrorists involved in the Sept. 11 attacks. The Democrats urged President Bush to fire Rove if he refuses to apologize.

Kerry called Rove's comments ''disgraceful" and said Rove's speech Wednesday to a gathering of New York conservatives a few miles from the site of the former World Trade Center disrespected Democrats and the nation, which rallied behind Bush following the 2001 attacks.

''That spirit of our country should never be reduced to a cheap, divisive, political applause line from anyone who speaks for the president of the United States," said Kerry, Democrat of Massachusetts, in a speech on the Senate floor. ''It is really hard to believe that last night in New York, a senior adviser -- the most senior adviser to the president of the United States -- is twisting, purposely twisting those days of unity in order to divide us for political gain."

Rove, the keynote speaker at a Conservative Party of New York State dinner, told his audience that ''perhaps the most important difference between conservatives and liberals can be found in the area of national security. Conservatives saw the savagery of 9/11 and the attacks and prepared for war; liberals saw the savagery of the 9/11 attacks and wanted to prepare indictments and offer therapy and understanding for our attackers."

Rove is Bush's longtime campaign strategist and closest political aide; the president has referred to him as the architect of his reelection victory over Kerry last year...

[TayTay]

1. Yeah, and he even had a story with a small pic

inside the 2nd front section. This was in reference to comments he made about the Feds turning down MA's request for FEMA help for shell-fishermen because of the Red Tide outbreak:
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2005/06/24/us_denies_disaster_aid_for_red_tide_in_massachusetts/?page=2

Massachusetts has never asked for FEMA's help during an outbreak of red tide, he said.

The government has stepped in to aid the state because of red tide only once before, during a monthlong outbreak in 1972, but that was before the agency existed, he said.

US Senator John F. Kerry, Democrat of Massachusetts, urged President Bush to reconsider.

''I am deeply disappointed that the administration did not declare a national disaster for Massachusetts today that would have provided badly needed relief for shellfishermen in crisis," he said.

[Mass]

2. Two mentions in one day

What happens?

[whometense]

3. Disappointed,

but not shocked, I'm sure.

As long as * remains empty-figurehead-in-chief I'm not holding my breath for any federal favors. How dare we hate him?

[TayTay]

4. Stuff from today

06/24/2005 11:03:34 AM
USN Kerry fuel cost bill



Contact: Catherine Scott of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, 202-224-8496

WASHINGTON, June 24 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.), ranking member of the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, today announced the Senate passage of an amendment to the energy bill that will help small businesses and farmers affected by significant increases in fuel costs.

"Across the country, rising fuel costs are hammering small businesses, truckers and farmers. Skyrocketing fuels costs are a major hit on their hard-earned profits. It's pain at the pump that can literally destroy some businesses," said John Kerry. "With their budgets already tight and credit stretched thin, small-business owners and farmers need working capital to cope with this surge in fuel costs. Low-interest disaster loans can help. They are not a handout, but a smart, short-term investment for the government to make in our nation's economy."

Nationally, the average price of gasoline is now at $2.16, up 22 cents since last year, and the spot price of oil hit a record high of $58.90 just this week. The cost of home heating oil has risen as much as 45 percent.

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/usnw/20050624/pl_usnw/kerry_fights_to_help_small_businesses_and_farmers_deal_with_soaring_fuel_costs106_xml

[wildflower]

5. I really like the comments from Kerry in particular, and posted...

on why, in this GD : P thread:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x1882359

On edit: here's what I wrote in case you don't want to go over there:

19. Why I really like these comments:

I've been very concerned that recent RW statements are a trap for Democrats to try and prove that they're "just as tough as Republicans," so that

1. Democrats will go along with whatever new bellicose policy is pursued. (Consider: (a) Goss has said they can't go after Bin Laden because of too much "respect for sovereign nations"; (b) elsewhere (Fox?) it's been speculated that Bin Laden could be in Iran; and (c) Bush is making a major speech on Tuesday.)

2. Democrats will keep mum on the torture photos in order not to look too 'soft.'

Yesterday there was even a Newsday poll posted that asked whether Democrats are too soft on terrorists.

Kerry's response above doesn't say "We are too as tough as you!" It focuses on Rove and on Americans. (And elsewhere Kerry has said that the people owed an apology are the 9/11 victims' families.)

And while the DNC response (http://www.democrats.org/blog/comment/00012258.html ) is generally good, I fear it may play into what I outlined above.

-wildflower

[whometense]

6. And lest we lose track of what the Boston Herald's editorial viewpoint is,

here's a nasty piece of work from today's op-ed page. It's ugly, misguided, and incorrect. I hate to think anyone sees things in such a warped way.

. . . None needed from Rove
By Boston Herald editorial staff
Saturday, June 25, 2005

And in the tit-for-tat world of politics, embarrassed Democrats are attempting to make a huge to-do about recent remarks by presidential adviser Karl Rove to a gathering of the New York Conservative Party.

Rove told the group, ``Liberals saw the savagery of the 9/11 attacks and wanted to prepare indictments and offer therapy and understanding for our attackers.'' Conservatives, he said, ``saw the savagery of 9/11 and the attacks and prepared for war.''

Not surprisingly Democratic liberals like our own Sen. John Kerry are making the most of their indignation. Kerry accused Rove of ``purposely twisting those days of unity in order to divide us for political gain.''

The sorry fact that Kerry refuses to face, however, is that Rove is right. Osama bin Laden was still on the loose, directing his terror network because the Clinton administration had done little more than indict the guy. Yes, really!

Kerry lost the 2004 election in part because he wanted to turn the war on terror into just another RICO prosecution. Americans weren't buying that then or now. Rove's much touted political smarts stems from the fact that he knew that - then and now.

[Mass]

7. Because Bin Laden is stopped by now.?

Well, I apparently missed something that the Boston Herald saw.


In fact, I think that the Boston Herald has shown exactly what the next Democratic attack should be: are we safer?

Kerry started that in his speech. He should continue hammer that.

[whometense]

8. I agree.

It is interesting (in an academic sort of way) to see how far they had to stretch to attempt to mock Kerry. It's a nasty editorial - but it's also real lame.

[Island Blue]

9. "Osama bib Laden was still on the loose ,,,

directing his terror network because the Clinton administration had done little more than indict the guy."

WOW! This must mean that Shrub Co. has captured bin Laden dead or alive as promised! :woohoo: I'm so very happy that the current administration has made us soooo much safer. :sarcasm:

That might just be the dumbest sentence I've ever seen printed in an actual newspaper. I guess you guys who read the Herald on a daily basis have seen dumber ones.

[whometense]

10. It's pretty muvh

par for the course. :eyes:

[TayTay]

11. The Herald just went through a big layoff

Everyone with an IQ above 70 was asked to leave. The folks who are left wrote that editorial. Sigh!

Screw them. If it was up to them we would be at war with the entire ME. (Syria, Iran, etc.) They are no-account, shit-for-brains,chickenhawk bastards. They can bite me. The Herald always has and always will consider swill like this editorial as their big contribution to journalism. No wonder they are tanking.