September 17, 2004
AID AND COMFORT (via Mike Daley):
In Address to Guard, Kerry Says Bush Isn't Telling Truth on Iraq (ELISABETH BUMILLER, 9/17/04, NY Times)
The convention of more than 4,000 Guard officers responded far more coolly to Mr. Kerry than it had to Mr. Bush. The hall, which had been full on Tuesday, had scattered empty chairs on Thursday as Mr. Kerry arrived, and the group, which repeatedly interrupted the president's speech with standing ovations and hoots of approval, offered Mr. Kerry a polite but quieter reception.At the point that Mr. Kerry said Mr. Bush had not told the convention the truth, a man shouted out "No!" As Mr. Kerry finished speaking, a few officers sat in their chairs, arms crossed. Col. Joanne F. Sheridan, of the Louisiana National Guard, got up and walked out before he was done.
"Mine was a silent protest to what he was saying," Colonel Sheridan said later. "What he was saying about George Bush not telling the truth on Iraq - I just don't believe that. George Bush did tell us the truth, so I guess I couldn't believe what Kerry was saying. Here, he came before a military audience, but he said what he said for the media, for the television cameras - not for us, that's for sure."
You can hardly blame al Qaeda for thinking they're a bomb blast or two from driving George Bush out of office and thus Amereica out of Iraq and the war on terror--that, after all, is what the Democrats and the media are telling them. But they're in for a pretty rude awakening on November 3rd. Posted by Orrin Judd at September 17, 2004 9:19 AM
Searching for the right forum to deliver an attack on the commander-in-chief . . . oh, of course, the National Guard convention. Kerry has such a tin ear.
Posted by: Fred Jacobsen (San Fran) at September 17, 2004 11:35 AMMr. Jacobsen;
It gets better because most of the Kerry campaign attacks on President Bush's NG service contain implicit yet strong attacks on NG service in general (e.g., Bush "betrayed" his country by serving in the NG instead of going to Vietnam).
Posted by: Annoying Old Guy at September 17, 2004 12:45 PMAOG: absolutely, I've wondered about that myself. In the same way, Kerry slags all the countries with us in Iraq as the "bribed and coerced" and then says how he'll be even better with foreign allies than Bush.
Posted by: PapayaSF at September 17, 2004 1:15 PMKerry does seem to have a tin ear, but that doesn't mean things are going so great in Iraq.
The country -- noun supplied as a courtesy title only -- is falling apart and Bush's idea that democracy is just around the corner is absurd
Posted by: Harry Eagar at September 17, 2004 3:20 PMThe run-up to elections is predictably violent. But, you're right, there is no nation of Iraq. And shouldn't be.
Posted by: oj at September 17, 2004 5:21 PMWait, what about the "national consciousness" that Iraqis were supposedly developing a few days ago ?
Posted by: Michael Herdegen at September 17, 2004 8:24 PMWait, what about the "national consciousness" that Iraqis were supposedly developing a few days ago ?
Posted by: Michael Herdegen at September 17, 2004 8:24 PMThere are three such consciousnesses--Kurd, Sunni & Shi'a.
Posted by: oj at September 17, 2004 8:39 PM