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Kerry fails to back up foreign 'endorsements'By Charles Hurt and Stephen DinanTHE WASHINGTON TIMESSen. John Kerry refuses to provide any information to support his assertion earlier this week that he has met with foreign leaders who beseeched him to prevail over President Bush in November's election. The Massachusetts Democrat has made no official foreign trips since the start of last year, according to Senate records and his own published schedules. And an extensive review of Mr. Kerry's travel schedule domestically revealed only one opportunity for the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee to meet with foreign leaders here. On Monday, Mr. Kerry told reporters in Florida that he'd met with foreign leaders who privately endorsed him. "I've met with foreign leaders who can't go out and say this publicly," he said. "But, boy, they look at you and say: 'You've got to win this. You've got to beat this guy. We need a new policy.' Things like that." Aides and supporters of Mr. Kerry have said providing names of the leaders or their countries would injure those nations' ongoing relations with the current Bush administration. "In terms of who he's talked to, we're not going to discuss that," spokeswoman Stephanie Cutter said yesterday. "I know it would be helpful, but we're not going into that. His counsels are kept private." Mr. Kerry has made other claims during the campaign and then refused to back them up, including statements that Mr. Bush delayed the deal with Libya to give up its weapons of mass destruction program for political reasons. Republicans have begun calling Mr. Kerry the "international man of mystery," and said his statements go even beyond those of former Vice President Al Gore, who was besieged by stories that he lied or exaggerated throughout the 2000 presidential campaign. "I think it's beyond that level. The results of this week, I think he's going to have a very serious credibility problem with the American people," said Rep. Deborah Pryce, Ohio Republican and chairman of the House Republican Conference. The Kerry campaign declined to say where or when Mr. Kerry met with foreign leaders and discussed his presidential campaign, which officially began Sept. 2 last year. They refused to give any hints about the leaders such as what region, what continent or even which hemisphere they're from. The Kerry aides also have refused to say how many foreign leaders privately have endorsed their boss. According to travel records kept by the Secretary of the Senate, Mr. Kerry's last official trip abroad was in early 2002 when he visited the United Kingdom, Jordan, Egypt and Israel. The only other trip noted in Senate records since that time is an October 2002 domestic trip to Charleston, S.C., to appear on MSNBC's Hardball program. The Washington Times also scoured White House, State Department and other public records for all official trips made to the United States by foreign leaders since the start of last year. During more than 30 such trips, Mr. Kerry was out of town campaigning, at home or in the hospital for a prostate-cancer operation, according to his travel schedules from this year and last. The only instance found when Mr. Kerry was in the same town as a foreign leader was Sept. 24, when New Zealand Foreign Minister Philip Goff was in Washington meeting with State Department officials. On that day, according to his schedule, Mr. Kerry received the endorsement of the International Association of Fire Fighters in Washington. Meanwhile, Mr. Bush was in New York meeting with the leaders of Germany, India, Pakistan, Ghana and Mozambique on that same day. Pressed about the lack of evidence for any such meetings, Ms. Cutter said world leaders are weary of Mr. Bush's "go-it-alone" handling of the war in Iraq. "After September 11, we had an enormous amount of good will from around the world for helping us seek out who was responsible" for the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, she said. "This administration quickly squandered that good will by pursuing a very arrogant foreign policy. It's time to rejoin the community of nations." It may well be true that leaders are pulling for Mr. Kerry to win. A survey of world opinion in 2003 for the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press found that in most countries, Mr. Bush ranked lower in popularity than Russian President Vladimir Putin, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, French President Jacques Chirac and British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Other presidential candidates also have been dogged by charges they were not truthful. In 1988, Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr., Delaware Democrat, withdrew from the presidential campaign after news reports that he had lifted whole passages from speeches by British Labor party leader Neil Kinnock. Republicans said they are beginning to see a pattern in Mr. Kerry's remarks. In a February meeting with the editorial board from the New York Daily News, Mr. Kerry said Mr. Bush, for political reasons, delayed closing the deal to have Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi surrender his weapons of mass destruction program. "There's evidence that we could have had that deal some time ago," Mr. Kerry told the newspaper, saying he had heard "from friends in the British government that the deal was in a slow lock." But the paper said Mr. Kerry refused to give specifics. Then earlier this month, Mr. Kerry called for an investigation into whether the U.S. overthrew Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, telling NBC's "Today" show a "very close friend in Massachusetts" had talked with people who had made accusations that Mr. Aristide had been kidnapped. "I don't know the truth of it. I really don't. But I think it needs to be explored, and we need to know the truth of what happened," Mr. Kerry said. Republicans said Mr. Kerry's remarks remind them of former Democratic presidential candidate Wesley Clark, who said ? and later recanted ? that he knew of a secret Pentagon memo listing the next countries after Iraq to be attacked in the war on terror. In a speech to the Dupage County Lincoln Day dinner in Oak Brook, Ill., last night, Republican National Committee Chairman Ed Gillespie said Mr. Kerry has "a more vivid imagination than General Clark." "Kerry's imaginary friends have British and French accents," Mr. Gillespie said. Sen. George Allen, Virginia Republican and third-highest ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said such a political conversation occurring between a U.S. senator and the leader of a foreign country is hard to imagine. "It would just be so inappropriate," he said. "I think it would be insulting." Several foreign leaders denied having any such conversations with Mr. Kerry, including Mr. Schroeder, whose spokesman issued a denial. And Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer told Australian radio this week that the remarks certainly didn't come from Australian leaders. He said it's not right either for leaders to make those comments or for a candidate to make them public. "I think it's probably better to keep foreign leaders and the views of foreign leaders out of domestic elections, I mean, certainly we do that here in this country. I mean, people express different views to you, if you're a candidate, I tend not to pass on those kinds of views publicly," he said. Even if Mr. Kerry's comments are true, several Republicans said, it's hardly something to brag about. Republicans mocked Mr. Kerry after European newspapers reported that North Korea leader Kim Jong-il would prefer that Mr. Kerry win. "Rather than dealing with President George W. Bush and hawkish officials in his administration, Pyongyang seems to hope victory for the Democratic candidate on November 2 would lead to a softening in U.S. policy towards the country's nuclear-weapons program" according to London's Financial Times, which said that Mr. Kerry's speeches are being broadcast on Radio Pyongyang and reported in "glowing" terms. "The mullahs in Iran probably don't care to have Bush in there because he won't suffer terrorists or the country's that harbor them," said Mr. Allen. "I want a president who cares about what's right rather than the U.N. protocols." And a poll taken by Andres McKenna Polling and Research found that Americans overwhelmingly believe "the terrorists would prefer" Mr. Kerry to win the election. The poll of 800 registered voters, taken in February, showed 60 percent thought terrorists would be happier with Mr. Kerry, while just 25 percent said the terrorists would prefer Mr. Bush. Said Ms. Cutter: "I don't care what the Republicans are saying. The story here is the good will squandered by the Bush administration." Whopper: John KerryStop lying about your record!By Timothy NoahPosted Monday, March 15, 2004, at 3:15 PM PT "I'm pretty tough on Castro, because I think he's running one of the last vestiges of a Stalinist secret police government in the world,'' Kerry told WPLG-ABC 10 reporter Michael Putney in an interview to be aired at 11:30 this morning.Then, reaching back eight years to one of the more significant efforts to toughen sanctions on the communist island, Kerry volunteered: "And I voted for the Helms-Burton legislation to be tough on companies that deal with him."?Peter Wallsten, "Kerry Stances on Cuba Open to Attack," in the March 14 Miami HeraldIt seemed the correct answer in a year in which Democratic strategists think they can make a play for at least a portion of the important Cuban-American vote?as they did in 1996 when more than three in 10 backed President Clinton's reelection after he signed the sanctions measure written by Sen. Jesse Helms and Rep. Dan Burton.There is only one problem: Kerry voted against it.?Ibid.Discussion. Kerry aides told Wallsten that Kerry voted against the final bill because he disagreed with some technicalities added at the last minute, but that he voted for an earlier version of the bill. But every piece of legislation that comes before the Senate is subjected to a succession of votes, many of them tactical in nature. The only vote that counts is final passage. If it were otherwise, any legislator could claim to have voted for or against almost any bill, depending on the audience, and there would be no accountability at all.There is no dishonor in saying, "I supported that bill initially, but some items were added to it that made it impossible for me to continue that support." Instead, Kerry lied, as is his wont. Kerry stopped the Vietnam Human Rights Act (HR2833) from coming to a vote in the Senate The Washington TimesLETTERS TO THE EDITORDecember 6, 2002John Kerry's war record As Sen. John Kerry, Massachusetts Democrat, considers a bid for the White House, Americans should know a few things about him that he might prefer go unmentioned ? and I don't mean his $75 haircuts. When Mr. Kerry pontificated at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on Veterans Day, a group of veterans turned their backs on him and walked away. They remembered Mr. Kerry as the anti-war activist who testified before Congress during the war, accusing veterans of being war criminals. The dust jacket of Mr. Kerry's pro-Hanoi book, "The New Soldier," features a photograph of his ragged band of radicals mocking the U.S. Marine Corps Memorial, which depicts the flag-raising on Iwo Jima, with an upside-down American flag.Retired Gen. George S. Patton III charged that Mr. Kerry's actions as an anti-war activist had "given aid and comfort to the enemy," as had the actions of Ramsey Clark and Jane Fonda. Also, Mr. Kerry lied when he threw what he claimed were his war medals over the White House fence; he later admitted they weren't his. Now they are displayed on his office wall.Long after he changed sides in congressional hearings, Mr. Kerry lobbied for renewed trade relations with Hanoi. At the same time, his cousin C. Stewart Forbes, chief executive for Colliers International, assisted in brokering a $905 million deal to develop a deep-sea port at Vung Tau, Vietnam ? an odd coincidence. As noted in the Inside Politics column of Nov. 14 (Nation), historian Douglas Brinkley is writing Mr. Kerry's biography. Hopefully, he'll include the senator's latest ignominious feat: preventing the Vietnam Human Rights Act (HR2833) from coming to a vote in the Senate, claiming human rights would deteriorate as a result. His actions sent a clear signal to Hanoi that Congress cares little about the human rights for which so many Americans fought and died. The State Department ranked Vietnam among the 10 regimes worldwide least tolerant of religious freedom. Recently, 354 churches of the Montagnards, a Christian ethnic minority, were forcibly disbanded, and by mid-October, more than 50 Christian pastors and elders had been arrested in Dak Lak province alone. On Oct. 29, the secret police executed three Montagnards by lethal injection simply for protesting religious repression. The communists are conducting a pogrom against the Montagnards, forcing Christians to drink a mixture of goat's blood and alcohol and renounce Christianity.Thousands have been killed or imprisoned or have just "disappeared." The Montagnards lost one-half of their adult male population fighting for the United States, and without them, there might be thousands more American names on that somber black granite wall at the Vietnam memorial. As Mr. Kerry contemplates a run for the presidency, people must remember that he has fought harder for Hanoi as an anti-war activist and a senator than he did against the Vietnamese communists while serving in the Navy in Vietnam.MICHAEL BENGEForeign Service officer and former Vietnam POW (1968 to 1973)WashingtonOn the campaign trail, Sen. John Forbes Kerry regularly mentions his Vietnam War combat experience, during which he received three Purple Hearts, the Silver Star and Bronze Star.However, the Massachusetts Democrat doesn't like to talk much about how he received the awards or the time after he returned home when he was rubbing shoulders with Hanoi Jane Fonda as a much-celebrated organizer for Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW), one of America's most radical pro-communist groups.Sen. Kerry, the "noble statesman" and "highly decorated Vietnam vet" of today, is a Far cry from Kerry, the radical, hippie-like leader of Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW) in the early 1970s.Soon after Kerry, as a Navy Lieutenant (junior grade) commanding a Swift boat in Vietnam, was awarded the Silver Star, he used an obscure Navy regulation to leave Vietnam and his crew before completing his tour of duty.After returning home, he quit the Navy early and changed the color of his politics to become a leader of VVAW. Kerry wasted no time organizing opposition in the United States against the efforts of his former buddies still ducking communist bullets back in Vietnam.Kerry participated in the so-called Winter Soldier Investigation where his fellow protesters accused his fellow GIs of war crimes.Kerry's betrayal of American prisoners of war, his blatant disrespect for the families of our missing in action, Vietnam veterans, the military, his support for communist Vietnam and his waffling over the issue of use of force in Iraq proves he is a self promoting Chameleon Senator who cannot be relied on to protect the best interests of the United States.Although Kerry voted to support military intervention in Iraq he is now claiming that he only approved the threat of force by the United States.The Constitution for the United States of America declares: "The President shall be Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the militia of the several States when called into the actual service of the United States; he may require the opinion, in writing, of the principal officer in each of the executive departments, upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices, and he shall have power to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States, except in cases of impeachment."Read the following and decide for yourself if you trust this man to be our Commander-in-Chief.Kerry attended Yale University. Before graduating in 1966, he tried to defer his draft status for a year by writing to his local recruitment board seeking permission to spend a further 12 months studying in Paris, according to The Harvard Crimson newspaper, which had followed a youthful Mr. Kerry in Boston as he campaigned for Congress in 1970. In the course of a lengthy article, "John Kerry: A Navy Dove Runs for Congress", published on February 18, 1970, The Harvard Crimson reported: "When he approached his draft board for permission to study for a year in Paris, the draft board refused and Kerry decided to enlist in the Navy."Like John F. Kennedy (who served on a World War II patrol boat, PT 109), Kerry sought to become a naval officer.After training, Kerry volunteered for Vietnam. He served a relatively uneventful six months, far removed from combat, from December 1967 to June 1968, in the electrical department aboard the USS Gridley, a guided-missile frigate that supported aircraft carriers in the Gulf of Tonkin.His ship returned to its Long Beach, Calif., port on June 6, 1968. Five months later, Kerry went back to Vietnam, securing an assignment as "swift boat" skipper.Kerry commanded his first swift boat, No. 44, from December 1968 through January 1969. He received no medals while serving on this craft.While in command of Swift Boat 44, Kerry and crew operated without prudence in a Free Fire Zone, carelessly firing at targets of opportunity racking up a number of enemy kills and some civilians. His body count included-- a woman, her baby, a 12 year-old boy, an elderly man and several South Vietnamese soldiers."It is one of those terrible things, and I'll never forget, ever, the sight of that child," Kerry later said about the dead baby. "But there was nothing that anybody could have done about it. It was the only instance of that happening."Kerry said he was appalled that the Navy's ''free fire zone'' policy in Vietnam put civilians at such high risk.Kerry experienced his first intense combat action on Dec. 2, 1968. He was slightly wounded on his arm, earning his first Purple Heart. In late January 1969, Kerry joined a five-man crew on swift boat No. 94 completing 18 missions over 48 days, almost all of them in the Mekong Delta.Kerry earned his second Purple Heart after sustaining a minor shrapnel wound in his left thigh on Feb. 20, 1969.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------February 28, 1969:When Kerry's Patrol Craft Fast 94 received a B-40 rocket shot from shore, he hot dogged his craft beaching it in the center of the enemy position. To his surprise, an enemy soldier sprang up from a hole not ten feet from Patrol Craft 94 and fled.The boat's machine gunner hit and wounded the fleeing Viet Cong as he darted behind a hootch. The twin .50s gunner fired at the Viet Cong. He said he "laid 50 rounds" into the hootch before Kerry leaped from the boat and dashed in to administer a "coup de grace" to the wounded Viet Cong. Kerry returned with the B-40 rocket and launcher.Kerry was given a Silver Star for his actions. On March 13, 1969, a mine detonated near Kerry's boat, slighting wounding Kerry in the right arm. He was awarded his third Purple Heart and a Bronze Star for valor.When later asked about the severity of the wounds, Kerry said that one of them cost him about two days of service, and that the other two did not interrupt his duty. "Walking wounded," as Kerry put it.After his third Purple Heart Kerry requested to be sent home. Navy rules, he pointed out, allowed a thrice-wounded soldier to return to the United States immediately.Commodore Charles F. Horne, an administrative official and commander of the coastal squadron in which Kerry served, filled out a document on March 17, 1969, that said Kerry had "been thrice wounded in action while on duty incountry Vietnam. Reassignment is requested ... as a personal aide in Boston, New York, or Wash., D.C. area.In April 1969, having engineered an early transfer out of the conflict because of his three minor wounds, John Kerry left his crew behind and returned home to a sweet assignment as an aide to Rear Admiral Walter F. Schlech, Jr.In October 1969, while Kerry was still on active duty assigned to Admiral Schlech, Kerry was flying Adam Walinsky (Robert F. Kennedy's former speech writer), around New York state to deliver anti-war speeches. BY Jan. 3, 1970, Kerry had become so inspired by Walinsky's anti-war beliefs that he petitioned Admiral Schlech, "to tell his boss that his conscientious dictated that he protest the war, that he wanted out of the Navy immediately so that he could run for congress." Admiral Schlech consented and Kerry received an honorable discharge from the Navy six months early. Kerry, a decorated veteran who seemed to be a clone of former President John F. Kennedy, right down to the military service on a patrol boat made a 1970 bid for Congress in Massachusetts' Third District. Kerry's candidacy was soon rejected by the Third District caucus members. In June 1970, Kerry joined Vietnam Veterans Against the War. Kerry remained low-key in VVAW activities until September 7,1970 when he accepted a prominent roll in VVAW's Operation RAW (Rapid American Withdrawal.) Operation RAW called for "Vietnam Vets to march 86 miles between two Revolutionary War sites- Morristown, New Jersey and Valley Forge, Pennsylvania- engaging in gorilla theater all the way . . . the spectacle of this ragtag band of ex soldiers was bound to get the media's attention and it did." At Valley Forge, Kerry rubbed elbows with actress Hanoi Jane Fonda (VVAW's most prominent promoter) and apparently was taken with the power of her rhetoric. Fonda "standing on the bed of a pick-up truck, denounced the Nixon administration as being a beehive for cold blooded killers." It was at Valley Forge with Fonda that Kerry grabbed the ears of the VVAW. Kerry stepped on to the back of the pick up and yelled into a microphone "we are here because we above all others have earned the right to criticize the war on southeast Asia . . . We are here to say that it is not patriotism to ask Americans to die for a mistake or that it is not patriotic to allow a president to talk about not being the first president to lose a war and using us as pawns in that game."From Valley Forge, Kerry and Fonda headed for Detroit, MI and their next propaganda scheme -- the Winter Soldier Investigation. From January 31 to February 2, 1971, over 125 self-proclaimed Vietnam veterans testified at a Detroit Howard Johnson's about wholesale rape, torture, and murder they claimed U.S. soldiers committed in Vietnam. From Detroit, Kerry took his VVAW to the Nation's capital and the Washington Spring Offense. Pictured right - VVAW supported demonstration at the Capitol, one of many that became known as the Washington Spring Offense.- April - May 1971.As a national leader of VVAW, Kerry campaigned against the effort of the United States to contain the spread of Communism. He used the blood of servicemen still in the field for his own political advancement by claiming that their blood was being shed unnecessarily or in vain.Under Kerry's leadership, VVAW members mocked the uniform of United States soldiers by wearing tattered fatigues marked with pro-communist graffiti. They dishonored America by marching in demonstrations under the flag of the Viet Cong enemy.Kerry organized one of the most confrontational protests of the entire Vietnam War called Operation Dewey Canyon III.It began April 18, 1971, with nearly 1,000 Vietnam vets gathered on the Washington, D.C., Mall for what they called "a limited incursion into the country of Congress.At a jammed Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on April 23, 1971, Kerry took his case to Congress. In a room crammed with television cameras, Kerry, dressed in green fatigues decorated with a Silver Star, Bronze Star and three Purple Heart ribbons, gave testimony that defined him and made possible his political career.Much of Kerry's speech before Congress painted his fellow GIs as so brutal that, today, they could easily be mistaken for Saddam Hussein's Fedayeen killers.He reported to Congress that U.S. soldiers 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, shot cattle and dogs for fun, poisoned food stocks, and generally ravaged the countryside of South Vietnam." By the following day, April 24, the publicity from the 22nd and 23rd helped draw at least 250,000 demonstrators to the Mall in a massive protest. Kerry, wearing his combat jacket, addressed the rally from the Capitol steps. In less than a week, Kerry was transformed from little-known former swift boat skipper to a national icon for a movement that advocated against U.S. involvement in Vietnam and for the communist Vietnamese.Kerry was a supporter of the "People's Peace Treaty," a supposed "people's" declaration to end the war, reportedly drawn up in communist East Germany.It included nine points, all of which were taken from Viet Cong peace proposals at the Paris peace talks as conditions for ending the war.One of the provisions stated: "The Vietnamese pledge that as soon as the U.S. government publicly sets a date for total withdrawal [from Vietnam], they will enter discussion to secure the release of all American prisoners, including pilots captured while bombing North Vietnam."In other words, Kerry and his VVAW advocated the communist line to withdraw all U.S. troops from Vietnam first and then negotiate with Hanoi over the release of prisoners. Had the nine points of the "People's Peace Treaty" favored by Kerry been accepted by American negotiators, the United States would have totally lost all leverage to get the communists to release any POWs captured during the war years.Vice President Spiro T. Agnew said that Kerry, "who drew rave notices in the media for his eloquent testimony before Congress," was using material ghosted for him by a former Kennedy speech writer (Adam Walinsky). Kerry graduated from Boston College Law School in 1976, then worked as an Assistant District Attorney in Middlesex County.He was elected Lieutenant Governor in 1982Elected to the U.S. Senate in 1984 Re-elected to the Senate in 1990 - Kerry, as co-chairman of the Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs, proved himself to be a masterful chameleon at burying the POW/MIA issueIn 1991, the United States Senate created the Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs to examine the possibility that U.S. POW/MIAs might still be held by the Vietnamese.As chairman of the Select Committee, Kerry proved himself to be a masterful chameleon portraying to the public at large what appeared to be an unbiased approach to resolving the POW/MIA issue.But, in reality, no one in the United States Senate pushed harder to bury the POW/MIA issue, the last obstacle preventing normalization of relations with Hanoi, than John Forbes Kerry.In fact, his first act as chairman was to travel to Southeast Asia, where during a stopover in Bangkok, Thailand, he lectured the U.S. Chamber of Commerce there on the importance of lifting the trade embargo and normalizing relations with Vietnam.During the entire life of the Senate Select Committee, Kerry never missed a chance to propaganderize and distort the facts in favor of Hanoi.In December of 1992, not long after Kerry was quoted in the world press stating "President Bush should reward Vietnam within a month for its increased cooperation in accounting for American MIAs," Vietnam announced it had granted Boston, Massachusetts based Colliers International, a contract worth billions. Colliers International became exclusive real estate agent representing Vietnam.In a Nov. 21, 1993 column, Schanberg wrote, "Highly credible information has been surfacing in recent days which indicates that the headlines you have been reading about a 'breakthrough' in Hanoi's cooperation on the POW/MIA issue are part of a carefully scripted performance. The apparent purpose is to move toward normalization of relations with Hanoi."Sen. John F. Kerry, chairman of the Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs, is one of the key figures pushing for normalization. Kerry is currently on a visit to Vietnam where he has been doing two things: (1) praising the Vietnamese effusively for granting access to their war archives and(2) telling the press that there's no believable evidence to back up the stories of live POWs still being held."Ironically, that very kind of live-POW evidence has been brought to Kerry's own committee on a regular basis over the past year, and he has repeatedly sought to impeach its value.Moreover, Kerry and his allies on the committee - such as Sens. John McCain, Nancy Kassebaum and Tom Daschle - have worked to block much of this evidence from being made public."In the Senate debate itself, Kerry, rather than embarass Vietnam by demanding the truth, launched a highly publicized diversionary investigation of the POW/MIA families and activists, who were demanding an honest accounting.Kerry labeled them "professional malcontents, conspiracy mongers, con artists, and dime-store Rambos" who were only involved in the POW/MIA issue for money.The Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs published in its January 1993 Final Report (page 6) that American servicemen were left behind alive and in captivity.Kerry's Select Committee staff, in order to soft pedal this abandonment, added in the report "We acknowledge that there is no proof that U.S. POWs survived."Kerry's "no proof" assertion, was an outright lie. It was an effort by Kerry's pro-Hanoi staff to bury our POW/MIA's and further open the doors to trade with Vietnam.Kerry maintained there was "no proof U.S. POWs survived," but never produced evidence proving the left behind POWs were dead, or who was responsible for their deaths or where their remains were located.Kerry never demanded that Vietnam explain.--http://www.vietnamveteransagainstjohnkerry.com/page2.htmlFriday, April 16, 2004John Kerry's Flip FlopsFlip Flopped On Trade With ChinaIn 1991, Kerry Supported Most-Favored Trade Status For China. "Sen. John Kerry said yesterday that he is breaking party ranks to support most-favored-nation trade status for China ? 'I think the president has some strong arguments about some of the assets of most-favored-nation status for China,' Kerry said." (John Aloysius Farrell, "Kerry Breaks Party Ranks To Back China Trade Status," The Boston Globe, 6/15/91)In 2000, Kerry Voted In Favor Of Permanent Normal Trade Relations With China. (H.R. 4444, CQ Vote #251: Passed 83-15: R 46-8; D 37-7, 9/19/00, Kerry Voted Yea)Now Kerry Criticizes The Bush Administration For Trading With China. "Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry said on Monday Americans workers were paying the price for President Bush's weak stance on trade with China and other countries. ? On the bus tour, Kerry singled out the Bush administration's handling of trade with China and said that country was manipulating its currency." (Caren Bohan, "Kerry Pledges Aggressive Trade Stance," Reuters, 4/26/04)Flip-Flopped On Iraq WarKerry Voted For Authorization To Use Force In Iraq. (H.J. Res. 114, CQ Vote #237: Passed 77-23: R 48-1; D 29-21; I 0-1, 10/11/02, Kerry Voted Yea.)In First Dem Debate, Kerry Strongly Supported President's Action In Iraq. KERRY: "George, I said at the time I would have preferred if we had given diplomacy a greater opportunity, but I think it was the right decision to disarm Saddam Hussein, and when the President made the decision, I supported him, and I support the fact that we did disarm him." (ABC News, Democrat Presidential Candidate Debate, Columbia, SC, 5/4/03)Kerry Later Claimed He Voted "To Threaten" Use Of Force In Iraq. "I voted to threaten the use of force to make Saddam Hussein comply with the resolutions of the United Nations." (Sen. John Kerry, Remarks At Announcement Of Presidential Candidacy, Mount Pleasant, SC, 9/2/03)Now, Kerry Says He Is Anti-War Candidate. CHRIS MATTHEWS: "Do you think you belong to that category of candidates who more or less are unhappy with this war, the way it's been fought, along with General Clark, along with Howard Dean and not necessarily in companionship politically on the issue of the war with people like Lieberman, Edwards and Gephardt? Are you one of the anti-war candidates?" KERRY: "I am -- Yes, in the sense that I don't believe the president took us to war as he should have, yes, absolutely." (MSNBC's "Hardball," 1/6/04)Flip-Flopped On Eliminating Marriage Penalty For Middle ClassKerry Said He Will Fight To Keep Tax Relief For Married Couples. "Howard Dean and Gephardt are going to put the marriage penalty back in place. So if you get married in America, we're going to charge you more taxes. I do not want to do that." (Fox News' "Special Report," 10/23/03)Said Democrats Fought To End Marriage Penalty Tax. "We fought hard to get rid of the marriage penalty." (MSNBC's "News Live," 7/31/03)But, In 1998, Kerry Voted Against Eliminating Marriage Penalty Relief For Married Taxpayers With Combined Incomes Less Than $50,000 Per Year, Saving Taxpayers $46 Billion Over 10 Years. (S. 1415, CQ Vote #154: Rejected 48-50: R 5-49; D 43-1, 6/10/98, Kerry Voted Yea)Flip-Flopped On Patriot ActKerry Voted For Patriot Act. The Patriot Act was passed nearly unanimously by the Senate 98-1, and 357-66 in the House. (H.R. 3162, CQ Vote #313: Passed 98-1: R 49-0; D 48-1; I 1-0, 10/25/01, Kerry Voted Yea)Kerry Used To Defend His Vote. "Most of [The Patriot Act] has to do with improving the transfer of information between CIA and FBI, and it has to do with things that really were quite necessary in the wake of what happened on September 11th." (Sen. John Kerry, Remarks At Town Hall Meeting, Manchester, NH, 8/6/03)Now, Kerry Attacks Patriot Act. "We are a nation of laws and liberties, not of a knock in the night. So it is time to end the era of John Ashcroft. That starts with replacing the Patriot Act with a new law that protects our people and our liberties at the same time. I've been a District Attorney and I know that what law enforcement needs are real tools not restrictions on American's basic rights." (Sen. John Kerry, Remarks At Iowa State University, 12/1/03)Kerry Took BOTH Sides On First Gulf WarKerry Took BOTH Sides In First Gulf War In Separate Letters To Same Constituent. "Rather than take a side--albeit the one he thought was most expedient--Kerry actually stood on both sides of the first Gulf war, much like he did this time around. Consider this 'Notebook' item from TNR's March 25, 1991 issue, which ran under the headline 'Same Senator, Same Constituent': 'Thank you for contacting me to express your opposition ... to the early use of military force by the US against Iraq. I share your concerns. On January 11, I voted in favor of a resolution that would have insisted that economic sanctions be given more time to work and against a resolution giving the president the immediate authority to go to war.' --letter from Senator John Kerry to Wallace Carter of Newton Centre, Massachusetts, dated January 22 [1991] 'Thank you very much for contacting me to express your support for the actions of President Bush in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. From the outset of the invasion, I have strongly and unequivocally supported President Bush's response to the crisis and the policy goals he has established with our military deployment in the Persian Gulf.' --Senator Kerry to Wallace Carter, January 31 [1991]" (Noam Scheiber, "Noam Scheiber's Daily Journal of Politics, The New Republic Online, 1/28/04) Flip-Flopped On Gay Marriage AmendmentIn 2002, Kerry Signed Letter "Urging" MA Legislature To Reject Constitutional Amendment Banning Gay Marriage. "We rarely comment on issues that are wholly within the jurisdiction of the General Court, but there are occasions when matters pending before you are of such significance to all residents of the Commonwealth that we think it appropriate for us to express our opinion. One such matter is the proposed Constitutional amendment that would prohibit or seriously inhibit any legal recognition whatsoever of same-sex relationships. We believe it would be a grave error for Massachusetts to enshrine in our Constitution a provision which would have such a negative effect on so many of our fellow residents. ? We are therefore united in urging you to reject this Constitutional amendment and avoid stigmatizing so many of our fellow citizens who do not deserve to be treated in such a manner." (Sen. John Kerry, et al, Letter To Members Of The Massachusetts Legislature, 7/12/02)Now, In 2004, Kerry Won't Rule Out Supporting Similar Amendment. "Asked if he would support a state constitutional amendment barring gay and lesbian marriages, Kerry didn't rule out the possibility. 'I'll have to see what language there is,' he said." (Susan Milligan, "Kerry Says GOP May Target Him On 'Wedge Issue,'" The Boston Globe, 2/6/04)Flip-Flopped On Attacking President During Time Of WarIn March 2003, Kerry Promised Not To Attack President When War Began. "Senator John F. Kerry of Massachusetts ? said he will cease his complaints once the shooting starts. 'It's what you owe the troops,' said a statement from Kerry, a Navy veteran of the Vietnam War. 'I remember being one of those guys and reading news reports from home. If America is at war, I won't speak a word without measuring how it'll sound to the guys doing the fighting when they're listening to their radios in the desert.'" (Glen Johnson, "Democrats On The Stump Plot Their War Rhetoric," The Boston Globe, 3/11/03)But Weeks Later, With Troops Just Miles From Baghdad, Kerry Broke His Pledge. "'What we need now is not just a regime change in Saddam Hussein and Iraq, but we need a regime change in the United States,' Kerry said in a speech at the Peterborough Town Library. Despite pledging two weeks ago to cool his criticism of the administration once war began, Kerry unleashed a barrage of criticism as US troops fought within 25 miles of Baghdad." (Glen Johnson, "Kerry Says Us Needs Its Own 'Regime Change,'" The Boston Globe, 4/3/03)Flip-Flopped On Death Penalty For TerroristsIn 1996, Kerry Attacked Governor Bill Weld For Supporting Death Penalty For Terrorists. KERRY: "Your policy would amount to a terrorist protection policy. Mine would put them in jail." (1996 Massachusetts Senate Debate, 9/16/96)In 1996, Kerry Said, "You Can Change Your Mind On Things, But Not On Life-And-Death Issues." (Timothy J. Connolly, "The 'Snoozer' Had Some Life," [Worcester, MA] Telegram & Gazette, 7/3/96)But, In 2002, Kerry Said He Supported Death Penalty For Terrorists. KERRY: "The law of the land is the law of the land, but I have also said that I am for the death penalty for terrorists because terrorists have declared war on your country." (NBC's "Meet The Press," 12/1/02)Flip-Flopped On No Child Left BehindKerry Voted For No Child Left Behind Act. (H.R. 1, CQ Vote #371: Adopted 87-10: R 44-3; D 43-6; I 0-1, 12/18/01, Kerry Voted Yea)But Now Kerry Is Attacking No Child Left Behind As "Mockery." "Between now and the time I'm sworn in January 2005, I'm going to use every day to make this president accountable for making a mockery of the words 'No Child Left Behind.'" (Holly Ramer, "Kerry Wants To Make 'Environmental Justice' A Priority," The Associated Press, 4/22/03)Kerry Trashed NCLB As 'Unfunded Mandate' With 'Laudable' Goals. "Kerry referred to [No Child Left Behind] as an 'unfunded mandate' with 'laudable' goals. 'Without the resources, education reform is a sham,' Kerry said. 'I can't wait to crisscross this country and hold this president accountable for making a mockery of the words "no child left behind."'" (Matt Leon, "Sen. Kerry In Tune With Educators," The [Quincy, MA] Patriot Ledger, 7/11/03)Flip-Flopped On Affirmative ActionIn 1992, Kerry Called Affirmative Action "Inherently Limited And Divisive." "[W]hile praising affirmative action as 'one kind of progress' that grew out of civil rights court battles, Kerry said the focus on a rights-based agenda has 'inadvertently driven most of our focus in this country not to the issue of what is happening to the kids who do not get touched by affirmative action, but ? toward an inherently limited and divisive program which is called affirmative action.' That agenda is limited, he said, because it benefits segments of black and minority populations, but not all. And it is divisive because it creates a 'perception and a reality of reverse discrimination that has actually engendered racism.'" (Lynne Duke, "Senators Seek Serious Dialogue On Race," The Washington Post, 4/8/92)In 2004, Kerry Denied Ever Having Called Affirmative Action "Divisive." CNN's KELLY WALLACE: "We caught up with the Senator, who said he never called affirmative action divisive, and accused Clark of playing politics." SEN. KERRY: "That's not what I said. I said there are people who believe that. And I said mend it, don't end it. He's trying to change what I said, but you can go read the quote. I said very clearly I have always voted for it. I've always supported it. I've never, ever condemned it. I did what Jim Clyburn did and what Bill Clinton did, which is mend it. And Jim Clyburn wouldn't be supporting it if it were otherwise. So let's not have any politics here. Let's keep the truth." (CNN's "Inside Politics," 1/30/04)Flip-Flopped On EthanolKerry Twice Voted Against Tax Breaks For Ethanol. (S. Con. Res. 18, CQ Vote #44: Rejected 48-52: R 11-32; D 37-20, 3/23/93, Kerry Voted Nay; S. Con. Res. 18, CQ Vote #68: Motion Agreed To 55-43: R 2-40; D 53-3, 3/24/93, Kerry Voted Yea)Kerry Voted Against Ethanol Mandates. (H.R. 4624, CQ Vote #255: Motion Agreed To 51-50: R 19-25; D 31-25, 8/3/94, Kerry Voted Nay)Kerry Voted Twice To Increase Liability On Ethanol, Making It Equal To Regular Gasoline. (S. 517, CQ Vote #87: Motion Agreed To 57-42: R 38-10; D 18-32; I 1-0, 4/25/02 Kerry Voted Nay; S. 14, CQ Vote #208: Rejected 38-57: R 9-40; D 28-17; I 1-0, 6/5/03, Kerry Voted Yea)On The Campaign Trail, Though, Kerry Is For Ethanol. KERRY: "I'm for ethanol, and I think it's a very important partial ingredient of the overall mix of alternative and renewable fuels we ought to commit to." (MSNBC/DNC, Democrat Presidential Candidate Debate, Des Moines, IA, 11/24/03)Flip-Flopped On Cuba SanctionsSenator Kerry Has Long Voted Against Stronger Cuba Sanctions. (H.R. 927, CQ Vote #489, Motion Rejected 59-36: R 50-2; D 9-34, 10/17/95, Kerry Voted Nay; S. 955, CQ Vote #183: Rejected 38-61: R 5-49; D 33-12, 7/17/97, Kerry Voted Yea; S. 1234, CQ Vote #189, Motion Agreed To 55-43: R 43-10; D 12-33, 6/30/99, Kerry Voted Nay; S. 2549, CQ Vote #137: Motion Agreed To 59-41: R 52-3; D 7-38, 6/20/00, Kerry Voted Nay)In 2000, Kerry Said Florida Politics Is Only Reason Cuba Sanctions Still In Place. "Senator John F. Kerry, the Massachusetts Democrat and member of the Foreign Relations Committee, said in an interview that a reevaluation of relations with Cuba was 'way overdue.' 'We have a frozen, stalemated, counterproductive policy that is not in humanitarian interests nor in our larger credibility interest in the region,' Kerry said. ? 'It speaks volumes about the problems in the current American electoral process. ? The only reason we don't reevaluate the policy is the politics of Florida.'" (John Donnelly, "Policy Review Likely On Cuba," The Boston Globe, 4/9/00)Now Kerry Panders To Cuban Vote, Saying He Would Not Lift Embargo Against Cuba. TIM RUSSERT: "Would you consider lifting sanctions, lifting the embargo against Cuba?" SEN. KERRY: "Not unilaterally, not now, no." (NBC's "Meet The Press," 8/31/03)Kerry Does Not Support "Opening Up The Embargo Wily Nilly." "Kerry said he believes in 'engagement' with the communist island nation but that does not mean, 'Open up the dialogue.' He believes it 'means travel and perhaps even remittances or cultural exchanges' but he does not support 'opening up the embargo wily nilly.'" (Daniel A. Ricker, "Kerry Says Bush Did Not Build A 'Legitimate Coalition' In Iraq," The Miami Herald, 11/25/03)Flip-Flopped On NAFTAKerry Voted For NAFTA. (H.R. 3450, CQ Vote #395: Passed 61-38: R 34-10; D 27-28, 11/20/93, Kerry Voted Yea)Kerry Recognized NAFTA Is Our Future. "'NAFTA recognizes the reality of today's economy - globalization and technology,' Kerry said. 'Our future is not in competing at the low-level wage job; it is in creating high-wage, new technology jobs based on our skills and our productivity.'" (John Aloysius Farrell, "Senate's OK Finalizes NAFTA Pact," The Boston Globe, 11/21/93)Now, Kerry Expresses Doubt About NAFTA. "Kerry, who voted for NAFTA in 1993, expressed some doubt about the strength of free-trade agreements. 'If it were before me today, I would vote against it because it doesn't have environmental or labor standards in it,' he said." (David Lightman, "Democrats Battle For Labor's Backing," Hartford Courant, 8/6/03)Flip-Flopped On Double Taxation Of DividendsDecember 2002: Kerry Favored Ending Double Taxation Of Dividends. "[T]o encourage investments in the jobs of the future - I think we should eliminate the tax on capital gains for investments in critical technology companies - zero capital gains on $100 million issuance of stock if it's held for 5 years and has created real jobs. And we should attempt to end the double taxation of dividends." (Sen. John Kerry, Remarks At The City Club Of Cleveland, 12/3/02) May 2003: Kerry Said He Opposed Ending Double Taxation Of Dividends. "Kerry also reiterated his opposition to the Republican plan to cut taxes on stock dividends. 'This is not the time for a dividends tax cut that goes to individuals,' he said." ("Kerry Says Time Is On Dems' Side," The Associated Press, 5/8/03)Flip-Flopped On Raising Taxes During Economic DownturnSeptember 2001: Said Should Not Raise Taxes In Economic Downturn. "The first priority is the economy of our nation. And when you have a downturn in the economy, the last thing you do is raise taxes or cut spending. We shouldn't do either. We need to maintain a course that hopefully will stimulate the economy. . . . No, we should not raise taxes, but we have to put everything on the table to take a look at why we have this structural problem today. . . .[Y]ou don't want to raise taxes." (NBC's "Meet The Press," 9/2/01)We Should "Absolutely Not Raise Taxes." "Well, I think it's very clear what I favor because we voted for it early in the spring, which was the Democratic budget alternative that had triggers in it where you didn't wind up spending money you don't have. It had a smaller tax cut but more tax cut for a stimulus, which is what we need. So you ask me, what do we need now? Yes, we need additional stimulus. We should absolutely not raise taxes. We should not cut spending. What we need to do is drive the economy of this country. The economy is the number one issue. It is the most important thing we should focus on." (CNN's "Evans, Novak, Hunt & Shields," 9/8/01)April 2002: Said He Wanted Larger Tax Cut And Was "Not In Favor Of" Repeal. CNN's TUCKER CARLSON: "Senator Kerry . . . [many Democrats] [g]et a lot of political mileage out of criticizing [President Bush's tax cut], but nobody has the courage to say repeal it. Are you for repealing it?" KERRY: "It's not a question of courage. . . . And it's not an issue right now. We passed appropriately a tax cut as a stimulus, some $40 billion. Many of us thought it should have even maybe been a little bit larger this last year ? [T]he next tax cut doesn't take effect until 2004. If we can grow the economy enough between now and then, if we have sensible policies in place and make good choices, who knows what our choices will be. So it's simply not a ripe issue right now. And I'm not in favor of turning around today and repealing it." (CNN's "Crossfire," 4/16/02)December 2002: Flip-Flopped, Would Keep Tax Cuts From Taking Effect. NBC's TIM RUSSERT: "Senator . . . should we freeze or roll back the Bush tax cut?" KERRY: "Well, I wouldn't take away from people who've already been given their tax cut ? What I would not do is give any new Bush tax cuts." ? RUSSERT: "So the tax cut that's scheduled to be implemented in the coming years ?" KERRY: "No new tax cut under the Bush plan. . . . It doesn't make economic sense." ? RUSSERT: "Now, this is a change ?" (NBC's "Meet The Press," 12/1/02)Called For Freeze Of Bush Tax Cuts In Favor Of Year-Long Suspension Of Payroll Taxes On First $10,000 Of Personal Income. "Kerry said Bush's tax cuts have mainly benefited the rich while doing little for the economy. Kerry is proposing to halt Bush's additional tax cuts and instead impose a yearlong suspension of payroll taxes on the first $10,000 of income to help the poor and middle class." (Tyler Bridges, "Kerry Visits Miami To Start Raising Funds," The Miami Herald, 12/7/02)Flip-Flopped On Small Business Income TaxesKerry Voted Against Exempting Small Businesses And Family Farms From Clinton Income Tax Increase. (S. Con. Res. 18, CQ Vote #79: Motion Agreed To 54-45: R 0-43; D 54-2, 3/25/93, Kerry Voted Yea)Three Months Later, Kerry Voted In Favor Of Proposal To Exclude Small Businesses From The Increased Income Tax. (S. 1134, CQ Vote #171: Motion Rejected 56-42: R 43-0; D 13-42, 6/24/93, Kerry Voted Yea)Kerry Claimed He Fought To Exempt Small Businesses From Income Tax Increases. "I worked to amend the reconciliation bill so that it would ? exempt small businesses who are classified as subchapter S corporations from the increased individual income tax." (Sen. John Kerry, Congressional Record, 6/29/93, p. S 826Kerry Flip-Flopped On 50-Cent Gas Tax IncreaseIn 1994, Kerry Backed Half-Dollar Increase In Gas Tax. "Kerry said [the Concord Coalition's scorecard] did not accurately reflect individual lawmakers' efforts to cut the deficit. 'It doesn't reflect my $43 billion package of cuts or my support for a 50-cent increase in the gas tax,' Kerry said." (Jill Zuckman, "Deficit-Watch Group Gives High Marks To 7 N.E. Lawmakers," The Boston Globe, 3/1/94)Two Years Later, Kerry Flip-Flopped. "Kerry no longer supports the 50-cent [gas tax] hike, nor the 25-cent hike proposed by the [Concord] coalition." (Michael Grunwald, "Kerry Gets Low Mark On Budgeting," The Boston Globe, 4/30/96)Flip-Flopped On Leaving Abortion Up To StatesKerry Used To Say Abortion Should Be Left Up To States. "I think the question of abortion is one that should be left for the states to decide," Kerry said during his failed 1972 Congressional bid. ("John Kerry On The Issues," The [Lowell, MA] Sun, 10/11/72)Now Kerry Says Abortion Is Law Of Entire Nation. "The right to choose is the law of the United States. No person has the right to infringe on that freedom. Those of us who are in government have a special responsibility to see to it that the United States continues to protect this right, as it must protect all rights secured by the constitution." (Sen. John Kerry [D-MA], Congressional Record, 1/22/85)Flip-Flopped On Litmus Tests For Judicial NomineesKerry Used To Oppose Litmus Tests For Judicial Nominees. "Throughout two centuries, our federal judiciary has been a model institution, one which has insisted on the highest standards of conduct by our public servants and officials, and which has survived with undiminished respect. Today, I fear that this institution is threatened in a way that we have not seen before. ? This threat is that of the appointment of a judiciary which is not independent, but narrowly ideological, through the systematic targeting of any judicial nominee who does not meet the rigid requirements of litmus tests imposed ?" (Sen. John Kerry, Congressional Record, 2/3/86, p. S864)But Now Kerry Says He Would Only Support Supreme Court Nominees Who Pledge To Uphold Roe v. Wade. "The potential retirement of Supreme Court justices makes the 2004 presidential election especially important for women, Senator John F. Kerry told a group of female Democrats yesterday, and he pledged that if elected president he would nominate to the high court only supporters of abortion rights under its Roe v. Wade decision. ? 'Any president ought to appoint people to the Supreme Court who understand the Constitution and its interpretation by the Supreme Court. In my judgment, it is and has been settled law that women, Americans, have a defined right of privacy and that the government does not make the decision with respect to choice. Individuals do.'" (Glen Johnson, "Kerry Vows Court Picks To Be Abortion-Rights Supporters," The Boston Globe, 4/9/03)Flip-Flopped On Federal Health BenefitsIn 1993, Kerry Expressed Doubts That Federal Employees Health Benefits System Worked Well. "Hillary Rodham Clinton today offered a fresh description of one of the most confusing elements of the Administration health care plan, the health insurance purchasing alliances, saying they would let all Americans choose coverage in the way members of Congress do. ? Senator John Kerry, Democrat of Massachusetts, said he was not sure that the Federal program worked all that well." (Adam Clymer, "Hillary Clinton Says Health Plan Will Be Familiar," The New York Times, 12/8/93)Kerry Expressed Personal Dissatisfaction With His Coverage Through Federal Program. "Earlier this month, when Hillary Rodham Clinton came to Boston and vowed that average Americans would get as good coverage as that enjoyed by their senators and representatives, Sen. John F. Kerry told Clinton that he thought the country could do better. The Massachusetts Democrat said he was thinking, among other recent disasters, of his $500 dental bill for treatment of an abscessed tooth. 'Because it was done in the dentist's office, rather than the hospital, they didn't cover it. So they were urging me to go spend twice as much in a hospital,' said Kerry, who is covered by BACE, the Beneficial Association of Capitol Employees." (Ana Puga, "Lawmakers Talk Health Care," The Boston Globe, 12/19/93)Now, On Campaign Trail, Kerry Is Enthusiastic About Health Care He Receives As Senator. "As a U.S. Senator, I could get the best health care in the world. Most people aren't so lucky, and we need to change that. That's why my plan gives every American access to the same kind of health care that members of Congress give themselves. ? Because your family's health care is just as important as any politicians' in Washington." (Sen. John Kerry, "Affordable Health Care For All Americans," Remarks At Mercy Medical, Cedar Rapids, IA, 12/14/03)Kerry: "I'm Going To Make Available To Every American The Same Health Care Plan That Senators And Congressmen Give Themselves ?" (Sen. John Kerry, AARP Democrat Candidate Debate, Bedford, NH, 11/18/03)Flip-Flopped On Tax Credits For Small Business HealthIn 2001, Kerry Voted Against Amendment Providing $70 Billion For Tax Credits For Small Business To Purchase Health Insurance. (H. Con. Res. 83, CQ Vote #83: Rejected 49-51: R 48-2; D 1-49, 4/5/01, Kerry Voted Nay)Now, Kerry Promises Refundable Tax Credits To Small Businesses For Health Coverage. "Refundable tax credits for up to 50 percent of the cost of coverage will be offered to small businesses and their employees to make health care more affordable." ("John Kerry's Plan To Make Health Care Affordable To Every American," John Kerry For President Website, www.johnkerry.com, Accessed 1/21/04)Flip-Flopped On Health CoverageIn 1994, Kerry Said Democrats Push Health Care Too Much. "[Kerry] said Kennedy and Clinton's insistence on pushing health care reform was a major cause of the Democratic Party's problems at the polls." (Joe Battenfeld, "Jenny Craig Hit With Sex Harassment Complaint - By Men," Boston Herald, 11/30/94)But Now Kerry Calls Health Care His "Passion." "Sen. John Kerry says expanding coverage is 'my passion.'" (Susan Page, "Health Specifics Could Backfire On Candidates," USA Today, 6/2/03)Flip-Flopped On Welfare ReformIn 1993, Kerry Voted To Kill Bipartisan Welfare Work Requirement. In 1993, Kerry and Kennedy voted against a welfare-to-work requirement that was supported by many Democrats, including Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Harry Reid (D-NV):Fiscal 1993 Supplemental Appropriations - Welfare Work Requirement. "Moynihan, D-N.Y., motion to table (kill) the D'Amato, R-N.Y., amendment to sharply cut federal welfare administration aid to states that do not, within a year, require at least 10 percent of their able-bodied welfare recipients without dependents to work. The required workfare participation rate would be increased by 2 percent a year until 50 percent were working." (H.R. 2118, CQ Vote #163: Rejected 34-64: R 1-42; D 33-22, 6/22/93, Kerry Voted Yea)But In 1996, Kerry Voted For Welfare Reform. (H.R. 3734, CQ Vote #262: Adopted 78-21: R 53-0; D 25-21, 8/1/96, Kerry Voted Yea)Flip-Flops On Stock Options ExpensingKerry Used To Oppose Expensing Stock Options. "Democratic Senator John F. Kerry was among those fighting expensing of stock options." (Sue Kirchhoff, "Senate Blocks Options," The Boston Globe, 7/16/02)Kerry Said Expensing Options Would Not "Benefit The Investing Public." KERRY: "Mr. President, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ? has proposed a rule that will require companies to amortize the value of stock options and deduct them off of their earnings statements ? I simply cannot see how the FASB rule, as proposed, will benefit the investing public." (Sen. John Kerry, Congressional Record, 3/10/94, p. S2772)But Now Kerry Says He Supports Carrying Of Stock Options As Corporate Expense. "On an issue related to corporate scandals, Kerry for the first time endorsed the carrying of stock options as a corporate expense. The use of stock options was abused by some companies and contributed to overly optimistic balance sheets. Kerry applauded steps by Microsoft Corp. to eliminate stock options for employees and said all publicly traded companies should be required to expense such options." (Dan Balz, "Kerry Raps Bush Policy On Postwar Iraq," The Washington Post, 7/11/03)Flip-Flopped On Medical MarijuanaKerry Said His "Personal Disposition Is Open To The Issue Of Medical Marijuana." "Aaron Houston of the Granite Staters for Medical Marijuana said that just a month ago Mr. Kerry seemed to endorse medical marijuana use, and when asked about the content of his mysterious study, said, 'I am trying to find out. I don't know.' Mr. Kerry did say his 'personal disposition is open to the issue of medical marijuana' and that he'd stop Drug Enforcement Administration raids on patients using the stuff under California's medical marijuana law." (Jennifer Harper, "Inside Politics," The Washington Times, 8/8/03)But Now Kerry Says He Wants To Wait For Study Analyzing Issue Before Making Final Decision. "The Massachusetts Democrat said Wednesday he'd put off any final decision on medical marijuana because there's 'a study under way analyzing what the science is.'" (Jennifer Harper, "Inside Politics," The Washington Times, 8/8/03)Flip-Flopped On Burma SanctionsIn 1995, Kerry Was Against Burma Sanctions. "'I question whether isolation is a successful means of promoting political change,' Kerry told a constituent in a 1995 letter justifying his opposition to a Burma sanction bill." (Geeta Anand, et al., "Menino Gets Ahead Of Himself, Starts Contemplating Third Term," The Boston Globe, 5/18/97)But Now Kerry Supports Burma Sanctions. "In his 1996 reelection campaign, Kerry, after Governor William F. Weld took up the cause, was badgered by advisers into shifting his position. But as he eyes a presidential campaign and the Burma sanction movement gains credibility, Kerry ? describes the Burma regime as a 'semi-criminalized dictatorship ? which should not be treated with respect by other nations, but should be instead subject to limitations on travel, investment, and access to the most developed nations.'" (Geeta Anand, et al., "Menino Gets Ahead Of Himself, Starts Contemplating Third Term," The Boston Globe, 5/18/97)Flip-Flopped On Military Experience As Credential For Public OfficeKerry: Service Should Not Be "Litmus Test" For Leadership. "Mr. President, you and I know that if support or opposition to the war were to become a litmus test for leadership, America would never have leaders or recover from the divisions created by that war. You and I know that if service or nonservice in the war is to become a test of qualification for high office, you would not have a Vice President, nor would you have a Secretary of Defense and our Nation would never recover from the divisions created by that war." (Sen. John Kerry, Congressional Record, 10/08/92, p. S17709)But Now Kerry Constantly "Challenges The Stature Of His Democratic Opponents" Over Their Lack Of Military Service. "And more than ever, Mr. Kerry is invoking his stature as a Vietnam veteran as he challenges the stature of his Democratic opponents -- none of whom, he frequently points out, have 'worn the uniform of our country' -- to withstand a debate with Mr. Bush on national security." (Adam Nagourney, "As Campaign Tightens, Kerry Sharpens Message," The New York Times, 8/10/03)Flip-Flopped On PACsKerry Used To Decry "Special Interests And Their PAC Money." "'I'm frequently told by cynics in Washington that refusing PAC money is naive,' Kerry told his supporters in 1985. 'Do you agree that it is "naïve" to turn down special interests and their PAC money?'" (Glen Johnson, "In A Switch, Kerry Is Launching A PAC," The Boston Globe, 12/15/01)But Now, Kerry Has Established His Own PAC. "A week after repeating that he has refused to accept donations from political action committees, Senator John F. Kerry announced yesterday that he was forming a committee that would accept PAC money for him to distribute to other Democratic candidates. ? Kerry's stance on soft money, unregulated donations funneled through political parties, puts him in the position of raising the type of money that he, McCain, and others in the campaign-finance reform movement are trying to eliminate." (Glen Johnson, "In A Switch, Kerry Is Launching A PAC," The Boston Globe, 12/15/01)Flip-Flopped On $10,000 Donation Limit To His PACWhen Kerry Established His PAC In 2001, He Instituted A $10,000 Limit On Donations. "A week after repeating that he has refused to accept donations from political action committees, Senator John F. Kerry announced yesterday that he was forming a committee that would accept PAC money for him to distribute to other Democratic candidates ? The statement also declared that the new PAC would voluntarily limit donations of so-called soft money to $10,000 per donor per year and disclose the source and amount of all such donations." (Glen Johnson, "In A Switch, Kerry Is Launching A Pac," The Boston Globe, 12/15/01) One Year Later, Kerry Started Accepting Unlimited Contributions. "Senator John F. Kerry, who broke with personal precedent last year when he established his first political action committee, has changed his fund-raising guidelines again, dropping a $10,000 limit on contributions from individuals, a cap he had touted when establishing the PAC. The Massachusetts Democrat said yesterday he decided to accept unlimited contributions, which has already allowed him to take in 'soft money' donations as large as $25,000, because of the unprecedented fund-raising demands confronting him as a leader in the Senate Democratic caucus." (Glen Johnson, "Kerry Shifts Fund-Raising Credo For His Own PAC," The Boston Globe, 10/4/02)Flip-Flopped On Using Personal Funds In 1996 RaceIn 1996, Kerry And Weld Established $500,000 Limit Of Personal Wealth To Be Used In Senate Campaign. "In 1996, Kerry and Weld gave their already noteworthy Senate race added significance by establishing a spending cap. The candidates agreed to spend no more than $6.9 million from July 1 through the election. Weld ended up spending $6.6 million and Kerry $6.3 million. One key element of the agreement limited the candidates to spending $500,000 in personal wealth, a clause Weld favored because Kerry is married to a millionaire, Teresa Heinz." (Glen Johnson, "In Kerry's Plan For A Pac, The Resolution Of Opposites," The Boston Globe, 12/18/01)Kerry Broke Agreement By Spending $1.2 Million Over Limit. "[P]ost-election reports showed a last-minute infusion of $1.7 million from Kerry's wife, heiress Teresa Heinz. ? [K]erry denied that his campaign violated its agreement. The money had been loaned--not contributed--by his wife, he explained. 'There was nothing in the agreement that restricted us from taking a loan ? and we paid it back in $1,000 and $2,000 chunks.'" ("Global Ecology Lobby Rocked By Defection," Polit

And this has what to do with fishing?

The first tug on the line is the most exhilirating feeling. I find fishing to be very relaxing. I think it has something to do with the sound and smell of the water and just the waiting. I haven't been for a while but the grand kids are getting older so we might start again soon.Deb Grant

fishing...you mean that's what i was doing when i bought several reels and poles, about $200 worth of lures, gathered some slimy worms and headed for the lake or pond every weekend and sat there for hours without a nibble?now i just sit at home and drink a beer or two. sama effect.:-&

I grew up with a gun in one hand and a fishing pole in the other, thanks dad!!!!Unfortunatly it is detrimental to our health if we eat too much of those fish we spend so much of time and monies on.Still enjoyable though, sitting out in the boat on a hot sunny day, until I have to pee of course..darn beer!!!

I'm going fishing for the first time later this month.Don't have the faintest idea about the subject/or skills involved but its something I've always wanted to do.I'll be fishing from the shoreline (beach/rocks) on the north east coast of England.Any tips/advice? A friend is lending me some equipment.My wife is being patient with me.

My dad is a fisherman..he goes on his own, at night, w/ only 1 fishing rod and a few Rapalas...and goes for prey-fishI understand fishing, but what do you do when you caught the little (or big) thing?...ease their suffering? :-& or throw them back? ...and another thing! has anyone seen Ren and Stimpy going fishing? :> :> :> Vince! have FUN!

Vince, be careful mate. I'd hate for you to get into trouble for exceeding your EU quota.

I ALWAYS throw them back. I don't even like fish, just fishing. Deb Grant

I only enjoy killing the fish! My wife cath them, and then I move in for the moment of truth!

well, i just voted. i came on just to see the new posts, and i think something is getting lost in all this political stuff.regardless of who wins this election, the sun will rise tommarow-or at least i'll have to take you guys word for it (rochester is probably cloudier than seattle in november!).after the past few weeks of hystrionics, shouting matches and accusations (on BOTH sides), i think this may be the election with the most overreaction and downright silliness since 1980. i was just entering junior high that year, and all i heard was how if reagan were to win the election, there would be a nuclear holocaust with russia.reagan, love him or hate him (and i hated him back then- i was actually pretty liberal), won the cold war without so much as one bomb fired off. i think that's where i started to change to my conservative viewpoint.do we come off as arrogant with our medling foriegn policy? seems it. but we would be equally ignorant to act as though we should ignore everyone else and just tend to domestic issues. we need balance between the two.we just spent 8 years prior to this administration with a president who tried pounding it in to us that all that mattered was having money in your wallet. so bin laden is still alive today allegedly, having let previous chances to get him slip away (and get stronger). bush has screwed some things up, but he has done a few things well, and terrorism was something that he inherited from presidents past, not created by himself.for all the flack the guy has recieved (some justified, some not!), i will be looking at kerry, should he win with a close eye. he's made his promises and his guarantees- he would have to deliver them. that's the standard he has held bush to, so he would have to be held just as accountable and subjected all the second-guessers. i have no faith in john kerry. he seems bent on putting the muslim radicals and quest to eliminate all their planets co-inhabitants on the back burner. should he win, i hope like hell my suspicions are found to be incorrect. but the world has been through the turbulent times before and made it through. and it will again.so let me be the first to sign on to hoping that good things come from this election no matter who wins. is anyone else on board?

Hi Fran---been to the polls already this morning and I have to say that I was happy to see lots of young voters there. I think the Register to Vote campaign may have worked. Karma has a way of working things out. I am a firm believer that things happen or do not happen for a reason. The reason might not be apparent at first but it will eventually show itsself. We can only hope that who ever wins, has a good Karma on his side and things work out. Deb Grant

Vince, NE coast...thermals and a flask of coffee.I do quite a bit of sea fishing, especially conga eals as they give a hell of a fight and there are plenty of wrecks in these waters. Bass fishing almost cost me my relationship......night after night, month after month and nothing to show for it, I've had to give up....but one day.....i'll get one.....just one......that's all i want....just one little bass(tard)!!

LOL Choccy. Sounds a bit like an addiction huh? I know guys who fish for weeks and never have anything to show for it. Salmon fishing in this country is big. When they are running, men drop what they are doing and fly to the nearest salmon spawning stream. Some fly to Canada, some to the Pacific Northwest. Hmmmm sounds like another addiction I can think of (PG and his music).Deb Grant

Good work Phran! You are a good person, and I think you did the right thing today.

Yummy, I bit!

it strikes me that Aristotle would be better served as fish bait, judging by the pseudo intellectual c**p he's been posting here. If you can't explain it in a few words, then you probably don't know what you are talking about. You are living proof my friend

bump for The Family and the Fishing-net