Breaking News: Obama to sign NDAA bill BUT also will issue a signing statement

[karynnj]

46. No - that is not what happened

Kerry was taking unvetted questions and took one from a a person who asked why he voted agaisnt funding the troops. He explained - in detail - that he had voted for an alternative that he and Biden sponsored that would have provided oversight and which would have been paid for by rolling back the tax cut on the wealthiest - then voted no on the version that passed - in protest over the way it added the cost to the debt. Then after another question, a second person asked the same question. Kerry then answered with the unfortunate shorthand after saying he had just answered that. What he was guilty of was simply not thinking what those words sound like out of context. (The fact is that NO ONE will ever avoid all instances like this - unfortunately, the media ignored Kerry's explanation and the fact that it was TWO DIFFERENT VERSIONS of the bill - and that Bush had said that he would veto the version Kerry supported - so each had two positions.)

Kerry has no tendency to "misremember" and there was "nuance" involved here. As to explaining after the fact - he gave a Senate speech before any votes were cast stating his position on how this should be funded - there was never any suggestion that he wanted to not fund the war at that time.