NYT,pg1: Kerry Urges Voters to Look Past Bush's "Last-Minute Promises"

[DeepModem Mom]

In Ohio, "upbeat and feisty," according to the reporter --


Kerry Urges Voters to Look Past Bush's 'Last-Minute Promises'
By DAVID M. HALBFINGER

Published: September 4, 2004


NEWARK, Ohio, Sept. 3 - Senator John Kerry opened the final 60 days of the presidential campaign on Friday with a slashing indictment of President Bush's record on jobs and health care, saying he had misled the United States into war in Iraq and left a trail of broken promises and worsened problems at home.

As his running mate and their wives swept across the electoral battlegrounds of Iowa, Michigan and Wisconsin, Mr. Kerry asked voters in this economically battered state to look past Mr. Bush's "last-minute promises" and focus on what he said were the facts: 1.7 million jobs lost since 2000, 1.4 million more people in 2003 without health insurance than the year before and 1.3 million more in poverty.

"Is that a reason to be re-elected?" Mr. Kerry said. "Folks, they've had four years. And what they've done is take America backwards."...

***

....it was on the economy that Mr. Kerry focused on here in Newark, a rural town of 46,000 where 4,300 people are unemployed and another local factory is set to lay off 784 workers next Thursday.

"All these attacks on me, I've been through worse, believe me - that's not what this is about," he said. "It's their attacks on you, that's what this is all about."...

(The article says that Kerry framed even the Iraq issue in economic terms: ""He told America the war would cost you how much? One billion dollars. The war has cost $200 billion, and as you look around this country, think of what that money could have done for schools, for health care, for prescription drugs, for all the things we need to do.")


http://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/04/politics/campaign/04kerry.html

[tedoll78]

1. Wow.. that was a great article..

Is it me, or was he actually insulting the intelligence of that Bush supporter?

"A mind is a terrible thing to waste, ladies and gentlemen," he said, laughing.
(Kerry, referring to a pro-Bush protester at the event)

I like it! lol..

[DeepModem Mom]

2. Or alluding to his turning his mind into that of a dittohead...

as so many Bush supporters do, instead of thinking for himself --

[JI7]

4. he is pretty good at responding to protestors with humor and fact

i liked when he was on one of his front porch tour town hall meetings and some republicans from the area came by and were shouting "4 more years" and he responds in a funny way "4 more years of WHAT"? and then he goes through a list of bush's failures and asks whether we want 4 more years of that. another time in california he pointed them out as being loud and disruptive since they odn't want to hear the truth.

remember how bush acted in an odd way during the disruption at his convention speech. he didn't really know what to do . but kerry would have used it to his benefit and made the protestors look like asses.

[Prodemsouth]

3. Take Bush by the numbers and ask them is that a reason to be elected-

repeat in campaign ad after campaign ad.

[shockingelk]

5. occupying Iraq would be free

An administration source said that most of the proposals for the conduct of the war and implementation of plans for a subsequent occupation are being drafted by the Pentagon. Last month a respected Washington think tank prepared a classified briefing commissioned by Andrew Marshall, the Pentagon's influential director of Net Assessment, on the future role of U.S. Special Forces in the global war against terrorism, among other issues. Part of the presentation recommended that oil funds be used to defray the costs of a military occupation in Iraq, according to a source who helped prepare the report.

He said that the study, undertaken by the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, concluded that "the cost of the occupation, the cost for the military administration and providing for a provisional administration, all of that would come out of Iraqi oil." He said the briefing was delivered to the office of Paul Wolfowitz, the deputy secretary of Defense and one of the administration's strongest advocates for an invasion of Iraq, on Dec. 13.

http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/0110-01.htm

I'm not sure where the $1 billion comes from. Maybe he's trying to get them to say "No, we said it would cost $40-60 billion".

[Catfight]

6. John Kerry going on offense! I'm Lovin' It!

[sandraj]

7. Great quote

"All these attacks on me, I've been through worse, believe me - that's not what this is about," he said. "It's their attacks on you, that's what this is all about."...

An excellent point and well said.

[glitch]

9. Excellent - I hope he repeats that a lot. nt

[DeepModem Mom]

8. post-poll kick --

trying to stay "upbeat" myself

[SCRUBDASHRUB]

10. Oooooooo...snap!!!!!!!

Mr. Kerry was upbeat and feisty on the attack, even noting "this lonely voice over here" of a Bush supporter on the periphery of his rally. When his supporters yelled, "Two more months!" at the man, Mr. Kerry did their barb one better.

"A mind is a terrible thing to waste, ladies and gentlemen," he said, laughing.

[DuaneBidoux]

11. Bush is investing in schools, bridges and roads, and

many great things for the community. It's just too bad they're all in a foreign country!

Try this one on for size: "The Iraq war will cost your family $5000 dollars during the next two years. What could that money have helped YOUR child?"

[manic expression]

12. I get more excited

about Kerry every time I hear another one of his speeches.