Posted on 3/29/2004, 8:01:19 AM by beaversmom
Monday, May 12, 2003 11:58 a.m. EDT
John Kerry's Newt Gingrich Problem?
After Newt Gingrich hit the national spotlight in 1994 by becoming the first Republican speaker of the House in 40 years, he was skewered by reports that he had served his first wife divorce papers as she lay in a hospital bed battling cancer.
But the press has been far kinder to Democratic presidential front-runner John Kerry, who, according to published accounts going back more than a decade, began extricating himself from his first marriage to Philadelphia heiress Julia Thorne at the same time she was battling a case of depression so debilitating that it drove her to the brink of suicide.
In an attempt to explain why he decided not to let his wife's precarious mental state derail his 1982 bid to become Michael Dukakis' lieutenant governor, Kerry told the New Yorker magazine last December, "When I get focused and set out to do something, I'm pretty good at staying focused."
"You don't want to let yourself down, you know what I'm saying?" added the ambitious Democrat without a hint of irony.
Thorne, whose family is reportedly worth $300 million, married Kerry in 1970. According the New Yorker's Joe Klein, the couple's friends said Julia was not a typical political wife.
"There were times at dinner parties when John would be very pompous, unable to control his impulse to make a speech," one acquaintance told the writer. "It was all slightly laughable, and Julia was one of those who laughed. She'd say things like, 'What the f--k did you just say?'"
Kerry's career focus was so intense that Thorne apparently felt she was an impediment to her husband's ambitions. In her 1994 book about that period in her life, titled "You Are Not Alone," she wrote:
"I could no longer pretend I was of use to my husband or my children. ... I knew that, once I was gone, my family and friends would be relieved of the burden of my incompetency."
By Thorne's own account, she began to contemplate suicide a full two years before Kerry ratcheted up his 1982 campaign. Reviewing her book shortly after it was published, the Boston Globe reported: "One night in 1980, Julia Thorne put her children to bed and then sat on the edge of her own bed to contemplate suicide. She was exhausted - overwhelmed by despair, self-loathing and pain. She wanted to lie down. Curl up. Sleep forever."
The Kerrys were separated in 1982 but didn't divorce until 1988.
Press summaries of the New Yorker report focused on other details of Kerry's life story, such as his Vietnam heroism. Most omitted any mention of Kerry's first wife altogether, a fact that likely pleased the Massachusetts Democrat. "Kerry is understandably loath to talk about the details of the marriage," noted Klein.
In response to the New Yorker report, Sen. Kerry wrote what was described as "an anguished letter" of protest to the magazine. Thorne's two daughters by Kerry also registered their displeasure. Their mother, who has since conquered her depression and is happily remarried and living in Montana, told the Globe, "I support John's [presidential] candidacy, and I believe in John's candidacy. I think he is an immensely talented statesman, and I am 100 percent behind him."
But previous reports indicate that Thorne had problems with Kerry even after they split 21 years ago.
During the period the Kerrys were separated, for instance, the senator apparently felt little constrained by his marital vows. Gossip columns at the time linked him to Morgan Fairchild, Cornelia Guest and even President Reagan's liberal daughter, Patti Davis. An upcoming Boston Globe expose will reportedly feature details of the Massachusetts Democrat's 1980s affair with a 25-year-old British reporter.
According to a previous account offered by the paper, the fact that Kerry was still technically married till 1988 "reportedly came as a surprise to some of his frequent companions."
Just weeks before his May 26, 1995, remarriage to Ketchup heiress Theresa Heinz, Thorne took Kerry to court in a bid for an increase in child support payments, arguing that "his income was up substantially," according to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
Both Kerry and Thorne denied that the lawsuit had anything to do with Heinz or her fortune.
But friction arose again two years later when Kerry, a Catholic, applied to the Washington, D.C., archdiocese to have his marriage to Thorne annulled, even though the couple had two grown daughters.
Thorne "has written a letter of opposition to the archdiocese because she feels the process demeans their relationship and their children," reported the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in 1997.
The paper blamed Kerry's new wife on the annulment bid. His office issued a terse statement: "Sen. Kerry very much understands Julia's feelings and appreciates her support. Sen. Kerry believes that this is a private family matter."
The Washington Times noted in a Kerry profile several years ago that his critics consider him "a ruthless political opportunist." Given some of the more obscure details of Kerry's first marriage, that assessment may not be too far off the mark.
Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics: DNC
Editor's note: Shop NewsMax.com’s store for the best deals on books, tapes, videos and more! Click Here Now!
I'm really curious about this. I'm not a catholic so please excuse my ignorance here. I cannot fathom how the church can annul a marriage that lasted many years and produced two children. How is this possible? Is there pure power politics involved in this or is this actually a catholic doctrine or this particular diocese's policy?
Julia Thorne
"You don't want to let yourself down, you know what I'm saying?" added the ambitious Democrat without a hint of irony.
Can't these hacks come up with a new cliché? "Focused" is so lame. I've seen La Hillary abuse it too. Also abused in countless post game (basketball, football) locker room interviews.
Glad I was never on his guest list.
It would be bad enough trying to eat a meal sitting across the table from "Mr. Ed", let alone having to sit through a recitation of his latest talking points.
It can be annuled if at the time of the vows the people taking the vows did not intend to follow the vows, or were physically or psychologically incapable of making a mature promise. It also might be invalid because you are related (i.e. cousins) or decided to use birth control and not have children.
In Teddy Kennedy's case, he married without the intention of being faithful, so he entered a marriage with a lie, never intending to fulfill his vow. Similarly, his wife was an immature alcoholic, and was probably incapable of making a vow due to this immaturity/mental illness.
In Kerry's case, he might claim similarly that his wife was mentally ill at the time of his marriage...but since depression comes and goes, she can argue against it--and has
And don't give me that line "but the children are illegitamate"...in Catholic law, the children are legitamate, but the marriage merely did not meet the criteria for a sacramental marriage...
And as for "it helps being a Kennedy"...this is nonsense. It costs all of one thousand dollars of fees to argue an annulment...and if you are poor, the fees are waived. I've had people complain about it, and I pointed out that their trucks cost ten times that much, but they bought them anyway...
As evidence, let me cite the opinion of Dan Rather of SeeBS Juanita Brodderick rape charge: Demo Dan called it a matter of Clinton's "private life."
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.