Kerry's Extreme Makeover On The War On Terror/Kerry Surrogates On The Attack

George W. Bush ^ | July 19, 2004

[RWR8189]

To:     Interested Parties
From: Bush-Cheney '04
RE:     Kerry's Extreme Makeover On The War
           On Terror/Kerry Surrogates On The
           Attack

With his convention just days away, John Kerry is working to reverse a record on intelligence and national security that would weaken our ability to fight and win the War on Terror.

The United States is engaged in a war against terror that requires principled, decisive leadership and an unflinching commitment to protect our homeland from the threat of global terror.  President George W. Bush provides this leadership.

While the 9/11 Commission report confirms that the blame for 9/11 lies squarely with the al-Qaida network, the President and Congress are taking important steps to protect America from future threats:

• Substantially increased funding for counterterrorism efforts;
• Passed the USA PATRIOT Act to break down "the wall" between intelligence gathering and law enforcement;
• Conducted the largest reorganization of the federal government since 1947 by creating the Department of Homeland Security;
• Created the Terrorist Threat Integration Center to provide a more complete intelligence analysis of the threats facing us at home and abroad.
• Greatly increased support for our first responders, and we have increased security on airplanes and other transportation systems, on our borders, and in our ports.  

The reforms put in place by President Bush put us on a path toward increased security.  

We have acted to address some of the most difficult challenges we face – but the President agrees with the Commission that more needs to be done.

Our opponent has a very different approach when it comes to intelligence reform.  Today, while President Bush welcomed recommendations for additional reforms from the Commission, our opponent politicized the important work of this bipartisan commission.  He placed a serious report about an issue as serious as any we are dealing with as a nation squarely in the realm of politics and negative attacks.

The conversation about how best to reform our nation's intelligence capabilities is an important one.  It should take place outside any personal political agenda and should not include rage filled rants from Kerry surrogates like Max Cleland who accuse the President, Vice President and Secretary of State Colin Powell of lying to Congress.  The Kerry campaign is focused on far-fetched personal attacks like calling the President a "macho man," instead of turning its attention to the important work at hand.

I.  We Cannot Trust John Kerry With Our Nation's Intelligence
The political attacks launched by John Kerry show us that we can't trust the presidency to someone who plays politics with our nation's intelligence capabilities instead of focusing on solutions and reform.  

At a time when the men and women of our intelligence community are working hard to anticipate the moves of a shadowy new enemy, we cannot trust the presidency to someone who has a record of supporting deep cuts to our nation's intelligence agencies.

II.  We Cannot Trust John Kerry To Support Our Troops
We cannot trust the presidency to someone who makes decisions on matters of national security by holding up his finger to determine which way the political winds are blowing.

We cannot trust the presidency to someone who votes to send our men and women in the military to war and then votes against body armor and combat pay for those very same men and women on the front lines in Afghanistan and Iraq.  This is a vote that put John Kerry and John Edwards so far out of the mainstream, only two other U.S. Senators shared their position of voting for the war and against the troops.

At a time when all Americans -- Democrats and Republicans -- agree that there's nothing more important than supporting our men and women on the front lines, we cannot trust the presidency to someone who puts politics ahead of principle and casts a vote against our troops.

III.  We Cannot Trust John Kerry To Lead Our Nation In The War On Terror
We cannot trust the presidency to someone who has more positions on Iraq and the War on Terror than anyone can count, most recently embracing the Bush Doctrine on Friday after spending months on the campaign trail attacking the President's policy of confronting threats to our nation in a proactive manner.

We cannot trust the presidency to someone who is waiting to unearth a signed copy of a joint operating agreement between Saddam Hussein and al Qaeda before he accepts that Iraq's ties to terror represented a threat to our country.

John Kerry looked at the same intelligence as President Bush, the United States Congress and many of our allies.  John Kerry voted for the war in Iraq.  John Kerry now uses the war as a political punching bag, denigrating the contributions of our allies by asserting that we are "going it alone" when more than 30 nations stand shoulder to shoulder with the United States as we support the new government in Iraq.  We cannot trust the presidency to someone who disrespects our allies by calling them "window dressing."

The world is more safe and America is more secure because Saddam Hussein is out of power, but John Kerry can't even give a straight answer on whether he believes the decision to remove Saddam Hussein was right or wrong.

IV.  We Cannot Trust John Kerry To Lead On Homeland Security
We cannot trust the presidency to someone who, despite a vote in favor of the Patriot Act, now seeks to weaken the Patriot Act, a common sense law that gives law enforcement officers the same tools to fight terrorists that have long been used to fight drug dealers.

Amid a changing threat to our homeland, we cannot trust the presidency to someone who blocked and delayed efforts to streamline our nation's homeland security efforts because of the objections of a handful of union bosses.

I.  Kerry's Record On Intelligence

Kerry Proposed Cuts To Intelligence During The 1990s

Kerry Was On Senate Select Intelligence Committee For Eight Years (1993-2000).  (Michael Barone and Grant Ujifusa, The Almanac Of American Politics 2000, 1999, p. 1796; Michael Barone and Grant Ujifusa, The Almanac Of American Politics 1998, 1997, p. 1579; Michael Barone and Grant Ujifusa, The Almanac Of American Politics 1996, 1995, p. 1494; Michael Barone and Grant Ujifusa, The Almanac Of American Politics 1994, 1993, p. 1427)

• While On The Committee, Kerry Proposed At Least Three Significant Cuts To The Intelligence Budget Totaling $7.5 Billion, Which Were Criticized By Fellow Democrats. 
   

Kerry Attacked The President Over The National Intelligence Estimate But Hadn't Read It Himself

Kerry Campaign Attacks The President, Accusing Him Of Not Reading The Entire National Intelligence Estimate.  (Kerry-Edwards Campaign, "Kerry:  What Did He Know And When Did He Know It? Bush Fights The Release Of More Potential Damaging Information," Press Release, 7/14/04)

Despite The Attack, It Was Later Revealed That Kerry Had Himself Not Read The Report.  "Democratic candidate John Kerry, whose campaign demanded to know on Wednesday whether President Bush read a key Iraq intelligence assessment, did not read the document himself before voting to give Bush the authority to go to war, aides acknowledged.  'Along with other senators, he was briefed on the contents of the NIE (National Intelligence Estimate) by (then-CIA Director) George Tenet and other administration intelligence officials,' said Kerry spokesman Phil Singer."  (Adam Entous, "Kerry Didn't Read Iraq Report Before Vote - Aides," Reuters, 7/14/04)

II.  John Kerry Has Offered Seven Explanations For His Vote Against The Troops:

1.       Kerry Had Characterized A Vote Against The Funding As "Irresponsible."  Doyle McManus (LA Times): "If that amendment does not pass, will you then vote against the $87 billion?"  Kerry: "I don't think any United States senator is going to abandon our troops and recklessly leave Iraq to - to whatever follows as a result of simply cutting and running. That's irresponsible."  (CBS, "Face the Nation," 9/14/03)

2.       Kerry Voted Against $87 Billion War Supplemental.  (S. 1689, CQ Vote #400: Passed 87-12: R 50-0; D 37-11; I 0-1, 10/17/03, Kerry Voted Nay)

3.       Kerry Offered A Tortured Explanation Of His Vote Against The $87 Billion To Support Troops In Iraq.  "I actually did vote for the $87 billion before I voted against it." (Richard W. Stevenson and Adam Nagourney, "Bush's Campaign Emphasizes Role Of Leader In War," The New York Times, 3/17/04)

4.       In May, Kerry Said He Would Support $25 Billion In Emergency Funds For Our Troops.  Kerry: "I will support the Administration's request for emergency funds for our troops. The situation in Iraq has deteriorated far beyond what the Administration anticipated. This money is urgently needed, and it is completely focused on the needs of our troops. We must give our troops the equipment and support to carry out their missions in Iraq and Afghanistan." ("Statement from John Kerry on the Administration's Request for $25 Billion in Emergency Funding to Support the Troops," U.S. Newswire, 5/13/04)

5.       Kerry Then Skipped The Vote On The $25 Billion Supplemental For Funding Troops In Iraq And Afghanistan.  (S. 2400, CQ Vote #106: Adopted 95-0: R 49-0; D 45-0; I 1-0, 6/2/04, Kerry Did Not Vote)

6.       Kerry Said He's "Proud" That He And Edwards Voted Against $87 Billion In Funding For U.S. Soldiers. "Here is the value that John Edwards and I will put in place.  I'm proud to say that John joined me in voting against that $87 billion when we knew the policy had to be changed." (John Kerry, Remarks at "Women's Voices: A Luncheon with John Kerry," Boston, MA, 7/12/04)

7.       Kerry Says His Vote Against Body Armor And Supplies For Troops Was "Complicated." Don Imus:  "That's probably a longer answer than I would be able to give to, say, Senator Miller or Senator Hatch, but ..." Sen. Kerry:  "Well, you know, that's a problem.  Some of these things are a little complicated.  They like to simplify them and pretend to America.  The pretending time is over." (MSNBC's "Imus in the Morning," 7/15/04)

Kerry Adviser On Vote Against The $87 Billion Appropriation:  "Off The Record, He Did It Because Of Howard Dean.  On The Record, He Has An Elaborate Explanation."  "That unease is compounded by the obvious political calculation of Kerry's vote last fall to withhold eighty-seven billion dollars of auxiliary support for the military in Afghanistan and Iraq. As one of his advisers put it to me, 'Off the record, he did it because of Howard Dean. On the record, he has an elaborate explanation.' Kerry originally supported an amendment sponsored by Senator Joseph Biden that would have funded the war by temporarily reducing Bush's tax cuts to the wealthiest one per cent of Americans. But Biden's bill had no chance of passing in a Republican-dominated Senate, and Kerry's absurdly abbreviated account of the matter--'I did vote for the eighty-seven billion before I voted against it'--has left him open to relentless Republican ridicule. Biden himself ultimately voted for the money, and he confirmed that Kerry's decision not to was 'tactical,' an attempt 'to prove to Dean's guys I'm not a warmonger.'"  (Philip Gourevitch, "Damage Control," The New Yorker, 7/26, Available At http://www.newyorker.com/fact/content/?040726fa_fact, Accessed 7/19)

III.  Kerry Cannot Be Trusted To Lead In The War On Terror

Kerry Has Taken Both Sides Of The Bush Doctrine

While we welcome John Kerry's newfound support for preemption, he has a long record of attacking the Bush Doctrine, President Bush's policy of seeking out threats to our nation before they materialize.

Kerry Says He Would Launch Preemptive Strikes Against Terrorists. "Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry said Friday he would be willing to launch a pre-emptive strike against terrorists if he had adequate intelligence of a threat.  Kerry offered some support for one of the most controversial aspects of President Bush's national security policy, even as he criticized the president for not reforming intelligence agencies after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.  'Am I prepared as president to go get them before they get us if we locate them and have the sufficient intelligence? You bet I am,' he said at a news conference at his Washington headquarters." (Ken Guggenheim, "Kerry Offers Support For Pre-Emptive Strikes Against Terrorists," The Associated Press, 7/16/04)

In 2003 Boston Globe Guest Commentary, Kerry Denounced "The Threat Of Military Preemption Against Terrorist Organizations." "It is troubling that this administration's approach to the menace of loose nuclear materials is long on rhetoric but short on execution. It relies unwisely on the threat of military preemption against terrorist organizations, which can be defeated if they are found but will not be deterred by our military might." (John Kerry, Op-Ed, "Moscow Treaty Is Full Of Holes, The Boston Globe, 3/5/03)

Kerry Has Repeatedly Criticized The Coalition Partners

More Than 30 Countries Are Contributing Some 22,000 Troops To Help Iraq.

Kerry Dismissed Coalition Partners As "Window Dressing" And Claimed They're Not Sharing Burden Of War And Reconstruction.  CNN'S BILL HEMMER: "The White House would say that dozens of countries are helping now in the effort on the ground in Iraq and they are engaged with the U.N., as well, how would more international involvement prevent the violence we're seeing today?"  SEN. JOHN KERRY: "Well, the fact is that those countries are really window dressing to the greatest degree. And they weren't there in the beginning when we went in, and they're not carrying the cost of this war. What we need is, the war - the occupation at this point, what we need is a much broader involvement. And I think that the overall foreign policy of the United States has a profound impact on that. How we deal with North Korea, how we deal with proliferation, how we deal with AIDS, how we deal with global warming, how we deal with the United Nations itself. It's all cumulative. And the cumulative bank account of the United States of goodwill and of good feeling has really been exhausted by this administration's arrogant attitude."  (CNN's "American Morning," 3/2/04)

Kerry Derides U.S. Troops As "Occupiers" And Coalition Partners As "Barely Willing To Do Anything At All."  "We were told Iraqis would see us as 'liberators.'  Too often they see us as occupiers, as a foreign power ruling over their country - preventing self-determination, not providing it. We were told there would be a great international coalition of the willing.  But this President's pride has brought us a coalition of the few barely willing to do anything at all: 160 Mongolians, 43 Estonians, and 83 Filipinos isn't a coalition; it's a cover-up." (Sen. John Kerry, Remarks, Winning The Peace In Iraq, Washington, DC, 9/30/03)

Kerry Mocked Coalition As "Coerced" And "Bribed."  "'If the federal government can find billions of dollars for the "coalition of the coerced and the bribed," why can't it provide vital aid for schools, health care and law enforcement?' asked Kerry." (Herbert A. Sample, "Kerry Blasts Bush On Iraq Effort," Sacramento Bee, 3/14/03)

John Kerry Has Taken Both Sides Of The War In Iraq

December 2001: Kerry Ready To Include Saddam Hussein In War On Terror.  CNN'S LARRY KING: "What about enhancing this war, Senator Kerry. What are your thoughts on going further than Afghanistan, all terrorist places ..."  KERRY: "Oh, I think we clearly have to keep the pressure on terrorism globally. This doesn't end with Afghanistan by any imagination. And I think the president has made that clear. I think we have made that clear. Terrorism is a global menace. It's a scourge. And it is absolutely vital that we continue, for instance, Saddam Hussein."  (CNN's "Larry King Live," 12/14/01)

October 2002: Kerry Voted For Iraq War Resolution. (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)

March 2003: Kerry Said Saddam Hussein's WMD Are Threat.  SEN. JOHN KERRY: "I think Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction are a threat, and that's why I voted to hold him accountable and to make certain that we disarm him. I think we need to ..."  (NPR's "All Things Considered," 3/19/03)

October 2003: Kerry Voted Against Senate Passage Of Iraq/Afghanistan Reconstruction Package.  (S. 1689, CQ Vote #400: Passed 87-12: R 50-0; D 37-11; I 0-1, 10/17/03, Kerry Voted Nay)

January 2004: Kerry Says He Is An Anti-War Candidate. MSNBC'S 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?" SEN. JOHN 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)

IV.   Kerry Has Blocked Efforts To Make Us Safer At Home

Kerry Changed His Position On The Patriot Act

Kerry Voted For The PATRIOT Act. (H.R. 3162, CQ Vote #313: Passed 98-1: R 49-0; D 48-1; I 1-0, 10/25/01, Kerry Voted Yea)

On Senate Floor, Kerry "Pleased" With The PATRIOT Act. "I am pleased at the compromise we have reached on the antiterrorism legislation, as a whole, which includes the sunset provision on the wiretapping and electronic surveillance component. It has been a source of considerable concern for people, and I think the sunset provision provides Congress a chance to come back and measure the record appropriately, and that is appropriate." (Sen. John Kerry, Congressional Record, 10/25/01, p. S11027)

Kerry Called For Replacing The PATRIOT Act With A New Law. "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." (Sen. John Kerry, Remarks At Iowa State University, 12/1/03)

Kerry Would Seek To Limit Sneak And Peek And Place "Reasonable Safeguards" On Wiretap And Library Searches. Kerry's outline to "End The Era Of John Ashcroft" includes: "Strengthen terrorism laws that work, including sharing information with local law enforcement. Stop unreasonable sneak and peek searches, and ensure that there are reasonable safeguards on the use of roving wiretaps and the seizing of library and business records. Assuring that terrorism laws are used to combat terrorism and not in ordinary criminal cases, such as to send the FBI to churches or anti-war demonstrations or to help a political cause. Assuring government is transparent and information is available so that Congress and the public can hold the Justice Department accountable." (John Kerry For President Website, www.johnkerry.com/issues/100days/civil_liberties.html, Accessed 2/6/04)

Kerry Delayed Creation Of The Department Of Homeland Security

Kerry Helped Lead The Fight Against President Bush's Department Of Homeland Security, Voting Against It Six Times. (H.R. 5005, CQ Vote #218: Motion Rejected 50-49: R 0-48; D 49-1; I 1-0, 9/19/02, Kerry Voted Yea; H.R. 5005, CQ Vote #225: Motion Rejected 49-49: R 1-47; D 47-2; I 1-0, 9/25/02, Kerry Voted Yea; H.R. 5005, CQ Vote #226: Motion Rejected 50-49: R 1-48; D 48-1; I 1-0, 9/26/02, Kerry Voted Yea; H.R. 5005, CQ Vote #227: Motion Rejected 44-53: R 1-46; D 42-7; I 1-0, 9/26/02, Kerry Voted Yea; H.R. 5005, CQ Vote #228: Motion Rejected 45-52: R 2-46; D 42-6; I 1-0, 10/1/02, Kerry Voted Yea; H.R. 5005, CQ Vote #241: Motion Agreed To 50-47: R 48-0; D 1-46; I 1-1, 11/13/02, Kerry Voted Nay)

• Senate Dems Stalled Homeland Security For 112 Days. (H.R. 5005, Received In The Senate 7/30/02; H.R. 5005, CQ Vote #249: Passed 90-9: R 48-0; D 41-8; I 1-1, 11/19/02, Kerry Voted Yea)  

In 2003, Kerry Skipped Vote On $29.3 Billion Homeland Security Appropriations. (H.R. 2555, CQ Vote #306: Passed 93-1: R 50-0; D 42-1; I 1-0, 7/24/03, Kerry Did Not Vote)

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Forwarded it along to "my people"...everyone should do the same!!!!

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