Wartime Dissent Is Part Of Patriotism, Kerry Says

Washington Post ^ | April 23, 2006 | Chris Cillizza

[West Coast Conservative]

Thirty-five years after Massachusetts Sen. John F. Kerry (D) appeared before a Senate committee to call for an end to the war in Vietnam, he defended that decision yesterday in a speech in his home town and linked it to his current insistence on an early drawdown of troops from Iraq.

Kerry, in remarks delivered in Boston's Faneuil Hall Marketplace, cast dissent in wartime as a patriotic act -- a response to Republican critics who insist that questioning the conduct of the war in Iraq emboldens America's enemies.

"I believed then, just as I believe now, that it is profoundly wrong to think that fighting for your country overseas and fighting for your country's ideals at home are contradictory or even separate duties," he said. "They are, in fact, two sides of the very same patriotic coin."

Yesterday's address was the latest move in Kerry's shadow presidential campaign, launched in the aftermath of his 2004 defeat by President Bush. In a series of speeches, guest columns and television appearances, Kerry has sought to right what many Democrats regard as the defects of that race by outlining a clear exit strategy for Iraq and vowing to fight back against GOP attacks on his and other Democrats' patriotism. Kerry's aggressive attitude is also aimed at wooing liberal voters for a potential presidential bid in 2008.

Beginning last fall, Kerry has advocated setting a timeline for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq. Recently, he said that if an Iraqi government is not formed by May 15, the United States should immediately withdraw its forces.

"If Iraqis aren't willing to build a unity government in the five months since the election, they're probably not willing to build one at all," Kerry said.

[RightWhale]

The only dissent should be over strategy and tactics in the present war. How best to win this.

[nothingnew]

Keep reminding yourself he nearly pulled it off despite his utter deficiencies.

It's always in the forefront of my mind. Hence, my tagline.

FMCDH(BITS)

[Celtjew Libertarian]

These people don't believe in majority rule, the essence of which is that once we vote, the losers shut up and get on board. I am really worn out with this perpetual campaign. We have a Republic to spare us all of that.

I don't know.... if the majority vote to jump off the proverbial cliff, I think it's a good idea to continue to shout warnings.

That said, I don't think that's quite what Kerry et.al. are doing.

[PzLdr]

And Kerry's been dissenting ever since he realized it was his way to getting elected. Kind of like he started marrying rich women when he realized he could live well off their money.

[PzLdr]

I think he was in Cambodia, too. I recall it every time I hear "Jingle Bells". It's seared in my memory.

[shield]

Hmmmm....wonder if this creep is goin' get caught up in the mess that's hitting the rat crowd? This statement at this time is just a little surprising....LOL...whose arse is he covering? Got a be his own...

[KoRn]

"This guy is as F'd up as a football bat"

Couldn't have said it any better!

[stop_fascism]

He'll probalby start taking credit for the Iraqi's progress.

[Sprite518]

LOL! Keep smoking that Pipe Traitor!

[gaspar]

Dissenters? They were called Tories during the Revolutionary War and Copperheads during the Civil War. The were called Socialist during WWI, and draft-dodgers in WWII. After that, thanks to the "progressive" element in the Democrat Party dissenters has been viewed more favorably than patriots.

[nothingnew]

I guess the word "patriotism" is the next word to get whored-out and twisted around by the liberals....

You are so right with that observation. In my 55 years on this planet, the most astounding realization I've experienced is the prostitution of "words".

Try "discriminate". Now that one has really been raped.

FMCDH(BITS)

[nothingnew]

"Hi....I'm John Kerry and I'm a a-hole. Vote for me."

FMCDH(BITS)

[usmcobra]

If that dissent is contrary to the previous position and ideas that you held, who are you really fighting against?

Let's review, the same people in congress that ordered President Bush to attack Iraq, are now the same people that want us to withdrawal from Iraq.

They should put it to a vote, or shut up.

[dighton]

I Am a Patriot Too, Dude

[Ole Okie]

He rounded them up and put them in jail during the Civil War

Lincoln rounded up one U.S. congressman who he thought was a traitor and shipped him to Jeff Davis.

Davis didn't want him and shipped him to Canada.

[Chi-townChief]

Dissent is; allying oneself with the enemy, in essence, makes you the enemy.

[nothingnew]

Interesting document..................He's know a sitting senator and came close to being POTUS.

Any random thoughts about where our Republic is headed? (oh, did I say "Republic"? ......hahahahaha!

Why do you think this traitorous bastard is a sitting Senator? For that matter, why isn't ted the swimmer not in prison and is still a sitting Senator?

I don't want to get started on this.....there's too many examples of where this "republic" is going.......and I do not discount the GOP, the "Grand Old Party".

Far as I can see, we're basically...uh...well...SOLD OUT by both (c'mon, it's really one) parties.

FMCDH(BITS)

[Jim_Curtis]

John Kerry, more than any other Senator, had no tolerance for dissent during the jihad against the Christian Serbs.

It's all in The Congressional Record.

[Danae]

"If Iraqis aren't willing to build a unity government in the five months since the election, they're probably not willing to build one at all," Kerry said.

Yet another ignorant comment! How long did it take the Japanese?

[DennisR]

Didn't Kerry lose the Presidential election? Just wondering. I heard he served in Vietnam!