Democrats' new JFK tough on Bush war

January 22, 2004

Tuesday, 20 January , 2004, 11:41

Washington: John Forbes Kerry is a blue-blooded and much-decorated Vietnam war hero who went on to become an outspoken opponent of that conflict and is now an equally harsh critic of the Iraq war.

Though the surprise winner of the opening Democratic Party nomination vote in Iowa has insisted the outspoken "anger" shown by other candidates is not the way to beat President George W Bush, Kerry did not hesitate to use the "F" word to express his outrage over the Iraq invasion -- making even the White House blanch.

With his aristocratic background, JFK initials harking back to the Kennedy era, wealth, war record and long Senate service, Kerry was considered a natural Democratic candidate for the presidency when he launched his campaign in December 2002.

But it was a struggle after former Vermont governor Howard Dean took centre stage in the Democratic battle with his successful Internet campaign to sign up supporters and collect donations.

Kerry had to take out a six million dollar loan -- mortgaging his half of the family home in Boston -- in December to refinance his campaign. He also put $850,000 of his own money into the campaign.

Kerry already comes from a wealthy background. His mother was part of the Forbes family. His wife, Teresa Heinz, inherited an estimated $500 million when her first husband died.

But the Massachusetts senator is used to taking tough action to save his skin, political or otherwise. After graduating from Yale University in 1966, Kerry enlisted in the US Navy and served as a gunboat officer in Vietnam, winning a Silver Star, a Bronze Star, and three Purple Hearts.

Kerry was reunited in Iowa on Saturday, with Jim Rassmann, whose life he saved in March 1969 in Vietnam's Bay Hap River. Rassmann was a Green beret who had been blown off the gunboat. Kerry rescued him even though he had been wounded in one arm.

"Oh God, it was very, very moving," declared Kerry. "Here's a guy I haven't seen in 35 years. And the last time I saw him we were both about to be killed."

"We had just sort of gone separate ways. As it was in Vietnam, you would encounter people, have these terrifying moments. You'd be joined together in this incredible bond for a moment, and then missions would take you elsewhere, and you wouldn't see each other."

Kerry was disgusted by what he saw in Vietnam. On his return to the United States he became an active leader of the Vietnam Veterans Against the War. He made a nationwide headlines with his 1971 comment to the Senate foreign affairs committee, "How do you ask a man to be the last man to die for a mistake?"

Kerry failed in a bid for the House of Representatives in 1972, went back to law school and entered public service as a state prosecutor. He entered the Senate in 1984 for Massachusetts and is now one of its longest serving members.

With his war record and service on the foreign relations committee, Kerry says he has the best qualifications to counter President George W Bush on national security.

For most people, as soon as Bush took office it was just a question of time before Kerry declared himself a candidate. The formal announcement was made in front of the World War II aircraft carrier USS Yorktown, flanked by some of his Vietnam crewmates.

But Iraq has caused him problems as he voted for the congressional resolution in October 2002 that gave Bush permission to declare war in Iraq.

Since the conflict, however, he has virtually declared war on Bush's policy. In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine published in December, Kerry said he voted for the authorisation resolution because he thought it was best for the country at the time.

"Did I expect George Bush to f... it up as badly as he did? I don't think anybody did," he declared, shocking the White House, which hinted that it expected an apology.

But Kerry has not relented, calling for greater United Nations and other international involvement in Iraq. "I think this administration has run the most reckless, arrogant, inept, and ideological foreign policy in modern history," he said Sunday.

His campaign in Iowa has made a spectacular comeback in the past week as Kerry kept out of the negative attacks made by the Democratic frontrunners on each other.

With New Hampshire to hold its first primary in eight days, Kerry is already seeing his ratings increase there and the state's leading newspaper, the Concord New Hampshire Monitor, gave a new boost when it endorsed the war veteran on Sunday.

Kerry has two grown daughters, Vanessa and Alexandra, from his first marriage who have been helping his White House bid.

ancient_paztriot · January 22, 2004

Nice to hear. But then politicians obviously tell people what they want to hear. After awhile, they all sound the same to me. I think less than half the people even bother to vote these days.

We don't know who these political figures are…

They sell us the President, the same way, they sell us our clothes and our cars - Jackson Browne

Is the candidate rich? Is he involved in business? The government cannot be run like a business… which is what they conspire to do.

Now this is common sense… The Bush gang didn't start this without the intention of seeing it through. The political figures are the front men. The real economic misers are the old-boy network of capitalist thieves. Do you think their program has changed because of a new candidate?

I say they are intrinched and near impossible to remove without the citizens understanding what is right and wrong. There is also the effort to keep the citizens ignorant.