'War, Terrorism, and National Security'
Senator John Kerry likes to use his service as a Lieutenant J.G. in the US Navy in Vietnam and receiving three Purple Hearts there as examples of his service to country. Here are some verifiable facts to keep in mind while the Senator talks about his dedication to veterans.
(1) Mr. Kerry's much exalted combat duty lasted only four months rather than the standard twelve months at that time. The injuries that led to his three Purple Hearts were never verified as inflicted by enemy fire (a requirement for the decoration). In one of these incidences Mr. Kerry did not report the wound until the next day. None of his wounds required or received treatment by a medic or at an aid station. Mr. Kerry's tour of duty ended early at his request, leaving his crew more vulnerable and breaking the bond of loyalty among officers and enlisted military personnel - that their commanders will not abandon them. Mr. Kerry's reason to request the early end of his combat duty was to return to the US, where he briefly was an adjutant before requesting and obtaining early release from his commitment to the Navy. He then ran unsuccessfully for the US Congress in 1970 and joined the anti-war effort.
(2) Throughout his terms in Congress, Mr. Kerry frequently voted against defense spending increases that would provide the men and women in uniform that Mr. Kerry claims he supports the tools they need to ensure successfully accomplishing the missions their Commander-in-Chief assigns them. By his own admission, Mr. Kerry voted for the additional $87 million in funding for troops and infrastructure in Afghanistan and Iraq "before I voted against it". Portraying himself as an ally of veterans while placating the anti-war groups within the Democrat ranks will be a very awkward task.
"Economy, Trade, and Jobs'
Every election cycle some candidate must run on a platform that claims economic conditions are awful. Labor Department data are wonderful in that they can be distorted to imply whatever a candidate wants them to imply. For Mr. Kerry this also will be a difficult task given his previous voting record. While Candidate Kerry often talks about fairer trade and leveling the playing field, Senator Kerry apparently never saw a trade agreement he disliked. He voted to support every one of the trade pacts he now claims take US jobs overseas. The Hins company to which Mr. Kerry owes his lavish lifestyle thanks to his wife's inherited fortune is the off-shoring poster child. Is what is good for Hines really what is good for America? One thing is sure: If elected, Mr. Kerry will do nothing that would detrimentally affect Hines, so the giant sucking sound of off-shoring will continue no matter how many times his Vice-Presidential nominee John Edwards tells tales of his supposedly impoverished childhood.
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