posted on September 9, 2004 10:21:38 AM new
You can run, but you can't hide forever john.
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Senator takes press's questions sparingly
By Charles Hurt
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
DES MOINES, Iowa — Today marks the one-month point since Sen. John Kerry last answered questions from reporters traveling with him on the campaign trail.
The last time the Democratic presidential nominee took questions from them was Aug. 9 on the edge of the Grand Canyon, when the small traveling press pool accompanying him was allowed to ask eight questions.
And the last time Mr. Kerry held a full-fledged press conference where he faced questions from the entire corps of national reporters covering his campaign was Aug. 2 in Grand Rapids, Mich. He took two questions then.
Since early August, the only substantive policy question Mr. Kerry has answered was one lobbed at him by an ABC correspondent about whether he wanted to respond to Vice President Dick Cheney's charge that Mr. Kerry wanted to wage a more "sensitive" war on terror.
"No, it's just ... it's sad that they can only be negative," Mr. Kerry said. "They have nothing to say about the future vision of America. I think Americans want a positive vision for the future."
Last month, the Massachusetts senator promised that if elected he would hold monthly press conferences. That promise came amid reports that President Bush was restricting access to his rallies and town hall meetings to Bush supporters and volunteers, and was requiring them to sign a loyalty oath.
"I'm going to have a press conference at least once a month to talk to the nation about what I'm doing, because I don't have anything to hide," Mr. Kerry told a Wisconsin audience Aug. 3.
The president also has gone long stretches without a formal press conference. It has been a couple of months since his last one.
But White House officials said Mr. Bush often takes questions after making policy announcements to the press, or at the end of a meeting with a foreign leader.
"He takes questions on a regular basis. He did a number of interviews before the [Republican] convention," White House spokesman Scott McClellan told reporters who asked about Mr. Bush's availability yesterday.
Mr. Bush took questions from reporters at least four times in August, including Aug. 2, when he announced his plan to revamp U.S. intelligence services; Aug. 9, when he appeared with Poland's prime minister; Aug. 15, when he toured damage from Hurricane Charley in Florida; and Aug. 23, when he answered a series of questions after meeting with his national security team at his ranch in Crawford, Texas.
At his Grand Canyon press conference, Mr. Kerry said he would have voted to authorize the war in Iraq even if he had known that no weapons of mass destruction would be found.
It was a statement that has drawn ridicule from Republicans and disdain from some fellow Democrats who argue that the Iraq war is unrelated to the fight against terrorism.
Since then, campaign officials have kept a greater distance between Mr. Kerry and the reporters covering him.
Campaign spokesman David Wade said yesterday that "John Kerry talks to the American voters every day" and accused Mr. Bush of forcing attendees to his campaign events "to swear loyalty to his campaign."
"The real question is why George Bush and his campaign are trying to dodge a national debate in front of a town hall of Americans," Mr. Wade said. "It's pretty clear they're afraid to talk about their record."
posted on September 9, 2004 10:52:57 AM new
It appears that every time a political statement or small speaking mis-step takes place it gets blown completely out of proportion. That would make anyone reticent to speak, I think Mrs. Kerry has gotten a sensitive version of STFU. This appears to be the obverse of flip-flop, if you can't say anything good, don't say anything. Thanks, Dubya, for the legendary faux pas of recent.
posted on September 9, 2004 04:53:55 PM newToday marks the one-month point since Sen. John Kerry last answered questions from reporters traveling with him on the campaign trail.
Just what the dems were complaining about with President Bush....'he won't get out in public and speak...he hides in the WH....his handlers are protecting him' - on and on. Now, the situation reverses itself, and look ...it's okay now. Typical lol.
kerry's can't answer questions, he hasn't decided which side of the issue he's on yet....he's still debating with himself. And those darn reporters just won't stop asking him WHY he's reversed himself...again. They keep asking, "But on Sept. xx, you said 'xxxx' now you're saying xxx." He can't answer....his backbone is swaying in the wind. Better just to refuse to answer questions all together. Kind of like his recent voting record....if he doesn't vote 85% of the time for the past year and a half...they can't call him on his lack of consistency ie: 'but you voted for it...now you're against it'.
He's a HUGE JOKE.
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"One thing is for sure: the extremists have faith in our weakness. And the weaker we are, the more they will come after us." --Tony Blair
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"The War on Terror will not be won until America is united. And as long as Democrats target the Bush administration -- not the terrorists -- as the enemy, we are in trouble." --Oliver North
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Those are only two reasons why we need to:
posted on September 9, 2004 05:18:44 PM new
People who think Kerry is a flip flopper because first he was for something and then he voted against it are very, shall I say, naive about how laws are passed, or not.
See, dopes, first a bill is introduced and the politicians look it over ...if there's something they don't like and can't change they vote no.....it comes back , it's "negotiated" and then sent for vote again. THIS time some of the people don't like the change and vote no while the ones who didn't like it in the first place do like it now and vote yes.
This is a rough version about how bills are passed in Congress but it's pretty standard procedure. Almost every single congressperson, senator, representative or schoolboard member in history has done it this way. So you COULD(if you were really stupid) call them ALL flip floppers. Just like Bush not being able to make up his mind if we CAN win the war on terror or NOT. Bush, Cheney and others have ALL at one point or another changed their minds on bills on the second, third , or fourth go-round.
Bills are complicated and don't ever include every detail in their titles. The details can be widely varied, some hidden, some that don't relate to the title at all.
This is just part of politics.
Kerry as the ONLY flip-flopper is just a typical Republican distortion of the truth, the thing they're best at.
Typical lol.