The Art of Politics

Say What?

Kerry continues his incoherence on Iraq...

With polling emerging that shows Bush with a solid lead over Kerry as the candidates race the back stretch and approach the clubhouse turn, Kerry has moved toward a more provocative difference with the White House on Iraq, creating a real mess of his position on the war in Iraq, and is likely to gain little.

Kerry's position has evolved recently from a guarded similarity with Bush, stating at the August 5th UNITY conference remarking that knowing what we know now "You bet we might have" gone into Iraq, itself incoherent but at least plausibly indicating a forceful confrontation with Iraq, to a spirited defense that he "voted to hold [Saddam] accountable and continues to believe that it was the right thing to do", to his statement to the American Legion that when it came to Iraq, he "would have done almost everything differently", to today's iteration, which is now full circle on Iraq, saying "It's the wrong war in the wrong place at the wrong time".

This latest statement of course begs the question - why on Earth did you vote for it then? It also echoes of a war past, and anyone with spare time and a LexisNexis account may find this isn't the first time he's mentioned such words...

We noted that the Kerry campaign was veering left, likely on advice from his staff, and this appears to be part and parcel of the attempt to draw a distinction between the candidates, which is what a challenger, and a losing one especially, must do. The problem is that Kerry has made his bed on Iraq, with tough talk in the 90's and leading to the final measure to remove Saddam, his vote to authorize force to depose him, and his subsequent half-hearted and equivocated but nonetheless passable support.

The other component that doesn't get as much attention but is just as if not more offensive is the continued disdain of the other nations supporting the US in Iraq, and today Kerry offered his most derisive and insulting statement yet, calling the coalition helping the US "the phoniest thing I ever heard." Phony as Christmas in Cambodia? Easter in Tehran? Arbor Day in Damascus?

While consistently underplayed in the media, this is a seriously offensive line to take with countries who have people dying in Iraq. And as Kerry offers timetables of six months to four years on withdrawals, he would do well to remember that said withdrawals are based on the assumption of additional troops from other nations, who are sure to appreciate Kerry's kind words for our current allies.

This is all new Iraq language showing Kerry thinks he is behind, long term, so he must reshuffle the deck and play a new hand. The problem is, these cards are not going to draw a hand high enough to beat an incumbent President. His strongest suit is domestic issues, but seeing Bush's pile of foreign policy chips Kerry can't resist playing his hand for them.

Americans are willing to elect a President who supported the Iraq war. Americans are willing to elect a President who opposed the Iraq war. Americans will not, however, elect a President who cannot decide between them.

The good news is, if Kerry's talking about Iraq, at least he's not talking about Viet Nam...

UPDATE: The President returns fire here...

Posted by MEC2 at September 6, 2004 02:47 PM