Reply #38: Boston Herald: On Iraq trip, Kerry to skip election finale [View All]

[MelissaB]

On Iraq trip, Kerry to skip election finale
By Andrew Miga
Tuesday, January 4, 2005

WASHINGTON - When Congress meets in a special joint session Thursday to count electoral ballots from the presidential race, Sen. John F. Kerry will be noticeably absent - thousands of miles away on a fact-finding trip in the Middle East.

Kerry's two-week overseas trip, which includes stops in war-ravaged Iraq, conveniently allows the defeated Democrat nominee to avoid a potentially awkward moment on the House floor as congressmen vote to certify election results.

>>snip

Vice President Dick Cheney - who zestfully played the role of President Bush's pit bull during the bitter fall contest - will preside over the official electoral vote count.

Some Democrats, citing alleged voting irregularities in Ohio, a critical battleground state, are protesting certification and urging Kerry to join them. Kerry publicly conceded the race Nov. 3.

``While he conceded the election on Nov. 3, he is still very passionate about having every vote count,'' Boyd said.

U.S. Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones (D-Ohio) called Kerry's office yesterday to try to persuade him to change his mind and join the protest. Kerry is not expected to join the protesters, which include the Rev. Jesse Jackson.


More here:
http://news.bostonherald.com/politics/view.bg?articleid=61675


Thanks to Freddie Stubbs here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x231461