Kerry Criticizes Bush for Failed Policies (New PM of Spain endorses Kerry)

[Onlooker]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=514&e=4&u=/ap/20040317/ap_on_el_pr/kerry

The last two paragraphs of this article are kind of interesting:

"Bush and Cheney have joined Republicans demanding that Kerry identify the leaders, but Kerry has refused.

"Spain's Prime Minister-elect Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero indicated his dislike of Bush's policies during the Spanish election campaign when he said he hoped Kerry would win in November. The International Herald Tribune recently quoted Zapatero as saying: 'We're aligning ourselves with Kerry. Our allegiance will be for peace, against war, no more deaths for oil, and for a dialogue between the government of Spain and the new Kerry administration.'"

[Lindacooks]

1. There's your answer

when those asshole repukes whine about Senator Kerry 'lying' about foreign leaders who want him to win.

[SeveneightyWhoa]

2. Well that isn't good.

You can just see it now:
SPANISH SOCIALISTS, ELECTED TO APPEASE TERRORISTS, PREFER KERRY!

[w4rma]

5. Anzar shouldn't have covered up for Al Queda by trying to pin the blame on

the ETA and should have better protected Spain (instead of letting his security drop, which he let happen). Zapatero will be much stronger on terrorism than Anzar ever was, imho. Zapatero's methods will be effective, unlike Anzar's.

[tobius]

15. what methods do you refer to? nt

[goforit]

11. OR.....Anti-WAR activist praises a leader of PEACE not terror!!!!

Hats off to the Spain PM!!!!!

Bush's policies create terror!!!! Or else the bombings in Spain
would have never happenned.

[Supormom]

29. My thoughts exactly.

The neocons will find a way to spin it in their favor.

[Exultant Democracy]

3. LOL, ask and you shall receive.

[prodigal_green]

4. Umm, Spain

Thanks for your support,...but that isn't really helping at the moment.

For the record--I don't think Spain is appeasing, but since that is what everyone else is saying...

[truthspeaker]

7. who cares what everyone else is saying?

For too long we've been letting right-wing extremists and spin doctors define the issues and dictate the conventional wisdom. I welcome Zapatero's support.

[goforit]

14. Here Here...well said!!!

:bounce:

[tobius]

16. why did kerry leave dean hanging on the view

that bush policies created the spain bombings? disappointing to say the least.

[nolabels]

20. Hi TRUTH SPEAKER, Huck Finn's ride down the river was an adventure

The worlds largest peace sign collection!

http://www.abcme.com/peacesigncollection/peacesigncoll.html

[stepnw1f]

6. I Could Care Less

Let them ask all they want. It doesn't matter anymore. The media can spin all they want. We have an illegally elected pResident that is possibly looking at war crimes, bankrupting the country, and treason. Plain and simple, don't get caught up in the BS.

[toopers]

8. Great, I can see the headlines now.

"Socialists back Kerry"

[w4rma]

10. That could be said for about every left-wing Party in the world

that isn't a U.S. political party.

[KC21304]

12. How about this headline:

Spain Turns Against Lying Prime Minister.

[toopers]

17. which headline do you think is going to make it in the US media?

EOM

[KC21304]

22. The real story is getting out. From Center for American Progress

SPAIN
Debasing Democracy

After 201 people were killed in a bombing in Madrid, America's right-wing propaganda machine swung into action. Their message: the defeat three days later of incumbent Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar, one of the few European leaders in lockstep with the Bush Administration's approach to terrorism, was a victory for al Qaeda. Fox News: "With the defeat of Spain's ruling party, the mutant strain of Al Qaeda has a significant victory in its efforts." The WSJ editorial page: "By murdering innocents were able to topple one of the pillars of the Western anti-terror alliance." David Brooks in the NYT: "Some significant percentage of the Spanish electorate was mobilized after the massacre to...throw out the old government and replace it with one whose policies are more to Al Qaeda's liking." Conservatives repeated the argument again and again – in the Washington Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Orlando Sentinel, the Kansas City Star, the National Review, the American Spectator, New York Newsday and on cable news and talk radio around the country. But despite the repetition, the assertion that the Spanish people voted to support or appease al-Qaeda has absolutely no grounding in fact. It is nothing more than an argument advanced by conservatives to discredit the democratic process for partisan political purposes.

FACT – THE SPANISH REJECTED BEING MISLED: The WP reports that immediately after the attacks "outgoing Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar undertook an intense campaign to convince the Spanish public and world opinion-makers that the Basque separatist group ETA had carried out the attacks." The argument was made despite the fact that "Spanish intelligence services...had suspected al Qaeda from the beginning." Just hours before the election, with the announcement that 5 suspects linked to al Qaeda had been arrested, it become clear that Aznar and his surrogates had attempted to manipulate information for their political convenience. It was then that "political allegiance shifted sharply to the opposition, especially because many Spaniards felt the government had not been completely forthcoming about the news." Nicolas Checa, a Spanish political expert, said on PBS that the number one factor behind the outcome was "the handling or mishandling of public information in the 48 hours after the tragic events of last Thursday." The real lesson: if you mislead the people in a democratic society they will hold you accountable. (Read this American Progress document to see why deceit and deception don't work.)

FACT – THE ELECTION IN SPAIN WAS ALWAYS VERY CLOSE: While the right-wing now claims that Zapatero was never in the race until the terrorist attacks occurred, the fact is, the conservative party's defeat was always a possibility. The last poll, conducted four days before the March 11 attacks, "showed that the gap had narrowed, giving the Popular Party 42%, compared with 38% for the Socialists." The four point spread is well within the standard margin of error for opinion polls.

FACT – INCOMING LEADER IS COMMITTED TO FIGHTING TERRORISM: In his first public announcement after his victory, incoming Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said, "My most immediate priority is to fight all forms of terrorism. And my first initiative, tomorrow, will be to seek a union of political forces to join us together in fighting it." Zapatero does plan, fulfilling a promise he made from the beginning his campaign, to withdraw 1300 Spanish troops from Iraq "on June 30 unless the force was sanctioned by the United Nations." But there is no evidence suggesting that placing more pressure on the Bush administration to secure international cooperation in Iraq is a victory for any terrorist.

FACT – THE WAR IN IRAQ AND AGAINST AL QAEDA ARE TWO DIFFERENT PROBLEMS: The President and his allies have used the bombing in Madrid as another opportunity to conflate operations in Iraq and the threat of al Qaeda. Yesterday, the President said, "al Qaeda has an interest in Iraq for a reason, and that interest is, they realize this is a front in the war on terror." The comments are part of a consistent pattern to confuse the separate issues of al Qaeda and Iraq. In September 2002, Bush said, "You can't distinguish between al Qaeda and Saddam when you talk about the war on terrorism." Meanwhile, as for any Iraq/al Qaeda connection before the war, Vice President Cheney says the "best source of information" was a Weekly Standard article based on leaked intelligence that has discredited by the Department of Defense.

IRAQ

[nolabels]

26. Another leader with brains, The do do that * is in is getting deeper

Thanks, for the post

[ElementaryPenguin]

25. Not to worry. Most 'Murikkans today don't know what a socialist is!

This may help Kerry - they may think a SOCIAList is some form of celeb!

[renegade000]

34. well...then theres an actually headline:

"terrorists back bush" ;)

enjoy: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/nm/20040317/wl_nm/security_spain_truce_dc&e=2&ncid=721

[Imajika]

9. That is not good press for Kerry

"Spain's Prime Minister-elect Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero indicated his dislike of Bush's policies during the Spanish election campaign when he said he hoped Kerry would win in November. The International Herald Tribune recently quoted Zapatero as saying: 'We're aligning ourselves with Kerry. Our allegiance will be for peace, against war, no more deaths for oil, and for a dialogue between the government of Spain and the new Kerry administration.'"

This is terrible for Kerry. There is absolutely nothing good about this. A Spanish socialist Prime Minister, who is already written off by the media as a terrorist appeaser, talking about aligning himself with Kerry for peace and against war?

I hope no one is under the delusion that this is a good media story for Kerry.

The average America hears something like this and they are immediately more likely to vote for Bush.

Imajika

[KC21304]

19. Don't agree. I see more people agreeing with peace not war for oil.

The tide has turned.

[truth2power]

13. How does it feel, Cheney??

Remember when the CITIZENS of this country asked you for the names of the people you met with to discuss energy policy?? And you refused to disclose anything about that meeting?? Huh?...Huh?

What's sauce for the goose.....

[Ravy]

27. What meeting?

If he can't name names, then we must be left to infer that there weren't any.

[goforit]

18. LOL!!!....Kerry refuses to identify leaders..Cheney/Bush is fretting!!!!

LOL!!!!

Way to set the agenda .............Kerry!!!

Thats how ya campaign!!!!!

Let them scream it out 24/7!!!

LEADERS SUPPORT KERRY....LEADERS SUPPORT KERRY....LEADERS SUPPORT KERRY.......LEADERS SUPPORT KERRY......LEADERS SUPPORT KERRY.....
LEADERS SUPPPORT KERRY.....LEADERS SUPPORT KERRY........

roflmao!!!!!!

[onehandle]

21. Grover Cleveland lost because of the endorsement of a foreigner.

The First Dirty Trick in American Presidential Politics was carried out by...
-------> Surprise! A Republican.
___________________________________________

But then, just two weeks before the election, the Republicans released a letter that Sir Lionel Sackville-West, the British ambassador to the United States, wrote to Charles F. Murchison in September. Murchison, who described himself as a naturalized Englishman now living in California , had asked which candidate for president would be good for Great Britain. The ambassador indiscreetly suggested that he favored Cleveland's election. When the word spread that the British ambassador prefererred Cleveland, the Irish abandoned his campaign. In November Cleveland lost New York and the election (though he won more popular votes than Harrison).

The dirty trick? The Englishman who wrote Sir Lionel Sackville-West was not really an Englishman at all. His real name was George Osgoodby. And he was a California Republican. Cleveland had been undone by a Republican hoax.

http://hnn.us/articles/3593.html

[onehandle]

24. Followup: CNN tells half of this truth...

This morning they offhandedly mentioned that the endorsement by the British Ambassador lost the election for Cleveland.

They didn't mention the Republican Dirty Trick part.

[jpak]

23. Calling Mr. Chavez! Calling Mr. Aristide!

Please tell us how you feel about the Chimp...

[jansu]

28. I would not release names to this gang of thugs!

They could be made to disappear....small planes are dangerous to people who have not followed the writen script!

All of a sudden, it is bad for America for a foreign person to say he supports a political person....let's tell Tony Blair ect. this and make them stop supporting Bush!

Good for the GOOSE good for the Gander!

[louis-t]

30. We all know that * backs down when stood up to.

b*shco are a bunch of bullies, and I hope more foreign leaders speak up to support Kerry. I think they will. I got a feelin'.

[kingdom cum]

32. hope your right

I think it is important the rest of the world is on our side.

[CBHagman]

33. Joe Conason says the same thing.

Conason says a large part of the problem with the playground bullies who make up the right wing punditocracy and GOP leadership is that we don't fight back. Playground bullies will cave when hammered. It happened on a number of issues, and it can happen again.

Besides, we know Kerry isn't just going to lie there and take it. He swings back.

And in addition, how in the hell can all these heads of state allied with Bush oppose the stances of most of their own people? The GOP in this country, plus their allies in the media, act as though it's the Chiracs and Schroeders who are out of step with the times. HELL, NO. Bush goes to Northern Ireland, and hundreds of anti-war demonstrators turn up. Bush goes to the U.K., and TENS OF THOUSANDS of anti-war demonstrators turn up. I even saw a donnybrook in the Irish Dail on C-SPAN last night. I believe the Taoiseach (Bertie Ahern) was getting pounded over security arrangements for the upcoming Bush visit.

Bush is extremely unpopular even in Western industrialized nations. How the hell do you think they see him in the Arab world? The idiot is making us more enemies than we can deal with. Sooner or later, this country is going to wake up to that fact. Let's hope it's sooner, rather than later.

Sorry for the rant, but I really needed it.

[readmylips]

31. Letter said...good joke..

'George Bush is calling Senator Kerry to name foreign leaders. Is this laughable. Bush thinks Kerry will fail the test.'

Letterman and Leno both have been hitting below the belt lately. Hope they keep making jokes about the joker.