Kerry Campaign Issues Response to Bush's misleading attacks today

[flpoljunkie]

http://blog.johnkerry.com/blog/archives/001322.html

Washington, DC – John Kerry Campaign Spokesperson Chad Clanton issued the following statement today in response to President Bush’s misleading attacks on Kerry’s record on intelligence issues and funding.

“This misleading attack is a reminder of why George Bush has lost credibility with the American people. You bet, John Kerry voted against business as usual in our intelligence community. It’s no secret that we’ve got some serious gaps in our intelligence. He voted against a proposed billion dollar bloat in the intelligence budget, because it was essentially a slush fund for defense contractors. Unlike George Bush, John Kerry does not and will not support every special spending project supported by Halliburton and other defense contractor.”

***********
Fact Check: John Kerry has supported $200 billion in intelligence funding over the past seven years – a 50 percent increase since 1996.

FY03 Intel Authorization $39.3-$41.3 Billion*

<2002, Unanimous Senate Voice Vote 9/25/02>

FY02 Intel Authorization $33 Billion*

<2001, Unanimous Senate Voice Vote 12/13/01>

FY01 Intel Authorization $29.5-$31.5 Billion*

<2000, Unanimous Senate Voice Vote 12/6/00>

FY00 Intel Authorization $29-$30 Billion*

<1999, Unanimous Senate Voice Vote 11/19/1999>

FY99 Intel Authorization $29.0 Billion*

<1998, Unanimous Senate Voice Vote 10/8/98>

FY98 Intel Authorization $26.7 Billion*

<1997, Senate Roll Call Vote #109>

FY97 Intel Authorization $26.6 Billion*

<1996, Unanimous Senate Voice Vote 9/25/96>

* http://www.cdi.org/terrorism/intel-funding.cfm>


It was widely known that the intelligence budget was overridden with pet projects and pork and was no longer appropriate to the intelligence tasks at hand. The nation was shifting from the cold war to a transnational threat involving terror, drug traffickers and international crime and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

Aspin Commission found reductions “critical.”

“Indeed, finding such reductions is critical if funds are to be found for the investments in the intelligence capabilities that the nation will need in the future, capabilities that are not now funded in the proposed program and budget.” http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/dpos/epubs/int/>

Intelligence agencies; in particular the NRO, were being mismanaged. The National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), the agency in charge of the nation’s spy satellites, was embroiled in controversy because of a $300 million land deal. According to the Washington Post, The NRO “bought almost 14 acres more than needed for its controversial new $ 304 million, four-building headquarters complex in the Westfields development near Dulles International Airport …. NRO, which designs, procures and manages intelligence satellites, planned to use the surplus Westfields acreage to build two additional office buildings that could be sold or leased to its contractors. The only way the NRO could buy the land it wanted was to purchase additional land, so the developers who owned it could get the profit they wanted. … CIA-Pentagon investigation begun in August found that the NRO had failed to disclose the cost of the headquarters to Congress and found it was 30 percent bigger than the organization needed for its 2,190 employees and nearly 1,000 contractor personnel. The Westfields developer got NRO to purchase roughly eight additional acres because the spy satellite agency planners insisted they had to build and own the complex themselves. They refused to allow the developer to construct and rent the buildings to NRO under a long-term lease. Therefore, selling the land was the only way the developer would make money from the NRO deal.”

Mismanagement resulted in $1 billion in unspent funds. In Senate hearings in 1996, Sen. Arlen Specter announced: “he failure of NRO officials to tell either the DCI or Congress that the NRO had accumulated over $1 billion in unused funds--further convinced our Committee that the intelligence community needed greater central direction and accountability.”

In September of 1995, a secret billion dollar slush fund was found in the intelligence budget which served as a full employment opportunity for defense contractors.

The White House said yesterday it was "inexcusable" that the top secret agency that manages U.S. spy satellites had reportedly hoarded $ 1 billion in unspent funds. Chief of Staff Leon E. Panetta said John M. Deutch, director of the Central Intelligence Agency, had ordered an investigation into how the National Reconnaissance Office managed to stash away so much money without informing supervisors at the Pentagon or Congress. … The unspent funds were discovered after the Senate intelligence committee questioned a luxurious $ 300 million headquarters the NRO was building in a Washington suburb.

Arlen Specter and Bob Kerrey sought to strip the intelligence budget of its pet projects and pork, and shift our intelligence from the cold war to the threat of terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The same day that John Kerry proposed to cut the intelligence budget, Senators Specter and Kerrey introduced a similar bill, which passed by a bipartisan voice vote.

S.AMDT.2881 to S.922: To reduce the total amount of funds authorized to be appropriated for the National Reconnaissance Office to offset the availability of certain prior year appropriations. <9/29/1995: Proposed by Senator Coats for Senator Specter. Agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.>

[yardwork]

1. Excellent!!

[BigVanVader]

2. Kerry's team has to keep doing this; they have to respond rapidly

Everyday they need to be on top of it, refuting bullshit.

[newyawker99]

10. Hi BigVanVader!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[codegreen]

3. smackdown!

get people who have this memorized onto the networks! woot!

[BootinUp]

4. Good! Very Good!

Everyone knows there is tons of waste in the Department of Defense. We have to spend it wiser.

[Leilani]

5. Terrific!

Say it on TV so the majority of people who no longer read will get the message.

[glarius]

6. This is why I believe Kerry will beat Bush in November!

Unlike Al Gore who allowed a lot of the lies to go unanswered, Kerry speaks up loud and clear....And watching Kerry interacting with the crowds, I don't think the Bushies can convince American that Kerry is unlikable....He appears relaxed and comfortable and sure of himself....He's a winner....IMO

[sangh0]

18. He's got the entire package

Kerry is the Real Deal!

[jenk]

7. when Bush goes on the attack like this

you know he's desperate

[JPace]

8. While it is an excellent response....it is very long winded.

While AWOL is attacking Kerry with quick wit
statements that make people laugh and visualize
Kerry as wishy washy.

I want to see Kerry make some quick witted pendents
that portray AWOL as a liar and intellectually
unworthy of the Wh. I want to see it played on
national news several times a day just as they
do for AWOL. These are the kind that impress
everyday busy people.

[BootinUp]

9. the main talking point

is 4 sentences, could maybe be shortened. The rest is supporting evidence. It will help other Dems to know the facts in case there are discussions on TV etc.

[sangh0]

11. What's long-winded about

five sentences?

"“This misleading attack is a reminder of why George Bush has lost credibility with the American people. You bet, John Kerry voted against business as usual in our intelligence community. It’s no secret that we’ve got some serious gaps in our intelligence. He voted against a proposed billion dollar bloat in the intelligence budget, because it was essentially a slush fund for defense contractors. Unlike George Bush, John Kerry does not and will not support every special spending project supported by Halliburton and other defense contractor.” "

[BootinUp]

12. I shoulda been clearer

I don't think it is. :)

[sangh0]

15. Now *that's* what I call gracious

You are to be commended

[AgadorSparticus]

21. sadly, i think people respond to catchy phrases.

it's no longer about 3 or 5 or 7 sentences. even one sentence unless it is a short simple sentence. this is my marketing is about catchy phrases and not about facts and eloquence. attention spans are frighteningly short and getting shorter.

i'd like to see something like: because of bush's bait and switch tactics, label him a MASTERBAITER.

it's catchy, funny, and discrediting to him. it calls to attention his tactics.

[sangha]

23. Catchy phrase, like "Clinton's penis"

work because they call to mind all sorts of related "impressions" which include facts, images, sounds, etc that have the desired emotional effect. Before a catchy phrase, say "Credibility Gap" can catch on, the target audience should first be prepared by fertilizing their mind with all sorts of impressions. Without the prep work, catchy phrases are just a couple of words strung together. They have make sense on an emotional level

Just as Clinton was pursued by a constant buzz surrounding his personal life, Bush* is now being set up as a constant liar. On a gut level, many people believe that where's there's smoke, there's fire, and right now the candidates are sending up some smoke.

[oasis]

13. Great info. thanks

[bobthedrummer]

14. I really like the credibility gap reference.

We all need to use that more often.

[sangh0]

16. Kerry says credibility gap has opened between Bush rhetoric, actions

Kerry has been saying this since at least July.


http://www.johnkerry.com/pressroom/clips/news_2003_0717b.html

Kerry says credibility gap has opened between Bush rhetoric, actions


July 17, 2003

Associated Press
by Will Lester

Washington -


Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry says President Bush hasn't matched tough rhetoric with strong actions and is suffering from a credibility gap on national security.

"The gap between America's national security and this administration's deeds is widening every day," Kerry said in remarks prepared for delivery at a veterans' memorial hall in New York City Wednesday.

"Americans have a right to ask: Are we safer today than we were on Sept. 11?" Kerry asked. "Are our nation's firefighters and police officers better prepared to wage the war on terror?"

The Massachusetts senator said the Bush administration has shortchanged police and firefighters by denying them "the equipment and support to defend America from danger."

"We cannot afford to leave the front lines of home security without the resources they need any more than we can afford to leave our soldiers vulnerable to attack in Iraq," he said.

Appearing on NBC's "Today" show in advance of the speech, Kerry was asked whether he thought the United States was more safe than before the Sept. 11 terror attacks.

"In airline security and a few other things we are," he replied, "but we haven't done what we need to do for what the president and others have said is inevitable. They say there is an evitability of attack."

Kerry and other Democratic presidential candidates have stepped up criticism of the president since the admission last week that a line in his State of the Union address alleging Iraqi attempts to buy uranium from Africa should not have been included. Other questions have been raised about prewar claims about Iraq by the administration.

Kerry criticized Bush on several fronts, accusing the administration of:

-Going to war with Iraq without a "plan to win the peace."

-Stalling investigations of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

-Failing to invest enough in the police, fire and emergency workers responsible for the safety of the homeland.

"We shouldn't be opening firehouses in Baghdad while closing them in Brooklyn," Kerry said.

Americans should trust the intelligence that guides them into war, he said.

Calling the Bush administration "big on bluster and short on action," Kerry said combative rhetoric not matched by stronger homeland security is dangerous. And he called for more international help in policing Iraq.

"It is a long way from 'speak softly and carry a big stick' to a president who says 'bring 'em on' and 'dead or alive' - then leaves front-line defenders without the numbers and equipment they need to wage the war on terror," he said.

Krerry proposed a new initiative to put 100,000 more firefighters on the job, while restoring a program to put 100,000 additional police on the streets.

[sangh0]

17. Bush Credibility Gap Growing Wider By the Day

http://www.johnkerry.com/pressroom/releases/pr_2004_0227e.html

Kerry Campaign Unveils New Internet Ad—Keep Our Word?
Bush Credibility Gap Growing Wider By the Day

February 27, 2004

For Immediate Release
Washington, DC –

After another week of seeing George W. Bush try to distract from his broken promises and failed record, the Kerry campaign today responded by releasing a new internet ad called “Keeping Our Word?” The new spot reminds the American people of why George W. Bush has lost credibility.

Unfortunately for George W. Bush, his rhetoric does not square with his record. And that’s why he’s trying to run from it. As the ad shows, Bush pledged that creating jobs was the centerpiece of his economic security plan. But more than 2.9 million people have lost their jobs under this president. He also promised that his education reform – No Child Left Behind – would “open the door of opportunity to all of America’s children.” But the fact is his own budget under funded the initiative by $9 billion dollars leaving more than 2.4 million children behind.
And that’s not all. This president promised to “do something” about making health care affordable. But the reality is that 3.8 million more Americans lost their health insurance since Bush took office. He gave us his word that the budget deficit would be “small and short term.” But now the annual deficit is projected to exceed $400 billion for the next 10 years. Bush gave our veterans his word that he would provide the best care for those willing to put their lives in harm’s way. Yet 200, 000 veterans have been cut from the veterans’ health care system.

This president also promised to “set aside all the payroll taxes aimed for Social Security and spend it on Social Security.” But, as the Congressional Budget Office reported, he’s raided the entire $2.6 trillion dollar Social Security Trust Fund.

The bottom line is George W. Bush’s administration has left a trail of broken promises, leaving millions of Americans – from school children to families to veterans – in its wake.

The ad shows George W. Bush delivering a series of broken promises. These remarks were made during his State of the Union addresses, one of the 2000 presidential debates, a Rose Garden event, Walter Reed Army Medical Center and a political rally in California.

[Mountainman]

19. Will we ever see this rebuttal on the cable news shows?

[wicket]

20. kick

n/t

[DrFunkenstein]

22. Freeper Kick

Right in their elephants.

[wicket]

24. heh

I recently donated to the DNC and they sent me a bumper sticker that says "Kick 'em out!" and has a picture of a donkey kicking an elephant hehehe :)