Kerry Attacks Bush on Handling of Iraq

[papau]

"Democrats are deeply concerned that the party's standard-bearer has allowed himself to be defined by the Bush campaign and has not presented a clear, concise message on how he differs from the president."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A895-2004Sep6.html

Kerry Attacks Bush on Handling of Iraq

By Lois Romano and Paul Farhi
Washington Post Staff Writers
Tuesday, September 7, 2004; Page A08


CANNONSBURG, Pa., Sept. 6 -- Sen. John F. Kerry, under pressure from Democratic leaders to draw sharper contrasts between himself and George W. Bush, launched a series of blistering attacks on the president Monday, saying the W in his opponent's name stands for "wrong . . . wrong choices, wrong priorities, wrong direction for our country."

On a busy Labor Day dash across the swing states of Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio, Kerry assailed the president's economic policies and paid special attention to the war in Iraq, calling it "the wrong war in the wrong place at the wrong time." He said he aimed to withdraw U.S. troops from the country during his first term.

President Bush and Vice President Cheney fired back from the campaign trail. Bush said Kerry had taken "yet another new position" on the war.

"When it comes to diplomacy, it looks to me like John Kerry should stick to windsurfing," said Cheney, who was in Clear Lake, Iowa.

During a morning "front porch" meeting in this middle-class suburb of Pittsburgh, Kerry told supporters, "I would not have done just one thing differently than the president on Iraq, I would have done everything differently than the president on Iraq. I said this from the beginning of the debate to the walk up to the war. I said, 'Mr. President, don't rush to war, take the time to build a legitimate coalition and have a plan to win the peace.' "<snip>