India Press comments on Kerry Iraq stance

[TayTay]

It's "immoral" to wait till polls to change Iraq policy: Kerry

Press Trust of India:

Washington, Oct 22 (PTI) Slamming Bush Administration over its Iraq policy,
former Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry today said it was "immoral"
to wait till the November 7 Congressional polls to change Washington's strategy
to deal with the worsening situation there.

"I think it's immoral to have the lives of young Americans being put on the
line, waiting for an election day event or strategy. If you've got a better
strategy, Mr President, we deserve to have it now," said the Senator, who was
the Democratic contender to George W Bush in the 2004 Presidential election and
a potential candidate for 2008.

"For 3 and 1/2 years, we've been sitting here with a strategy that many of us
have said, again and again and again, will not work. It will not work. Our own
generals have said there's no military solution. What are we doing?"
Asserting that "we're pursuing the same old" strategy, he said, "and the
president, contrary to what he said in the interview, has said again and again,
we're going to stay the course. And he keeps playing this demagogue card that somehow it's a
white flag of surrender, in the United States of America, to suggest the way to
actually get the job done." "We don't have to sit around and be bullied by a
bunch of people who have misled America, lied to America and, in fact, have made
America less safe. And I'm not going to stand for it," the senior Democrat
leader said.

"What we need to recognise is that the President's policies have really
disrupted America's ability to have the kind of impact -- we've been set back
years in the Middle East because of the president's policy," he added.

"You don't have a real policy... You have Jim Baker (former Secretary of State
and a respected voice on both sides of the aisle) saying, maybe we're going to
change. Then you have the vice president coming out and saying things are going
remarkably well in Iraq," Kerry said. "They (the Republicans) said, as they
stand up, we'll stand down. Well, we're now at about 320,000 troops trained.
That's not going to make the difference," he said.

"Either they resolve the political differences within this year because they
want to, or they don't want to. If they don't want to, there's nothing American
troops can do. If they do resolve it, so much the better, and our troops can
withdraw," Kerry said.

"Setting a date for a year from now (to withdraw US troops) is not waving a flag
of surrender. And I resent the president of the United States suggesting that,"
he said.

Such a time table, he said, was the best way "to protect our troops" and to
solve the problem.

"It's the best way to regain our moral authority in the region. It's the best
way to be successful. It's the best way to protect America's security," Kerry
insisted.

"And this administration has set America's security back in North Korea; set it
back in Iran. Iran is delighted with what's happening in Iraq. They've set us
back in Iraq itself. They've set back the Middle East peace process," he added.

(THROUGH ASIA PULSE)

[beachmom]

1. Why doesn't OUR press do as good a job as the Indian press?

Or are they buttering him up on that nuclear treaty with India again?

[_dynamicdems]

2. They are probably less biased than our press, IMO.

And a lot smarter too.

Perhaps they are betting on JK being President in '09.

[blm]

3. Would make a great GD thread, Tay. Good angle, too. India press v US.

Notice how the India press uses his EXTENDED comments while US press snips a phrase or two in support of their preferred context.

[wisteria]

4. They value the opinions of a true statesman. n/t