Yesterday Senator John Kerry gave a speech on American's right to dissent.

[ProSense]

For those who missed Senator Kerry's speech, it will be rebroadcast on C-Span at 5 p.m. (ET).

Here are some quotes from the speech:

Senator John Kerry
“Dissent”
Faneuil Hall
April 22, 2006

Thirty-five years ago today, I testified before the Foreign Relations Committee of the United States Senate, and called for an end to the war I had returned from fighting not long before.

Snip...

I have come here today to reaffirm that it was right to dissent in 1971 from a war that was wrong. And to affirm that it is both a right and an obligation for Americans today to disagree with a President who is wrong, a policy that is wrong, and a war in Iraq that weakens the nation.

I believed then, just as I believe now, that it is profoundly wrong to think that fighting for your country overseas and fighting for your country’s ideals at home are contradictory or even separate duties. They are, in fact, two sides of the very same patriotic coin.

Truth is the American bottom line. Truth above all is fundamental to who we are. It is no accident that among the first words of the first declaration of our national existence it is proclaimed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident…”.

America has always been stronger when we have not only proclaimed free speech, but listened to it.

We have even heard accusations that this dissent gives aid and comfort to the enemy. That is cheap and it is shameful.

The true defeatists are those who believe America is so weak that it must sacrifice its principles to the pursuit of illusory power.

The true pessimists are those who do not understand that fidelity to our principles is as critical to national security as our military power itself.

And the most dangerous defeatists, the most dispiriting pessimists, are those who invoke September 11th to argue that our traditional values are a luxury we can no longer afford.

Let’s call it the Bush-Cheney Doctrine.

According to the Bush-Cheney Doctrine, alliances and international institutions are now disposable—and international institutions are dispensable or even despicable.

According to the Bush-Cheney Doctrine, we cannot foreswear the fool’s gold of information secured by torturing prisoners or creating a shadow justice system with no rules and no transparency.

According to the Bush-Cheney Doctrine, unwarranted secrecy and illegal spying are now absolute imperatives of our national security.

According to the Bush-Cheney Doctrine, those who question the abuse of power question America itself.

According to the Bush-Cheney Doctrine, an Administration should be willing to spend hundreds of billions of dollars on the Iraq war, but unwilling to spend a few billion dollars to secure the American ports through which nuclear materials could make their way to terrorist cells.

According to the Bush-Cheney Doctrine, executive powers trump the constitutional doctrine of separation of powers.

According to the Bush-Cheney Doctrine, smearing administration critics is not only permissible, but necessary—and revealing the identity of a CIA agent is an acceptable means to hide the truth.

Snip…

And so there’s the crowning irony: the Bush-Cheney Doctrine holds that many of our great traditions cannot be maintained; yet the Bush-Cheney policies, by abandoning those traditions, give Osama bin Laden and his associates exactly what they want and need to reinforce their hate-filled ideology of Islamic solidarity against the western world.

We must insist now that patriotism does not belong to those who defend a President’s position—it belongs to those who defend their country. Patriotism is not love of power; it is love of country. And sometimes loving your country demands you must tell the truth to power. This is one of those times.

When we protested the war in Vietnam some would weigh in against us saying: “My country right or wrong.” Our response was simple: “Yes, my country right or wrong. When right, keep it right and when wrong, make it right.” And that’s what we must do again today.


http://www.johnkerry.com/pressroom/speeches/spc_2006_04_22.html

Since the campaign, there have been those who have criticized Kerry for harping on Vietnam during the campaign, which he didn't. Senator Kerry has always spoken honestly and proudly about his service during the war and dissent upon returning home.

Yesterday John Kerry delivered an awesome speech, and it seems there is a new criticism: He should have spoken like that during the campaign. Some of the the critics may have been influenced by those who spun the anti-war movement during the Vietnam War era into a negative issue during the 2004 presidential campaign.

The problem is that the media, heavy into supporting the Bush administration's position on Iraq, overplayed the spin and downplayed the responses.

Senator Kerry's response to the spinners is posted in the Research forum: (Don't miss the video posted there.)

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=358&topic_id=2555&mesg_id=2555


The speech Kerry gave yesterday amplifies points (about dissent and the failures of the Bush administration) that he made during his acceptance speech at the Democratic Convention and during the debates:

And tonight, we have an important message for those who question the patriotism of Americans who offer a better direction for our country. Before wrapping themselves in the flag and shutting their eyes and ears to the truth, they should remember what America is really all about. They should remember the great idea of freedom for which so many have given their lives. Our purpose now is to reclaim democracy itself. We are here to affirm that when Americans stand up and speak their minds and say America can do better, that is not a challenge to patriotism; it is the heart and soul of patriotism.

You see that flag up there. We call her Old Glory. The stars and stripes forever. I fought under that flag, as did so many of you here and all across our country. That flag flew from the gun turret right behind my head. It was shot through and through and tattered, but it never ceased to wave in the wind. It draped the caskets of men I served with and friends I grew up with. For us, that flag is the most powerful symbol of who we are and what we believe in. Our strength. Our diversity. Our love of country. All that makes America both great and good.

That flag doesn't belong to any president. It doesn't belong to any ideology and it doesn't belong to any political party. It belongs to all the American people.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3938393.stm

Kerry Hits Nail on Head

By Marjorie Cohn t r u t h o u t | Perspective
Monday 04 October 2004

Snip...

John Kerry cut to the heart of the matter when he said during Thursday’s debate with George W. Bush that, "a critical component of success in Iraq is being able to convince the Iraqis and the Arab world that the United States doesn’t have long-term designs on it." Kerry cited the U.S. construction of 14 military bases in Iraq that are said to have "a rather permanent concept to them."

Building these bases belies Bush’s protestations that he has "no ambitions of empire."

Snip...

Yes, as Kerry said, Bush made "a colossal error of judgment" when he invaded Iraq. "I will make a flat statement," Kerry declared during the debate. "The United States of America has no long-term designs on staying in Iraq." With that promise, John Kerry turned the policy of Team Bush on its head. Kerry was also right on when, responding to Bush’s debate mantra that Kerry sends mixed messages, the Senator said: "You talk about mixed messages. We’re telling other people, ‘You can’t have nuclear weapons,’ but we’re pursuing a new nuclear weapon that we might even contemplate using."

more...

http://www.uncle-scam.com/Breaking/oct-04/to-10-4.pdf#search=

Many Americans were punch drunk from spin during the campaign. Although Kerry received 59 million plus votes (more than any Democratic candidate in history) during the election, I wish more people had listened and actually heard what he said in his speeches and the debates---what he always knew and believed in his heart and what he advocated in his policies.


Note: Kerry won 48.3% of the popular vote, compared to Al Gore's 48.4%. Some how, Bush managed to take over the presidency in 2000 by decree of the courts and was able to remain in office in 2004 after one of the most corrupt elections in American history. The indictments and convictions since the election are evidence of that.)



Edited to correct title and add reference to the debate snip.

[sandnsea]

1. And Clinton only got 49.2%

To show how hard it is for a Democrat to break 50%. Kennedy got 49.7%. Carter is the only Democrat to win a first term with (a tad) over 50% since FDR.

[ProSense]

2. True!

Also, Clinton got 43% of the popular vote the first time he ran.

[saltpoint]

3. My hope is that in several homes across the country, the 18-year old

daughter or son of a Republican stalwart family will somehow hear a bit of Kerry's address on C-Span, and one or another phrase will tripswitch a political consciousness that grows into a much more independent vote in 2006 and 2008 and so on, no matter how the parents vote.

That person's chances are quite a bit better with Kerry, who uses the language very, very effectively, than with the incumbent, who has historic difficulty with words. Bill Frist butchered cats. Dubya butchers English.

[Wash. state Desk Jet]

4. It,s A Navigational Matter

The right wing republican party missed the boat on reform /change.It or they projected a false front that capured the hearts of youthfulness at the campus levels,hence fourth the young republicans.If they may have come left just a bit ,mabe it would not be so bad, but I doubt it. e Early on in the seventys or say 1970,some and even many had returned from military duty as a result of the draft ,Vietnam error, and lived threw and even participated in war protest prior to draft induction, or enlisting in the military because ,it was a better deal than the draft and also offered bennifits (G.I. Bill) and college funding.At that point in time say 1971, the seventy two elections were hot on the table. Ending the Vietnam war was the campaign center focus for the Nixon reelection cause, however inside the Nixon adminstration affairs there was indeed a very large picture ,and vietnam to Nixon was nothing more than an inherited thorn in his backside.And the press, and the protest.His favorite project China, though the Middle Eastern oil intrest was without a doubt the real secret package deal of command intrest.Hence fourth The Oil Imbargo,1973.Short lived as it seemed,though as far from short lived as can be. Here we were as a nation withdrawing our troops from Vietnam , it,s end as a war, and promise delivered ,the Nixon 72 election platform. At the same time though and however the center of focus within the Nixon adminstration became the Middle East, and potentially another war.So than the seventytwo elections to Nixon must have also been a bit of a thorn in his elitest back behind,because the middle eastern oil intrests were also high in the Nixon adminstration agenda befor the seventytwo elections and befor the negotiations to end the Vietnam war had even begun to bear fruit.It may be that this very thing is just what Howard Hughes became aware of early on in it,s planing stages, as Howard Hughes had by that time deemed Richard Nixon unfaithful, perhaps meaning unfaithful to the presidency,though Howard Hughes donated $100.000 to the Nixon reelection campaign and against his own advice,as the donation opened the door for a F-B-I. backround cheack into Mr. Hughes personnal afairs, Mr Hughes loathed J. Edger Hoover as much as he did Richard Millhouse Nixon.Nixon at that point in time wanted to know as much about Howard Hughes as he could, from within the power of the presidency at that point in time,befor congress began stripping the president of powers. Howard Hughes number 2 man advised Mr. Hughes that this donation would also mean an invitation to the white house ,thereby opening the door to a F_B_I. backround investagation into Hughes and he inturn reminded Mr. Hughes that this donation is completely against his own standing orders,which were to keep Nixon and Hoover out of their business completely ...,and, reguardless to cost.Howard Hughes than answered his number 2 man, he said (Let Him Have It.) he went on to say,( It Will Be A means To His End.) At that point in time befor the 72 elections Mr. Hughes number 2 man could only wonder, (what ever does he mean?) As we know that was a means to Nixons end ,and so Watergate. But the thing still remaining befor congress began stripping the president of power is the Mid. Eastern oil intrest,s in reguards to the United States having been placed in the position to (start) a war in the Middle East, The oil embargo.You must know that Nixon remained all and powerful until congress began to strip the president of power.Now go directly to John Kerry,s bout with Nixon ,at a point in time when Nixon held full power. It wasn,t just those that could or would one day be or potentialy be a problem down the line to those power moungers, you add in Hoover to the mix. , and that means anybody that could, would, or may be.Now than ask this, what kind of a monsterous thing might that be? So as the inevitable also became apparent to the Nixon white house,as we know papers were shredded, things, circumstances and events were covered up ,some of thing became uncovered befor Nixon left office.And many things remain covered. Here I would present a theory, Nixon as you know was referred to as Tricky Dick from within the jargon of the people at that point in time. And I think that at some point early on in 1973, perhaps January early Febuary, a reasonable guesstimate,that Nixon as the Elitist Nixon, became aware,that he himself was being used by the power elitist , those that we do not see of hear about much. Leave me say his suspicions left him to suspect something was cooking that may have not been within his informational sources.Later on same time frame it may have begun to become apparent to Mr. Nixon. He may have been kept out of the loop.If than such a thing were possible, can you imaging nixon sitting down for the fall? The presentation of this theory is (Nixons Last Defence)Ladies and Gentelman, Nixons Greatest Trick. And so establisish that Nixon realized the he was being used by those power moungers,and decides that history Will Not Have Richard Nixon ,to kick aroud after he is gone.By now Watergate is falling like the Niagara Falls. We know that in law there is a saying that a lawer the defends himself ,has a fool for a client right? Try this in a concept, Nixon as a defence attorney in defence of The President of the United States,and the presidents actions.Since he may at that point in time realized that the apparent was also inevitable (impeachment) he will have than also realized that this oil intrest thing may be covered over ,but shall return at a later period in our history. So than he also realized it would fall back to his adminstration,and as he had full knowledge of (The Plan) or the master plan, the real truth about the so called Oil Embargo, and potential stregic battle plans, this than would be the intire spread of the Mid. Eastern Oil Intrest,s, . He than may have become more intrested in saving his own face. So this is to say that he could or would have prepared his own defence case and than ordered it burried to surface at just the right point in time, slipped in with other documents by his own hot little hands unbeknoweth to whomever burried those documents, or as many of them as there were.now than we know about the come back kid, Clinton, indeed, so did Nixon.Certainly you would not think that Nixon as an Elitist would be above swipping away from a future savy saying. This is to say it may be Nixon who is the Come Back kid . And hay, wouldn,t like to have those monsters identified? Nixons Last Trick.

[Wash. state Desk Jet]

6. Diplomatic Relations

To trace the time line to Nixons hands directly in the middle East in 1973 ,it requires research to diplomatic relations ,establishing diplomatic relations, and re/establishing diplomatic relations in countrues along the African cost, along the horn, up and into Iranian waters, and Iran.Clear around Peru and Pakistan. nixon had a habbit of involving the president in everything that he did, even though he knew that he could not do that. Nixon not only had to know, but he also had to place his hands right down into the mechanism. This sort of thing is what brought the Nixon adminstration down.No, I am sure of it, he must have felt a serious need to tell us. Indeed, Nixons Last Trick.

[Wash. state Desk Jet]

9. The Youngest Pilot

As it will seem George H.W.Bush was perhaps the youngest pilot in his squadron durning ww2. Perhaps the youngest fighter pilot. And Richard Nixon the Elitist, is acedited for saving George H. W. Bushs political career at a point in our history when George H. W. Bush,s political career seemed to be at it,s lowest point of perhaps even over. If than Nixon was indeed scorned, It than would stand to reason that taking a savy saying form a generation on the rise, and a rather infamous one to become, democratic though simmilar in in connection reguards the impeachment process, though Nixon couldn,t have known such a connection would have come to pass, you wouldn,t want to short change old Tricky Dick Nixon would you? After all make no mistake about it, Nixon the title of Tricky Dick, and he did get re/elected. The come back kid concept ,suits the bill of goods.Imagine Nixon having the last say tricking the come back kid in how it means over his way,Nixons Last Trick ,over the top of the come back kid. Ragan/Bush/Clinton/Bush .And Nixon,s Last Trick.

[ProSense]

5. Recap from a blog

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2006/4/23/115230/700

[jillan]

7. k & r - don't miss this!

JK's on target, and his accompanying speakers are worth listening to as well.

[Luftmensch067]

8. K&R - excellent post -- thanks, ProSense!

No matter how much people want to bury the truth that John Kerry spoke yesterday, we must spread the word and let everyone know.

Try to get your family and friends to watch the 5:03 pm CSPAN airing today -- if you can record it, get as many people as possible to watch the tape!

Contact CSPAN and tell them you want this program shown again and in prime time.

Write LTE's and blog posts and whatever you can to talk about what happened at Faneuil Hall yesterday.

The MSM will try to ignore this -- be the media!

[k j]

10. C-Span re-airing again NOW!

[ProSense]

11. Kerry's speeches,

including his acceptance speech and the one yesterday (see blog post above), are well-received.

Rating Kerry's and Bush's Convention Speeches

Gallup's convention polling this year finds few differences in the public's overall ratings of Kerry's and Bush's acceptance speeches at their respective parties' conventions. A slight majority of Americans, 52%, rated Kerry's speech at the Democratic convention as excellent (25%) or good (27%), while just about half of all Americans rated Bush's speech at the Republican convention as excellent (22%) or good (27%). About one in five adults nationwide rated both speeches as "just okay," and fewer than 1 in 10 said the speeches were "poor" or "terrible."

Again, partisan viewpoints make a big difference in ratings of the acceptance speeches. Eighty-one percent of Democrats rated Kerry's acceptance speech as excellent or good, compared with 52% of independents and 22% of Republicans. Seventy-seven percent of Republicans rated Bush's speech positively, while 42% of independents and 24% of Democrats shared that point of view.

How Did the Conventions Affect Americans' Vote Choice?

When Americans were asked if the conventions made them more likely or less likely to vote for the candidates, Gallup found that Kerry fared slightly better than Bush. After the Democratic convention, 44% of Americans said they were more likely to vote for Kerry, while 30% said they were less likely and 18% voluntarily responded that it didn't make much difference. Polling after the GOP convention found 41% of Americans saying they were more likely to vote for Bush, 38% saying they were less likely, and 18% saying it made no difference.

Following the Democratic convention, 76% of Democrats said they were more likely to vote for Kerry as a result of that convention, compared with 45% of independents and just 11% of Republicans who felt that way. After the Republican convention, the results were essentially the reverse. Seventy-seven percent of Republicans said they were more likely to vote for Bush as a result of the convention, compared with 33% of independents and 8% of Democrats.

http://poll.gallup.com/content/default.aspx?ci=10021&VERSION=p

Unfortunately, the poll results also shows there are/were a lot of kool-aid drinkers in this country, because the convention speeches are independent of the other candidate.

[WiseButAngrySara]

12. Wonderful Post! Thanks so much...I'm listening to Kerry on C-Span

right now, and his speech has been superb. K & R & Bookmarked!

:kick:

[PetraPooh]

13. "Right?!?!" It's a DUTY to dissent! Go Kerry!

[MH1]

15. I **LOVED** that point.

I had made a post in anticipation of this speech, and I wrote of the obligation of citizens to hold their elected leaders to account, as Kerry did in 1971.

I was so proud that Kerry spoke of "duty" and "obligation" in the same way that I meant, but of course he said it far, far more eloquently.

[ProSense]

14. CBS covers speech

But with a short memory.

The Real John Kerry Finally Stands Up

BOSTON, April 24, 2006

CBS) Dotty Lynch is CBSNews.com's Political Points columnist.

John Kerry came to national attention not because he was a war hero but because he was a dissenter. In 1971, he appeared on "The Dick Cavett Show," testified before Congress, and electrified anti-war rallies with his message that the war was wrong. His phrase, "How do you ask a man to be the last man to die for a mistake?" was used for years to define his commitment and eloquence.

On Saturday in Boston's historic Faneuil Hall, Kerry stood tall and proud and came to terms with what seemed so right in the 1970s and so wrong in 2004. He gave a speech about the American tradition of dissent and his own and others' disagreement with Bush administration policies on both Vietnam and Iraq.

Thirty-five years to the day that he testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, he was introduced by the widow of a Swift Boat buddy, Don Droz, who emotionally recounted how her late husband told her how he and Kerry were planning to come home after Vietnam and "tell the truth about what was going on." Judith Droz Keyes, who spoke out in her husband's name in the seventies, described Kerry as a man who "has once again become the voice of moral opposition."

One of the Kerry supporters who packed the hall asked afterward "Where was she at the convention?" a reference to the fact that Kerry's military experience and not his anti-war activities were showcased in 2004.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/04/24/opinion/lynch/main1534836.shtml

She was a delegate at the convention, speaking out and getting some coverage:

OP-ED CONTRIBUTOR

The View From the Boat

By JUDITH DROZ KEYES

Published: August 27, 2004

San Francisco — On Feb. 28, 1969, my husband was the commander of one of three Swift boats traveling the Dong Cung in Vietnam to carry troops and supplies upriver. The events of that day, and what happened almost two weeks later on another Swift boat patrol, have become a source of controversy in the presidential campaign, with a group of veterans saying that John Kerry did not deserve the medals he won for what he did then. I know my husband thought otherwise.

more...

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/27/opinion/27droz.html?ex=1251345600&en=520c355121237467&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland

Kerry's medals were deserved, says widow of slain comrade

Husband was swift boat skipper

By Jessica Vascellaro, Globe Correspondent | August 27, 2004

WASHINGTON -- Lieutenant Donald Droz knew more about John F. Kerry's service in Vietnam than most men. By Kerry's side when he earned both the Silver and Bronze Stars, Kerry's fellow swift boat captain and friend spoke often of his admiration for the Yalie he called "a real fine guy."

But Droz, a key witness in the ongoing debate over Kerry's service record, is missing from it, killed in a rocket attack in Vietnam in April 1969 days after Kerry returned home. While Droz cannot defend Kerry, his widow, Judith Droz Keyes, said she feels she must. She said she is confident that her husband would defend both Kerry's record in Vietnam and his antiwar activism.

more...

http://www.boston.com/news/politics/president/bush/articles/2004/08/27/kerrys_medals_were_deserved_says_widow_of_slain_comrade?mode=PF

http://www.dkosopedia.com/wiki/Judith_Droz_Keyes


Even freeper repub noticed her at the convention:
Getting The Swifties: Democrat Operatives Play "The Grieving Widow" Card

[ProSense]

16. Bob Herbert on Kerry’s Speech

35 Years Later

By BOB HERBERT

Presidents and politicians may worry about losing face, or losing votes, or losing their legacy; it is time to think about young Americans and innocent civilians who are losing their lives.
— John Kerry on Iraq

Saturday was the 35th anniversary of John Kerry’s appearance as a young Vietnam veteran before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. During his testimony, Mr. Kerry called for an end to the war in Vietnam and famously inquired: “How do you ask a man to be the last man to die for a mistake?”

He marked the occasion Saturday with an important and moving speech before an audience crammed into historic Faneuil Hall. The speech took on even more poignancy as it became known over the weekend that at least eight more American G.I.’s had been killed in Iraq.

more...

http://blog.thedemocraticdaily.com/?p=2748