Friends of John Kerry

The Boston Globe reports that John Kerry plans to set up a federal campaign committee, Friends of John Kerry, which would allow him to seek a fifth term in the US Senate in 2008 while not precluding another run for president that year.

The Committee will be a vehicle for fund-raising for either campaign.

According to the Globe, Kerry transferred all the money from his previous committee to his presidential campaign committee after retaining his Senate seat in 2002 and Kerry could do the same should he decide against seeking reelection in favor of a second bid for the presidency.

From California Yankee.

Kerry Campaign Slammed On Hispanic Outreach

The Associated Press reports that Simon Rosenberg, founder and president of the centrist New Democrat Network says, “John Kerry did not compete adequately for Hispanic votes, period. If we don’t reverse the gains that President Bush made, we can forget our hope of being a majority party again.”

Rosenberg also complained that “the Kerry campaign and the DNC lacked a national strategy for Hispanics and did not spend enough money on advertising or enough time campaigning in Hispanic communities and did not employ enough people on the get-out-the-vote effort.”

From California Yankee.

Clinton Blames Gay Marriage For Kerry's Loss

The Utica Observer Dispatch reports that former president Clinton put much of the blame for Kerry’s loss on gay marriage:

“Gay marriage was an overwhelming factor in the defeat of John Kerry,” Clinton told the audience at the Margaret Bundy Scott Field House.

[. . .]

“There was astonishing turnout among evangelical Christians who were voting on the basis of moral values,” he said. “I do not believe either party has a monopoly on morality or truth.”

Clinton said Democrats had a story to tell about abortion and gay marriage. They didn’t tell it. Abortions declined during his terms in office, he said, because of policies encouraging adoption and rewarding mothers.

Democrats should have emphasized that gay marriage should be up to the states — and that state sovereignty is a traditionally Republican value.

“Gay marriage was an overwhelming factor in the defeat of John Kerry,” Clinton said. “With one decision of one Supreme Court, all of the sudden we have a constitutional amendment designed, I think, to whip people up, to inflame them, make them stop thinking about other issues.”

From California Yankee.

Ted Kennedy Arrives at Beacon Hill

Fox News is reporting that Ted Kennedy just arrived (at 10 past 2am) at Kerry’s posh Beacon Hill home in MA. Reporters spied Kerry’s daughter Vaness being consoled in the doorway…
Reporters are speculating that a serious discussion is underway either about how to handle Ohio or how to deliver a possible concession speech…

UPDATE: John Edwards: “We’ve waited four years, we can wait one more night…we will fight for every vote.”

People Leaving "Victory" Party In Boston

CNN’s talking head in Boston reports that the crowd that had gathered in Boston to celebrate Kerry’s victory is starting to thin, and that certain Kerry aides she’s been callling throughout the night are no longer answering their cell phones …

Zogby: Kerry with 311 Electoral Votes

At 5:00pm today, Zogby International made its final Presidential Election prediction.

Electoral Votes:

Bush 213
Kerry 311

Zogby International’s 2004 Predictions

Why You Should Vote For Me Today : Kerry

From USA Today :

For the past two years, people across this nation have welcomed me into their homes and communities and shared their hopes and dreams. They’ve told me they want nothing more than a better life for their children, but caught between rising costs and falling incomes, they always come up short. They’ve told me that they pray every night for our troops in Iraq, but they worry as things get worse, and when they pick up the newspaper, they feel less safe here at home. They fly the flag, recite the Pledge of Allegiance and love this country with all their hearts — but they worry that right now, the country they love is headed in the wrong direction.

So today, in voting booths across this nation, Americans face a fundamental choice: Do we want four more years of the same failed course, or a fresh start for America?

Unfortunately, for the past four years, George W. Bush has made the wrong choices for America. Nowhere is this more clear than in his catastrophic misjudgments in Iraq, where he pushed away our allies and rushed to war without a plan to win the peace, and his mistakes in the war on terror.

Today in Iraq, we’re seeing more chaos, more killings and more kidnappings, and more than 1,100 brave Americans have lost their lives. The Republican chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee describes the reconstruction as “incompetence.” Recently, we learned that 760,000 pounds of explosives had disappeared. It took just one pound of these explosives to blow up Pan Am Flight 103.

But the Bush administration still calls Iraq “a remarkable success story.” Vice President Cheney says the war has been “brilliant.” And yet the president says that whether America can be “fully safe” is “up in the air.”

We deserve better. We must succeed in Iraq. I defended my country as a young man, and I’ll defend it as president. I will fight a smarter, tougher, more effective war on terror. I will strengthen the military and add 40,000 troops to its ranks. I will stop at nothing to hunt down, capture and kill the terrorists. I will never give any nation or organization a veto over our national security.

And like Harry Truman and Ronald Reagan, I will build and lead strong alliances so that America doesn’t have to go it alone.

But we need a president who can do more than one thing at a time. And the truth is that George Bush’s record is no better here at home. He has taken care of the special interests, but failed the middle class and those struggling to join it.

George Bush is the first president to lose jobs in 70 years, and 4 million more Americans have fallen into poverty on his watch — 1.3 million of them children.

College tuition and health care costs are through the roof, and gas prices are up over $2 a gallon — all while family incomes have fallen $1,500 and veterans are being denied health care.

But President Bush seems to think everything is just fine and that we shouldn’t hope for anything better. I disagree, and I ask you to join with me and give me your vote, so that together, we can give America a fresh start. Here’s what we’ll do:

First, we’ll create good-paying jobs and lower taxes for hardworking Americans. We’ll stop rewarding companies that ship jobs overseas and start rewarding ones that keep and create them here in America. And we’ll give families tax credits to help pay for college, health care and child care. We’ll cut the deficit in half and restore fiscal responsibility.

Second, we’ll ensure that health care is a right — not a privilege — for all Americans, affordable and accessible. That means covering all of our children and giving families access to the same private health insurance as members of Congress. It means allowing our seniors to import safe, FDA-approved prescription drugs from Canada. And it means lifting the ban on federal funding for stem cell research so that our scientists can pursue cures and treatments for Parkinson’s, diabetes, Alzheimer’s and other diseases.

Third, we’ll fight to save Social Security, because when you work hard and pay in for a lifetime, America owes you what you’ve earned. I will not privatize Social Security, I will not cut benefits, and I will not raise the retirement age.

Finally, we’ll make America independent of Middle East oil within 10 years. We’ll invest in alternative energy sources and in cars and SUVs you have to fill up only once a month, not every week. It’s high time America relied on its own ingenuity and innovation instead of the Saudi royal family.

If you join with me today, together we will protect our country and fight for America’s middle-class families. We will unite Democrats and Republicans to succeed in Iraq and restore America’s leadership in the world. We will once again stand up for the middle class and all of those struggling to join it. And together, we will lift up the nation we love with the confidence that our best days are still ahead.

Zogby: Young Mobile Voters Prefer Kerry

One of the complaints about telephone surveys in the age of cell phones and PDA’s has been the lack of consideration given to young, mobile types who don’t have a landline. A new survey from Zogby tries to bridge that gap.

Polling firm Zogby International and partner Rock the Vote found Massachusetts Senator John Kerry leading President Bush 55% to 40% among 18-29 year-old likely voters in their first joint Rock the Vote Mobile political poll, conducted exclusively on mobile phones October 27 through 30, 2004. Independent Ralph Nader received 1.6%, while 4% remain undecided in the survey of 6,039 likely voters. The poll is centered on subscribers to the Rock the Vote Mobile (RTVMO) platform, a joint initiative of Rock the Vote and Motorola Inc. (for more information: http://www.rtvmo.com). The poll has margin of error of +/-1.2 percentage points.

Did Kerry take direction from North Vietnamese Communists?

On October 22, 2004, Swift Veterans and POWs for Truth researchers Troy Jenkins and Tom Wyld located two Vietnamese communist documents in the archives of the Vietnam Center at Texas Tech University, in the Douglas Pike Collection. Douglas Pike was a leading authority on the Vietnam War who collected over 2 million pages of original documents now archived at the Vietnam Center. James Reckner, Ph.D., Director of the Vietnam Center at Texas Tech, verifies that the documents in the Pike collection are original and authentic. The Circular and the Directive are listed as items numbered 2150901039b and 2150901041 respectively.

The fifth paragraph of this document makes clear that the Vietnamese communists were utilizing for their propaganda purposes the activities of the Vietnam Veterans Against the War. The protest described as occurring from April 19 through April 22, 1971 coincides directly with the dates of Dewey Canyon III, the Washington, DC, protest led by John Kerry, during which John Kerry’s testimony before Senator Fulbright’s Foreign Relations Committee was a televised centerpiece. The description of the protest activities in the Directive even include the “return their medals” ceremony in which John Kerry and other VVAW members threw their medals and/or ribbons toward the steps of the US Capitol, with several shouting threats of violence against their government as they did so.

[…]

Another key discussion in the documents reveals the degree to which the Vietnamese communists were working with and through the PCPJ (People’s Coalition for Peace and Justice. The Circular, immediately after disclosing how the communist delegations to the Paris Peace talks were being used to guide the US antiwar movement, stresses the importance of the PCPJ to these efforts:

Of the US antiwar movements, the two most important ones are: The PCPJ ((the People’s Committee for Peace and Justice)) and the NPAC ((National Peace Action Committee)). These two movements have gathered much strength and staged many demonstrations. The PCPJ is the most important. It maintains relations with us.

(emphasis in original)

Further reporting of this research is available in this New York Sun article.

::Update:: As pointed out by Digger, InTheBullpen has an interview with Troy Jenkins on this topic (permalink busted, scroll down).

Kerry Has One-Point Lead In Reuters/Zogby Daily Tracking Poll

Reuters reports that Kerry moved into a one-point lead over President Bush in the latest Reuters/Zogby poll released on Saturday.

From California Yankee.

Kerry already making Cabinet selections

TIMES ONLINE: Kerry to opt for the senator who copied Kinnock

THE man whose presidential ambitions were destroyed when he plagiarised Neil Kinnock is set to become America’s chief foreign policymaker if John Kerry is elected President next Tuesday.
Senator Joseph Biden of Delaware has been asked by Mr Kerry to become Secretary of State in a Democratic administration, according to Kerry campaign aides. Mr Biden, the leading Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for the past four years, ran for President in 1988. His campaign ended abruptly when it was revealed that a key element of his stump speech had been lifted directly from Mr Kinnock’s general election speeches in 1987.

But Mr Biden has since emerged as a leading foreign policy figure in the Democratic party and is expected to take the job offered by Mr Kerry unless political factors intervene. Were the Democrats to retake control of the Senate, he might prefer to remain as a lawmaker, but those who know him think that unlikely.

Mr Biden’s possible elevation is one of the thousands of permutations circulating in Washington in the final days before the presidential election. If Mr Biden does go to the State Department it will be a disappointment for Richard Holbrooke, the UN Ambassador during the Clinton Administration and the architect of the Dayton peace accords that ended the Bosnian war in 1995. Mr Holbrooke has lobbied hard for the Secretary of State ’s job. But in what will be seen as both an effort to conciliate the famously self-confident Mr Holbrooke, and as a signal change from Bush administration policy, Mr Kerry is likely to offer him the job of special Middle East peace co-ordinator, senior Democrats say.

Mr Kerry plans to announce both appointments soon after the election as a sign of the urgency he assigns to mending diplomatic fences.

Kerry Takes Lead In ABC/Washington Post Tracking Poll

Bloomberg reports that Kerry has taken the lead in the Washington Post tracking poll 50 percent to 48 percent.

From California Yankee.

Kerry Regains Lead In Rasmussen Tracking Poll

Rasmussen Reports Presidential Tracking Poll
Bush 46%
Kerry 48%
The poll was conducted October 22-24 and has a margin of error is plus or minus 2 percent.

This is the first time the Rasmussen tracking poll found Kerry leading since August 23.

From California Yankee.

Kerry Accuses Bush of Incompetence

From the AP via Yahoo! News:

President Bush, presenting himself as the best candidate to keep America safe, was accused by John Kerry on Monday of “unbelievable incompetence” in the disappearance of hundreds of tons of powerful explosives in Iraq.

“Every step of the way, this administration has miscalculated,” Kerry said in Dover, N.H. He spoke shortly before traveling to Philadelphia for a rally with former President Clinton, who was making his first political appearance since heart surgery nearly seven weeks ago.

Kerry said the Bush administration had “miscalculated about how to go to war, miscalculated about the numbers of troops that we would need, miscalculated about sending young Americans to war without the armor they needed, without the Humvees they needed that were armored.”

“And the incredible incompetence of this president and this administration has put our troops at risk and put this country at greater risk than we ought to be,” Kerry said.

Running mate John Edwards, campaigning in Ohio, added, “After today, it’s hard to imagine that even they’ll continue believing things are going well.”

The International Atomic Energy Agency said about 350 tons of highly explosive material had disappeared in Iraq, apparently stolen because of a lack of security at governmental installations.

The central argument of Bush’s re-election campaign is that he can do a better job protecting America than Kerry, and polls show that voters trust Bush more on this issue. The Bush campaign dismissed Kerry’s criticism of the missing explosives without responding to the allegations.

“John Kerry has no vision for fighting and winning the war on terror, so he is basing his attacks on the headlines he wakes up to each day,” Bush campaign spokesman Steve Schmidt said. “If John Kerry wants to spend the next eight days trying to explain his positions again, we welcome that debate.”

Read the rest here.

The New York Times is reporting “Kerry Calls Missing Explosives One of Bush’s ‘Great Blunders’”

Security Council Members Deny Meeting Kerry

The Washington Times reports that U.N. ambassadors from several nations are disputing assertions by Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry that he met for hours with all members of the U.N. Security Council just a week before voting in October 2002 to authorize the use of force in Iraq.

From California Yankee.

Orlando Sentinel Endorses John Kerry

The normally Republican Orlando Sentinel has endorsed John Kerry for President.

Four years ago, the Orlando Sentinel endorsed Republican George W. Bush for president based on our trust in him to unite America. We expected him to forge bipartisan solutions to problems while keeping this nation secure and fiscally sound.

This president has utterly failed to fulfill our expectations. We turn now to his Democratic challenger, Sen. John Kerry, with the belief that he is more likely to meet the hopes we once held for Mr. Bush.

Our choice was not dictated by partisanship. Already this election season, the Sentinel has endorsed Republican Mel Martinez for the U.S. Senate and four U.S. House Republicans. In 2002, we backed Republican Gov. Jeb Bush for re-election, repeating our endorsement of four years earlier. Indeed, it has been 40 years since the Sentinel endorsed a Democrat — Lyndon Johnson — for president.

BRAAAAAAINS!

The LA Times wonders if John Kerry is too intelligent to be president of the United States.

Sinclair Aires “A POW Story: Politics, Pressure and the Media”

Sinclair Broadcast Group aired “A POW Story: Politics, Pressure and the Media” on 40 television stations around the country last night.

The Associated Press reports that the program contained a few minutes from the documentary, “Stolen Honor: Wounds That Never Heal,” as well as excerpts from a pro-Kerry documentary, interviews with veterans who support and oppose Kerry, and a segment on the impact of new media such as the Internet on politics.

A history of the controversy that erupted following reports of the upcoming program was also given, including assessments such as “before anything had been decided, spin alley had become a superhighway.”

Kerry did not appear in the program, but comments he made on the issue on the campaign trail were presented.

New York Times Review Of "Stolen Honor" - It Should Be Shown Everywhere

The New York Times review of “Stolen Honor: Wounds That Never Heal” states that the documentary should be shown in its entirety on all the networks, cable stations and on public television.

From California Yankee.

Christopher Reeve's Widow Endorses Kerry

AP: Christopher Reeve’s Widow Endorses Kerry

Sen. John Kerry on Thursday accused President Bush of slowing scientific advancement after earning a special endorsement from the widow of Senator actor Paul Wellstone’s Christopher Reeve, a proponent of the embryonic stem cell research on which the president has placed limits.

“The American people deserve a president who understands that when America invests in science and technology, we can build a stronger economy and create jobs for the 21st century,” Kerry said during a campaign rally. “But George Bush has literally … turned his back on the spirit of exploration and discovery.”

Wellstone’s Reeve’s widow, Dana, said her family has been grieving privately since her husband died Oct. 10. “My inclination would be to remain private for a good long while,” she said. “But I came here today in support of John Kerry because this is so important. This is what Paul Chris wanted.”

(Okay, okay… unfair… Paul Wellstone’s wife died in the plane crash with him, leaving his son and Ted Kennedy to use his coffin as a pulpit to thump while campaigning.)

Democrats seek "Sex and the City" Women

Agence France Presse reports Democrat strategists are trying to get “Sex and the City” women to vote for Kerry.

The “Sex and the City” women are single women from 18 to 88 who did not vote in 2000. The group includes whites, Afro-Americans, Latinos and numbers about 22 million.

From California Yankee.

Franks Denies Hunt For Bin Laden Was "Outsourced"

Agence France-Presse reports that Retied General Tommy Franks, the former commander of US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, has denied Kerry’s claim that we “outsourced” the hunt for Osama bin Laden in Tora Bora:

“As commander of the allied forces in the Middle East, I was responsible for the operation at Tora Bora and I can tell you that the senator’s understanding of events doesn’t square with reality,” retired general Tommy Franks wrote in The New York Times.

[. . .]

According to Franks, the US military relied heavily on Afghan forces in that battle because they knew Tora Bora after fighting there for years against the Soviet occupation.

“Third, the Afghans weren’t left to do the job alone,” the retired general continued. “Special forces from the United States and several other countries were there, providing tactical leadership and calling in air strikes.”

From California Yankee.

Palestinian Authority expresses support for Kerry

JERUSALEM POST: Palestinian Authority expresses support for Kerry

The Palestinian Authority made its first open statement Monday expressing support for US democratic presidential candidate John Kerry.

PA Foreign Minister Nabil Sha’ath said that the future of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process is unsure if George W. Bush is re-elected to office.

Kerry - Illegal ballot collection in Florida?

Early news from Drudge:

As early voting begins Monday in the sunburn State of Florida controversy has already developed around a Democratic National Committee/Kerry-Edwards election manual.

The election manual titled — “FLORIDA VICTORY 2004” -obtained by the DRUDGE REPORT, advocates an apparent unlawful “BALLOT PICKUP” drive by campaign volunteers.

The DNC Kerry/Edwards manual states:

“In Florida, it is legal to handle ballots. This means it is possible for the campaign to canvass base neighborhoods, pick up completed ballots and deliver them to Early Vote locations. We will incorporate these deliveries into our Early Vote canvassing program.”

But Florida State election law is in sharp contrast and conflicts with the Dem plan.

“A designee may pick up an absentee ballot for a voter on election day or 4 days before election day. A designee may only pick up two absentee ballots per election, other than his or her own ballot or ballots for members of his or her immediate family. Designees must have written authorization from the voter, present a picture I.D. and sign an affidavit. Candidates may pick up absentee ballots only for members of their immediate family.”

Florida Papers Endorse Kerry

South Florida Sun-Sentinel - “President Bush has failed the test of leadership. The South Florida Sun-Sentinel Editorial Board recommends voters on Nov. 2 replace him with John Kerry.”

Miami Herald - “On the basis of experience, a strong campaign and command of the issues that make this such a crucial election, The Herald recommends JOHN F. KERRY.”

St. Petersburg Times - “President Bush hasn’t lived up to his promise to be a uniter at home and in world affairs, and he shows no evidence of having recognized, much less learned from, the mistakes that have left this country less united and less secure. John Kerry isn’t a perfect candidate. No one is. But he is an intelligent, principled leader who has demonstrated his commitment to his country on the battlefield and in public service. The Times recommends Kerry as the candidate best equipped to fulfill the promises George W. Bush made four years ago and failed to keep.”

Palm Beach Post - “There are many reasons to declare George W. Bush a failed president. We frame the election in terms of why people should vote for Sen. John Kerry.”

Daytona News-Journal - “America’s prosperity doesn’t entirely depend on a great president. America’s future does. John Kerry’s distinguished service has prepared him to be the leader this country needs. The world, as much as America, would benefit by his intelligence, integrity, courage and compassion in the Oval Office. It especially needs his perceptive restraint.”

Bradenton Herald - “It comes down to this simple question famously asked by Ronald Reagan in 1980: Are you better off today than you were four years ago? The answer, clearly, is no. Ultimately, that is why we recommend John Kerry as president of the United States in the Nov. 2 election.”

Florida Today - “America needs new leadership, and John Kerry can bring it to the White House.”

Kerry: Potential Great for Return Of Draft

Kerry, in an interview The Des Moines Register published Friday:

There is “a great potential” for a military draft in the United States should President Bush win re-election in November

From California Yankee.

Most Condemn Kerry Debate Comment About Cheney's Daughter

ABC News reports that its latest tracking poll found that likely voters, by 2-1, call it inappropriate for Kerry to have noted that Vice President Dick Cheney’s daughter is a lesbian.

From California Yankee.

DRUDGE: Charge voter intimidation, even if none exists

Matt Drudge in a WORLD EXCLUSIVE BREAKING NEWS has posted a page out of the DNC Election Manual that suggests that operatives launch “pre-emptive strikes” charging voter intimidation where none has been reported…

2. If no signs of intimidation techniques have emerged yet, launch a “pre-emtive strike” (particularly well-suited tio states in which there [sic] techniques have been tried in the past).

Issue a press release
i. Reviewing Republican tactic used in the past in your area or state
ii. Quoting party/minority/civil rights leadership as denouncing tactics that discourage people from voting

Prime minority leadership to discuss the issue in the media; provide talking pints.

Place stories in which minority leadership expresses concern about the threat of intimidation tactics.

Warn local newspapers not to accept advertising that is not properly disclaimed or that contains false warnings about voting requirements and/or about what will happen at the polls.

Who’s the Fear Campaigner now?

What ... No Blogs?

This K/E campaign email came through just after last night’s debate:

Dear Supporter,

A few minutes ago, the third and final presidential debate came to a close. Once again, I am about to head over to the “spin room,” and once again I am going to have the chance to talk about a victory for John Kerry.

During these debates, John Kerry has left no doubt that he has the strength and character we need in a commander in chief. He has shown the American people his command of the facts, steady demeanor, and well reasoned arguments. He offered hope and optimism, and showed that he will fight for middle class families.

The Bush campaign has tried to lower the bar for each debate. But the bar can only go so low.

The bottom line is, when it comes to the concerns of the middle class, George Bush just doesn’t get it — doesn’t know how to talk about it — and has no way to fix it. While he offered nothing but more of the same tired rhetoric — John Kerry presented real solutions to real problems. That’s the reason why John Kerry won and George Bush lost — lowered expectations and spin from the Bush campaign will not change this.

Tonight George Bush’s denials further damaged his credibility. He denied we have problems with immigration, No Child Left Behind, equal pay for women and the minimum wage. Bush pretends our problems don’t exist, and he won’t level with the American people.

Again, we need your help to keep the Republican spin machine in check. After three debates you know what you need to do — let’s go out there and do it.

1) Vote in online polls

CNN
http://www.cnn.com

MSNBC
http://www.msnbc.msn.com

ABC News
http://www.abcnews.com

CBS
http://www.cbsnews.com

Fox News
http://www.foxnews.com

Also check your local newspaper and TV station’s websites for online polls.

2) Call into talk radio

http://volunteer.johnkerry.com/speakout
3) Write local newspapers

http://volunteer.johnkerry.com/speakout
Sincerely,

Joe Lockhart
Senior Advisor

What … no call to troll the blogs?

Clinton: Off The Bench

The Guardian reports that Bill’s back in the game, recording radio advertisements for Kerry / Edwards.

Lynn Cheney Upset With Kerry

The Associated Press reports that Lynn Cheney accused Kerry of pulling a “cheap and tawdry political trick,” for invoking her daughter’s sexuality in his debate with President Bush:

“Now, you know, I did have a chance to assess John Kerry once more and now the only thing I could conclude: This is not a good man,” she said.

“Of course, I am speaking as a mom, and a pretty indignant mom. This is not a good man. What a cheap and tawdry political trick.”

From Caslifornia Yankee.

Mystery Surrounds Kerry's Navy Discharge

The New York Sun reports that Kerry’s discharge is surrounded in mystery:

An official Navy document on Senator Kerry’s campaign Web site listed as Mr. Kerry’s “Honorable Discharge from the Reserves” opens a door on a well kept secret about his military service.

The document is a form cover letter in the name of the Carter administration’s secretary of the Navy, W. Graham Claytor. It describes Mr. Kerry’s discharge as being subsequent to the review of “a board of officers.” This in it self is unusual. There is nothing about an ordinary honorable discharge action in the Navy that requires a review by a board of officers.

According to the secretary of the Navy’s document, the “authority of reference” this board was using in considering Mr. Kerry’s record was “Title 10, U.S. Code Section 1162 and 1163. “This section refers to the grounds for involuntary separation from the service. What was being reviewed, then, was Mr. Kerry’s involuntary separation from the service. And it couldn’t have been an honorable discharge, or there would have been no point in any review at all. The review was likely held to improve Mr. Kerry’s status of discharge from a less than honorable discharge to an honorable discharge.

A Kerry campaign spokesman, David Wade, was asked whether Mr. Kerry had ever been a victim of an attempt to deny him an honorable discharge. There has been no response to that inquiry.

From California Yankee.

"Terrorism ... a nuisance?"

CNN reports that President Bush’s campaign plans a new ad based on what Kerry is quoted as saying in a New York Times Magazine article about “what it would take for Americans to feel safe again:”

“We have to get back to the place we were, where terrorists are not the focus of our lives, but they’re a nuisance,” the article states as the Massachusetts senator’s reply.

“As a former law enforcement person, I know we’re never going to end prostitution. We’re never going to end illegal gambling. But we’re going to reduce it, organized crime, to a level where it isn’t on the rise. It isn’t threatening people’s lives every day, and fundamentally, it’s something that you continue to fight, but it’s not threatening the fabric of your life.”

From California Yankee.

AP Poll: Kerry Regains Lead

A new Associated Press poll finds that Kerry leads President Bush by 4%.

Likely Voters
Bush 46%
Kerry 50%

The poll was taken October 4-6 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percent.

From California Yankee.

NRA Targets Kerry

The Los Angeles Times reports that the National Rifle Association is launching television commercials and newspaper ads criticizing Kerry as an opponent of gun-owner rights:

The latest ad shows an NRA lobbyist, Chris W. Cox, walking through a field with a shotgun slung over his shoulder.

[. . .]

“Remember, John Kerry’s not a hunter,” Cox says in the ad. “He just plays one on TV.”

The Associated Press reports that the National Rifle Association also uses a sweater-wearing poodle with a pink bow mocking Kerry’s attempts to portray himself as friendly to gun sports and saying:

“That dog don’t hunt.”

“John Kerry says he supports sportsmen’s rights. But his record says something else,” the ads say.

From California Yankee.

Did Kerry Violate Debate Rules?

The Drudge Report is carrying this video clip that seems to show John Kerry taking notes from his breast pocket.

The debate rules read: No props, notes, charts, diagrams, or other writings or other tangible things may be brought into the debate by either candidate…. Each candidate must submit to the staff of the Commission prior to the debate all such paper and any pens or pencils with which a candidate may wish to take notes during the debate, and the staff or commission will place such paper, pens and pencils on the podium…

Newsweek Poll: Kerry Leads

MSNBC reports that in the first national telephone poll using a fresh sample, Newsweek found the presidential race statistically tied among all registered voters, in a three-way race.

Registered Voters
Bush 45%
Kerry 47%
Nader 2%

The poll was conducted among registered voters between September 30 and October 2 and has a margin of error is plus or minus 4 percent.

From California Yankee.

Kerry Acknowledges "Inarticulate Moment"

The Associated Press reports that Kerry acknowledges an inarticulate moment when he tried to explain his vote against the $87 billion for the war in Afghanistan and Iraq by saying:

“I actually did vote for the $87 billion before I voted against it.”

From California Yankee.

Kerrry Says We Should Not Have Gone To War In Iraq

ABCNEWS.com has posted a transcript of an excerpt from Diane Sawyer’s interview with Kerry, which is being broadcast on ABC’s “Good Morning America:”

DIANE SAWYER: Was the war in Iraq worth it?

SEN. JOHN KERRY: We should not have gone to war knowing the information we know today.

From California Yankee.

No European Help For Kerry

The Financial Times reports that French and German government officials say they will not significantly increase military assistance in Iraq even if Kerry wins the election.

From California Yankee.

The Local Stump: Moblogging Edwards

Hi everyone. Apologies for my sparse participation over the past week … my high level of activity during the conventions resulted in a nearly non-stop set of work since.

But I’m back, and today will be posting something a bit different. The Kerry campaign is making stop today in my locale as John Edwards hosts a “block party” in the next town over. I was sent tickets (from the DNC connection, I assume), and I’ll be attending and moblogging from my Palm Treo 600 during the event.

I’ll start around 11:30 AM EDT.

Kerry After Action Reports Now Posted Here

The Fox Baltimore servers are getting hammered, so I’m posting copies of the reports here. To reduce load time under a heavy server load, I’ll posted each page seperately. Each is a .jpg file.

• Page One

• Page Two

• Here are both pages as a .PDF file (hat tip, Bandit’s Hideout)

Incidentally, the Kerry campaign has had his “spot reports” detailing his injuries in action online for a while … you may see them here.

Text of Kerry Speech on Iraq War

Senator Kerry spoke this morning in Cincinnati, Ohio, seeking to commemorate the 1,000th American death in Iraq by laying out his position on the war there. I’ve excerpted the text of his foreign policy remarks, which his website captions Remarks on Bush’s Wrong Choices in Iraq That Have Left Us Without the Resources We Need at Home:

Yesterday in Iraq, we marked the most incalculable loss of all. Yesterday, we reached a tragic milestone. More than 1,000 of America’s sons and daughters gave their lives in service to our country. More than 1,000 sons and daughters, husbands and wives, brothers and sisters who will never come home to live the lives they dreamed of. We honor them, we pray for them and for their families, and we owe it to their memory and all our troops to do what’s right in Iraq.

I also want to speak directly to the more than 150,000 troops currently risking their lives as far away as Iraq and Afghanistan. Your country is proud of you. You are the most dedicated, capable military we’ve ever had. We are united as a nation in our support for you. We pledge to stand with your families as you stand on the front lines for ours. You are the best of America. And you perform magnificently every day. We thank you for your service and your sacrifice.

Twenty-three months ago, President Bush came here to ask the American people for our support. And he promised then to make the right choices when it came to sending young Americans to Iraq.

Here in Cincinnati, he said that if Congress approved the resolution giving him the authority to use force, it did not mean that military action would be “unavoidable”. But he chose not to give the weapons inspectors the time they needed to get the job done and give meaning to the words, going to war as a last resort.

Here in Cincinnati, he promised “to lead a coalition.” But he failed to build a broad, strong coalition of allies and he rushed to war without a plan to win the peace.

Here in Cincinnati, from this hall, on that night, he spoke to the nation, and promised: “If we have to act, we will take every precaution that is possible. We will plan carefully. We will act with the full power of the United States military. We will act with allies at our side and we will prevail.”

But then, George W. Bush made the wrong choices. He himself now admits he miscalculated in Iraq. In truth, his miscalculation was ignoring the advice that was given to him, including the best advice of America’s own military. When he didn’t like what he was hearing, he even fired the Army Chief of Staff. His miscalculation was going to war without taking every precaution and without giving the inspectors time. His miscalculation was going to war without planning carefully and without the allies we should have had. As a result, America has paid nearly 90% of the bill in Iraq. Contrast that with the Gulf War, where our allies paid 95% of the costs.

George W. Bush’s wrong choices have led America in the wrong direction in Iraq and left America without the resources we need here at home. The cost of the President’s go-it-alone policy in Iraq is now $200 billion and counting. $200 billion for Iraq, but they tell us we can’t afford after-school programs for our children. $200 billion for Iraq, but they tell us we can’t afford health care for our veterans. $200 billion for Iraq, but they tell us we can’t afford to keep the 100,000 new police we put on the streets during the 1990s.

Well we’re here today to tell them: they’re wrong. And it’s time to lead America in a new direction.

When it comes to Iraq, it’s not that I would have done one thing differently from the President, I would’ve done almost everything differently. I would have given the inspectors the time they needed before rushing to war. I would have built a genuine coalition of our allies around the world. I would’ve made sure that every soldier put in harm’s way had the equipment and body armor they needed. I would’ve listened to the senior military leaders of this country and the bipartisan advice of Congress. And, if there’s one thing I learned from my own service, I would never have gone to war without a plan to win the peace.

I would not have made the wrong choices that are forcing us to pay nearly the entire cost of this war – $200 billion that we’re not investing in education, health care, and job creation here at home.

$200 billion for going-it-alone in Iraq. That’s the wrong choice; that’s the wrong direction; and that’s the wrong leadership for America.

While we’re spending that $200 billion in Iraq, 8 million Americans are looking for work – 2 million more than when George W. Bush took office – and we’re told that we can’t afford to invest in job training and job creation here at home.

[I’m skipping the domestic-policy sections, but you can read the whole thing at Kerry’s site]

Because of this President’s wrong choices, we’re spending $200 billion in Iraq while the costs of health care have gone through the roof and we’re told we don’t have the resources to make health care affordable and available for all Americans . . .

. . . They’re charging 17% more for Medicare while making America pay $200 billion for a go-it-alone policy in Iraq. That’s the wrong choice; that’s the wrong direction; and that’s the wrong leadership for America.

[snip]

Because of George W. Bush’s wrong choices, we’re spending $200 billion in Iraq while we’re running up deficits that threaten Social Security. In fact, they’re raiding the Social Security Trust Fund to pay for their mistakes in Iraq. . . .

[snip]

And because of this President’s wrong choices, we’re spending $200 billion in Iraq instead of investing in making America energy independent. George W. Bush’s energy policy is to trust the big oil companies and the Saudis. In fact, a national news magazine just reported that a senior member of the Saudi Royal family said that as far as they’re concerned, in the U.S. Presidential election, “It’s Bush all the way.” I want an America that relies on its own ingenuity and innovation, not the Saudi Royal Family.

We’re going to invest in technology and the vehicles of the future, so that no young American will ever be held hostage to our dependence on oil from the Middle East. That’s the right choice; that’s the right direction; and that’s the right leadership for America.

Because of this President’s wrong choices, we’re spending $200 billion in Iraq while we’re told that we can’t afford to do everything that we should for homeland security. I believe it’s wrong to be opening firehouses in Baghdad and closing them down in the United States of America. It’s wrong to cut money for our first responders. It’s wrong to let 95% of the cargo that comes into this country get by without ever being physically inspected. That’s the wrong choice; that’s the wrong direction; and that’s the wrong leadership for America.

As President, I will set a new direction. We’re going to defend this country here at home. We’re going to do all we possibly can to protect it from another terrorist attack. And we’re going to make homeland security a priority, not a political slogan.

My friends, today we are bearing the cost of the war in Iraq almost alone – $200 billion and counting.

Nearly two years after George W. Bush spoke to the nation from this very place, we know how wrong his choices were. He says he “miscalculated.” He calls Iraq a “catastrophic success.” But a glance at the front pages or a look at the nightly news shows the hard reality: Rising instability. Spreading violence. Growing extremism. Havens for terrorists that weren’t there before. And today, even the Pentagon admits, Entire regions of Iraq are controlled by insurgents and terrorists.

I call this course a catastrophic choice that has cost us $200 billion because we went it alone, and we’ve paid an even more unbearable price in young American lives.

We need a new direction. I know what we need to do in Iraq. We need to bring our allies to our side, share the burdens, reduce the cost to American taxpayers, and reduce the risk to American soldiers. We need to train Iraqi military and police – we need to train them more rapidly, more effectively, and in greater numbers to take over the job of protecting their own country. That’s what I’ll do as Commander-in-Chief – because that’s the right way to get the job done and bring our troops home.

[snip]

Zogby: "Kerry On The Ropes"

John Zogby, explaining that it isn’t an 11 point race, says: “Mr. Kerry is on the ropes.”

I have Mr. Bush leading by 2 points in the simple head-to-head match up - 46% to 44%. Add in the other minor candidates and it becomes a 3 point advantage for the President - 46% to 43%. This is no small achievement. The President was behind 50% to 43% in my mid-August poll and he essentially turned the race around by jumping 3 points as Mr. Kerry lost 7 points. Impressive by any standards.

For the first time in my polling this year, Mr. Bush lined up his Republican ducks in a row by receiving 90% support of his own party, went ahead among Independents, and now leads by double-digits among key groups like investors. Also for the first time the President now leads among Catholics. Mr. Kerry is on the ropes.

From California Yankee.

Kerry: Iraq "the wrong war, in the wrong place at the wrong time."

Kerry at a Labor Day rally in West Virginia:

Clinton Tells Kerry To Stop Talking About Vietnam

The New York Times reports that former President Clinton advised Kerry to stop talking about Vietnam:

In an expansive conversation, Mr. Clinton, who is awaiting heart surgery, told Mr. Kerry that he should move away from talking about Vietnam, which had been the central theme of his candidacy, and focus instead on drawing contrasts with President Bush on job creation and health care policies, officials with knowledge of the conversation said.

From California Yankee.

Campaign Finance Reform: 60-day window is here

In case y’all hadn’t noticed, we’re now within 60 days of the election, which means that in theory, 527 groups are now prohibited from running television