Senator Kerry has once again delivered himself of a resounding nullity. His speech this morning to a gathering of firefighters was all outrage and no substance. Like a boxer in the ring all by himself, he comes out swinging, but accomplishes nothing.
His speech has been billed as a response to the charges of the Swift Boat vets that he didn't do what he claimed he did in Vietnam, but Kerry's response didn't settle anything. Speaking of the organization airing the ads that challenge his war record, Kerry said, "Of course, this group isn't interested in the truth and they're not telling the truth.
Okay. What reason does the senator give us for not believing the Swift Boat vets?
They're liars because 1) they're funded by a wealthy Republican Texan.
They're liars because 2) they're a front for the Bush campaign.
They're liars because 3) the President won't denounce them.
What does 1) have to do with anything? Does Kerry think that being wealthy or being a Republican negate their credibility? Are Texans not Americans? Why does the source of funding make the Swiftees liars? What is the source of Kerry's funding? Is it not a wealthy Hungarian named George Soros and a wealthy Madagascaran named Teresa Heinz? Does the source of Kerry's funding make him and his supporters liars?
How does Kerry know that 2) is true? Even if it were true that these vets were somehow working for the Bush re-election campaign that would still not be an argument for the falsity of what they allege.
Finally, why should the President denounce an independent group whose allegations he is not in any position to judge? If Kerry wants the President to denounce the Swift Boat ads and charges he should first demonstrate why their accusations are false, and then he should denounce George Soros, Michael Moore and Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11, and all the books written by people who support Kerry which rip George Bush. Otherwise, Bush has no reason at all to denounce anything. Why should he do what Kerry himself refuses to do?
Kerry said in his speech to the firefighters, "Of course, the president keeps telling people he would never question my service to our country. Instead, he watches as a Republican-funded attack group does just that."
Perhaps, but under the McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform law which Kerry supported it is illegal for a candidate or a campaign to interfere with what the "527" groups do. Bush could, if he wished, dissociate himself from the ads, but he cannot order that the ads be pulled.
How can Kerry settle this matter? He can release all of his records, for starters. It would be interesting to see exactly how he was commended for his citations. That would be a beginning, but Kerry refuses to do it. Why?