Dems should have locked John Kerry away

John, oh John. What was going through your unthinking mind? One week before the election. All you have to do is keep your mouth shut and not get in the way of the rising Democratic tide.

But, no. You can't resist attempting a lame joke about how if college students aren’t smart and don’t study hard, they’ll end up stuck in Iraq.

Understood: you were trying to say that Bush is a fool who did just that.

A Kerry aide told CNN that the prepared statement, which had been designed to criticize President Bush, "was mangled in delivery."

Kerry was supposed to say, "I can't overstress the importance of a great education. Do you know where you end up if you don't study, if you aren't smart, if you're intellectually lazy? You end up getting us stuck in a war in Iraq."

But that message didn’t come across. I watched the clip of you on cable news several times. Like almost everyone else, at first I thought you were warning that students who can’t cut it academically end up in the armed forces, fighting interminably in Iraq.

It was only after I heard a Democratic apologist put the progressive politically correct spin on your remarks that I interpreted you differently.

Well, the cat’s out of the bag. The more you try to explain yourself, the more this story will hang around and continue to embarrass your party. My suggestion is that you hole up until after November 7 and let other Democrats do the campaigning from now on.

You’re obviously not cut out to be a spokesman for the Dems. Just like you weren’t cut out to be president of the United States.

It’s frustrating for this progressive to see headlines like “Kerry’s November Gift to Republicans?” And a quote from a Democratic congressman:

"I guess Kerry wasn't content blowing 2004, now he wants to blow 2006, too."

Middle Earth Journal reports that John Cole is trying to put a positive spin on Kerry’s misspeaking. I just hope Cole is right.

[Update: John Kerry's blog has a refreshingly strong response from Kerry. And also a lot of comments, both pro and con.]

Comments

[Michael Smith]

He's also provided content to every potential opponent if he runs in 2008. There's no way to spin this one.

[Terry]

Precisely what I was thinking when I heard the news this afternoon. It reminds oh so much of the Dan Rather debacle in 2004 that had a lot to do with handing the election to Bush (although I still believe the election was very likely stolen in Ohio.)

Why oh why can't these guys keep their mouths shut? Who the hell wants to be talking about Kerry of all people in the last week of the election?

[Rain]

MSNBC had a good piece on it. Olbermann said does this mean the White House is too stupid to get it? But the issue is not whether they get it that Bush is point of this story and Bush is the one who went into Iraq without any knowledge of what he was doing, the point will be the spin as it always did. Like you I felt very frustrated with him. He just can't seem to say things right and should not run for '08 but he probably will. :( Like you, I just hope this won't be a deciding factor on some people's votes. Amazing if it was but then I have been amazed at votes before... again and again and again...