Kucinich Says Kerry Trying to 'Out-Rambo' Bush
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 28, 2004
Contact: Terre Lundy/Matt Harris: (216) 889-2004, press@kucinich.us
Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich, responding to the strongest statements yet by Sen. John Kerry regarding expansion of the military and the need for increased Pentagon spending, said Kerry has "apparently declared himself the Democratic nominee and is trying to out-Rambo President Bush" heading toward the November general election.
"The way to beat Bush in November is not to be more warlike than he is," said Kucinich. "If that's the choice that Sen. Kerry is offering, than we're simply substituting a unjustified Republican war for an equally unjustified Democratic war. And, from what Sen. Kerry is saying, an even bigger, longer, and more dangerous one."
Kerry, in what his campaign described as a major foreign policy address on the campus of UCLA yesterday, renewed his pledge to "add 40,000 active-duty Army troops, a temporary increase likely to last the remainder of the decade"--a pledge he sidestepped when asked about it directly by Kucinich during a nationally televised debate Thursday. Yesterday, in contrast, Kerry said American troop strength abroad is "overextended" and must be replenished by adding two full combat divisions to the regular Army. He has also repeatedly said that, as President, he would add those 40,000 new troops in his first 100 days.
Kerry went on to say "Day in and day out, George W. Bush reminds us that he is a war president and that he wants to make national security the central issue of this election. I am ready to have this debate. I welcome it."
Kucinich responded: "American citizens--including our own troops--want us to get out of Iraq," said Kucinich. "Sen. Kerry wants us to send more troops. Rather than proposing an exit strategy, he's clearly proposing an expansion of our military presence and an even longer occupation."
Kucinich also challenged Kerry to explain how the Army could add 40,000 new personnel without reinstating the draft. "If Sen. Kerry is considering reinstating the draft to meet his military objectives, he should be honest with the American people right now."
Kucinich also took aim at other remarks made by the Massachusetts senator in his UCLA speech.
Kerry told his audience that he would work with allies in Iraq and elsewhere, "but no President would ever let them tie our hands and prevent us from doing what must be done. As President, I will not wait for a green light from abroad when our safety is at stake."
"How does that make Sen. Kerry any different from George Bush?" Kucinich asked. "Kerry is prepared to act unilaterally if he deems it necessary ˆ the exact same words we heard from President Bush, who then took us to war. I voted against giving the President that authority, while Sen. Kerry and Sen. Edwards voted in favor of it."
Kucinich also pointed to the contradictions between Kerry's recent statements, his votes over the years on defense spending, and his comments on the floor of the U.S. Senate.
In October 2002, Kerry, who then supported the resolution that sanctioned a possible invasion of Iraq, said "It would be naïve to the point of grave danger not to believe that, left to his own devices, Saddam Hussein will provoke, misjudge, or stumble into a future, more dangerous confrontation with the civilized world." More recently, Kerry has acknowledged that Hussein possessed no weapons of mass destruction or posed any imminent threat.
"You can't have it both ways, Senator," said Kucinich. "If you were naïve then, reversed yourself to admit there was no basis for going to war, and now you're promising to be an even tougher war president than Bush, it's only fair to ask: Exactly where do you stand?"
According to Republican surrogates representing Bush's re-election campaign, Kerry's new "get tough" policy runs contrary to dozens of votes in the Senate where he opposed increased military and intelligence spending.
Now, Kucinich pointed out, "for some unfathomable reason, the senator has changed course again and become more of a hawk."
Kucinich rejected that notion that "being more warlike than George Bush" is the way for the Democrats to win the White House.
People want a change in direction and in policy, said Kucinich. "Senator Kerry seems to offering Americans even more of what George Bush has already done."
For information about the National campaign: http://www.kucinich.us
For Congressman Kucinich's Schedule: http://www.kucinich.us/schedule.htm.
To schedule an interview with Kucinich or a spokesperson: jonathans@kucinich.us
Contact us:
Kucinich for President
11808 Lorain Avenue - Cleveland, OH 44111
216-889-2004 / 866-413-3664 (toll-free)
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