An Agenda Worth Fighting For
Ted Chiodo, our intrepid blog correspondent on the road with John Kerry, reports in from Emmetsburg, Iowa, site of a 5-county Democratic rally on Sunday. From now till Election Day, Ted will be bringing you reports from the states where John Kerry is doing everything he can do to defeat Republicans at every level of the ticket and win back control of the House and the Senate. Here’s Ted:
People in Iowa love their politics. More than two hundred and fifty enthusiastic Iowa Democrats drove in for three hours of speeches at a five-county rally in Emmetsburg on Sunday afternoon. People were arriving early, something that Pocahontas County Democratic Central Committee co-chair Lois Jirgens told me was really unusual.
Ken and Nancy Kunickis and their kids
People drove in from all over the 5 counties, and lots of them brought the whole family. I talked briefly with Ken and Nancy Kunickis and their kids. The Kunickis drove 25 miles to the rally from Laurens, Iowa because they are unhappy with the Republican leadership in Washington and wanted to catch a picture with Kerry. They’re both teachers, and also own a pub, Rumors. Katie told me that at school, “I teach the children to be responsible for their actions in the classroom. If it’s a good lesson for our children, I don’t know why it shouldn’t be a good lesson for the leadership in Washington.”
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At the end of the rally, Senator Harkin introduced Kerry, who proceeded to blast the values of the current Republican administration.
He followed with advice for what do to when people start parroting the Rovian talking point that Democrats don’t have any ideas. ‘What kind of ideas do Republicans have?’, Kerry asked the house:
“Next time you knock on someone’s door, and they say ‘Well, I don’t trust the Republicans anymore, but the Democrats don’t have any ideas.’ You tell them that if by ideas they mean running the debt up to nine trillion dollars, losing America’s manufacturing base, denying children after-school programs, cutting kids from Medicaid, and privatizing Social Security
- if by ideas they mean violating the law, ignoring international treaties and forgetting diplomacy -if by ideas they mean filling the trough of the special interests’ pig pen, giving the money changers their bankruptcy bill, giving the oil industry their energy bill, and giving the big pharmaceutical companies their prescription drug bill—then they’re right. Those are bad ideas being shoved down the throats of the American people by a Washington of bankrupt values and I’m proud we stood up and said no to them every step of the way.”
And Kerry had plenty of good Democratic ideas for people to take home:
“So what do we say yes to? What are our ideas?
How about starting with this: tell the American people the truth!
Then, full-on fire the incompetents!
Make America secure with energy independence.
Value work, not wealth, and make our tax code fair for the middle class and people struggling to join it.
Export products, not jobs.
Make health care accessible and affordable for all Americans.
Do something about global warming and, while we’re at it, clean up our lakes and rivers so people can fish and swim in the United States.
Set a deadline for Iraqis to run Iraq and bring our heroes home.
These are real ideas. I believe that was an agenda worth fighting for in 2004, and it’s even more urgent today and America will be better off if we start getting these things done now.”
Now it’s on to Nevada on Tuesday to work for the Democrats there. Stay tuned!
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First again?
Thanks so much to Mr. Chiodo for the report. It’s always really inspiring to watch citizens getting involved in politics.
And I have to agree with Senator Kerry - Republicans have ideas, but they are NOT working out.
Poll Shows Foley Case Is Hurting Congress’s Image
By ADAM NAGOURNEY and JANET ELDER
Published: October 10, 2006
Americans say that Republican Congressional leaders put their political interests ahead of protecting the safety of teenage pages, and that House leaders knew of Mark Foley’s sexually charged messages to pages well before he was forced to quit Congress, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News poll.
The poll, completed before North Korea announced that it had detonated its first nuclear test, also found that the war in Iraq was continuing to take a toll on President Bush and the Republican Party, and that the White House was having difficulty retaining its edge in handling terrorism.
The number of Americans who approve of Mr. Bush’s handling of the campaign against terrorism dropped to 46 percent from 54 percent in the past two weeks, suggesting that he failed to gain any political lift from an orchestrated set of ceremonies marking the fifth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. In addition, the poll shows that Americans are now evenly divided over which party they think can better handle terrorism, the first time in the Bush presidency that Democrats have matched Republicans on national security, despite a concerted White House effort to seize the advantage on the issue this month.
With four weeks left before Election Day, the poll indicates that the scandal involving Mr. Foley, a former Republican congressman from Florida, is alienating Americans from Congress, and weakening a Republican Party that was already struggling to keep control of the House and Senate. By overwhelming numbers, including majorities of Republicans, Americans said that most members of Congress did not follow the same rules of behavior as average Americans, and that most members of Congress considered themselves above the law.
more:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/10/us/politics/10poll.html?_r=1&hp&ex;=1160452800&en=f142eb5c1016cd81&ei=5094&partner=homepage&oref=slogin
Well, here we are, home again!
I am blogging from Prague, which is a beautiful city full of human endeavors—like music, painting, dance, glass, architecture, etc.
As I taught class this morning, I was reminded of the deep craving I have (and perhaps you all do too) for beauty, elegance, and the heart. I keep filling with tears as I turn a corner and see a stained-glass window or a church entry that honors the spirit and the passion of human beings to simply care for and about each other.
I hope this blog can become the community it was always meant to be—a community that encourages and supports the efforts we all share to bring sanity back to the USA.
John Kerry has always been about listening, encouraging, and rebuilding the country so we can hold our heads up in a global conversation about sustainable democracy.
I am in, again and still.
The republicans have many ideas for the rich and upper class. They have lost touch with middle class America, and have no clue on foreign policy. John Kerry was right in 2004 and he is right again. Many thanks Senator Kerry for fighting for what you said you would fight for. In this day and age it is hard to find someone who not only talks the talk but walks the walk. Thank You Sir. JK 2008!!!!!
Ted, thank you so much for your report. It seems everywhere the Senator goes, he’s met with enthusiastic crowds.
As Sen Kerry says, we do have a message and a plan to restore America’s credibility and the moral authority we have lost over the years of bush’s failed Presidency. And to provide Americans with jobs, healthcare and education, the importance of which seem to have been lost on this administration. The Dem message is a good, strong message that is truly in keeping with American ideals. Senator Kerry’s been articulating it across the country, and those of us who have heard him know that Democrats, and especially Sen Kerry have a plan to put this country back on track. People need to open their eyes and ears and their minds and just listen.
The challenge is to get the word out there. Thanks for helping do that.
Karen, I’m incredibly jealous and happy for you at the same time. You will have to tell us all about your travels. I’ve never been to Prague, but my grandparents were born near there, and I’d love to visit. Hope you’re having a wonderful time.
Good Morning, everyone!
Let’s make today count!
(Tomorrow is the voter registration deadline in Missouri; if you know anyone there, make sure they register today or by 5pm tomorrow if they haven’t already! Claire McCaskill for Senate!)
Kerry on; get the word out!
Hastert to speak on Foley scandal at 11 AM EST…
That’s Right, Stay Tuned for LIES at the top of the hour.
Hastert: Anyone who knew about Foley ‘should go’
RAW STORY
Published: Tuesday October 10, 2006
Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert (R-IL) addressed the scandal involving former Representative Mark Foley (R-FL) in a brief press conference this morning, RAW STORY has learned.
Hastert indicated repeatedly that anyone—including people in his own staff—who knew about the Foley messages and did not report them should be fired. He also denied claims that he himself knew about Foley’s messages to former pages long before the scandal broke.
Developing…
http://www.rawstory.com/news/2006/Hastert_Anyone_who_knew_about_Foley_1010.html
I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Sen. Kerry for his prompt and vigorous defense of Patrick Murphy, the Democratic candidate for Congress in Pennsylvania’s 8th District, against the cheap and sleazy low-ball attacks being directed against him by Republican incumbent Mike Fitzpatrick.
Fitzpatrick’s minions have been assailing Murphy’s military record as a decorated soldier serving in Iraq. While Fitzpatrick himself has speciously washed his hands of the swiftboatian tactics being used by his field operatives, there’s no secret about his and his party’s continuing complicity in their below-the-belt attacks.
Back in 2004, the Dems That Be tried to hold themselves above the fray when the Republicans used the same sleazy tactics against them. The Dems tried to stay the course that they’d set for themselves (even though that course was widely debated within their own ranks); they tried to stand still on the high ground they held, and they lost their electoral battles as a result.
Sound familiar? It’s ironic that the Repubs in Washington are now using a clearly inappropriate and ineffective stay-the-course, stand-still-and-lose approach to the real-world battles now being fought in their unnecessary and illegal wars of conquest.
Having proven their unfitness for command of the country by the failure of their efforts abroad, the neocons in power are still trying to brand the Republicans as the party of scut-and-scum here at home. They’re trying to regain the ground that their craven manipulation of the hearts and minds of we the people won for them in the last round of elections.
This time, though, the Repos’ lies and low blows are coming back to bite them in their collective butts. Their sleazy swiftboating isn’t working any more. The Dems are not just defending themselves vigorously this time, they’re going out on the attack all across America.
And Sen. Kerry is right there leading the charge. If anyone understands the real value of speaking truth to power, he does. If anyone has the right to address the issues of front-line combat courage and REMF responsibility, he does. If anyone has the experience and the inner strength to hold the dishonest and dishonorable right-wing operatives’ feet to the fire, he does.
So thank you, Senator; thank you and the others who are standing up in the front lines and fighting the good fight for us this time. While it’s fine for us to say that we’ve got your back, it’s even better for us to know that you’ve got our front.
taking back our country one vote at a time,
Otter
Hi all.
Since the election, we moved from Phoenix to Grand Rapids, Michigan - home of the really sleazy governor-wanna-be Dick DeVoss.
Once again, Kerry articulates our position. I face the Dems have no ideas nonsense all the time. It is a full time job countering the absurd Repub charges.
If you want to meet those who think Sadaam planned 9/11, come to Grand Rapids.
If you want to meet those who are sure Iraq had WMDs, come to Grand Rapids.
If you want to meet the few folks who support the Iraq war because we need to fight them there instead of here, come to Grand Rapids.
If you want to meet folks who think stay the course is a strategy, come to Grand Rapids.
It sounds more and more like a Jeff Foxworthy monologue.
There has to be a mind before it can be changed.
Hey, battlebob!
Having lived (as you know) in red states, or wacky-red areas of supposedly “blue” states almost all my life (my current domicile being a blessed exception), I totally sympathize with you!
Glad your voice is out there as a much-needed counterpoint, but I empathize with (and , sadly, verify) your last sentence. . .: (
Somewhere I read an article which pointed out that, at least in the 20th century, the conventional wisdom was “red” in periods of apparent (even if somewhat delusional) prosperity and turned “blue” only after our country had been brought to its knees economically (exhibit A: the Great Depression vs. the era that preceded it). Oh, I should revise that. . after short-sighted, more-for-me Republican policies brought our country to its knees. And now we’ve allowed ourselves to shrink (in worldview ,knowledge and moral courage) from fear. Shame on us.
But times are changing. And, thankfully, and appropriately, you’re one of the changers out there on the front lines. Thanks for being out there. Glad to see us all rising, including especially Sen. Kerry!
U.S.: We won’t bend to North Korea bullying
North Korea’s reported threat to fire a nuclear missile is an attempt to bully Washington into talks, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton said today. “This is the way North Korea typically negotiates, by threat and intimidation,” he said. “It’s not going to work this time.”
Hmmmm…. ironic….
WASHINGTON (CNN)—Saying the “danger was clear” that the Iraqi regime would provide terrorists with biological, chemical or nuclear weapons, President Bush gave Iraqi President Saddam Hussein 48 hours for him and his sons to leave Iraq before military action begins “at a time of our choosing.” March 18, 2003
Pot… kettle… BLECH!
Hey everybody!! Great to see the blog back and all these friendly, er, well, not faces exactly, but you know what I mean.
Does anybody not find this N Korea nuke hysteria a bit redundent?? I mean, how many times a year do we have to go flip-side over a North Korean nuke threat.
They supposedly had nukes 3 years ago and we were all supposed to go into end of the world mode then.
“North Korea has said it now has nuclear weapons, according to US officials.”
http://www.asiasource.org/news/at_mp_02.cfm?newsid=88268
Rummy was saying that he believed N Korea had nukes way back in 2002.
But now that it looks like North Korea really DOES have the bomb, this administration wants to do a complete flip-flop, and say there’s no evidence North Korea really has nukes at all.
All this administration does is plays political power games, even when it comes to nuclear bombs.
Marc,
The difference is NK did actually detonate a nuke and is threatening a launch.
As I said in the previous topic, diplomacy may be too late when NK has nukes and is threatening to use them.
Of course, Bush bungled the international situation. It almost seems like he wants this to happen so he can strut his war president crap.
Sandy,
I think the Bush strategy is to downplay it because we have no options.
Ok…suppose we bomb the missle launch sites and the nuke infrastructure.
Then what?
Does NK invade South Korea?
What do China, Russia and Japan do?
Since we are turning into a Chinese province (afterall, they own us), maybe they have a lot to say about US strategy.
Our military is bogged down in the Middle East. We have a lot of sophisticated weapons to attack fixed targets anywhere in the world, but no troops to defend South Korea.
Bush’s incompetence may not have caused this mess but has certainly made it worse.
Of course North Korea has nukes. They got them from us. The whole reason that they have a nuclear program at all is because we sold them the reactors, tools, and know-how ourselves.
But that was back in the day, as a misguided effort to use NK as cats’ paws to “contain China’s growing hegemony in the Far East.” Now, of course, they’re evil hellspawns of Satan bent on destroying the world because they hate us for our freedoms, etc. etc.
Did I happen to mention that there’s an election cycle coming to a head right about now, too? Hmm. Why I am shocked, *shocked* I tell you…
And if that sounds like an all-too-familiar situation we find ourselves faced with here, maybe that has something to do with Osama bin Laden’s attacking us with the weapons we sold him and the skills we taught him. Or Saddam’s attacking his Kurds and neighbors with the weapons we sold him and the skills we taught him. Or, well, you get the picture.
And so did George, or, well, when he wrote about a very similar style of top-down hidden dictatorship in “1984.” Those who cannot remember fictitious history are condemned to repeat it.
and we all know how well that worked out last time,
Otter
Thanks for the report! Senator Kerry has ideas and damn good ones at that. He has them now and he had them in 2004, and we’ve all been saying “John Kerry was right” ever since.
It is amazing how much work Senator Kerry has been doing for Democrat candidates across the country.
He was recently in NH campaigning for State Senate candidate Beth Roth. That our once (almost) and future President (hopefully) would work so hard for a local candidate in a small race was really very impressive.
Many of us in NH appreciate the work he’s done to turn our state blue and to keep it blue. With any luck, we’ll go a bit bluer in November.
Otter,
The timing stinks but they never blew one up before.
They never threatened to use one before.
That is the difference and makes the threat real.
The whole thing is fishy and hopefully I am wrong.
Rehashing old failures is not very relevant now as both Repubs and Dems ignored the problem.
Containment works until containment is broken.
Is containment broken?
If yes then we should act.
If no then ignore them as normal.
Great update, Ted. I love the list of Democratic ideas, especially, “How about starting with this: tell the American people the truth!” Right on.