Sen. Kerry: McCain is ‘Dead Wrong’; This is ‘The Challenge of Our Generation’
EmailABC News’ Molly Hunter and Alexa Ainsworth Report: Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., called for a new framework to address the "war on terror" in the form of global counter-indoctrination that will win over hearts and minds. He went on to advocate for a counterinsurgency effort that will demonstrate what is best about America and focus less on brute force.
"It is long overdue that we, who ushered in the information age, start to fight an information struggle too," Kerry said Thursday at The Center for American Progress Action Fund, the advocacy branch of the liberal think tank, The Center for American Progress.
Kerry said the 2008 election represents "the highest stakes of all," and that whoever wins the election will have to deal urgently with Al Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan, adding that we are in "real danger of losing Afghanistan."
Kerry cited that there is a distinct choice in his mind, between Sen. John McCain and his "mangle[d] history" and "misstate[d] facts" and Sen. Barack Obama who brings the possibility of "the greatest era of progressive legislation since Lyndon Johnson."
In an October, 2003 memo on global terrorism, Donald Rumsfeld asked, what Kerry considered to be the "crucial question in today’s challenge." Rumsfeld asked if we are in fact destroying as many terrorists as the radical fundamentalists are recruiting and deploying against us?
Five years later Kerry concluded that the answer to Rumsfeld’s question is still "no" and that needs to change.
Kerry cited the recent high frequency of terrorist attacks globally, and said that military action in Afghanistan and Pakistan is clearly not sufficient. He emphasized the importance of focused efforts in Afghanistan and Pakistan, blaming the current impasse in Pakistan on the Bush administration’s fixation on Iraq.
Kerry, an Obama supporter also blames McCain for being fixated on Iraq and took issue with McCain’s April proclamation on ABC’s The View, that "Afghanistan is not in trouble because of our diversion to Iraq." Kerry characterized McCain’s recent judgments as "dead wrong," and said that Al Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan is the "challenge of our generation."
He stressed the importance of the survival of a democratically elected Pakistani government and the inescapable interconnectedness with Afghanistan, advocating for an immediate adjustment in the way the U.S. approaches Al Qaeda battlegrounds.
Overall, Kerry believes that the strategy used to fight the "war on terror" needs to be broadened.
"Focusing on winning a war of ideas as opposed to just killing terrorists will not only enable us to defeat our enemies but will restore our ability to have a positive impact on change in other areas."
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I like a lot of what Kerry said, but disagree its the challenge of our generation.
These terrorists are dangerous, and certainly shouldn’t be ignored, but we’re still talking about a couple thousand guys living in and out of caves. Aren’t we still a superpower?
Our bigger challenges, I think, will be transitioning toward renewable energy sources and getting a handle on our own debt.
Posted by: Paul | July 31, 2008, 2:02 pm 2:02 pm
Kerry shut up you loser. Did you do your daily stabbing of Clinton in the back yet
Posted by: Eric> | July 31, 2008, 2:10 pm 2:10 pm
Yeah, let’s all listen to Loser Boy Kerry because he’s so wise and wonderful. Isn’t he the jerk that lost the election he had in his pocket because he was soooo smart? Isn’t he, in effect, the very same lame-ass Dumocrat who delivered us the biggest bozo in American history because of his pathetic campaign bungling? Isnt’ he the creep that always teams up with the Old Guard, like that over-the-hill, pompous-for-no-reason Teddy K.? Lot’s of credibility there!
PUMA!
OUTSOURCE THE PRESIDENCY!
Posted by: La Chatte | July 31, 2008, 2:11 pm 2:11 pm
Kerry shut up you loser. Did you do your daily stabbing of Clinton in the back yet
Posted by: Eric> | Jul 31, 2008 2:10:25 PM
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Ya Kerry, I will never vote for another Dem as Long as I live, BECAUSE OF YOU!!
Posted by: HP Boston | July 31, 2008, 2:14 pm 2:14 pm
Obama and Kerry think the fighting the war on terror needs to be broadened. Does that mean they think we should invade and bomb more countries??? They only give a partial solution to any problem. The terrorist are broadening their controlled territory every day. Iraq had been in some sort of turmoil for 100 years before we invaded and there is certainly no guarantee, regardless of what we do, that it will be a stable, peaceful country. Wars and conflicts have been going on since man walked upright.
Posted by: Mary | July 31, 2008, 2:14 pm 2:14 pm
lmao John Kerry Lmao Kerry the Loser lmao did he cut hisself again shaving lmao he want another purple heart?
Posted by: Steve | July 31, 2008, 2:22 pm 2:22 pm
What Kerry doesn’t understand is that terrorists don’t respond to anything but brute force. You cannot negotiate with them. They don’t like us and want to kill us and he wants to tell them what is great about America. They don’t care! Kerry and Obama equal defeat for America.
Posted by: Kelly | July 31, 2008, 2:22 pm 2:22 pm
These terrorists are dangerous, and certainly shouldn’t be ignored, but we’re still talking about a couple thousand guys living in and out of caves. Aren’t we still a superpower?
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WHY oh why are we so fix satiated on these guys?
They have no army, no navy, no air force, NO Marines!! WTF are you morons in office doing? I think you want America afraid so you can run your greed to the top and rip the people off. You are quite successful at it and quite rich, how many billion did the OIL guys make in PURE PROFIT??
Posted by: HP Boston | July 31, 2008, 2:24 pm 2:24 pm
Kerry was friends with McCain before he was against him.
Posted by: Mack | July 31, 2008, 2:25 pm 2:25 pm
Wake up, people! We’re no longer “King of the Hill.” We’re no longer the “Leader of the Free World,” we’ve lost our place because we lost our way. McCain, like Bush, continues to sabre rattle about Iraq while completely ignoring where the bad guys are hanging out and fomenting death to the West. You think they’re “only a couple thousand bad guys?” Think again. Kerry may have bored us to death during his run for President, but the fact that he lacks charisma doesn’t mean that he lacks intelligence and common sense.
Posted by: nanameow | July 31, 2008, 2:26 pm 2:26 pm
“We’re no longer “King of the Hill.” We’re no longer the “Leader of the Free World,” we’ve lost our place”
So who has taken our place? France?
Posted by: Mack | July 31, 2008, 2:30 pm 2:30 pm
As a recent report by the Rand Corporation (a conservative think-tank) suggests, the concept of a global ‘war on terror’ is missing the point and preventing real progress from being made. We absolutely need to destroy the safe havens of Al-Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan and the FATA areas of Pakistan. But as this localized war proceeds, we need to hunt down terror networks and individuals using old-fashioned law enforcement and intelligence tools.
In the past, most terrorist networks have been destroyed by targeting their leaders, their supporters and their finances while simultaneously combating the terrorist ideology with jobs, education, financial aid and engagement of their target audience. In my opinion, the sooner we adopt this strategy, the sooner we begin minimizing international terrorism.
Posted by: RC-Toledo | July 31, 2008, 2:32 pm 2:32 pm
Classic liberal-speak. The kind that makes me reach for the Pepto Bismol. “If we’re just nicer to the terrorists, maybe they’ll like us.” Tell that to the people who jumped from the top windows of the World Trade Center.
Posted by: Kerri | July 31, 2008, 2:34 pm 2:34 pm
What a bunch of losers.
Kerry is sooooo soooo right on this.
Posted by: becky | July 31, 2008, 2:34 pm 2:34 pm
Kerry has to be the stupidist demo ever elected to office. Lets all get a campaign of sending christmas (whoops,excuse me for my political incorrectness) xmas cards so we can win them over by showing how we will succumb to their demands to kill us.
Posted by: gary | July 31, 2008, 2:35 pm 2:35 pm
Oh crap perpetual “war on terror” where we declare a war on your civil rights, and let our army detaine arab familes without evidence. Or “Great Society II” where we take the by power of force money, and your civil liberty and force you to comply with personal theft by government versus penalty of death or incarceration. Oh well, where is “NONE OF THE ABOVE” when we need it.
Posted by: ick! | July 31, 2008, 2:37 pm 2:37 pm
“If we’re just nicer to the terrorists, maybe they’ll like us.” Tell that to the people who jumped from the top windows of the World Trade Center. ”
They weren’t politicians or soldiers, just average Americans going about their daily lives.
Posted by: Mack | July 31, 2008, 2:39 pm 2:39 pm
Nobody advocates being nicer to terrorists and Obama advocates chasing them down.
The “victory in Iraq” is the creation of an Iran friendly state.
Posted by: Mr. Coffee | July 31, 2008, 2:48 pm 2:48 pm
Kelly: “What Kerry doesn’t understand is that terrorists don’t respond to anything but brute force.”
Kelly, Kerry isn’t talking about the guys already in the caves. He’s talking about others in the Muslim world who haven’t been yet recruited. That’s the real battle.
The actual terrorists already in the camps, etc., yes we need to deal with them. And as you said, most often that will be with brute force.
Posted by: Paul | July 31, 2008, 2:48 pm 2:48 pm
Israel is not nice to its enemies and how is that working for them?
Posted by: Mr. Coffee | July 31, 2008, 2:49 pm 2:49 pm
Go to the TMZ site to see what Kerry’s priorities really are:
Drinking with underage college girls.
Posted by: Foodforthought | July 31, 2008, 2:50 pm 2:50 pm
Every counter point for republicans is a personal attack
Kerry is absolutely correct. Take the fight to ones that actually attacked us. Also it the ages of terrorist gets younger as the recruited generation.
Posted by: watching | July 31, 2008, 2:50 pm 2:50 pm
Kerry isn’t saying no military confrontation with terrorists. He is saying use all of the weapons we have:
Bullets, economics, politics, dialogue, information.
Posted by: xmarks | July 31, 2008, 2:51 pm 2:51 pm
“Kerry isn’t saying no military confrontation with terrorists. He is saying use all of the weapons we have:
Bullets, economics, politics, dialogue, information.”
Sometimes nothing works. Just look at Barry’s urepentant terrorist friend, Bill Ayers.
Posted by: Mack | July 31, 2008, 3:01 pm 3:01 pm
Actually the challenge will be paying for entitlements and the interest and principle on our ever-increasing national debt.
Posted by: Ben Straub | July 31, 2008, 3:01 pm 3:01 pm
Check out Kerry’s drunken party photos with college co-eds on TMZ!! His eyes are as red as Heinz ketchup. What a poor excuse for a man. Guess he was reporting for duty!!!
Posted by: Zig, viet nam vet - Pennsylvania | July 31, 2008, 3:45 pm 3:45 pm
“Focusing on winning a war of ideas as opposed to just killing terrorists will not only enable us to defeat our enemies but will restore our ability to have a positive impact on change in other areas”
Kerry is an appeaser fool like Obama. these terrorists don’t give a rat’s behind about our “ideas”
Posted by: geevill | July 31, 2008, 4:33 pm 4:33 pm
Mr. Kerry, if you could not even beat George W. Bush, what right gives you to say you are right? Go hide in your club. It might do the phony zero-bama some good, unless you really want him to join you.
Posted by: fact check | July 31, 2008, 5:08 pm 5:08 pm
No punches pulled here.
Voight has spent a lot of time with wounded troops in the past few years, and it shows. The Oscar-winner knows an actor when he sees one, and his contempt for Obama is complete:
If Mr. Obama had his way, he would have pulled our troops from Iraq years ago and initiated an unprecedented bloodbath, turning over that country to the barbarianism of our enemies. With what he has openly stated about his plans for our military, and his lack of understanding about the true nature of our enemies, there’s not a cell in my body that can accept the idea that Mr. Obama can keep us safe from the terrorists around the world, and from Iran, which is making great strides toward getting the atomic bomb. And while a misleading portrait of Mr. Obama is being perpetrated by a media controlled by the Democrats, the Obama camp has sent out people to attack the greatness of Sen. John McCain, whose suffering and courage in a Hanoi prison camp is an American legend.
Posted by: harry | July 31, 2008, 6:32 pm 6:32 pm
Does Kerry believe that Iraq is no longer a part of the Middle East strategy if we leave it? It does not sound like the troops will come home anytime soon. It sounds like he would open up new fronts in Pakistan and Afgahanistan. He is ludicrous to even suggest that Obama can handle such issues while he is also bringing about “the greatest era of progressive legislation since Lyndon Johnson”. Obama is so green, and it is “scary” to think of him backpedaling his way through the Middle East. I voted for the wrong man in 2004!
Posted by: georgia | July 31, 2008, 6:57 pm 6:57 pm
Lots of right wing nut jobs out this evening. I’ll simply remind all you war mongers that the old Soviet Union fought in Afghanistan for 7 years and could not subdue the country. There is nothing that leads me to conclude that the outcome will be any different for us given that huge distraction known as Iraq and the 1 Trillion Dollars we’ve spent, the 4,400 brave young men and women who’ve died, and the 30,000 wounded Americans we’ve suffered fighting a war of choice in that country. Had we stuck with the original goal of finding and killing Osama Bin Laden and his followers, we would be able to claim much more success in the so-called “war on terror”. As it stands now, we are saddled with the greatest strategic blunder ever committed by a Commander-in-Chief. And, McSame wants to follow in his footsteps.
Posted by: caliguy55 | July 31, 2008, 10:10 pm 10:10 pm
“winning a war of ideas”….sounds like he’s applying for an ambassadorship. Kerry (AND his wife) are salivating at the thought of it. Wordly pseudo-euro wannabes.
Posted by: MidwestIowa | August 1, 2008, 8:46 am 8:46 am
Can Obama handle a war in Afghanistan and Pakistan? He can make many loud speeches and draw many fun-loving young people to watch. But I doubt he wanted to handle a war.
Posted by: dianna | August 1, 2008, 1:27 pm 1:27 pm