Trick or Treat

Karl Rove wears his John Kerry suit for Halloween--both yesterday and today--and hilarity ensues. Here's Rove Kerry campaigning for Phil Angelides (Democrat candidate for California governor) at Pasedena City College last night:

Kerry then told the students that if they were able to navigate the education system, they could get comfortable jobs - ‘If you don’t, you get stuck in Iraq,’ he said to a mixture of laughter and gasps.

Got that? Only the stupid and/or uneducated volunteer for the all-volunteer Armed Services.

But does he apologize and say that he mispoke? Noooo. He blames the GOP, George Bush, Tony Snow and all the "chickenhawks" far and wide for his gaffe and refuses to apologize to anyone--even while people like John McCain and organizations like the American Legion demand one from him.

And all this is occuring one week before the 2006 midterm elections. Actually, I doubt that this unforced error on Senator Kerry's part will have an effect on his cohorts who are up for election/reelection this year. However, I bet there are a lot of Democrat strategists marking the senator off of their list of potential stumpers for their candidate---at least as far as the next few days go.

(Thanks to too many to name)

Comments

[Teal Marie]

Him tupid.
That was a big favor he did for Arnold, accidently. His karma sucks major *ss, he can't get out of his own way and he's tripping his team mates left and, well, more left.

[Tully]

No, no! Smart! Kerry Smart!

[torchy]

I'm writing a letter to Mr Kerry expressing both my outrage at his statement and thanks for returning a Republican majority to Congress.
Check out the photo on top of the Drudgereport homepage. It's a group of soldiers holding a makeshift banner reading " Halp us Jon Carry we r stuck hear in Irak", priceless XD

[Justin]

Come on, Kerry was referring to Bush, not our troops. This is a pathetic last ditch attempt for Republicans to get the subject onto something they are good at--attacking people's patriotism.

[baldilocks]

So the Republicans put Kerry up to it and are faking their outrage over the remarks just to "change the subject?" Come on, Justin. You certainly can do better than that. I expect this sort of reasoning from actual moonbats, but not from you.

I bet all the PO'd GIs are simply trying to "change the subject" also.

Democrat, please.

[Tully]

The bigger problem being that, regardless of the explanation, it displayed remarkable political tone-deafness and reinforced some very ugly memes about the Dem party--as did Kerry's original downright moonbat non-apology.

If he were just another non-running Senator on the stump for the party, instead of the prior Prez candidate, it would barely be news. Had he immediately apologized for it being taken wrong while doing the I'm-a-lousy-comedian mambo, likewise.

The problem with inviting people to speak on your behalf is that you automatically get tagged with their sins and bumbles.

[Teal Marie]

Acute Botchulism is contagious! Wash your hands, everybody.

"Democrat, please." Well, I had to laugh. I'm very, VERY tempted to pass that on to Hannity for all the obvious reasons.

[Justin]

Of course Republicans are trying to change the subject, and of course this an election-time gambit to create outrage at the Dems. Republicans are in danger of losing the House, and less likely, the Senate. People are unhappy with Bush specifically, and Republicans generally, and to put the spotlight on a Kerry (who isn't running for office) isn't a bad move. I don't think you can deny that a Republican electoral strategy is to accuse Dems of not supporting troops, of wanting to surrender to Al Quada etc., and this plays into that perfectly (the Dems do the same thing on other issues--eg, Republicans are theocratic racists who hate poor people, which I also think is ridiculous).

But, I suppose it all depends whether you believe that Kerry meant to say:

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. Just ask President Bush

as he claims (which I do).

Tully, I agree, Kerry could have kept this to one news cycle by apologizing.

[C. Jane Stewart]

The Wizard has peeled back the curtain on himself and his buddy Libs...it is up to us Conservatives to yank it down.

[torchy]

justin
You can't be serious, all of Kerrys tactical plans had ACME emblazoned on them. I'll submit that John Kerry is no Wiley Coyote but their outcomes are the same. Kerry is not smooth enough to be a tolerable gentleman, but is well practiced as an equivocator, and above all he's French and should have a handle on what is behaviors are declasse. Cheerleading a group of collegians on the merits of education should be the last place to regurgitate the "Bush Stoopid" meme. I can't believe Kerry hasn't noticed how tired and shopworm that meme has become. Kerry has never associated Bushs supposed lack of intelligence and insight with the status of Iraq. He's only insulted W's lack of foresight with some contrived cabal of yes men who insulate Bush from advisers critical of W's strategy and information that undermines support for the Iraqi conflict. It was never about W's lack of intelligence with Kerry, vis a vis Iraq. It was always about W and his administrations cynical and callous suppression of dissent. He can't have it both ways, W can't be a calculating dolt. No. the only thing that makes sense is that Kerry was attempting to scare the students into studying and being smart or the only option they'll have is to serve their national gov't, stuck in a hostile environment, and not about being dumb enough to become president and end up making grave errors with peoples lives. To borrow from one of the few sane Democrats, Zell Miller: "That dog won't hunt"