Bob Dole Notes Media's Sudden Interest in Military Service
LMAO...
http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2004/8/25/154108.shtml
Former GOP presidential nominee Bob Dole appears tonight on MSNBC's "Scarborough Country," and we have obtained a transcript. Highlights:
Joe Scarborough: Now I want to ask, you've been through one of these presidential campaigns. You know what it's like on the campaign trail. Are you surprised, as a guy who is a war hero, that John Kerry's war record is playing such a central role in this presidential campaign this year?
Dole: Well, I am a little surprised because I remember in '96, of course, Clinton didn't have a record and the liberal media didn't want to say much about my record. So it never really became - you know, I guess the New York Times may have said I was a veteran; that's about as far as they went.
So this time you've got a candidate named John Kerry who had a good record in Vietnam, came back from the service, denounced the war, in effect, trashed the Americans who were still fighting there. Went before a Senate committee in April of 1971, threw away his ribbons or his medals or whatever and now is standing before the American people and saying you've got to elect me because I'm this Vietnam hero.
And it's kind of hard to reconcile all of these things. So it does sort of bring up focus that I don't think we've had in the past.
Scarborough: Senator, let me ask you a more general question along these lines. Do you think it's important for a president to have a war record or to be a veteran?
Dole: I don't know. I was asked that in '96. You know, I said, well, I think I learned a lot obviously being in the service. I think if I'm John Kerry I'm proud of my service. Some days he's proud other days he's denouncing his service. But I was proud of my service. I thought people were proud of my service.
But it's a very fine line you walk when you're standing before a crowd of 5,000 or 6,000 people to make a speech because out in that audience there are going to be a lot of men and women and mother, father, whatever, who make not have served or may not know much about service in World War II, Korea, Vietnam.
And so you don't want to go out there and say, you know: "Vote for me. I did this, this, this, this, this. I got all these medals. I got all these Purple Hearts."
I think you can do it in a different way, and I think - heck, I sent a signal. John Kerry's a friend of mine. I sent a signal about two or three months ago on television, "John, back off. You know, cool it. Don't make the Vietnam War the centerpiece of your campaign."
But he's got a problem, because he spent 20 years in the Senate and doesn't have much to show for it.
[end of excerpt]
Of course, like Dole, former President G.H.W. Bush did not tout his heroic military service either, and the media sure didn't. But then, some candidates can run on issues and political records that don't need to be hidden.
what burns me about this is Kerry's way he tossed out his Military history and portrayed himself a Hero and pushed this issue in his Campaign bid for office.. and now that his fellow Veterans 200+ of them are hot on his a$$ for his actions against them and this country... he's crying to Bush to stop this and has no balls to go after these men who he refutes as being truthful
Lets face it.. the Dems picked them a (L)oser this time round...
Hog
