Spleen Cuisine doesn’t endorse The Tennessean
I’ve cancelled my subscription to The Tennessean after their absurdly partisan endorsement of John Kerry on Sunday. Here are some quotes, and some facts and opinion to go with each one:
“The presidential race that now comes down to the wire has sunk to a new depth of rancor…No matter who is elected, the next president will need to heal the wounds of this campaign season.” The “depth of rancor” in this election has come almost exclusively from the DNC and the Kerry campaign. I agree that the Swift boat veterans are (apparently justifiably) rancorous, but Kerry handed them a soapbox when he chose to run on his four months in Vietnam (which he vehemently condemned) rather than his decades in public office. The vitriol of Kerry’s attacks on George W. Bush is unprecedented in my memory, and is sure to enrage anyone who supports our President. How could anyone imagine that he would be best equipped to heal the wounds that he himself inflicted?
“But the next president also needs the ability to deal with the complexity of domestic and foreign problems, and the ability to bring people together — across party lines, across national borders — for the common good. This newspaper believes that Kerry is the candidate who is best able to meet those challenges.” If “by the common good” implies that Kerry would work for the benefit of international groups to the detriment of the American citizen, I would agree that it appears that he would. Otherwise I have to take issue based on Kerry’s ultraliberal anti-defense and pro-tax record in Congress.
“On foreign affairs, Kerry brings great credibility to the table. He has seen war through the eyes of a soldier; he has participated in consensus-building as a statesman.” He repudiated his military service in 1971 and threw his controversially-won medals away before a cheering crowd. Now when it serves his purpose he clings to that service as if it were his most precious memory, without commenting on his testimony against his comrades before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. And was his statesmanship demonstrated by his fictitious meeting with the U.N. Security Council?
“Kerry understands that a strong America is an America with steadfast allies. He has vowed to support U.S. troops abroad by providing them with the proper equipment and training.” And yet he voted against supporting our troops in Iraq. He claimed that it was because of insufficient international support, and yet he also voted against supporting the troops in the first Persian Gulf War, when international support was overwhelming. Kerry is anti-defense, period.
“The senator also understands that threats come in many forms. Kerry wants to protect U.S. citizens at home without undermining the system of justice which is this nation’s cornerstone.” Implying not too subtly that Kerry is against the Patriot Act which he staunchly supported.
“President Bush has focused most of the attention during this campaign on the conflict in Iraq and the war on terrorism. Both he and Vice President Dick Cheney have insinuated that a Kerry presidency would be dangerous for Americans.” Everyone’s attention, even Kerry’s, is on Iraq and the war on terrorism. And there is no “insinuation” as far as I can see; Bush and Cheney are convinced, as am I, that Kerry’s ideology would make him dangerous as President and Commander in Chief.
“But as the president claims he is the right leader to keep the nation safe, he also must take responsibility for the mistakes, misstatements and missed opportunities of the last four years. The war in Iraq has gone badly.” Of course it goes badly–it’s a WAR. We are bringing democracy to a country where tyranny had penetrated every layer of public life like a cancer, and President Bush told us that there were “difficult days ahead” that would test our resolve. It is obvious now that many have failed that test; George W. Bush has not.
“Many of the justifications that were repeatedly given to launch a war against Iraq have proved false.” now known that Saddam pretended to have WMD’s in order to deter an attack. Plus, many others have been proven true. Our attack on Iraq was justified. Does The Tennessean believe that Iraq and the U.S. would be better off with Saddam still in power?
“The White House had no plan for a postwar Iraq.” The White House had no plan to wipe out all opposition in postwar Iraq. Bush said over and over that defeating Saddam and bringing democracy to Iraq would be difficult, but necessary. Kerry continues to spout an unbelievable lie: that Bush told us that the war would be “a piece of cake.” The Tennessean not only ignores the facts, but chooses to perpetuate Kerry’s lie.
“Certainly, going forward in Iraq and rebuilding old coalitions will not be easy. But those goals cannot be achieved through sloganeering. They can only be achieved with the kind of solid judgment, courage and calm presence that John Kerry has demonstrated throughout his life.” Dealing with this laughably absurd statement will require a separate blog entry.
“Both President Bush and Senator Kerry have pledged to cut the deficit in half by 2009: Neither candidate has adequately explained how he would achieve that goal.” And this statement is in a Kerry endorsement?
“President Bush seems to be in denial about the impact of his tax-cut package: He continues to claim that middle-income wage earners received most of the benefit from his tax-cut programs. Objective analyses of those tax cuts maintain that two-thirds of the economic boost went to the wealthiest 20% of taxpayers.” Many of those “wealthiest taxpayers” are among the 25 million small businesses in America who provide a huge share of the job growth in our country. Would you be willing to accept a layoff so Kerry can make your boss “suffer more fairly?”
“Of all the vast differences between the two candidates, the biggest chasm is on the environment. Kerry has a record of strong environmental protection.” This is true. Indeed, Kerry’s record of environmental protection is far better than his record on defense. To be honest, his record is basically one of protecting the entire rest of the world from Americans.
“The Bush White House has allowed industry officials to rewrite regulations.” So did the Clinton White House. So did the Carter White House.
“It has rejected solid science.” Limiting federal funding for embryonic stem-cell research to existing cell lines is not “rejecting solid science.” It is a moral stand shared by many Americans. Refusing to sign the Kyoto Protocol is not “rejecting solid science.” It is the stand taken by both the U.S. Congress and the Clinton Administration.
“This newspaper readily acknowledges that President Bush is not responsible for all the woes that have fallen on his watch.” A none-too-subtle statement that Bush is responsible for many of those “woes.”
“Particularly after 9/11, all Americans and most of the world’s citizens, regardless of their political persuasion, wanted Mr. Bush to succeed in fighting terrorism.” Not true. If that isn’t obvious by now, I challenge The Tennessean to support this statement.
“That broad-based support was apparent when Congress overwhelmingly passed the Patriot Act.” Though The Tennessean reported against it.
“It was apparent as well when Mr. Bush ordered troops into Afghanistan in pursuit of al-Qaida.” Though The Tennessean reported against it.
“But the good will of the world and the bipartisan support in this nation were squandered by the White House. The candidate who promised to be ‘a uniter, not a divider’ has led a highly partisan, divisive administration.” Again, refuting this will likely require a whole blog entry.
“Those voters who oppose this president — those who believe the nation can be stronger, smarter and cleaner; those who want to see all this nation’s decisions be guided by justice; those who believe in an economic policy that is fair to all citizens — should know that John Kerry is more than an alternative to Mr. Bush. He is a proven leader who can restore this nation’s promise.” John Kerry can guarantee that every decision in the U.S. will be just? John Kerry has developed the Holy Grail of economics, a policy that is simultaneously fair to everybody? And on top of all this, John Kerry can make us all “smarter and cleaner?”
If this were true, I’d vote for him in a heartbeat. Since it isn’t, and since The Tennessean has once again trashed their journalistic credibility with this endorsement, I can no longer justify supporting them with my subscription.
In case you’re curious, the phone number for doing that is 254-5661, or 800-342-8237 outside the Nashville area.