The President said Kerry would not be able to get our allies with us, as his “wrong war, wrong place, wrong time” line is discouraging, and they won’t follow a man whose core convictions change with American politics.
Kerry mentioned allies Great Britain and Australia. The President said he left out Poland, and Kerry raised his finger and shook his head.
Kerry said he’s worked with these current world leaders for twenty years, “longer than this President.”
Kerry said that Osama bin Laden uses the Iraq war as a recruitment tool. Bush thought it absurd that he would let Osama pick how we defend ourselves.
Kerry’s had one consistent position: “That Saddam was a threat, and that there is a right way to disarm him.”
Bush: “You cannot change positions in this war on terror if you expect to win.”
Bush stressed that a free Iraq and a free Afghanistan will send a powerful message to the rest of the country.
Kerry’s talking about his combat again, he’s hearkening back to Vietnam, he called the soldiers noble and he wants the “outcome to honor that nobility.” Yikes!
The President is again harping on “wrong war, wrong place, wrong time” and changing positions sending the wrong message.
Kerry cited Colin Powell’s “Pottery Rule”: you break it, you fix it.
Kerry accused the President of “misleading on what I said.” He didn’t say that he would take the troops out in six months; rather, he said that he would take them out in six months if we did what he said. The man is a cipher!
Bush: Kerry can’t “change the dynamic on the ground,” as he said, if you insult the leader of Iraq.
The President again asked for the additional thirty seconds after Kerry’s rebuttal. This is done at Lehrer’s discretion, and only the President has asked for this so far.
The President continues to hammer Kerry for changing his positions and being irresolute, and all Kerry has been able to do was say that he is resolute and consistent.
The President said that we went to war in Iraq because the enemy attacked us. Kerry pointed out that Saddam didn’t attack us: OBL did, and the President let OBL escape from Tora Bora. Kerry asserted that Saddam would have been weaker.
Again, the President asked for the extra 30 seconds. And the President argued that Saddam would have been stronger if we’d have let him go.
Kerry said he’s for pre-emptive war. “That was a great doctrine throughout the cold war.” You have to do it in a way, he said, “that passes the global test.” And he’s using the Kennedy, DeGaulle story, which is not at all applicable!
Kerry said, “I’ve been fighting for proliferation the entire time…” (He changed it then to non-proliferation.)
The President said he did not know of a “global test.” Pre-emption is to protect the American people. And the President pointed out that he would not have signed the World Court — “a foreign court where our people could be prosecuted.”
