Kerry Slams Bush on Iraq
On winning 5 of 7 primaries on Tuesday, John Kerry immediately came out swinging at Bush over Iraq, Dean-style (without the growl): ‘“They obviously misused information and misled the American people,” said Kerry in an interview on MSNBC television. “The administration itself promised us they would build an international coalition, that they would honor the United Nations inspections and they would go to war as a last resort. They did none of those things, I intend to hold the president accountable for that in the course of this race.“
Rick Perlstein of the Village Voice argues that the Dean campaign, despite its likely failure, will nevertheless bequeath to the Democratic party a number of important themes that will survive Dean’s faltering candidacy.
Although few Democrats say Iraq is their most pressing concern, dissatisfaction with the situation in Iraq was cited in Bush’s recent fall in approval rating below 50 percent, and this is a good reason for Kerry to take up this theme. I don’t think most voters will care that he voted for the war initially. His vote against the $87 bn. Bush further authorization establishes his disgust with how the aftermath of the war was handled.