Finding John Kerry in His Record

Another day remains in the Democrat convention, already I am tired of clichéd references to “Kerry’s Week” or “Kerry’s Moment.” Surely someone somewhere can concoct a better way to describe the hyping of expectations that will culminate when John Kerry formally accepts the Democrat nomination for the presidency. Clichés aside, the convention is providing Kerry with a week of controlled media exposure during which he is portrayed in terms far different than what is indicated by his record.

In a legislative body bloated with liberals who define charitable giving as taking money from one group of citizens and giving it to another, Kerry stands out as among the most liberal senators of all, but his charitable inclinations seem to stop at his own wallet. Writing in the Weekly Standard, Noemie Emery documented how Kerry has spent wealth acquired by two marriages, and how in between those marriages he gave negligible amounts to charity: “… a possible insight into his priorities could be inferred from his tax records for the year 1993 … in which he earned $130,345 and gave exactly $175 to charity, while indulging in an $8,600 Italian-made mountain bike for himself.”

Kerry’s charitable giving is a valid subject for public scrutiny because as a left-wing liberal his political agenda emphasizes ‘giving’ in the form of tax redistributions. One could reasonably expect above average charity from the so-called compassionate left. Emery demonstrated that this is not the case with Kerry: “According to the Boston Globe, between 1990 and 1995… Kerry earned a total of $724,042 and gave $4,869 to charity, or a grand total of 0.7 percent… In this six-year span between his two marriages, the most Kerry ever gave to charity was $2,039 in 1994. Two years, he gave nothing at all.”

Kerry is also portrayed as a man of Catholic faith, with stress on his upbringing in the Church, his years as an altar boy, and the constant presence of a St. Christopher medal around his neck, but his record in public life does not align with his profession of faith. Worse than the contradiction between his generosity with other people’s money and stinginess with his own, Kerry seeks the mantle of the Church even as he panders for the endorsement of pro-abortion groups that are antithetical to Catholic tradition and teaching. Choosing words carefully- it is not my place to question Kerry’s place in the mystical body of Christ- I am hard pressed to believe that Christ would share Kerry’s convictions regarding abortion. There is a special place of worship for Catholics who favor abortion- it is called the Episcopal Church. Kerry could demonstrate personal integrity and align his faith and politics by joining it.

Kerry’s combat record and claim of unwavering support for national security is also emphasized. The gap between claim and reality is evident in his voting record which is remarkable for its near perfect opposition to spending on defense and intelligence programs. Barbara Comstock wrote in National Review that Kerry, “… voted against funding the MX missile, the Patriot missile, the Apache helicopter, the Blackhawk helicopter, the B-1 Bomber, the Bradley Fighting Vehicle, and just about every significant weapons system used in the war on terrorism…” As has been much remarked, he opposed $87 billion in funding for troops deployed in Iraq- troops he voted to send to Iraq in the first place. In the years before and after the 9/11 attacks, he supported every effort by senate Democrats to slash funding for intelligence programs even as he now lashes out at flawed intelligence gathering. Comstock wrote, “In September 1995, two years after the first World Trade Center attack, Senator Kerry proposed cutting $1.5 billion from the intelligence budget. Kerry included the cuts in a laundry list of government expenditures that… described as “pointless, wasteful, antiquated, or just plain silly.” Comstock continued, “Kerry's 1995 proposal was no aberration. In 1994 Kerry twice pushed to cut $1 billion from the budgets of the National Foreign Intelligence Program and from Tactical Intelligence, and advocated freezing their budgets. When the bill got stuck in committee, Kerry proposed it as an amendment to another bill.” According to Comstock, “… during the eight years Kerry served on the Intelligence Committee, he proposed budget cuts at least three times. So how many times during his eight-year tenure on the Intelligence Committee did he propose legislation to increase funding for human intelligence or to reform the intelligence community? You guessed it: zilch, zero.” This is not a confidence inspiring record and it certainly does not support the claim that Kerry is strong on national defense.

Emery documented the arrogance for which Kerry is famous amongst Bostonians: ““One of the surest ways to get the phones ringing on any Massachusetts talk-radio show is to ask people to call in and tell their John Kerry stories,” says Howie Carr, the Boston Herald columnist and radio host. “The phone lines are soon filled, and most of the stories have a common theme: The junior senator pulling rank on one of his constituents, breaking in line, demanding to pay less (or nothing), or ducking out before the bill arrives. The tales often have one other common thread. Most end with Sen. Kerry inquiring of the lesser mortal: ‘Do you know who I am?’”

From his record we do know who John Kerry is- a Massachusetts limousine liberal. The better question is, does John Kerry know who John Kerry is?

Posted by publius at July 28, 2004 08:14 AM