Kerry item #1: In a closed-door meeting in Florida, John Kerry claimed that foreign leaders were hoping for him to win because they disliked Bush. Shortly thereafter, Kerry's claims leaked out into the press. At a recent townhall meeting, one audience member wanted to hear more specifics from Kerry about his foreign admirers. The questioner asked Kerry who exactly it was that told Kerry they wanted him to win. That seemed like a fair question topic to me. If it was Tony Blair, that would mean something totally different than if it was Kim Jung Il. However, Kerry did not think it was a fair question. Instead of answering the inquiry, Kerry responded by sharply asking, "Are you a Republican? .... Are you a registered Republican? .... Did you vote for President Bush?" When the man answered in the affirmative, the crowd booed, and Kerry walked away with a triumphant smirk. Apparently, Kerry believes that anyone who voted for President Bush in the past or who is a registered Republican is disqualified from making legitimate inquiries.
But, here's my question: Why was Kerry so dead set against just answering the man? After all, a few days before Kerry seemed quite proud of the fact that foreigners were rooting for him. So, have no foreign leaders actually expressed a preference for Kerry? Or are the leaders Kerry talked to of the unsavory type? Or was Kerry merely trying to protect a trusted confidence of some mainstream leader that he really did talk to? My guess is that we'll never know.
Kerry item #2: Kerry is calling for President Bush to agree to one debate a month from now until the November election. This is an interesting request since it was not too long ago that Kerry rejected a similar proposal from Senator Edwards. So far, I have not heard Bush's response. My guess is that this puts Bush in a tough position. He either has to reject the debates and appear to be dodging robust discussion or he needs to take time away from either his demanding job as President or his re-election campaign appearances. It seems to me that Kerry comes out with an advantage no matter which of these sacrifices Bush chooses to make.
