Kerry Says Bin Laden Tape Gave Bush a Lift (NYT)

[truthpusher]

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/31/politics/31kerry.html?oref=login

Kerry Says Bin Laden Tape Gave Bush a Lift
By ADAM NAGOURNEY

Published: January 31, 2005

WASHINGTON, Jan. 30 - Senator John Kerry said on Sunday that the attacks of Sept. 11 were the "central deciding thing" in his contest with President Bush and that the release of an Osama bin Laden videotape the weekend before Election Day had effectively erased any hope he had of victory.

In an interview on the NBC program "Meet the Press," Mr. Kerry allowed that he and his campaign had made "some mistakes," saying in particular that he had been too slow to respond to attacks on his Vietnam War record by other Vietnam veterans.

But over all, Mr. Kerry argued that he had done remarkably well in competing against a sitting president in a time of war, saying he had run a "great campaign." He minimized the scope of Mr. Bush's victory, as well as the mandate the president could claim going into his second term.

"If you take half the people at an Ohio State football game on Saturday afternoon and they were to have voted the other way, you and I would be having a discussion about my State of the Union speech," Mr. Kerry said, referring to the 120,000-vote margin by which he lost in Ohio.

more:
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/31/politics/31kerry.html?oref=login

[trotsky]

1. It SHOULD have reminded people that Public Enemy #1 is still AT LARGE.

Bin Laden symbolizes the ultimate failure of *: to protect the country and catch those responsible for the 9/11 attacks.

His appearance, by all means, SHOULD have sealed *'s doom. Why it did not, I'll never understand.

[Cha]

2. Almost, what I was going to say!

It just goes to show ya how screwed up the populace is in this Country or maybe because the media gave them a shove in that direction!

[rodeodance]

3. wonder why the press did not publish it when I heard him say it at

Bill Clintons library opening?

[Kerrytravelers]

4. Becuase it wasn't on the MSM...these guys can't do any real reporting.

[Pirate Smile]

5. I had read somewhere else that he said this or thought it was why he lost.

[rodeodance]

18. Wasn't it Reivero that asked him that question-I vaguely recall it but

yes, it was reported in the MSM at the time-but it did not catch on.

[Pirate Smile]

30. I think it was Geraldo at the Library opening.

[The Zanti Regent]

25. because Adam Nagourney is a biased liar!

show me ONE article where that liar wasn't biased towards Bush!

[AP]

12. I think it's obvious.

When you're scared you care less about who got you into the mess than you do about who's willing to go all the way to defend you.

People WANT the hair trigger, shoot first ask questions later guy on their side when they're scared even if that guy is the reason you're in the dangerous situation.

Missing explosives + OBL on the loose=advantage Bush. It's so obvious.

The only thing that could have stopped it, I think, is if people cared more hope than fear. Had the reaction to fear mongering been, I am not afraid, then the Democrats would have had a better chance, I think.

I think the campaign didn't do enough to insulate the voters from responding to fear, which they could have done by presenting a compelling argument about why progressive values work so much better for the US notwithstanding war.

FDR, during WW2, was a master at keepign people focused on progressive values despite the fact that the US was fighting for the future of the globe.

[yorkiemommie1]

33. the Fear factor

using it repeatedly, to advance every part of bushco's agenda-- basis of their M/O.

once you have that going, the minds are easier to manipulate.

it's the bogeyman story writ large.

[leesa]

6. I STILL don't get this since the alleged OBL slammed Bush.

OBL has been most likely been dead for years now...wonder who played him in the film this time?? His obituary was in the paper 12/01, which made sense since he was very ill.

[Virginian]

11. wonder who played him in the film this time??

I did see a picture on a post here that showed two different men dressed up to look like bin Laden. One was from the October Surprise tape and the other was from an earlier release.

I wouldn't put it past Rove to stage an Oct Surprise starring "Osama," whoever might be playing that part for this tape. I wonder if "Osama" was paid out of campaign funds or taxpayer dollars?

on edit:
It almost sounded like Kerry didn't believe it was an authentic tape either. Almost like he thought it was a campaign ad.

[truthpusher]

43. We are dealing with the general public here....

....most people I talked too could not even see past the first layer to realize this hurt Bush.

[Acryliccalico]

7. I think

that the tape boosted * vote. At the point the tape came out, the people were so scared(from the tactics that * used to scare us) that it just raised the vote for *. That and hacking the rest of the vote. :kick: He was in bad trouble and he didn't pull any punches. He used everything he could.

[Democat]

8. Bin Laden wanted Bush to win and many Americans were stupid enough...

...to give Bin Laden exactly what he wanted.

The next time we hear about treason from a right winger, remind them that they voted the way that Bin Laden wanted them to vote.

[H2O Man]

21. That's right.

Usama bin Laden prefers Bush, because this administration has helped to make him the most powerful figure in the Islamic world. I do not mean "helped make him" in the silly sense of people believing UbL is a fictional character; this administration has created a deep hatred for the western world throughout the Middle East and the rest of the Islamic world.

[qwertyMike]

9. Yeah, whatever N/T

[aikido15]

14. Really,

Who cares? Blah, Blah, Blah...

[autorank]

10. His failure to neutron * over the Swift Boat Liars gave * a boost!

[necso]

13. As I remember it,

Walter Cronkite made a big deal over the tape. (This made an impression on me at the time.)

No question it hurt us, because it brought the terrorist threat to mind ("Daddy will protect us" -- yeah, right, like he did on 9/11) and reminded people of the absence of major terror attacks here after 9/11 (no matter that there are typically years between these types of attacks -- and that the terrorists are probably working on something even bigger, which takes time). The contents of the tape counted, unfortunately, for pretty much nothing.

[lovuian]

15. No John Bush cheated thats how he won!!!

Nice try though

Bin Laudin is responsible for 9/11 and Iraq and now losing the elections

Its so very lame John!!!

[DoYouEverWonder]

27. If Kerry really believes this crap about bin Laden

then the DEM party is in even bigger trouble than I already thought.

Sorry Johnny, the election was rigged and until you 'get it', we will never have another fair and free election again.

There are some days I think Kerry wanted to lose and is just looking for an excuse for letting BushCo have the WH again.

[emulatorloo]

35. I saw OBL tape w a stranger who insisted OBL was endorsing Kerry

and therefore Bush must be elected to stop the terrorists.

I heard others say the same thing.

The tape helped Bush. . .they had it for a while, they released it strategically. Terra Terra Terra won this election (plus a little help from Blackwell and Jeb Bush).

[DoYouEverWonder]

37. Who was your friend going to vote for

before he/she saw the tape?

I don't think that tape changed that many minds.

The only way Bush won was because the election was rigged in numerous ways.

[AP]

39. The tape did one thing really effectively: it shifted people's focus to

terror.

Although the entire election campaign ignored the economy and the disappearence of the middle class, there was a little more diversity to things people were focussing on during September and October, which resulted in a Kerry edge in the polls. But when that video came out, it was like September 11 all over again. It was the ONLY thing the media talked about.

An election is mostly an effort to get people to order their priorities in a way that matches your candidates strengths. Republicans generally, and Bush specifically was always going to have a slight edge when it came to the question of who is more willing to act decisively if America is threatened by terrorists.

Kerry never really forced Americans to have a different priority which clearly favored him. (For example, Clinton in '92 forced voters to ask who is going to give you an economy which helps the working man and woman, and then spent his time telling people that he was much better than Bush in being able to do that).

So, when that video came out, it set people's priorities so that they were asking a question, the answer to which favored Bush sufficiently so that he could win.

[AP]

38. It set a firm dichotomy: terrorists support K, Americans support Bush.

If you're a democrat who watched that tape and thought that the fact the OBL hated Bush was good reason to vote for Kerry, they way you think is very different from the way most Americans think.

[Yupster]

16. Was an interesting interview

He sounded to me like he was going to run right through 2008.

He said his tracking poll was trending up until the tape came out. Then on the weekend it flatlined and on the Monday before the election it dropped.

He said he was not in Cambodia on Christmas Eve, but on another day. I think if he would have had a press conference to clear that up during the campaign, it would have taken a lot of the sting out of the Swift Ads.

[Kolesar]

17. We only have one data point on JK's electoral success for President

and sadly that data point says he loses. Who else do we have? Al Gore 2008?

[rodeodance]

19. it was indeed a good interview.

[DoYouEverWonder]

28. I gave the Kerry campaign

prima facia evidence that would hold up in court proving that the Bush Campaign and the SBV's collaborated.

The Kerry folks were delighted when I gave them the documents. Unfortunately, they never did anything with them.

[IndianaGreen]

20. Kerry makes a good point

Bush has used fear to whip the nation into accepting his policies, yet it is Bush's invasion of Iraq that allowed the criminal terrorist Bin Laden to remain at large. No one has taken Bush to task for that, except for Michael Moore.

[Disturbed]

22. Can we say that well over 50% of Americans are...

stupid? No we beter not say that because that makes us elitist or arrogantly saying that we are smarter than the Bush Junta voters.

[BiggJawn]

23. I have no such qualms.

Well over 50% of the Murkan Sheeple *ARE* stupid.

Well, if it makes me "elitist" because I read news sources and try to figure out things for myself rather than merely parrot the latest RW Hate-Radio buzz-words.....Oh, Well.....

Life IS so much simpler when "Rush is RIGHT" is your guiding princple...

[piece sine]

24. Poor Mr. Moore

the only competitive award he was in competition for -- the intensely coveted Directors Guild of America award -- was presented on Saturday to other documentary filmmakers for followed camels in the Gobi desert.

[Jawja]

26. I was visiting my Mom

when the tape came out right before the election and we were both outraged. We agreed that the tape would help *, even though in reality, it should have sunk him. I agree with Kerry that it hurt him right before the vote. The 'Murkin people in general were stupid enough for the stunt to work.

It is amazing that a healthy, well dressed bin Laden "on the run" popped up in a timely fashion to warn us off on re-electing *. That's why I firmly believe now that bin Laden works for the Bush Crime Syndicate. This is the reason they haven't really gone all out to "Git 'em, dead or alive."

Notice now that we don't have any more "terra" alerts?

[Cha]

34. Because this is Orwell..straight is

crooked, down is up, and black is white.

But I don't think that's the Only thing that sunk Kerry and us!

[ausiedownunderground]

29. I thought you American's were "Kicking raghead butt"?

Why does an OBL sound recording, oops an OBL VIDEO!!! change the way US people feel? Aren't you constantly reminded by your media that you have the greatest fighting force on the planet, that is currently revenging the terrible attacks that were inflicted on you by a small group of Arab extremists. At last count, a huge proportion of Arabs have met this fighting forces incredible destructive powers head on. Yet some guy, who might be dead or might not, who might have been involved in the terrible attacks on your soil or might not, scares the "pants off" the average American citizen enough in a "Video" that they rush out and vote for probably what is the nearest thing to Nazi Germany the "Rest of the World" has and will probably ever see!!! I don't think so! Kerry was just an extremely "CRAP" candidate!

[finchsj]

31. Kerry crap candidate; what do you think?

I thought all along Kerry was not a good candidate for '04. There are many reasons he did not win and the major reason was he did not represent the moral values of most of this country. We have to accept the fact that most Americans in this country are ignorant and they vote with their hearts and not with their pea size minds. Kerry scared them. And he played right into Bush's hand. Most Americans still believe Iraq assisted terrorists, Bin Laden and that invading Iraq was to protect our freedom and safety. They are ill informed. They are similarly ill informed about most of the major issues facing this country. I think our job in the next four years is to educate Americans. Don't rely on the press to do it.

[jmatthan]

32. Bush did not win this election

Kerry lost it!!

And Kerry betrayed every single one who turned out to want to vote for him!

His blaming Osama bin Laden is the biggest red herring I have seen in a long long time!!

Jacob Matthan
Oulu, Finland

[AzDar]

36. Bull-fu*&ing-shit!!! The voting machines gave Bush his "lift". Kerry

knows this...why won't he say it?????

[tavalon]

42. In a word - 2008

The poor delusional bastard probably believes he has another shot at the White House. He doesn't. He lost that the moment he started his concession speech.

[wishlist]

40. Kerry had enough momentum to win if the tape hadn't come out then

The Bushit was hitting the fan that week with revelations including the Bushco failure to safeguard stockpiles of explosives after the Iraq invasion and their scramble to cover and lie about it. Kerry was going into the final stretch that weekend with lots of momentum that got totally derailed by the tape. The fears of terrorists influencing our election took over with all the RW spin that a defeat of Bush would be a victory for the terrorists.

When the tape came out, all of my hope and optimism sank and I could tell by the look on Kerry's face and his demeanor that he knew it could hurt his chances.

[tavalon]

41. Anybody notice this little gem

It was at the end of the article:

He dismissed criticism by Democrats that he had ended the race with about $15 million left in his campaign account. Asked by the program's host, Tim Russert, if spending "a few more dollars" in Ohio might have made the difference, Mr. Kerry responded: "There was no request for them. Could it in retrospect? It's conceivable, but there was no demand at that point in time. People thought they had what they needed."


That isn't quite the way I remember it. Which people thought they had what they needed? We could have used the money and while he was at it, he could have held off on that little concession speech long enough to force Ken Blackwell to count all the votes and explain those little fraud like anomalies. Okay, those big fraud like anomalies. Sheesh!