Kerry’s Panel Follows the Money in Probes From Iran to Mexico

[Joanne98]

Source: Bloomberg

May 29 (Bloomberg) -- John Kerry has never run for sheriff. As chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee he is starting to act like one, and the world is his jurisdiction.

The Massachusetts Democrat is wielding his gavel with an investigative zeal, and plans to take on Iran’s nuclear program, gun-running on the Mexican border, terrorism, narcotics and human trafficking, all through the prism of money laundering. He has hired a former investigative reporter, an ex-CIA agent and a one-time managing director of Bear Stearns Cos. LLC to help him.

“There are lots of big pieces out there that depend on money moving,” he said in an interview in his office in the Senate, where he is serving his 24th year.

Kerry, who was a prosecutor and attorney in Massachusetts before starting his political career in 1982, said the lack of congressional oversight during the Bush administration left behind a target-rich environment for his panel. The Treasury Department “has its hands full” and is “inadequately resourced” to pursue these inquiries, he said.

“For the last eight years we’ve had an administration that has done its utmost to protect, hide, obfuscate, neglect, void, simply not even care about these issues,” said Kerry, 65.


Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601070&sid=a_BsfBiU9zyA&refer=home

---

Look into the "dark markets" first.

[leveymg]

1. Start with the ongoing $12 trillion ripoff of the Treasury and the Fed by Wall Street

Everything else is insignificant by comparison.

[blm]

15. You should contact his committee staff and let them know you have research to share.

Remember, this is the FIRST time Kerry has ever had the POWER to do this as a head of the committee. There shouldn't be nearly as much interference from the Bushprotecting wing of the Dem party as there has been in his past investigations.

[midnight]

41. Perfect place to go.

[Blue_Tires]

78. [phone]

[JDPriestly]

2. This is great. Bravo, Senator Kerry. I think he will find pay dirt,

so to speak, and who is on the pay-off end will surprise us all.

[Hugin]

3. This could be interesting, if it gets any play...

I'll look for results on the Internet. Because, we sure as Hell aren't going to hear anything via the Corporate Media.

Best wishes on this to Sen Kerry.

Drain that swamp.

[jwirr]

4. The perfect man for this job. Read "The New War". nt

[mod mom]

5. Sirota '04: Follow the Money How John Kerry busted the terrorists' favorite bank

Follow the Money

How John Kerry busted the terrorists' favorite bank.

By David Sirota and Jonathan Baskin

Two decades ago, the Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI) was a highly respected financial titan. In 1987, when its subsidiary helped finance a deal involving Texas oilman George W. Bush, the bank appeared to be a reputable institution, with attractive branch offices, a traveler's check business, and a solid reputation for financing international trade. It had high-powered allies in Washington and boasted relationships with respected figures around the world.

All that changed in early 1988, when John Kerry, then a young senator from Massachusetts, decided to probe the finances of Latin American drug cartels. Over the next three years, Kerry fought against intense opposition from vested interests at home and abroad, from senior members of his own party; and from the Reagan and Bush administrations, none of whom were eager to see him succeed.

By the end, Kerry had helped dismantle a massive criminal enterprise and exposed the infrastructure of BCCI and its affiliated institutions, a web that law enforcement officials today acknowledge would become a model for international terrorist financing. As Kerry's investigation revealed in the late 1980s and early 1990s, BCCI was interested in more than just enriching its clients--it had a fundamentally anti-Western mission. Among the stated goals of its Pakistani founder were to "fight the evil influence of the West," and finance Muslim terrorist organizations. In retrospect, Kerry's investigation had uncovered an institution at the fulcrum of America's first great post-Cold War security challenge.



More than a decade later, Kerry is his party's nominee for president, and terrorist financing is anything but a back-burner issue. The Bush campaign has settled on a new strategy for attacking Kerry: Portray him as a do-nothing senator who's weak on fighting terrorism. "After 19 years in the Senate, he's had thousands of votes, but few signature achievements," President Bush charged recently at a campaign rally in Pittsburgh; spin that's been echoed by Bush's surrogates, conservative pundits, and mainstream reporters alike, and by a steady barrage of campaign ads suggesting that the one thing Kerry did do in Congress was prove he knew nothing about terrorism. Ridiculing the senator for not mentioning al Qaeda in his 1997 book on terrorism, one ad asks: "How can John Kerry win a war if he doesn't know the enemy?"

-snip

Kerry pounced, demanding (and winning) authorization from the Foreign Relations Committee to open a broad investigation into the bank in May 1991. Almost immediately, the senator faced a new round of pressure to relent. Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and Democratic doyenne Pamela Harriman personally called Kerry to object, as did his fellow senators. "What are you doing to my friend Clark Clifford?," staffers recalled them asking, according to The Washington Post. BCCI itself hired an army of lawyers, PR specialists, and lobbyists, including former members of Congress, to thwart the investigation.

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2004/0409.sirota.html

OF COURSE THE MONEY PARTY INTERCEDED!

Good article full of excellent background!

[pberq]

14. great article - too bad the money party won - nt

[YvonneCa]

6. Sheriff Kerry. I like it! All I can say is, "Thank you", Senator,...

...for all you do. That's MY president. :patriot:

[ObamaKerryDem]

22. I second that! :D

This is so great to see and there's no one better for the job! He's perfect for it. Thank you, Senator Kerry, for continuing to exhibit such courage to fight this kind of corruption. The people of Massachusetts should be proud. I know I am. :D

K&R! :kick:

[beachmom]

7. I just finished reading this. Who knows what he'll turn up!

[Initech]

8. Do it, as far back as it has to go and as far around the world it has to go.

If it turns up some interesting shit, I'm all for it. :popcorn:

[starroute]

9. Yes, Kerry knows where the (figurative) bodies are buried

If you look at the final BCCI reports online, they're full of loose ends and unanswered questions -- things you'd call conspiracy theories if they were coming from a less respectable source. I just bet Kerry is salivating at the chance to get back into the saddle and finish up some of what he started twenty years ago.

[Inuca]

10. An eye-opener of an article

Kerry is in his element and doing great.

[bertman]

11. Somebody from the administration is gonna slap Sheriff Kerry upside the head. He obviously

doesn't know that investigatin' means lookin' back. He's supposed to be lookin' forward, as the President has ordered.

Pardon my cynicism, but I'll believe this is a good thing when prosecutions start.

Recommend.

[spag68]

37. Kerry

Although I admire the man, IMHO, he will either cave or "they" will take care of him, like so many others that tried to get these slime balls. So, in effect, I agree with you.The life of the progressive wing of the party is being sucked out, the unions now know they are being scammed. "They" will never allow a true progressive to be elected. Face it kids, it's over.

[ProSense]

39. "'They' will never allow a true progressive to be elected. Face it kids, it's over."

Wow, "they" have a lot of power. Who are "they"?







Edit word.

[politicasista]

40. **crickets** n/t

[BeFree]

50. Well

Ya ever read about the electronic voting machines? And how the machines that were used in the 2004 election have now been outlawed in many states, and in the rest, soon? Have you? Do you understand what happened?

Now do you realize that Kerry probably was elected but Bushco stole enough votes to make it seem Bush won?

They are the PTB. They set up and financed with 3 billion dollars those vote counting machines. "'They' will never allow a true progressive to be elected."

I used to think you were up on all this, ProSense, but now you leave me wondering.

[ProSense]

55. Well, there is a difference

between power and theft. If they had any power, they'd have stopped Obama.

[bertman]

51. Powers that be. Corporatocracy. Financial aristocracy. Oligarchy. Take your pick.

[karynnj]

56. He didn't "cave" on BCCI or on investigating the Contras

or standing against the paranoid Nixon. On both the Contras and BCCI, powers in both parties did not want investigations and they stonewalled giving him documents that he was entitled to get. Both Jackie Kennedy, a friend he greatly admired, and Jimmy Carter called to ask that he stop the BCCI investigation. He not only didn't stop - when his committee was taken away, he first tried to get the Justice department - then Morgenthau, the NYC DA to use his leads to prosecute it.

Without Kerry, we might not speak of Iran/Contras - but of Iran/hostages. Kerry started that investigation about 3 months into his first term when vets came to him speaking of what was happening. His early investigation was validated when the plane crashed in Central America and it was for lying to Kerry that Abrahms and others were indicted. (It was the big House/Senate committee with many showboating that made Oliver North a hero, rather than the felon he was - Kerry was not on that committee.)

It is WAY too early to say Obama is not progressive. I wish many people who are online and progressives would actually look at the records of people running. I know that people on the left voted for Kerry, but had some who were lukewarm really looked at his decades long record, they might have supported him with more energy than they did. Obama, after Columbia and Harvard Law worked to help the poor in Chicago - that really has to mean something.

[SlingBlade]

12. Why is it that every time one of these crooked

rocks are turned over a slimy Bush pops out ?

And then walks away free as a bird !!!

We, The United States, FINALLY have a Bush by the nad's on this Torture question which is
only the tip of the iceberg if investigations would only begin.

The Bush family history is full of close encounters with the jail keeper but through one maneuver
or another they have all without exception walked away free, prospered and continued their family
crime spree. Now is the time. If Bush walks away from this, They will be back, Bigger than ever
and with an agenda that would shock even the most knowledgeable Bush family investigator.

Investigate Now !

[Truth2Tell]

13. He wasn't allowed to follow BCCI to it's endpoint.

We'll see if he has the power now to follow this one through. We all know this leads right back to our own political and economic elite. I'm not gonna hold my breath that they'll let him complete the circle this time either.

[nolabels]

18. Not holding your breath sounds fairly logical as far as i can see

The guy has knuckled under every time there was a check for his gonads.

Doing the same thing and expecting something different gets painful after a while :banghead:

[blm]

20. Baloney - that's corpmedia revisionism. Anyone with a TRUE grasp of what happened knows there isn't

a lawmaker in DC who pursued, uncovered and exposed more government corruption than John Kerry has. And he did that while being stonewalled and obstructed by every powerstructure in DC, including the Dem party leaders.

Name ONE lawmaker who did more the last 35 years, just one.

[Truth2Tell]

25. Frank Church. nt

[blm]

28. Still doesn't compare to uncovering IranContra, Iraqgate, BCCI, CIA drugrunning - even S&L crisis

came from Kerry's early pursuits into BCCI.

[Truth2Tell]

29. Kind of a reach to give Kerry credit for Iran/Contra

but I get your point. I still suggest that he has never (for whatever reason, lack of real power or lack of real intent) followed these cases to their logical conclusions. Maybe this time. Or not.

[ProSense]

32. Not

really.

Also, Congress doesn't try people. There has to be a willingness on the part of the Justice Department to follow through.

[blm]

33. You have GOT to be kidding. He peeled IranContra for a YEAR on his own gathering enough evidence

to FINALLY get some other senators to even pay attention. Many Dem senators were even supportive of Reagan and Bush's IranContra policies, including Gore and Sam Nunn at the time.

How on earth did you come to your conclusion?

And, just because the end result wasn't near what was needed for FULL EXPOSURE, would you rather there be no historic record at all?

After watching how these thugs operate you KNOW there are bad egg Democrats working with them. Seems to me if we had a few more Kerrys we'd be celebrating the openness of our government - but we have more Clinton style Bushprotectors than we have Kerrys.

[blm]

34. I suggest that you must never have read his reports. Just because they didn't get the media frenzy

the Monica Lewinsky report received doesn't mean Kerry didn't work his ass off for years, and at much risk to his life, his family's lives, and his political career. Do you realize that ENTIRE powerstructure in DC was set against him on BCCI?

[Hannah Bell]

44. if the entire power structure was against him, how'd he get the nomination for pres?

how'd he get the committee seats?

how'd he get funding for all his campaign runs?

why no blue dress (or other scandal) push-back?

seems to me he's got quite a bit of pull; thus it seems unlikely the entire power structure was/is against him.

[blm]

46. During his BCCI investigation he was ostracized in DC, even by his own party. And in 1996

Clinton didn't even want to endorse him because he preferred William Weld (a BCCI legal fixer for Poppy Bush) and he only endorsed Kerry at the end of the campaign when it became apparent that Kerry would win.

Blue dress? You must not know that cocaine was planted in Kerry's office to try and smear him with his own inquiry. And Richard Mellon Scaife cut his teeth smearing Kerry long before most Democrats even heard of a Gov. Clinton.

Kerry achieved DESPITE the undermining of the powerful in his own party BECAUSE he's a good fighter and had his own donor list independent of the corpoDems going into the presidential race.

Maybe you didn't NOTICE that Clintonites were working against Kerry throughout 2003 and 2004. Some of us did...including historian Douglas Brinkley who spoke of it openly in April2004.


http://www.depauw.edu/news/index.asp?id=13354


Clinton used his summer2004 booktour to vigorously DEFEND Bush in every high profile interview he had scheduled.
http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/06/19/clinton.iraq/


Who was Carville working for on election night when he sabotaged Kerry?
http://www.tpmcafe.com/blog/coffeehouse/2006/oct/07/did_carville_tip_bush_off_to_kerry_strategy_woodward

[No Elephants]

64. Carville is a slime, but he could have been working mostly for his wife and therefore for himself.

[blm]

65. except when you put it all together.....think back...a high profile booktour during general election

and the last Dem president spent most of his time vigorously defending the Republican president on the biggest issues of the campaign, siding with Bush's strategies for terrorism and Iraq war instead of the Dem nominee's view.

[No Elephants]

69. Oh, I agree that what you say about Carville is possible. I just think there are also other

possibilities as to that particular call between Carville and his wife.

Bottom line: I think you can count on Carville to be out for Carville and not necessarily out for Democrats. (As I type, I see Carville in my mind's eye in the front row at the Democratic National Convention, slumped way down in his chair with his legs stretched into the aisle, so no one could miss his PUMA sneakers.) He's a reptile, in my book.

[karynnj]

80. Exactly - and there were concurrent comments that the Kerry camp was not happy with Clinton on that

In addition to stealing time Kerry badly needed - after June was lost to Reagan's death and weeks of positive Reagan coverage, look at what each of these things did:

1) They resurfaced the Lewinsky stories because EVERY interview started with that. Note, Clinton did the SAME thing in 2000 giving a confessional interview a few days before Gore's convention on how he was working on his marriage. Note further that in 2008, he said NOTHING about Lewinsky and did nothing to resurface it. Do you think Kerry wanted people speaking of that? Can you imagine a 1992 Kerry writing a book on Contra drug running - through an Arkansas airport and going on talk shows in June/July 1992? (Not parallel, but as unhelpful)


2) The problem with Clinton's Iraq comments was the media, which has always loved Clinton, took them as the official Democratic position. They then conflated Kerry's position on Iraq with the more pro-war positions of Clinton and many Clinton aligned "Democratic spokesmen". Note that the media IMMEDIATELY recognized the Iraq Study Group's proposals as "what Kerry recommended". Yet, even here, there are some that cast Kerry as wanting to do the "same thing" in Iraq as Bush - in spite of Kerry disavowing permanent bases (before anyone was speaking of them) saying that was needed to prevent Iraqis thinking of our presence as an occupation (First debate) and speaking of internationalizing the effort and immediately starting regional diplomacy. Clinton competed with Leiberman on this issue in terms of being harmful.

[blm]

83. Clinton's support of Bush was more harmful than Lieberman's as he HAD great influence

on the American public.

[BeFree]

53. Hannah

Democrats are like that. The whole of the party filters out the candidates as we just saw in Obama's run.

Basically, tho, the heads of the party, refusing to examine the DRE's made sure Kerry would lose. They looked the other way and still do. In Obama's case they decided not to fight Obama. Guess they too were finally sick of Bushco? And they were overwhelmed.

Ya know, in 8 years Kerry is gonna have a good look at the 2004 DRE's. Mark my words, he will expose what the machines did to our democracy.

Did you know nearly 4 billion dollars went to the DRE owners to count votes?
You know a lot of that easy money got spread around. Kerry might just be looking at that. And when he does a lot of Dems are gonna have mud on their faces.

[karynnj]

57. He got the nomination the hard way

He won Iowa by meeting with people in Iowa and NH and convincing them that he was the best candidate. He was supported in this by Teresa and their extended family, many MA Democrats, and a large number of veterans, who have supported him since 1971. The Boston Herald (yeah - I know it is a RW rag)had an article last November about a veteran event that he and Max Cleland did - I think in Worcester. They quoted one vet who spent a year in places like Iowa, NH and elsewhere speaking to people about the Kerry he knew.

The fact is that if you look at the MSM in fall 2003, you will not find ANY reporter advocating for Kerry. There were many pushing Dean, some behind Edwards, and even a few pushing Gephardt. The main comments on Kerry dealt with when he would drop out. All that time, the polls in Iowa showed Kerry edging up, slowly but surely. That was retail politics.

The first really positive Kerry coverage was a few days before the Iowa caucuses. That was the day when Kerry reunited with Rassmann, the marine whose live Kerry saved in Vietnam. That coverage seemed more like a snippet from a Frank Capra movie than politics as usual. Given the backdrop of Dean and Gephardt fighting, and Dean shouting at an annoying old heckler to sit down, it does not surprise me that the remaining people on the fence went very heavily to Kerry.

Imagine what it would have been had the media liked Kerry - there is no candidate in my lifetime with the life stories of John Kerry - and I include Obama in this statement. Remember the McCain is a hero movie? - Kerry's war record fits the standard American hero role even better - and the intelligence, morality and purpose shown in speaking before the Senate was every bit as courageous. Imagine if they had used BCCI to make the point that Kerry's investigation led to the closing of OBL's bank and even in the 1990s Kerry was calling for the law enforcement approach to deal with non-state terrorism.

As to committee seats, Kerry already had those committee seats - and there was no justification for taking them away. As to fund raising, the fact is that Kerry was always able to inspire people and he always raised money. In 1984, 1990, 1996 and 2002, he did not accept PAC money. It likely didn't hurt that he was born into a very elite family.

Why no "blue dress" scandal? The likely reason is that there isn't one during the times he was married. His first wife remained on very good terms with him and her twin remained Kerry's best friend and high in every campaign. It is hard to have a scandal of this sort when not married. He has a reputation of being very clean for a politician in terms of financial things.

I don't think the power structure has been completely against him - I do think they were against his investigating BCCI, because BCCI co opted enough powerful people that there was HUGE pressure against Kerry unravelling it.

[troubledamerican]

38. Frank Church makes John Kerry look like the handmaiden he is.

[Name removed]

45. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[blm]

47. Church comes in second to Kerry. You must have been asleep from 1985-1995.

.

[Name removed]

54. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[karynnj]

58. Church is great, but the 1970s were not the 1980s - the present

In the wake of Vietnam and Watergate, the country was more in the mood for cleaning up than we are in even now. Church at that time chaired the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Only now, does Kerry have the kind of institutional power. A fair comparison can only be made in the future - though Kerry has made a great start, not just on investigations, but on using the SFRC to sound out foreign policy. What is clear is that some hearings have interested the Obama administration. In addition, you might want to check out Kerry's trip to Jordan for the world economic forum. http://www.weforum.org/en/knowledge/Events/KN_SESS_SUMM_28780?url=/en/knowledge/Events/KN_SESS_SUMM_28780 - go 41 minutes in and listen to Kerry getting applause even as he pushes the Arabs to make the steps they need to make. It is also clear that the Gaza trip is a big deal.

Look at Kerry's relative lack of power when he did his earlier investigations.

Kerry investigated the Contras being illegally assisted at a point where Reagan had enormous power and many Democrats - including many top Democrats, like Sam Nunn, and many high profile Democrats considered future leaders - like Gore and Clinton, backed funding the Contras. Kerry started that investigation as a FRESHMAN Senator, only 3 months on the job. Kerry was just a second term Senator when he worked on BCCI.

Church had the Democrats on the committee behind him, Kerry was pretty much alone.

[nolabels]

60. Ted Kennedy and Barack Obama

The moment Kerry had to stand up and be counted, to tell the world they were cheated, John Kerry ran home and cried in his milk. Barack Obama is not my idea of any kind of hero (yet) but he as already done more to stem the time than a John Kerry.

[No Elephants]

63. Are you saying that Obama did more in his two years in the Senate than Kerry did in his 35?

Can you possibly be more specific?

[nolabels]

67. Kerry did not stop a whole lot, of what he exposed it and expected others to stop it for him

That is the specific i would point to. By being brave enough to at least step into the office Obama was able to do more. I do have my qualms about Obama giving in too much to traditions and ceremony but at least was able to a end to the bleeding. I remember the Iran/Contra and just like then when the election started winding tighter Kerry in his POTUS election campaign started disappearing and changing into somebody nobody knew in a similar way.

Exposing it but then not trying to put yourself in a place to help stop is what enablers do

[No Elephants]

70. What did Obama stop in his two years as a lawmaker? You cannot compare a POTUS and a

Senator when it comes to getting things done. About all that lawmakers can do is hold hearings, draft bills and vote. They cannot issue Executive Orders, represent the United States in court to make precedent, etc. So you cannot compare Obama and Kerry unless you compare Obama as a Senator and Kerry as a Senator. (Even at that, however, Obama, as President has been taking up where Bush left off way too often for my tastes, but that was not the point of my question.)

I am not sure what you expected Kerry to do, besides expose people? As a Senator, he has no power to arrest them or haul them into court. That is up to the D of J. Nor can he punish them. Unless he is in the majority at the time, he probably cannot even get legislation passed, unless there is a public outcry so great that the Republicans in Congress cannot ignore it and that has not happened very often in my lifetime.

[No Elephants]

71. Too late to edit my prior post, but are you saying Kerry did not become

President because he was not brave enough to at least step into the office?

If so, Wow is all I have to say on that point. if not, what did you mean?

[blm]

79. That's total BS talk - What Kerry's work stopped was Full-on Fascism overtaking the nation by mid90s

and he did that pretty much on his own as most of the other lawmakers, including many Democrats, were abetting the fascists and their agenda or looking the other way.

You have NO CLUE what real political bravery is.

Take Kerry and his work out of the last 40 years of our nation's actual history, and this nation would be well into its second decade of Full-on Fascism by now.

[karynnj]

84. Kerry worked his heart out to win in 2004

In spite of media bias, Bush using the government and terrorism, parts of the Catholic Church, Kerry made that election close enough that he would have won had there been adequate voting machines in innercity areas of Ohio. That was in spite of 59% of the country saying things were going very well or fairly well. He was also hindered by a VP too vain to do what was asked and a wing of the party not really behind him - because they preferred to dream of the Clintons returning to the WH. Had Kerry won, it would have been a major upset.

In 2008, more than 80% said the country was going in the wrong direction - and the media did not cover for McCain and Palin as they did for Bush/Cheney.

Kerry didn't "start disappearing" or "changing" - the problem was that only CSPAN covered much of his rallies without speaking over them. I think some day, someone could do a great analysis of what the media did. Kerry's crowds got bigger and bigger - easily beating the Clinton numbers. Where the media covered the Clinton campaign directly showing the growing excitement, this was not done in 2004 - though from the primary source (CSPAN video) those rallies were fantastic. Kerry. Teresa, his kids and her kids were out there every day.

[blm]

66. Baloney - Kerry EXPOSED more government corruption as a senator than Obama has as president - Kerry

TRULY believes in open government and opening documents to the people and proved it during his investigations.

BTW - Kennedy is known for LEGISLATING, not for investigations. I think you never read any serious investigative report and you're grasping at anything you think might sound good, and even throwing Kennedy's name around though it is wellknown he has always preferred legislation over investigatory duties. To those who HAVE paid attention the last 4 decades you sound silly.

[nolabels]

68. Kennedy was the one smart enough to see he could give Obama the inside track.....

to taking the reigns of POTUS. Kennedy and his clan was key in Obama taking the office

[No Elephants]

72. Kerry endorsed Obama at least one primary before Kennedy did, although they were boh early

endorers. For all we know, it was Kerry who persuarded his good friend, Ted, to endorse Obama. (We don't know one way or another, though.) And, it was Kerry who first brought Obama on to the national scene, by having him be the featured speaker at the 2004 National Convention. Kerry was considering running himself for the 2008 nomination. He could have been bitter about Obama not "waiting his turn," so to speak, after Kerry gave Obama his big break. Instead, Kerry was one of the very first Super Delegates to endorse Obama. Not his long time friends, Dodd and Biden. Not the odds on favorite at the time, Hillary. Obama.

And, no, Kerry was not fortunate enough to be a member of the Kennedy clan, but that has nothing to do with his being less smart than Ted Kennedy.

[politicasista]

77. Why people continue to

downplay Kerry's endorsement of Obama is weird. I don't think he was bitter about Obama running and not waiting his turn. Members of the Congressional Black Caucus and old guards of the Civil Rights movement were the ones saying that Obama needed to "wait his turn." I don't think Kerry was bitter about that. He seems proud of Obama and what he has accomplished so far (just an observation).


The revisionist history in this thread is not helping our cause. It's not helping that we tear down a good Democrat in Kerry to praise fellow Democrats like President Obama and Senator Kennedy.

We need to move on.

[blm]

74. Baloney - ANY Dem was winning in 2008 and there were only THREE national organizations

in play - Clinton's camp, Kerry's camp from 2004 that he held together, and Dean's DNC which could only be tapped once the nominee was in place.

Kerry had his NATIONAL organization working for Obama earlier than his public endorsement joining with Obama's community teams and they outorganized the Clinton team nationally.

You still really want to fight about contributions to our nation's historic record? Try doing it after reading the National Security Archives - or at least a report or two, eh? And learn the difference between the roles of legislator and investigator, eh?

[karynnj]

81. Kerry endorsed him after NH

Kerry had privately given him his endorsement even earlier and he gave Obama the decision on when to use it. (This ended up putting Kerry in an awkward position in MA - because he was at a big Democratic convention the week before his endorsement and told no one.

Kerry immediately became Obama's chief surrogate. It was Kerry, who had the stature to say that having been a former President did not give you the right to abuse the truth. He very strongly took apart the Clinton attacks that said HRC and Obama were 100% the same on Iraq. He also was the one who challenged the Clinton shenanigans in Nevada - prompting one of Bill Clinton's unflattering wagging his finger at the media episodes - that changed how he was seen by Democrats. He also sent his endorsement to the 3 million list of people he had maintained conversations with for 3 years.

The Kennedys followed after the SC primary - and they really did give him a lift needed for SuperTuesday. The fact is though that it might be that BOTH these 2 men's endorsements. The fact was the media likely had it right in saying HRC was "inevitable". Obama needed perfect strategy and both of these key endorsements - and Bill Clinton's abysmal behavior that lost HRC votes.

[No Elephants]

62. So, you're saying every time there was a check for his gonads, he

turned out to be a pussy? Because, as we all know, courage resides only in the testicles and cowardice only in the vagina.


Which would mean that there are no cowardly men and no brave women. Which, of course, is reality.


I wish men would get a different metaphor, preferably one that is such not a mega-lie.

[Hannah Bell]

43. funny, that.

"limited hang out"

[blm]

48. Kerry was pushing PAST the 'limited hangout' tactic. He kept taking the WH to court to get release

of documents they were protecting as classified.

Sad that so many Democrats don't even know that the reason we were even allowed to SEE the PDB from August 6, 2001 about Bin Laden was due to Kerry taking Bush2 to court during BCCI to force release of that type of document.

A limited hangout report wouldn't have been deepsixed, it would have gotten MAJOR coverage and pushed by the WH. A limited hangout report also wouldn't have included so many outstanding questions that specifically required FURTHER SCRUTINY.

It is apparent that many who smear Kerry have never spent the time to actually read the reports.

[No Elephants]

73. I can understand why Republicans smeared him. What reason do Democrats have to smear him, though?

It surprises me.

[blm]

75. There were some of our more famous Democrats who were involved - they didn't want an open government

advocate like Kerry with the powers of the Oval Office any more than Bushes did.

For example....Jackson Stephens and Marc Rich were both named figures in BCCI.

[texastoast]

16. It would be interesting

if he would see some of the big oil connections as well.

http://links.org.au/node/1008

Recommend.

[karynnj]

59. Those connections are not hidden

Google "Carter doctrine". Jimmy Carter said we would fight if our oil supplies were jeopordized. When Carter appeared recently before the SFRC, Senator Lugar spoke of this as his policy and their was no disagreement. (That was also why Carter acted to increase conservation and increased funding for alternative technology. He even put solar panels on the WH - which Reagan removed.) Lugar spoke of Bush 1 following this and it being the justification for Gulf War I. (Kerry has blamed that war on oil as well)

Senator Lugar as Chair of the SFRC had 2 hearings on the impact of oil on our foreign policy.

[wisteria]

17. These types of investigations are long overdue and this time I believe Kerry won't be held back.

I have a problem with the article suggesting this was all about spring boarding because I have followed Senator Kerry long enough to know that these investigations are not about him gaining recognition, but rather they are in the best interests of the US.

[blm]

21. The writer is obviously UNDERINFORMED - a corpmedia twit who knows little about the last 4 decades

of this nation's REAL HISTORY and let the Heritage Foundation fascist get away with that 'springboard' crack instead of correcting him or calling him out.

[YvonneCa]

23. I agree with you 100% wisteria. I do not think...

...if the investigation turns up criminal acts...that Kerry will be held back at all. Heck, I think the White House would APPLAUD. :7

And I also agree about John Kerry's impeccable character...the 'springboarding' stuff is MSM ___________. :7

[StatGirl]

19. Stay out of small planes, Senator . . .

. . . and thank you for doing this.

[YvonneCa]

24. And welcome to you...

...StatGirl. :hi:

[Adelante]

26. This is great news nt

[emulatorloo]

27. Excellent n/t

[Optical.Catalyst]

30. I hope he follows the money on a few no-bid-contracts and puts Dick Cheney in jail

There needs to be an investigation into the money going to Kellogg, Brown, & Root, Halliburton, and big oil companies from our Government.

Getting Cheney convicted of just one crime will unravel the whole Bush debacle

[ohio2007]

31. He also had a few choice words concerning 'viva' Hugo Chavez but some call Kerry "a tool"

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=3891221&mesg_id=3891221

for crossing "a line" on that thread ;)


so which is it ?

[Wednesdays]

35. K&R

:kick:

[politicasista]

36. Kick

Sounds like a good link to learn about this issue. :kick: :patriot:

[livefreest]

42. the repubes are going to go crazy. like the Bin Laden family and the Saudi family who are

friends of the Bush family, many of those in money laundering must be friends with and sponsoring crime must have friends in the power structure. especially the republicans since they've had so much power in the last 30 years as international finance grew so much

[politicasista]

52. As if their heads haven't already exploded

over Judge Sotomayor. (Which has been disgusting :puke:).

It's hilarious watching the repukes and GOP imploding. :rofl:


Kick for the weekend crowd. :kick:
















edit smiley

[Torn_Scorned_Ignored]

49. yum, breakfast

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=105&topic_id=8723725

“For the last eight years we’ve had an administration that has done its utmost to protect, hide, obfuscate, neglect, void, simply not even care about these issues,”

[No Elephants]

61. So, this former investigative reporter, an ex-CIA agent and a one-time managing director of Bear

Stearns walk into a bar.....

I have no idea what comes next, but I figured there had to be a joke in there somewhere.


I wish Kerry all the best with this.

[karynnj]

82. LOL

It is an interesting mix - it is interesting to thing of all the synergies there may be between them, given their different areas of knowledge. Then add Senator Kerry's own creative mind that has often seen connections before others do and his eloquence in explaining these complex inter-relationships in a way that soon makes them seem obvious to anyone. (example - Kerry evoking American optimism and "can do philosophy" by tying alternative energy to a new better economy, a better environment, and national security. In 2004, this was fascinating, turning a dismal issue into something exciting- by 2008, it was what every Democrat and many Republicans said.)

[politicasista]

76. Another positive Kerry thread ruined by a flamewar

Thought that was out of style. Guess Obama bashing threads won't be either. Go figure.