So i'm flipping through the channels last night looking for something on TV to watch and i come across CSPAN, which has a speech Mr. Kerry gave to the IAF (Firefighters org.) in Washington DC recently. Not sure when it was given, but i think it was from yesterday. Out of curiousity i stopped and listened for about 20 minutes. I really wanted to hear if he was going to outline any defined strategies for the continued fight on terror, supporting our troops in Iraq, bettering the economy, etc.

Well, after about ten minutes he started talking about how our troops were sent into battle in Iraq with inadequate protection (weapons and armor) and how he as president would make sure that they have the best armor and weapons available to them. He then brought up the $87 billion bill to support our troops in Iraq and tried to explain why he didn't support it. He said that the reason he voted "no" was because he wanted the $87 billion to come from the "very wealthiest" americans in the form of a decrease in the tax cut that Bush had proposed at the time. Instead of the $690 billion tax cut, he wanted to only have a $600 billion tax cut and use the saved $90 billion to pay for the troop funding.

Now, on the surface, this seems like a pretty good idea. Sure, okay, lets maybe not cut taxes so much and use the savings to fund our troops needs in Iraq. Sounds fine to me. But when its framed in the context in which Kerry stated it, it sounds absolutely petty and ridiculous. Basically he's saying that he will only properly fund our troops IF the right people (read: people making over $200,000/year) are paying for it. To me, this is kinda sickening. To deny our troops the proper funding that they rightly deserve simply because he thinks that only the "very wealthiest" should foot the bill is incredulous. He is putting his disdain for the rich above our troops safety and that makes me sick. When the safety of our troops is at question, you would hope that politicians could put their own ideologies aside and do whatever it takes to make sure that they are safe. Mr. Kerry has always said we shouldn't politicize 9/11 and the war in Iraq. But by linking his "no" vote to an issue over which americans pay for the funding, he has done exactly that. For a veteran who has been on the front lines of battle before and knows the dangers confronting ill-equipped soldiers, i expected more from Mr. Kerry on this issue.

Thanks for listening to this "venting". That part of his speech made my stomach turn.

T-