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February 13, 2004 JOHN KERRY FOLLOWUP....Should the media report unsubstantiated rumors from Matt Drudge about John Kerry's supposed extramarital affair with an intern? Um, I guess not. Irresponsible and all that, after all. Should bloggers? Um, er, maybe. Who's asking? But since the mainstream media is too responsible to report this stuff, what choice do we have except to turn to the less responsible but more fun blogosphere? Answer: talk radio and the British media. First up to bat, then, is the flower of the British press, the Sun, which claims to have identified the intern in question and talked to her parents. (The intern herself is supposedly still avoiding public scrutiny in deepest Africa.) Verdict: the parents have no evidence of an affair but think that Kerry is a "sleazeball." I guess that's a couple of lost votes. Next up is an example of the British press passing on reports from American talk radio, a combination that would surely vaporize the galaxy if these were subatomic particles. Verdict: Kerry says "There is nothing to report, nothing to talk about. There's nothing there. There's no story." (And this is a blog reporting on the British press reporting on American talk radio. The mind reels.) OK then. Score so far: no evidence for this whatsoever. Perhaps this weekend we will learn that Kerry and George Bush had a gay affair in 1972 in Alabama. And then we'll spend the rest of the week discussing which candidate is hurt the worst by this. Posted by Kevin Drum at February 13, 2004 02:53 PM | TrackBackComments
"the flower of the British press" I see you have found page3. Bush just released his records. Are you going to post every page and point to everything you don't understand as evidence of a conspiracy? Actually I have two questions. Apparently, (according to Drudge) I suppose that means they've heard back from the "cleaning lady". Posted by: Occam's Cuisinart at February 13, 2004 02:58 PM | PERMALINKWell said, Kevin. There's no meat on this story (yet) to discuss. As yet, there's no indication it's any more reliable than Drudge's "Clinton had a black lovechild" rumor. Posted by: Tom at February 13, 2004 02:59 PM | PERMALINKDefinitely it would hurt Kerry more, since Bush's sexuality has always been ambiguous. Posted by: Boronx at February 13, 2004 03:00 PM | PERMALINKIt's Friday before a holiday weekend. This would be a good time to dump any embarassing information on the media. You know, like the rest of Bush's National Guard file. http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&ncid=578&e=1&u=/nm/20040213/pl_nm/bush_records_dc Posted by: Marchbear at February 13, 2004 03:00 PM | PERMALINKLate Friday report from CNN: Bush orders release of all his military records. Posted by: dequincey at February 13, 2004 03:00 PM | PERMALINKHow is there no evidence? Isn't the whole basis of your Bush accusations unsubstantiated remarks of alabaman national guardsmen? Is that really any better evidence than what we have concerning Kerry? Posted by: Reg at February 13, 2004 03:00 PM | PERMALINKReg: Really no answers from them are necessary - because we all know the answer; y'all commoner's don't "need to know" and Bush is above the law, so just shut up and tell us who Kerry's been screwing. Posted by: Occam's Cuisinart at February 13, 2004 03:01 PM | PERMALINKI've got to hand it too you, Kevin - I didn't think you'd ever get around to another Kerry scandal thread ; ) So, for those of you keeping score at home, that's TWO (2) Kerry intern scandal and TWENTY-TWO (22) GWB National Guard scandal. Seems "fair and balanced" to me . . . Posted by: Charlie at February 13, 2004 03:01 PM | PERMALINKThanks for bringing this up... It's rumor so far, but there are discussions aplenty about whether - if it's true - it would hurt. It the dicussion is also that it was started by a Democrat.... Are there facts on this? Who are the reporters who heard Wes Clark talk about the 'implosion'? Why didn't THEY report it? It smacks of Rove driven smear and distract tactics, plus Drudge's longing to matter once again. He made history once with an intern affair...and it sems like his desire to relive that moment is overtaking any other judgements. Posted by: Stranahan at February 13, 2004 03:02 PM | PERMALINK "Perhaps this weekend we will learn that Kerry and George Bush had a gay affair in 1972 in Alabama." No way. Hypothetical Young Gay Kerry would have better taste than to waste time with the Hypothetical Young Gay Texas Souflee. However, I could see Hypothetical Young Gay Kerry hooking up with Hypothetical Young Gay Jack Kemp for some vigorous bipartisan "discourse." Posted by: aplomb at February 13, 2004 03:03 PM | PERMALINKDrudge is a Republican mouth piece. Not only did he break the story, but he lied about which news organizations were investigating this in a dishonest attempt to *force* them to cover it, also to disguise the fact that it was his story. That's all you need to know to tell you who's behind this, and it ain't no Democrat. Posted by: Boronx at February 13, 2004 03:06 PM | PERMALINKMust be a "double point trolling" day for GOP Teamleaders. Spin MBFs, spin! Maybe you can outsource it. Posted by: Ras_Nesta at February 13, 2004 03:07 PM | PERMALINKIf this has nothing in it, will you all shut up? Well, I don't know specifically what you're talking about, Reg, but yes, if the evidence really does clear Bush, I'll shut up. If it does, what will you do about it? Isn't it irrelevant? Well, not really, because it'll mean that Bush was dishonest. Still, I will concede that there's a little bit of a busting-Al-Capone-for-tax-evasion quality to this whole affair. The fact is that the voting public doesn't care very much about really technical stuff, like the deceptiveness of Bush's tax cut plan and how contrary it was to the public interest, etc etc. I don't like the fact that you have to speak in symbols to get your point across. But if Democrats don't speak in symbols, they'll get knifed in the back because the GOP has shown no compunction about playing that game themselves. The way I see it, this is just political self-defense. Of course, this doesn't excuse accusations that have no basis in fact. But that's not the situation we're dealing with here (unlike, say, the Whitewater or Vince Foster "scandals"). Posted by: JP at February 13, 2004 03:09 PM | PERMALINKSo, for those of you keeping score at home, that's TWO (2) Kerry intern scandal and TWENTY-TWO (22) GWB National Guard scandal. What gross dishonesty. The most obvious of the many fallacies there is that the Kerry "scandal" broke yesterday. Smiley-faces just aren't very disarming when they appear next to lies. Posted by: JP at February 13, 2004 03:13 PM | PERMALINKDidn't Kaus post a story from the Boston Herald in 1998 on this? Posted by: Ugh at February 13, 2004 03:22 PM | PERMALINKTom: "There's no meat on this story (yet) to discuss." There's plenty of meat - here's what I've found so far: Alexandra Polier, formerly with the Associated Press, is currently in Kenya, Africa (reportedly at the urging of Kerry). Her parents, Donna and Terry, speaking from Malvern, Pennsylvania yesterday, said there was no evidence of an affair, only that Senator Kerry "may have been attracted to their daughter" ; ) I did a little checking and there's only one high school in Malvern: Great Valley High School(610) 889-1900 225 N. Phoenixville Pike. Malvern, PA 19355 http://www.great-valley.k12.pa.us/gvhs/ Not sure yet were she went to college, but she went to Columbia Journalism school - her Class of 2003 photo can be found here: http://www.jrn.columbia.edu/alumni/history/classes/2003 (unless I'm mistaken, she's the 10th one from the left, first row). Her e-mail address was: ap2036@columbia.edu She's written quite a bit about bowling shoes and proms - Mike Silverman, Managing Editor of the Associated Press interviewed Alex at Columbia last year, along with: Leila Abboud Associated Press spokesman Jack Stokes said today: "We do not comment on stories we're either pursuing or not pursuing. We also don't comment on the personal lives of employees or ex-staffers." However, the Washington Post has gone on the record and officially denied it is doing any story on Senator Kerry's alleged relationship with Ms. Polier. Posted by TomBoronx: "Drudge is a Republican mouth piece." Even assuming that's true, he did not "break" this story. "That's all you need to know to tell you who's behind this, and it ain't no Democrat." Last time I checked, both Chris Lehane and Hillary Clinton were registered Democrats : ) JP: "What gross dishonesty." I just double-checked - my count is completely accurate (regardless of when the scandals broke" since Bush's National Guard issue technically "broke" before the 2000 election). "Smiley-faces just aren't very disarming when they appear next to lies." O.K., then you won't get any from me - have a great weekend though. Posted by: Charlie at February 13, 2004 03:28 PM | PERMALINKWell, if it were true I think his wife would have maimed him by now. Posted by: Aimie at February 13, 2004 03:29 PM | PERMALINKI'm no Kerry/Bush fan, but I am very interested to know why the girl suddenly just up and decides to go to....Africa? There may be nothing there, but Africa for goodness sakes? Posted by: Peter at February 13, 2004 03:31 PM | PERMALINKNowhere in the Sun story does it describe the woman as an intern. I know we're dealing with completely unsubstantiated garbage, but can we at least avoid making stuff up ourselves while talking about it? Where is this "intern" stuff coming from? Posted by: KCinDC at February 13, 2004 03:33 PM | PERMALINKKevin Drum - zero to double standard in 2.4 seconds. Posted by: Kate at February 13, 2004 03:34 PM | PERMALINKTell me something. If this "scandal" had Bush's name on it, would the media still be ignoring it? Would you? Or would it be another "story [that] is at least believable enough that it deserves wider exposure" Posted by: tbrosz at February 13, 2004 03:36 PM | PERMALINK"Tell me something. If this "scandal" had Bush's name on it, would the media still be ignoring it?" Very good question - at the very least, Kevin would have had more than 2 threads on it by now ; ) Posted by: Charlie at February 13, 2004 03:39 PM | PERMALINKI see her. Pink top, rather thin. Nice hair. Large nose. Poor posture. A little on the tall side (5'6"-ish?). Anyone get a look at the latest version of "All" of Bush's files yet? Posted by: Occam's Cuisinart at February 13, 2004 03:40 PM | PERMALINKKevin, Please note, the woman in question is not an intern. At least not as far as we know -- Google the name "Alex Polier" and you will see a reporter by that name working for the AP. Posted by: 71077345 at February 13, 2004 03:43 PM | PERMALINK"Tell me something. If this "scandal" had Bush's name on it, would the The media hates Bush this week. Anyway, they sat on a well documented affair of his father's while they were jumping on Clinton in '92. Posted by: Boronx at February 13, 2004 03:45 PM | PERMALINK"Perhaps this weekend we will learn that Kerry and George Bush had a gay affair in 1972 in Alabama. " THANKS FOR NOTHING!!!! Now I have to run out and buy a case of brain bleach. Posted by: Matthew Saroff at February 13, 2004 03:47 PM | PERMALINKFirst, there's no real allegation that they had an affair, only that JFK was sniffing around. Second, at least the Sun gave some historical perspective, going back to Jefferson. Posted by: Stuart Levine at February 13, 2004 03:48 PM | PERMALINKHold it...the SUN tried to put some perspective to the story? That's one of the signs of the apocalypse. Posted by: Matthew Saroff at February 13, 2004 03:51 PM | PERMALINKLast time I checked, both Chris Lehane and Hillary Clinton were registered Democrats : ) I have a hard time believing that this was a Lehane job. Let me get this straight -- he's working for Wesley Clark. Clark pulls out of the race at the same time his dirtmonger releases dirt on the front runner, whom Clark then endorses. What, did Lehane not get the memo that the Clark campaign was dead? Not pick up the newspaper to read that Clark was looking to leave the race? There's no logical reason and no actual evidence to think this is a Lehane job. No one with whom Lehane is associated benefits from this. By contrast, when you ask the same question about Karl Rove, it's clear that Rove's charge, George Bush, benefits. It's a story designed to chase the press away from George Bush's attendance (or lack thereof) in the FANG in 1972-3. It doesn't even affect voters much -- only the die-hard Republicans care that Kerry had an affair, those folks who are voting for Bush anyways. It goes through Matt Drudge, a known Republican source during primary season. Democratic primary voters don't give a damn about Drudge. I can't see how this is anything other than Karl Rove throwing the press puppies a scent breaker. Posted by: Diamond LeGrande at February 13, 2004 03:54 PM | PERMALINKDiamond - you don't give any credence then to Lehane shopping this around for quite some time, Clark actually discussing it "off the record" with upwards of 15 reporters, or that Gore did not pick Kerry because of any of these issues. Yes - Rove and Bush benefit, but here's someone else who benefits from a weakened 2004 Dem. candidate: Hillary Clinton in 2008. P.S. I actually agree with you that only the die-hard Republicans care that Kerry had an affair - it's the lying about said affair that will get us the votes we need ; ) Posted by: Charlie at February 13, 2004 03:59 PM | PERMALINKWhether you want to say drudge broke it or blew it open is immaterial. It wasn't a big story until ge ran with it. Drudge does not get his tips from Chris Lehane and Hillary Clinton. As far as I know, the Lehane-Hillary connection is right wing spin from Limbaugh etc, based of off the lone fact that Clark may have caught wind of the story before it blew. Posted by: Boronx at February 13, 2004 03:59 PM | PERMALINKActually, George's gay lover is Victor Ashe, who supposedly help throw the Tennessee election in 2000. Posted by: Tuna at February 13, 2004 03:59 PM | PERMALINKThe day it hit, every other line from Limbaugh was: "All I can tell you folks, is that this didn't come from the Republican party." What further proof do you need? Posted by: Boronx at February 13, 2004 04:01 PM | PERMALINKWhere's the beef in this story ? "There is no there, there" as quoted from ANOTHER dim-witted president. Drudge makes shit up (intern ?). Then some of my geographically-impaired compatriots parrot a near racist line of "Africa? Why would she go to Africa ?". Why the FUCK not ? Have u stepped a foot outside this country, ever ? Going to Africa is an indictement ? Is the smear that she is African-American ? Then the Sun has some article about two old foggies slandering Kerry because they think he TRIED to get their daughter to work for him. Reeal scandal. To all the overjoyed freepers. You thought you found AWOL-kryptonite ? More like fool's gold. Posted by: ch2 at February 13, 2004 04:02 PM | PERMALINKou don't give any credence then to Lehane shopping this None of which has any bearing on why the story broke when it broke. Posted by: Boronx at February 13, 2004 04:03 PM | PERMALINKThat's fine, Boronx - I'll put you in the same "don't give any credence then to Lehane shopping this around for quite some time now, Clark actually discussing it "off the record" with upwards of 15 reporters recently, or that Gore did not pick Kerry as running mate because of any of these issues" category as Diamond. Do you also think we don't get ANY votes from Kerry lying about said affair? More importantly, do you think Kerry's rich wife is going to stick by her man / bankrole his campaign if it is indeed true?! Have a great PRESIDENTS' Day weekend everyone! Posted by: Charlie at February 13, 2004 04:04 PM | PERMALINKDem. candidate: Hillary Clinton in 2008. I think it most benefits her husbands military coup planned for late next year. Posted by: Boronx at February 13, 2004 04:05 PM | PERMALINKUhm, say, where did the AWOL accusations come from? We do have evidence, by the way: Kerry has denied an accusation. That's the same sort of evidence that was used to get Bush to reveal his TANG records. So, fair is fair. The accusation has been made, and responded to. Kerry needs to prove that he didn't have an affair with this young woman. Let's see the documentary evidence. Posted by: Thomas at February 13, 2004 04:08 PM | PERMALINKch2: "Drudge makes sh*t up (intern ?)" Perhaps - but I think it was Clark who stated (off the record) that Kerry had an "intern" problem (unless, of course, Drudge is making that up too - maybe the 15 or so reporters who heard Clark will straighten that out?) "Then some of my geographically-impaired compatriots parrot a near racist line of "Africa? Why would she go to Africa ?". Why the FUCK not ? Have u stepped a foot outside this country, ever ? Going to Africa is an indictement ? Is the smear that she is African-American ?" Not at all - I posted a link to her picture above and she is very White and very Blonde - Africa is simply a far ways away from the U.S. "Then the Sun has some article about two old foggies slandering Kerry because they think he TRIED to get their daughter to work for him." Remind me - how much did Monica's father know when Drudge broke THAt scandal?! "To all the overjoyed freepers. You thought you found AWOL-kryptonite ? More like fool's gold." We'll see - as I said on the other thread - I can wait to gloat (November's a long ways away ; ) Posted by: Charlie at February 13, 2004 04:08 PM | PERMALINKSee ya Charlie, read a good book. Explore critical thought. Trust me, you'll like it, even if you were to lose your Republican friends for it. Posted by: ch2 at February 13, 2004 04:09 PM | PERMALINK"There's plenty of meat - here's what I've found so far" ...followed by lots of words, but not many of any substance--that address the question of "What did or didn't Kerry actually do?" *** "So, for those of you keeping score at home, that's TWO (2) Kerry intern scandal (sic) and TWENTY-TWO (22) GWB National Guard scandal." You want more threads on Kerry? Go for it--start your own blog! Judging by your long post full of "meat," it wouldn't be very compelling, though.
Me: "Then the Sun has some article about two old foggies slandering Kerry because they think he TRIED to get their daughter to work for him." Charlie: Remind me - how much did Monica's father know when Drudge broke THAt scandal?! Don't you get what the SUN is saying ? She did NOT go work for him. So where is the story ? The BEEEEF ?!? Don't give me this veggie diet. Charlie: We'll see - as I said on the other thread - I can wait to gloat (November's a long ways away ; ) Charlie, you will eat these words in November. ;) Posted by: ch2 at February 13, 2004 04:12 PM | PERMALINKAll I want to know is - if GWB and JFK had an affair - who was the pitcher, and who was the catcher? And who dumped whom? (either GWB caught JFK cheating, or JFK caught GWB lying; probably (this entertaining vignette brought to you by: Friday the Thirteeth, and Valentine's Day.) Posted by: Occam's Cuisinart at February 13, 2004 04:14 PM | PERMALINKWhy not W and Bath, (I jest) Posted by: ch2 at February 13, 2004 04:17 PM | PERMALINK"Do you also think we don't get ANY votes from Kerry lying about said If lehane and Clark knew about this, I have no doubt he's had some time to prepare. The RNC dirt digging team is legendary, and Kerry needs to prove himself against it. IMHO, the AWOL story forced them to open fire early (Gennifer Flowers, anybody?) and that can only be a Good Thing. Come to think of it, this whole scandal is a natural refinement of RNC induced scandals of the past. The attempt to pin the origins on 'rival' dems is a relatively new touch. Posted by: Boronx at February 13, 2004 04:18 PM | PERMALINKI always used to think of the British press as more responsible and open-minded than the American. I guess it is just more gossipy. Posted by: Ungerer at February 13, 2004 04:24 PM | PERMALINKHmm, who is the pitcher the fly-boy or the hero? I'm sorry were we talking about something important? Posted by: Sebastian Holsclaw at February 13, 2004 04:26 PM | PERMALINKI'm sure that even in Africa, Ms. Polier will have something to say on the matter soon. Posted by: Sugar Plum Fairy at February 13, 2004 04:26 PM | PERMALINKNah, Kerry and Bush didn't have an affair. They just mudwrestled together in the nude in the basement of the Skull and Bones Tomb. The winner got to drink from Geronimo's skull. Posted by: gopher at February 13, 2004 04:30 PM | PERMALINKch2 writes: "Drudge makes shit up (intern ?). Then some of my geographically-impaired compatriots parrot a near racist line of "Africa? Why would she go to Africa ?". Why the FUCK not ? Have u stepped a foot outside this country, ever ? Going to Africa is an indictement ? Is the smear that she is African-American ?" The thing is, people dashing away at the last moment to hide out while a scandal blows over generally don't pick places that have, you know, endemic parasites and bad water and things requiring vaccination 4-6 weeks before the trip. If she's in Africa, it's probably *not* because of Kerry. If she was in Africa because of Kerry, she'd probably be there with the knowledge of Kerry's wife, who is *from* Africa, and would probably have connections to hide the girl. But Teresa Heinz Kerry isn't from Kenya, she's from Mozambique and South Africa. Posted by: Jon H at February 13, 2004 04:35 PM | PERMALINKgopher :" The winner got to drink from Geronimo's skull." But guess what the winner was drinking... Posted by: Jon H at February 13, 2004 04:37 PM | PERMALINKSorry if someone has already posted this, here's a post on wonkette.com WONKETTE WORLD EXCLUSIVE! MUST CREDIT WONKETTE! # "I've got an idea Georgie. .. " "I've got a better idea Johnnie. Let's play football player, and sports-team owner. . . " Posted by: Occam's Cuisinart at February 13, 2004 04:40 PM | PERMALINKThe 15 reporters - were did you hear about them? Name one or two of them... It's ALL from Drudge and transparently so. Posted by: Stranahan at February 13, 2004 04:40 PM | PERMALINKSo America's greatest war hero---certainly the greatest since Ronnie
Reagan shot down a few Jap planes for the movie cameras on the Warners'
back lot in 1943---orders that ALL of his military records be released,
but then comes the result and it's half-assed---again. Missing are
answers to the only questions that really matter---where were you, when
were you there, what did you do? Still, this grandstanding, empty
gesture though it is and agreed to only after a private poll showed a
recebt, precipitous Calpundit writes "Perhaps this weekend we will learn that Kerry and George Bush had a gay affair in 1972 in Alabama. And then we'll spend the rest of the week discussing which candidate is hurt the worst by this." Cracked me right up (spewed Jack Daniels on my keyboard)! Posted by: Bryrock at February 13, 2004 04:46 PM | PERMALINKDo you think that Kevin Drum should begin an investigation of Kerry? Posted by: Kevin P. at February 13, 2004 04:49 PM | PERMALINKIf you heard Kerry on the Imus show this morning, you know the story must be true: 10 minutes of obviously scripted, obviously FILIBUSTERING blah blah jobs blah blah healthcare and then, rather politely, a question about the Drudgereport. Kerry's answer: Theres nothing to report. Theres no story. Theres nothing to talk about. Was there ever a lamer denial? He had all that blah blah written up. If the story's not true, he'd have been prepared to say: "Its a lie. I love my wife. I have been 100% faithful to my wife in thought word and deed every day of our marriage." If I was accused of an affair, I'd have no trouble popping out with that strong a denial. Posted by: Cheesequake at February 13, 2004 04:50 PM | PERMALINKYou're prediction's a bit off Kevin. Bush and Kerry had their gay love affair while both were at Yale, after a meeting of the Skull and Bones. Posted by: chsa at February 13, 2004 04:53 PM | PERMALINKScore so far: no evidence for this whatsoever. For consistency with your slander of Bush, should Kerry not be required to positively prove that he did NOT have an affair last year? And I want him to open all of his personal records, including his medical records. Posted by: x at February 13, 2004 04:55 PM | PERMALINKThe girl says nope. Keryy says nope. x says "hope". Posted by: ch2 at February 13, 2004 05:18 PM | PERMALINKMy, the righty-tighties certainly have their panties in a wad! That Bush was grounded for failing to take a physical and failed to fulfill his service obligation are facts in the public record, although the circumstances surrounding them remain murky. Yet this is somehow equivalent to an anonymous rumor of an act of a sexual nature which would not even be illegal? Some people have no sense of proportion. Keryy says nope. Wake up. Kerry had the chance to deny it and pulled a tap dancing non-denial: "Well, there is nothing to report," Kerry told IMUS. "So there is nothing to talk about. I'm not worried about it. No." Please point out where Kerry says "nope". Maybe there is a Story here, and maybe the Story is that people with an axe to grind will now use "he committed adultery with an intern" as the weapon-of-choice for their ill-favored government-official-to-be. I for one would like to know a little bit more about the media history for coverage of this Story and its changing cast of characters -- i.e. How accurate have they been? How much have they researched it? When did it become a scandal and when did it remain a rumor? When has it affected the politician and was it positive or negative? etc. Posted by: Sugar Plum Fairy at February 13, 2004 05:28 PM | PERMALINKKevin, I'm shocked that you didn't comment on the intern's father's comment on Kerry. All tuckered out on those AWOL acqusations. Posted by: Timmy the Wonder Dog at February 13, 2004 05:29 PM | PERMALINK should Kerry not be required to positively prove that he did NOT have an affair last year? Whereas, Bush has failed to prove a positive: that he did his duty. Posted by: Grand Moff Texan at February 13, 2004 05:31 PM | PERMALINKoh, and I forgot, since Calpundit doesn't pass on Drudge rumors that DON'T EVEN HAVE THE SOURCES DRUDGE SAYS THEY HAVE, Calpundit is objectively non-objective. Man, you guys are pathetic. Posted by: Grand Moff Texan at February 13, 2004 05:32 PM | PERMALINKI say: "The girl says nope. Anon says: "Please point out where Kerry says "nope"." Stupidity has no name but it has made itself manifest. Ch2, how many bits have been spilled because some people profess not to know the difference between 1. Bush said Iraq was an imminent threat. 2. Bush said Iraq was "an imminent threat." Anybody who thinks Lurch's sex story was put out by Republican slime brigages has it completely wrong. Everything points to Lehane. If you say it is due to the Republicans, evidence please. The fact that drudge broke it shows nothing. Drudge would report any
big story no matter how harmful it is to Republcans if it means Drudge
getting the credit. Drudge is looking out for Drudge's ego and
reputation, not the Republican's chances in November. So somebody tell me why the Kerry story is irrelevant and the Bush story isn't. Lurch said there isn't anything to it, so if there is, he is lying and it goes to his trust. I just want to know the truth. Somebody find out why Alex Polier went to Africa. If she doesn't have a good reason we can assume it was to stay away during Lurch's run. Posted by: Reg at February 13, 2004 05:49 PM | PERMALINKDrudge? Ain't that the guy that started the rumor that Ken Lay slept in the Lincoln bedroom under Clinton's watch? I think so. Whereas, Reality Journalism would actually have it that Ken Lay was ensconced in that bedroom under Papa Bush's orders. Well...there is reality and there is Drudge. But now that we are drudging up nefarious rumors....how about the story of boy-george's girl friend's abortion? http://www.atheists.org/flash.line/elec22.htm This story needs legs! Posted by: -pea- at February 13, 2004 05:56 PM | PERMALINKTake a wild guess who publishes the Sun. Posted by: bluestater at February 13, 2004 05:59 PM | PERMALINKReg, Charlie, X: As of this writing, two of the top four articles on Calpundit refer to Kerry or Bush scandals. Each scandal gets one article, adn the Kerry one is about four times as long. Obviously, Mr. Drum is devoting even more attention to the Kerry scandal than he is to the Bush one. That's more than fair--that's outright republican propaganda. What on Earth are you guys complaining about? Posted by: Laertes at February 13, 2004 06:11 PM | PERMALINKAh, the Sun, brought to us by the same fine folks who own Fox News. So Kerry asked a young woman to be on his campaign team, and he really wanted her to be on it, and asked her a lot if she would do it. Big deal. *If* he did it with sexual innuendo, then I agree, it was sleazy. However, in terms of an ethical lapse it really is pretty insignificant when compared to Dubya's lying the country into war, ruining the career/endangering the life of a political enemy's wife, refusing to hand over requested documents to the 9/11 commission, and now the revelations of the poor record with the National Guard by a man who likes to strut around as if he was George Patton, not George Dubya, and slaps photos of himself all over the place like Saddam and other megalomaniacs. Bottom line: even if these allegations are someday substantiated, Kerry would still be the better candidate in November. Posted by: DanM at February 13, 2004 06:13 PM | PERMALINKLaertes, What Reg and Charlie really want is for the rumor to be true. When you wiiiishm uupon a staaar, Makes no difference, Whooo you aaaare... My girlfriend Tammy and me slept with the president at the
Mason/Dixon Motor Lodge in Nashville last year. He was sooooo cute
dressed in his green jumper pjs. He read us a goodnite story about a
hungry worm. He acted it out. A very, very hungry worm (ha ha). FWIW, while the Murdoch press says the woman in question is 24 years old and currently in Kenya, the Hindustan Times claims she is 37, and believed to be in London. Which should you trust? Well, The Sun recently printed -- and then retracted -- a story about Eastern European immigrants stealing, killing and barbecuing the swans from London's parks. So I wouldn't stake my life that Murdoch's minions actually spoke to the woman's parents . . . Click my link/name to see the Newsday Article by former UN Weapons Inspector Scott Ritter that reveals Kerry's real scandal and why he should not be the nominee. Posted by: David at February 13, 2004 06:38 PM | PERMALINKClimb out of the pig slop David. There are hundreds of reasons to choose Kerry over Bush. The fact that he voted to authorize the President's war against Iraq is irrelevant. Most did. It was the patriotic thing to do after 9-11, else you would be labeled a traitor. I can summarize all I need to know about Kerry vs bush in one sentence: Kerry will stop the clearcutting of old growth forests, whereas bush will reward contributors to his campaign with contracts to harvest these grand old trees. That fact alone is enough to tell me whom to support with my $ and time and words in the next election. After all, only if I intensely hated America, I would try to destroy her virgin forests... Posted by: -pea- at February 13, 2004 06:52 PM | PERMALINKReg & Charlie, Obviously you're getting your wrists all tired out over the hot Kerry issue, and you want more, more, more! Well, take Al (and maybe Shemp too) with you, go out there and do your homework, and educate us all, and yourselves, about what really happened between the senator and the "intern." Find out why Alex went to Africa, don't just whine about why someone else doesn't! 3stooges.com is still available as a domain name!
The Sun clearly described her as a journalist, not an intern. "Kerry sinned. Kevin skimmed." Posted by: The Commissar at February 13, 2004 07:30 PM | PERMALINKDiamond - you don't give any credence then to Lehane shopping this around for quite some time, Clark actually discussing it "off the record" with upwards of 15 reporters, or that Gore did not pick Kerry because of any of these issues. Sources, Chuckie? Newsmax and Drudge and Freep don't count. And again, WHY SHOP IT NOW? If the story broke three weeks ago, yeah, I'd buy it. WHY TO DRUDGE? Nothing coming from Drudge will have much impact on a Democratic primary election. Yes - Rove and Bush benefit, but here's someone else who benefits from a weakened 2004 Dem. candidate: Hillary Clinton in 2008. Uh, sure. That's FOUR FRIGGING YEARS AWAY. And how does it weaken Kerry? I'm serious here. He shagged an intern, or a journalist, or whatever the gal does. SO THE FUCK WHAT? Bill Clinton won twice after being ungodly evasive about Gennifer Flowers. P.S. I actually agree with you that only the die-hard Republicans care that Kerry had an affair - it's the lying about said affair that will get us the votes we need ; ) I don't know if you're delusional, ignorant or dumb. If he's lying, so what? This isn't a life or death matter, a matter of tampering with public documents, a false image or even a court case involved, as with Clinton, who even then had 2/3rds public support on that one issue. He's not running as some sort of paragon of public virtues. (He's running as some smug guy who has been running for President for 30 years, but that's besides the point.) THE PUBLIC DOES NOT CARE. The natural reaction when caught cheating on one's SO is to deny it, even if it is true. Most folks know this. Ockham's Razor, Chuck E. Cheese. Your explanation needs all sorts of future complexity to work. Pluralitas non est ponenda sine neccesitate. Posted by: Diamond LeGrande at February 13, 2004 07:56 PM | PERMALINK@Charlie: Revealing her name was something gentlemen do not do, under any extremity, seems to me. If your momma taught you right, you would have waited for her statement. Cur. Posted by: Yap at February 13, 2004 08:06 PM | PERMALINKHow can you all not see the hypocrisy? Why not just admit you don't
care about Lurch's ethical lapses because he is a democrat and want to
focus on Bush's because he is a Republican. For me, Lurch's issue is a bigger deal. After all, the commitment one makes to his wife in marriage by a person in his 50s is far more important than the commitment a kid out of college makes to his country when he signs up for guard duty. If Lurch doesn't take his promises to his wife seriously, why would he take any other commitments seriously? So why doesn't Lurch fully disclose his relationship with Alex? Why is she in Africa of all places? He must have something to hide. Full disclosure Lurch, you adultuerous bastard. Boy this is a fun game to play, isn't it. Posted by: Reg at February 13, 2004 08:19 PM | PERMALINKOnce again, your reporting is dead wrong. The Kerry story was first reported by WatchBlog, which has connections to the Clark campaign. Posted by: Jay at February 13, 2004 08:23 PM | PERMALINKYeah, I boned her, so what? Bitch gave me herpes, her fucking friend probably told drudge about the latex masks I insisted we wear. Fucking proles. Posted by: JKerry at February 13, 2004 08:25 PM | PERMALINKOk, reg let's take that test, shall we? May have flirted with an intern of some sort= insisting on an 'optional' war (with dead and maimed people)? Is that what you mean, slugger? This all just sounds SO suspicious: 1. Why would a young journalist travel? That's so glaringly out of character for both young people just out of graduate school OR for people who want to be journalists. We all know that journalists don't need to travel, they just have to wait by the phone for the latest memos from HQ. 2. Even if a young journalist did want to travel, why go to Africa? Isn't it more likely that someone just out of school with no experience is probably going to get a job in New York, London, Paris or as a White House correspondent? What are the chances that a young, inexperienced journalist would be assigned to cover such a remote, unglamorous dateline? 3. The British tabloid says the young journalist's parents live in Malvern, Pennsylvania. Charlie, apparently realizing this sounded suspicious, did some checking and -- it's TRUE. There IS a place called Malvern, Pa., and it has ... a HIGH SCHOOL. I've done some checking of my own and can report that several of my closest friends graduated from Great Valley. Two of them even had speaking roles in the world premiere of Mark Medoff's play "Big Ethel." It's true -- the man who gave us "Children of a Lesser God" had another of his plays debut in a high school on the western Main Line -- the VERY SAME high school which this young journalist may or may not have attended. All of which only seems to lend credibility to Charlie's suspicions. 4. Malvern is a very small town. What are the odds of someone's parents living there? This can't all just be coincidence. 5. Sen. Kerry went to Yale. The young journalist went to Columbia. Both are Ivy League schools! (Another "coincidence"?) 6. According to the Sun's article, a United States senator met a young, talented graduate from a top Ivy League school and "invited her to work for him." Yeah, like THAT could ever happen. I'd stay here and defend Charlie some more, but I have to go confront
my friends from Malvern. They all deny they've had affairs with
presidential candidates -- which just PROVES it, don't you think
Charlie? The name of Kerry's mistress will be in the Philadelphia Daily News tomorrow per CNN's Newsnight segment with a Philadelphia Daily News editor. They think its legitimate because voters want to know if the pol has problems that could cause another year of misery like what Clinton inflicted on the nation over his oral sex with Monica Lewinsky. Kerry must be asked if he knows this woman and if so, how well he knows her, how many times he's seen her; has he ever been alone with her; did he know she was in Africa; has he ever bought her any gifts and if so what; does his wife know her, etc. Kerry called on Bush to answer questions, even though there was NO evidence Bush did anything wrong. Fairs fair and Kerry should have to answer questions, too. Posted by: Aaron Brown at February 13, 2004 08:48 PM | PERMALINKFucking mouthbreathers, Philly paper REVEALS HER NAME, SHE MIGHT HAVE FLIRTED TO GET A STORY BETTER THAN 'HIGH SCHOOL EXPENSES ARE EXPENSIVE AT PROM' , IS KERRY PINING OVER HER LUV???? My god, raise your motherfucking game, ape boys. Posted by: Yap at February 13, 2004 09:09 PM | PERMALINK"Kerry called on Bush to answer questions, even though there was NO evidence Bush did anything wrong. Fairs fair and Kerry should have to answer questions, too." Huh, huh, nice thingies, huh, huh. So, maybe you can tell me how right the IRAQ WAR was, you fucking mushroom? Posted by: Yap at February 13, 2004 09:14 PM | PERMALINKSunday, February 15th Should be fun. Wonder if there'll be any "news"? Posted by: JimmiRayBob at February 13, 2004 09:20 PM | PERMALINKLooks like a free ride for Gillespie to me, Rangel, though pigmented a bit nonreflectively, is not one of our best (sorry, dude). Maybe this is an apology from Russert. Posted by: Yap at February 13, 2004 09:26 PM | PERMALINKWho said anything about the war or policy? I'm only concerned in the
personal lives of our politicians, or things that happened 30 years ago
that have nothing to do with anything. When will Lurch come clean on
why he was screwing a reporter when he had all that kethup money at
stake. Dear Reg, You wrote: "Boy this is a fun game to play, isn't it." Yes. It is quite fun. Unfortunately you don't seem to be getting the hang of it. Posted by: bobbyp at February 13, 2004 09:44 PM | PERMALINKI agree...never bring a Rangel to a Sharpton fight, but stil...... Posted by: JimmiRayBob at February 13, 2004 09:55 PM | PERMALINKRegarding the "intern" who "fled" to Kenya... apparently she high-tailed it there with her fiance.... Very Suspicious. I didn't realize Kerry was so scary. http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2-2004071781,00.html Somehow I'm more concerned about the man with the CIA behind him and the Patriot Act in his pocket. With regard to whether this smear is from the Republican (Drudge, Limbaugh, Hannity, Mark Levin) camp or the Democratic (Lehane) side here's my take: 1. Democratic operatives may be spreading it as a last ditch effort to derail the Kerry Express. 2. Republican hacks may be spreading it to divert attention from Alabamagate. 3. Maybe both and they're being orchestrated by Dick Morris. Posted by: grich at February 13, 2004 10:10 PM | PERMALINKThis actually fits a pattern! Check it out: Then: Saddam Hussein's regime posesses weapons of mass destruction Then: Bush served honorably in the National Guard from 1968 to 1974 Then: John Kerry had an affair with a(n) {intern/journalist/caterer/housepet (pick one)} he later forced to move to Africa Nothing is as it first appears... Posted by: 0rganism at February 13, 2004 10:17 PM | PERMALINKYou cannot seriously be comparing these two stories in terms of evidential pedigree. As far as I can see, we have nothing but anonymous rumors to go on for Kerry's 'fling'. In Bush's case, we have an official document, uncontested in its authenticity, from Bush's two commanding officiers, attesting to the fact that Bush had not performed his duty at that base for a solid year. And this document is filled out on a day that Bush is supposed to have been on duty at the same base. And that's just the most damning piece of the official record. There's also the matters of 61/2 months without dirlls, moving before receiving authorization, staying away after authorization to transfer had been denied, failing to take a flight physical necessary to maintain flight status, returning to Alabama to drill after the period of his transfer was up, and then, after all that, having the temerity to apply for early release. All of these facts are substantiated by the physical and uncontested record. And that's before we begin to count the public witnesses and their testimonial evidence. Also, the Bush/Guard story is at least 7 years old, and has seen the light in at least a dozen news publications and at least four non-fiction books. Now, tell me again how the Kerry case is anything like this? Posted by: epist at February 13, 2004 11:20 PM | PERMALINKKevin: political scandals aside, I loved the line about particles combining to anihilate the galaxy. Any use of physics to illustrate a point, in the blogosphere or elsewhere, is always fine by me. Thanks for the chuckle. Posted by: Chris at February 13, 2004 11:40 PM | PERMALINKRe: Charlie Rangel The Raspy One is also a veteran, wounded during the Korean War. That fact and the ethos it provides may be more important than his forensic skills against Gillespie. Posted by: slacktivist at February 13, 2004 11:42 PM | PERMALINKBush and Kerry's gay affair wasn't in Alabama in 1972. It was back at Yale during Bush's Skull and Bones initiation. Posted by: DaveOinSF at February 14, 2004 01:17 AM | PERMALINKWait a minute - my Republican official line rule book says that adulterous sex related activities are irrelevant to a candidate's qualifications for office. You guys had better check your party line - it is right there under the heading "Arnold." Posted by: McDruid at February 14, 2004 02:32 AM | PERMALINKGeorge eagerly spread himself across the smooth concrete floor. "Give it to me one more time", he asked. Posted by: bad Jim at February 14, 2004 03:17 AM | PERMALINKKEVIN DRUM'S WISH LIST: Hey, Epist... You reap what you sow. There is NO WAY the media can ignore Kerry's affair (and its true; lets not quibble; its obviously true; you know it just like you knew the Lewinsky business was true from the first minute you heard about it). The media cannot ignore this after torturing Bush for 2 weeks over a story that is absolutely irrelevant to his qualification for the WH. On the other hand, this adultery story IS relevant because the American people were put through hell only a few years back with another reckless adulterer in the White House. Posted by: Embarrassed Democrat at February 14, 2004 06:28 AM | PERMALINK"...stop the politics of personal destruction..." (a Republican cry in the night) Really, beg if you must, but don't use cliches. As
for Kerry, and since the country needs less cowardice in the oval
office and more old-fashioned virility, I hope to God those rumors are
true. The hicks can rally 'round Bush if their inferior needs so
dictate, but for the sake of purposeful politics, robust appetites and a
restoration of the slam-bam Americanism of FDR, HST, JFK, and dear old
Billy Clinton, Kerry increasingly looks like the only choice. In fact,
here's looking at you, id. The supermarket tabloids have pictures....right alongside the alien space babies.....(Warning: actually buying and reading may make you feel "dirty" for years.) Posted by: serial catowner at February 14, 2004 07:52 AM | PERMALINK"Embarassed Troll": You're absolutely right! I've always felt Clinton lying about a blowjob was a hell of a lot more important than Bush lying us into a war that has cost thousands of lives and hundreds of billions of dollars. Clinton's recklessness cost us hours of agonized TV-watching! Oh, the humanity! Posted by: TR at February 14, 2004 08:37 AM | PERMALINKWhy does everyone refer to the woman in question as an "intern?" The Boston Herald article says she was a student and a model and was looking for a job. Nowhere does it say she was interning in anyone's office. As far as I can tell, the only reason anyone started calling her an "intern" is because Matt Drudge was fantasizing that he had found the next Monica Lewinsky. Posted by: The Fool at February 14, 2004 09:26 AM | PERMALINKDear Mr. The Fool, Because it sells. It's still the economy. Posted by: JimmiRayBob at February 14, 2004 10:04 AM | PERMALINKActually, no sex. Just penis-related program activities. Posted by: evan rude at February 14, 2004 10:43 AM | PERMALINK?I?m an internationalist I?d like to see our troops dispersed through the world only at the directive of the United Nations.? John Kerry
Hi Kevin, ...if there aren't enough new voters after this last three years of cuts, Cuts??? What the hell has been cut in the last three years? Posted by: RW at February 14, 2004 07:51 PM | PERMALINKWe all know the drill...a totally unqualified Republican like Arnie the Grope gets a free pass on evidence of drug use, group sex and sexual assault. A Democrat with decades of public service, and a squeaky-clean record, gets tarred-and-feathered for once having been in a photo with Jane Fonda. It's business as usual in the land where millionaires and paupers have the same freedom to publish a newspaper. Posted by: serial catowner at February 15, 2004 10:35 AM | PERMALINKRe ""Perhaps this weekend we will learn that Kerry and George Bush had a gay affair in 1972 in Alabama. " The tailored flight suit should have been the tipoff. Posted by: Don Williams at February 15, 2004 11:02 AM | PERMALINKThere's a public debate tonight among the Democratic candidates, two days before the Wisconsin election. Maybe Howard Dean will have a question for Kerry. Hee hee Something's that , to my knowledge, has not been discussed. If Kerry is lying to Imus and reporters, that lie will be exposed and will do far more to hurt the Democrats chances for the White House than the affair itself. The "Bush Lied People Died" meme for Iraq doesn't get traction if your alternative is someone who's lied to the public about a trival matter. What will REALLY hurt Kerry will be Howard Dean suggesting that Kerry is willing to take the Democratic Party over the cliff with him -- that Kerry will ultimately be exposed but by the time that happens it will be too late for the Democrats to recover. Of course, it may be that Kerry was telling the truth when he indicated that there was no affair. In that event, why is an AP reporter refusing to issue a simple denial and hiding in the bush. (No pun intended. No, not that one either) Why does she have parents who publicly state Kerry was a sleezeball and that they think he was hitting on her? The only other possibility I could think of to explain these coincidences is that Malvern PA is in strongly Republican territory and that this whole matter is a hoax cooked up to make things interesting for Kerry. Hiding in Africa and refusing to talk with the press is not, after all, an action subject to legal action. Yet that is what is keeping Kerry on a slow broil. Posted by: Don Williams at February 15, 2004 11:24 AM | PERMALINK"The "Bush Lied People Died" meme for Iraq doesn't get traction if your alternative is someone who's lied to the public about a trival matter." Eh??? Posted by: Yap at February 15, 2004 12:07 PM | PERMALINKTOM BORONX WRITES; ALEX POLIER FORMERLY OF THE AP. WHEN DID SHE LEAVE THE AP? DRUDGE DOES IT AGAIN! Posted by: CHARLEMAGNE at February 16, 2004 01:59 AM | PERMALINKImpertinent questions: 1. If the young (adult) lady in question willingly parted her knees for a married man, where does her mom and dad get off calling the man a "sleazeball?" It almost seems as if the young lady should take some personal responsibility, but then that might be considered old-fashioned, no? 2. And... why would the aforementioned young lady run off to Kenya? Well, it seems that the Telegraph (arguably a paper at least as prestigious as the Sun and nearly as prestigious as the Drudge Report...) says today, "Miss Polier, a former intern who also spent some time in 1998 doing work experience at the Houses of Parliament in London, is in Kenya staying with Yaron Schwartzman, her fiance and a member of the country's fashionable young set. The couple have refused to make any comment on her alleged links with Senator Kerry, who is married to Teresa Heinz Kerry, an heiress to the food empire." Posted by: Icantinaturner at February 16, 2004 09:23 AM | PERMALINKI see that AP has a statement from Ms. Polier and her parents - let's see, we'll believe that they are telling the truth, but not any of those former Guardsmen who saw GWB?? Interesting. BTW: Didn't Monica's parents say they would vote for Clinton at one point in time, too? 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