A friend sent me a recent message from John Kerry’s email list, wherein Kerry shouts about the Republicans blocking a vote on Sen. Jim Webb’s proposal for a maximum deployment and minimum home leave time for troops in Iraq. I compared that message with Kerry’s vote against an earlier similar proposal. Another example of Kerry on both sides of the issue. Take a look:

FROM KERRY EMAIL:

From: info@johnkerry.cp20.com [mailto:info@johnkerry.cp20.com] On Behalf Of
John Kerry
Sent: Wednesday, July 11, 2007 6:13 PM
To: …
Subject: Just Off the Senate Floor

My colleague Jim Webb from Virginia (Jim’s a Marine – and I say “is” because you’re a Marine until the day you die, and the Senate’s a hell of a lot better to have this Marine here) – Jim introduced an amendment that set 12 months as the maximum time soldiers could be deployed in Iraq, and also set a minimum time for them to be home in the States (so they couldn’t just get rotated back out).

Any one who has ever worn the uniform of our country knows what a difference that time at home makes. But of course the “operational tempo” has had to be upped so high to carry out President Bush’s escalation that the Army has had to extend tours and cut leave short. We’re trying to protect our soldiers by making sure that ends.

But the Republicans won’t even let it come to a vote. They’d rather side with the President and the President’s Iraq policy than give our soldiers the treatment they deserve. It’s outrageous.

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FROM CONGRESSIONAL VOTE:

October 17, 2003-Fiscal 2004 Supplemental for Iraq and Afghanistan-Congressional Approval-S1689. Kerry voted to table an amendment that would have prohibited the use of funds in the supplemental bill for the involuntary deployment overseas for Operation Iraqi Freedom of members of the National Guard and reserves who had been involuntarily deployed for six months or more during the past six years. Agreed to 82-15, R 49-0, D 33-14, I 0-1.

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Yes, it’s outrageous.
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[also posted on:
http://www.bluemassgroup.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=7925
and
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/stacy-bannerman/support-the-troops-my-a_b_56475.html ]