Bush Campaign Lies
Sunday, March 28, 2004
A Word About Voting in the Senate
John Kerry cast a lot of votes during 19 years in the Senate. I'm sure he's cast more than one vote he wishes he could take back. And his voting record gives the Bush camp a very long list of ammunition to use in the campaign, some of it legitimate, some achieved by distorting the truth.
One thing to keep in mind whenever you hear a Bush spokesman or a Bush campaign ad citing Kerry's voting record: in the U.S. Senate, you don't get to vote by line item. You only get to vote yea or nay on each amendment or bill or resolution as a whole. And only rarely will a bill come along such that you completely agree with every single provision, or completely disagree with every single provision.
In short, just because John Kerry voted 'yea' on a piece of legislation, it is wrong to conclude that he agrees wholeheartedly with every single provision of that legislation, or that he wholeheartedly disagrees with every provision in every bill on which he voted 'nay'. It just doesn't work that way. And this should be clear to anyone with more than a sixth-grade understanding of our government.
The Bush folks hope that you'll forget about that, as they tell you about tax hikes Kerry voted for, or weapons systems he voted against. Don't be taken in.
