John Kerry said today on NPR that Iraqi terrorist leader Muqtada al-Sadr was a "legitimate voice" and it was wrong to shut down his newspaper. Then he retracted the "legitimate" part, saying:
Well, let me ... change the term 'legitimate.' It belongs to a voice — because he has clearly taken on a far more radical tone in recent days and aligned himself with both Hamas and Hezbollah, which is a sort of terrorist alignment."Sort of a terrorist alignment?" Perhaps it's tolerance of diversity that is confusing Mr. Kerry.
He also doesn't really think that we should kill or even arrest Mr. al-Sadr. Well, at least he's taking a stand on something. For now. I predict that if the media ever notices Mr. Kerry's statements on this matter, he'll be changing that stand.
While I recognize and appreciate differences in political ideology, I don't understand the support for this man and his handlers.
UPDATE: Hey, The Washington Times noticed Kerry's firm, clear, sort of leadership. Here's the full quote:
"It's interesting to hear that when they shut a newspaper that belongs to a legitimate voice in Iraq and, well, let me change the term 'legitimate.' When they shut a newspaper that belongs to a voice, because he has clearly taken on a far more radical tone in recent days and aligned himself with both Hamas and Hezbollah, which is a sort of terrorist alignment," Mr. Kerry said.There's your context. Impressive ability to sort of see things clearly.
