Unfortunately, John Kerry doesn't realize that his message is still getting lost through his rhetorical style. We now have the media all abuzz about his term "Global Test" which, I'll admit, is an unfortunate term for the concept he was talking about during the debate.
As one Kerry supporter, I feel it is necessary to talk about what he means by a "Global Test" because so many people are misinterpreting it. Even John Edwards couldn't bring himself to explain it in terms most could understand, so here it is.
Here's what John Kerry said:
"No president, through all of American history, has ever ceded, and nor would I, the right to preempt in any way necessary to protect the United States of America. But if and when you do it, Jim, you have to do it in a way that passes the test, that passes the global test where your countrymen, your people understand fully why you're doing what you're doing and you can prove to the world that you did it for legitimate reasons."
John Kerry is stating that any preemptive action has to be done for a
LEGITIMATE reason. Legitimate in the eyes of Americans and legitimate in the eyes of the world. It
does not mean that you ask the world's permission before you act. It simply means that you can't invade Iraq because of the oil reserves and tell the rest of the world and the American people that you're invading because of Weapons of Mass Destruction. If you give the world a reason for preemptive action (before or after the action itself), it had better be truthful, and above all, it must not be for less-than-honorable objectives and
THAT'S John Kerry's global test. Nothing more, nothing less.
It is not a flip-flop, nor is it a weakness. It is to do what has been traditionally done, and in a way that upholds the standards so many of us hold dear. There is no permission slip in this quote
except from the American People. That's as it should be. And,
YOU TELL THEM THE TRUTH.
