The Hindu : Front Page : Kerry is the better bet: Washington Post

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Oct 25, 2004

Front Page

Front Page

Kerry is the better bet: Washington Post

By Sridhar Krishnaswami

WASHINGTON, OCT. 24. The Washington Post has endorsed Senator John Kerry for President saying it does not view a vote for the Senator as a vote without risks. "But the risks on the other side are well known and the strengths Mr. Kerry brings are considerable," it said in its Sunday editions.

"He (Mr. Kerry) pledges both to fight in Iraq and to reach out to allies; to hunt down terrorists and to engage without arrogance the Islamic world. These are the right goals and we think Mr. Kerry is the better bet to achieve them," it said.

In the realm of foreign affairs, the paper said Mr. Bush had "accomplished more than his critics acknowledge, both in the practical business of forming alliances to track terrorists and in beginning to re-shape a Middle East (West Asia) policy too long centred on accommodating friendly dictators."

It put forth the positive aspects of the American campaign in Afghanistan. It said it did not fault Mr. Bush for believing like his predecessor did that Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction. But it differed with him on many policies with respect to the ongoing mess in Iraq. "These failings have a common source in Mr. Bush's cocksureness, his failure to seek advice from anyone outside a narrow circle and his unwillingness to expect the unexpected or adapt to new facts.

These are dangerous traits in any President but especially in a wartime leader. They are matched by his failure to admit his errors or to hold senior officials accountable for theirs."

Reckless fiscal policy

On domestic policies, the paper assailed the reckless fiscal policy saying though the recession and the economic blow of September 11, 2001 would have turned the surplus on hand to deficit under the best of circumstances, Mr. Bush only aggravated those circumstances and drove the deficit to record levels with tax cuts that were not only inefficient but also tilted to the rich. It said Mr. Kerry would manage the Federal budget more responsibly as also better protect the environment, health care and civil liberties.