Credulous Kerry duped by unnamed Arab leaders

Occasional senator and presidential loser John Kerry appeared on “Meet the Press” this past Sunday, affirming the wisdom of the American people who rejected him. After some tepid praise for, you know, that election, Kerry fell back into his usual bit of fatuous grandstanding decorated in stentorian tones. Here’s my favorite part:

MR. RUSSERT: Is the United States safer with the newly elected Iraqi government than we would have been with Saddam Hussein?

SEN. KERRY: Sure. And I'm glad Saddam Hussein is gone, and I've said that a hundred times. But we've missed opportunity after opportunity along the way, Tim, to really make America safe and to bring the world to the cause. I mean, look, I sat with any number of Arab leaders, and I said to them, you know, "Mr. Prime Minister" or "Mr. President, is your country--do you believe Iraq, being successful there is important?" The answer is yes. "Do you believe that if it's a failed state, that's a threat to the region?" The answer is yes. "Do you believe that it could be a haven for terrorism even more than it is today?" and so forth. The answer is yes. Then you say, "Well, why aren't you there? What is the problem?" And the problem becomes one of the way in which this administration--they will tell you openly--has approached them and the world. [snip]

I can see it now: Kerry is chillin’ around the hookah with Hosni Mubarak who’s telling him – for shizzle! – of course he wants to see democracy take root in Iraq. Syria’s Bashir Assad is also “down wit democracy dawg!” Then Saudi prince Bandar was all like: “Hey, we would have sent election workers in there if only President Bush had asked, but he never calls, can you dig it Johnny K?”

Anklebiting Pundits hit it:

He's either a liar or an idiot to think that other Muslim and European countries want to help us in Iraq but haven't because of how they were asked. The bottom line is that unless there was a bogus resolution from the corrupt UN these countries will do nothing. Some plan, eh? Well, at least now he can say he has met with "foreign leaders". Sadly, Kerry thinks they are right and we are wrong.

As does the NY Post’s John Podhoretz:

Kerry seems to believe that the autocrats and oligarchs in the region are actually rooting for the creation of a democracy in their midst — and want to help the United States make it happen.

Okay, what politician wants to join Kerry in pooh-poohing an election in which at least 8 million Iraqis braved death to cast a ballot? What politician wants to cite Mubarak and Abdullah in support of that position?

And Slate’s Fred Kaplan sees the big picture where Kerry could not:

Finally, imagine a Syrian watching Al-Arabiya, seeing Iraqi-born Syrians going to special polling places to elect Iraqi leaders, observing that no Syrians of any sort have the right to elect the leaders of Syria—and perhaps asking himself, "Why?" It is not inconceivable that this flicker of democratic practice in Iraq could ignite a flame of some sort across the Middle East. To what end, and for ultimate good or ill, who knows. But something happened in Iraq today, something not only dramatic and stirring but perhaps also very big.

It’s chilling to think how close Kerry got to the Oval Office. Here’s a guy who voted against the confirmation of Condi Rice, but thinks that “Arab leaders” are on the up-and-up. A stable, prosperous, democratic Iraq is the last thing they want since it can only have a destabilizing effect on their own corrupt regimes:

EGYPT, June 13, 2001: The ruling National Democratic Party maintains its majority in the upper house of parliament, largely controlled by President Hosni Mubarak. Mubarak stands every five years as only presidential candidate in yes-no referendums.
IRAN, February 24, 2004: Conservatives win a majority in Iran's 290-seat legislature. Reformers boycotted the vote after more than 2,400 candidates were banned from running by the ruling Islamic establishment.
OMAN, October 4, 2003: The country holds its first open election to all citizens for an 83-member advisory council, which has no formal powers but is consulted by the sultan on new laws and policies.
SAUDI ARABIA, September 12, 2004: The first municipal elections in 45 years are postponed until February. Elections will be held in three stages beginning on Feb. 10 in in the capital, Riyadh. Polling in the eastern and southwestern regions will follow, starting March 3. Voters in the north will cast ballots April 21.
SYRIA, March 2-3, 2003: Syria's ruling party the National Progressive Front win
two-thirds of the 167 seats in the legislature. The election was boycotted by five opposition groups which claimed it was undemocratic.
YEMEN, April 27, 2003: The ruling party, the General People's Congress, wins a majority in the 301-member Parliament, in the country's first election in six years. Opposition groups accused the ruling party of rampant election fraud.

Good ole gullible Kerry. I’m going to send him an E-mail: “Dear Senator Kerry, I’m an Arab prince who wants to help promote democracy in Iraq. If you could just send me $1000 for bus fare, I’ll head over to Baghdad…..”

Extra - Here are some more riffs on Kerry from Polipundit, NE Republican, The Kerry Spot, and the Dusty Attic.