Senator Inouye gave a very interesting and at times, very moving speech. One of the things he said that I found the most intriguing was that, as a member of the Defense Appropriations Committee, he was privy to top-secret information regarding both 9/11 and the leadup to the Iraq War. Obviously, he could not reveal any of that information to us, but he did state unequivocally that his opposition to the Iraq War Resolution was based on that information. He pointed out that Kerry, not being privy to the same information, would not have had the same basis for opposition at that time.
He spoke about his change of position on the Vietnam war, relating that to accusations that Kerry "flip-flops." He said he had at one time been a fervent supporter of the war - up until My Lai. At that time, he was the most junior member of a committee investigating My Lai, and as such, had to wait until all the more senior members had asked all their questions before he could ask his. His question was a truly devastating one. He asked simply, "Had this been downtown Paris, and the victims been French women, children, and elderly, would the outcome have been the same?" He said the chair immediately adjourned the inquiry at that, but clearly the point had been made.
The Senator also talked about his Congressional Medal of Honor, saying that wasn't the medal he was proudest of, because that one was just for standing in the wrong place at the wrong time! He said the one he was proud of was the one he had to work for - the Good Conduct Medal. John was standing next to Jim McDermott when the Senator said that, and said, "Oh, they don't give those to Marines." McDermott said, "really, they don't?" and John laughed. Luckily, Jim has a sense of humor about having his leg pulled. John was the only former Marine in the room, oddly enough. Lots of Army, Navy, a Coastie, and some Air Force, but only the one Marine. Senator Inouye also said about those who aren't impressed by Purple Hearts, "let them step in front of a bullet, then."
I took several pictures with my snazzy new camera phone:
Senator Inouye with Congressman McDermott
We also followed the senator to the Asian-Pacific Islander luncheon, and to the Native American pow-wow at the Tacoma Dome. I guess it was my day to stalk Senator Inouye.
Sunday, we went to Dave Ross' fundraiser on Mercer Island. It was reasonably well attended, with Congressman McDermott again present, and Secretary of State candidate Laura Ruderman, and a number of state party and Kerry campaign luminaries. John managed to pull Jim McDermott's leg again - walked up to him and said, "so I hear your DVD's coming out in a couple of days" (referring to Fahrenheit 9/11, in which McDermott is prominently featured). The Congressman got quite a kick out of that.
Congressman McDermott's wife, Therese Hanson, gave an impassioned speech on behalf of Women for Kerry, which segues nicely into my next exciting bit of news - when I got home Monday night following jury duty, I got a call from the Women for Kerry headquarters, inviting me to sit onstage with Teresa Heinz-Kerry at the rally on Wednesday! It unfortunately conflicts with the regular district meeting, but this is an opportunity I simply cannot pass up. I hope to have some pictures of that, as I was able to get John a VIP ticket, and he'll take his camera.
Dave Ross at the fundraiser:
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