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Politics : PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Thomas A Watson who wrote (612495)	8/28/2004 9:23:17 AM
From: Emile Vidrine	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 769670

Fruits of Bush's Israel-First foreign policy: Powell cancels Greece visit amid protests U.S. says decision unrelated to Friday’s anti-U.S. protestsThe Associated Press Updated: 9:17 a.m. ET Aug. 28, 2004ATHENS, Greece - Secretary of State Colin Powell on Saturday canceled a weekend visit to attend the closing ceremony of the Olympics, just hours after demonstrators staged a protest march in central Athens. advertisement Greece’s foreign ministry said that Powell informed his Greek counterpart, Petros Moliviatis, that “urgent responsibilities” prevented him from carrying out the visit — which was to include meetings with Premier Costas Caramanlis and U.S. Olympic athletes. “He informed him (Moliviatis) that it will not be possible because of urgent responsibilities to carry out his visit to Athens to attend the closing ceremony,” the foreign ministry said. Powell thanked Moliviatis in a letter “for the especially successful and secure organization of the games.” In Washington, State Department spokesman Kurtis Cooper said the anti-American protests in Athens played no role in Powell’s decision. “The secretary considered a number of factors. The press of business in Washington made him decide he could not visit at this time,” Cooper said. “What’s going on in Iraq and Sudan require the secretary’s close attention,” he said. The Greek foreign ministry said that Powell would instead visit Athens in October. Anti-U.S. protest in Athens Many Greeks had wondered why Powell planned to visit this weekend, knowing his presence would likely provoke protests. Until Powell announced his visit, there had been none of the anti-American demonstrations that were feared in the run-up to the games. RELATED LINK Full coverage of the Athens Olympics On Friday, riot police used tear gas to disperse hundreds of demonstrators who took part in a protest against the Powell visit. About 1,500 people who took part in the march were prevented from reaching the U.S. Embassy to protest Powell’s trip. “It is an enormous victory of the anti-war movement that managed to cancel the visit of the arch-killer Powell,” protest organizer Yiannis Sifahakis told The Associated Press. Just hours before Powell was to arrive, Greece’s Communist Party displayed a large banner at the site of the ancient Acropolis to protest his trip. “Powell killer go home. Don’t forget that civilians are being slaughtered in Najaf and a wall is being built in Palestine,” read the banner, which was raised on one of the sides of the Acropolis Hill. Communist Party member Aristotelis Gontikas said Powell’s cancellation was a “victory” for those opposed to American policies and was not targeted at Americans. “I believe that the reaction of the Greek people still counts. It is not by chance that Greeks measure in polls as the most anti-American,” Gontikas told the AP at the Acropolis. The party said a protest rally that was to begin in front of the old campus of Athens University and end at the U.S. Embassy would still be held. “The protest will now be transformed into a festival,” Gontikas said. Greeks harbor anti-American feelings primarily over U.S. support of the 1967-74 military junta, which persecuted its leftist opponents. Many Greeks also believe Washington ignores the concerns of smaller and weaker countries. In 1999, during a visit by then-President Clinton, battles between protesters and police turned downtown Athens into a riot zone. © 2004 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

To: Thomas A Watson who wrote (612495)	8/28/2004 11:05:00 PM
From: DuckTapeSunroof	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 769670

Bush Says Kerry 'More Heroic' for Going to Vietnam By REUTERS August 28, 2004 Filed at 10:08 p.m. ET nytimes.com WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush on Saturday described John Kerry's tour of duty in Vietnam as more heroic than his own service in the Air National Guard, saying his Democratic rival had been ``in harm's way.'' But the president told NBC's ``Today'' show that both sides should drop the debate over their wartime service, saying, ``I think that we ought to move beyond the past. ... The real question is who best to lead us forward.'' Asked if he believed that he and Kerry ``served on the same level of heroism,'' Bush replied, ``No, I don't. I think him going to Vietnam was more heroic than my flying fighter jets. He was in harm's way and I wasn't.'' Excerpts of the interview, conducted on Saturday for broadcast on Monday, were released by NBC. The president continued to defend his own service in the Air National Guard, saying, ``On the other hand, I served my country. Had my unit been called up, I would have gone.'' Kerry's war record in Vietnam has dominated the 2004 presidential campaign in recent weeks, after advertisements by a group called Swift Boat Veterans for Truth accused him of lying about the events that led to his decoration for bravery. The White House on Thursday said it would file a lawsuit to try to force the Federal Election Commission to crack down on the ads. Bush says he does not believe Kerry lied about his record, but he has refused to condemn the ads directly. Kerry accuses the Bush campaign of colluding with the Swift Boat Veterans on the ads, a charge the White House has denied. But its case was hurt this past week when a top lawyer for the Bush campaign, Benjamin Ginsberg, resigned after disclosing he was providing legal advice to the veteran's group. After Ginsburg's resignation, 50 percent of Americans said they believed the Bush campaign was behind the Swift Boat Veterans ads, according to a survey by the University of Pennsylvania's Annenberg Public Policy Center. Pollster Adam Clymer said Ginsburg's resignation heightened the belief that the Bush campaign had supported the ads, but the controversy could fade from public view when the Republican National Convention begins next week. Federal election rules bar organizations that take unrestricted donations from coordinating their activities with campaigns or political parties. The issue has also caused tension with Republican Sen. John McCain, another Vietnam veteran and influential lawmaker who has urged Bush to condemn the ads and get them halted. McCain is backing Bush for the White House, but the Arizona senator has defended his friend Kerry and threatened to raise the issue with Bush when they campaign in Iowa next week. Copyright 2004 Reuters Ltd