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The Real Iraq Scandal

Ten Iraqis were killed and 21 injured this morning in a series of attacks in Baghdad, according to CNN. Yesterday, a car bomb struck a wedding party, killing 15 more.

One hundred and four American troops died in October, the fourth deadliest month for the US since the war began. Pick up a newspaper and look at the fatalities. Soldiers ages 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, their lives taken prematurely in an unnecessary war.

If anyone should apologize for the mess in Iraq, it's George W. Bush. But Republicans--who brought us this tragic, brutal war--want to once again turn John Kerry into the scapegoat.

The Nation

November 1, 2006

Ten Iraqis were killed and 21 injured this morning in a series of attacks in Baghdad, according to CNN. Yesterday, a car bomb struck a wedding party, killing 15 more.

One hundred and four American troops died in October, the fourth deadliest month for the US since the war began. Pick up a newspaper and look at the fatalities. Soldiers ages 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, their lives taken prematurely in an unnecessary war.

If anyone should apologize for the mess in Iraq, it’s George W. Bush. But Republicans–who brought us this tragic, brutal war–want to once again turn John Kerry into the scapegoat.

Here’s what Kerry meant to say at a speech Monday in California: “I can’t overstress the importance of a great education. Do you know where you end up if you don’t study, if you aren’t smart, if you’re intellectually lazy? You end up getting us stuck in a war in Iraq.”

Here’s what he actually said: “Education, if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well. And if you don’t, you get stuck in Iraq.”

As Michael Crowley of The New Republic notes, Kerry bungled a joke. Bush bungled a war. What’s worse?

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