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OT--Weasly watch begins
"NOYB" wrote in message ... The guys is either back-tracking on things he's said in the past...or he's "not committing" right now. Let the Weasly Watch begin! September 20, 2003 Clark Explains Statement on Authorization for Iraq War By JODI WILGOREN OWA CITY, Sept. 19 - On the third day of his campaign, Gen. Wesley K. Clark struggled today to clarify his statement on Thursday that he would "probably" have voted for the Congressional resolution authorizing the invasion of Iraq. General Clark, a former NATO commander who has retired from the Army, never denied making the statement in an interview with four reporters on his chartered plane. But he seemed stunned by the headlines that it generated, as supporters worried that he had undercut his position as an antiwar candidate with military bona fides. "I never would have voted for war," he said here this afternoon in an interview and in response to a question after a lecture at the University of Iowa. "What I would have voted for is leverage. Leverage for the United States to avoid a war. That's what we needed to avoid a war." Speaking about the resolution on Thursday, General Clark said, "At the time, I probably would have voted for it, but I think that's too simple a question." He then added: "I don't know if I would have or not. I've said it both ways, because when you get into this, what happens is you have to put yourself in a position. On balance, I probably would have voted for it." His clarification, along with a slapped-together schedule in which he met few voters and offered no specifics on domestic issues, seemed to reflect the inexperience of the first-time candidate and disorganization in his nascent campaign. His debut day in Iowa, whose early caucus is crucial to the Democratic Party's nomination process, was barely a toe touch, with a brief diner stop and a pageant of 10-minute news media interviews crammed between private receptions surrounding the long-scheduled nonpolitical lecture, for which a foundation paid $25,000. (General Clark receives 80 percent.) Despite his disappointment with reports of his airborne interview, including one in The New York Times, General Clark seemed as comfortable as could be in his new role as candidate, stopping frequently to slap shoulders as he strode across the university campus. Although he considered a presidential race for a month, he balked at most questions, saying he would spend this weekend at home in Little Rock, Ark., working on policy positions. Among the issues he told voters he was not ready to discuss in detail were health care, education, employment, AIDS in Africa, the USA Patriot Act and medical marijuana. In interviews this afternoon, he referred to a talking-point tip sheet on the hot local issues of ethanol and farm subsidies. "I don't know enough to give you a comprehensive answer at this point," he said in response to a voter's question about universal health insurance. "I know enough not to give you a comprehensive answer at this point." Regarding a complicated proposal about financing AIDS research and prevention abroad, he said, "I'm not committing anything right now to anything, until I've got my economic facts and figures in order." snip |
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