Kerry Events Cut as Democrats Criticize Iraq Remark (Update5)

Nov. 1 (Bloomberg) -- Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts canceled campaign appearances with congressional candidates after Democrats and Republicans criticized remarks he made about the Iraq war and U.S. troops that he said were a ``botched joke'' directed at President George W. Bush.

Appearances by Kerry in support of candidates in Minnesota, Iowa and Pennsylvania were canceled and several Democratic candidates called on Kerry to apologize for his comments, which Bush and Republicans said were insulting to the military.

``It didn't sound like a joke to me, and more importantly it didn't sound like a joke to our troops,'' Bush said in an interview today.

Kerry, while campaigning in California Oct. 30 for gubernatorial candidate Phil Angelides, 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.''

Kerry said the comments were aimed at Bush, not the armed forces, and Republicans were feigning outrage over a poorly delivered joke. Kerry, who was the 2004 Democratic presidential candidate, called on Bush to apologize for misleading Americans over the war.

Deviating From Text

Kerry's office today released the remarks as they were prepared for delivery: ``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. Just ask President Bush.''

Kerry said today that he was sorry he had failed to convey that he was making a joke about Bush. ``Look, everybody knows I botched a joke,'' he said on the syndicated ``Imus in the Morning'' radio talk show. ``Of course, I'm sorry about a botched joke. You think I love botched jokes? I mean, it's pretty stupid.''

The Republican National Committee today rushed out a video clip headlined ``Kerry insults our troops'' that contains a replay of the senator's remarks. Vice President Dick Cheney's office, meanwhile, released excerpts of a speech he plans to deliver tonight at a campaign rally in Kalispell, Montana, in which he will say ``Senator Kerry's the one who needs to be educated.''

Kerry, Cheney will say, ``says he was just making a joke, and he botched it up. I guess we didn't get the nuance. He was for the joke before he was against it.''

Canceled Appearances

Democrats also have criticized Kerry's comments. Kerry won't appear today in Mankato, Minnesota on behalf of Tim Walz, a Democrat challenging Republican Representative Gil Gutknecht. The decision to cancel ``ultimately'' was Kerry's, said Walz spokeswoman Meredith Salsbery.

Bruce Braley, a Democrat running for Iowa's 1st congressional seat, asked Kerry not to campaign with him tomorrow, the Quad-Cities Times reported. Braley thought Kerry's remarks were inappropriate, the paper said, citing Braley spokesman Jeff Giertz

Kerry also won't appear today in Philadelphia with U.S. Senate candidate Bob Casey, ABC News reported. Casey's race to unseat Republican Rick Santorum in Pennsylvania could be pivotal to Democrats' hopes to gain control of the Senate.

Senator Hillary Clinton of New York said today that Kerry shouldn't have made the comments. ``What Senator Kerry said was inappropriate,'' Clinton said at a campaign stop in Kingston, New York, according to the Middletown-based Times-Herald Record.

Tennessee Representative Harold Ford Jr., who is locked in a close race for retiring Majority Leader Bill Frist's Senate seat, also called on Kerry to apologize.

`Wrong'

``Whatever the intent, Senator Kerry was wrong to say what he said,'' Ford said in a statement. ``He needs to apologize to our troops.''

Ford felt compelled to call on Kerry to apologize because, ``Republicans are trying to inject another issue in the race,'' said Tom Lee, a senior campaign adviser to Ford.

In Montana, Jon Tester, the Democratic challenger to incumbent Senator Republican Senator Conrad Burns, also sought to distance himself from Kerry.

``Senator Kerry's remarks were poorly worded and just plain stupid,'' Tester said in a statement late yesterday. ``He owes our troops and their families an apology.'' Bush is scheduled to campaign for Burns in Montana tomorrow.

Kerry's spokesman confirmed the senator has canceled the appearances.

``We made a decision not to allow the Republican hate machine to use Democratic House candidates as proxies in their distorted spin war in which once again they're willing to exploit brave American troops,'' David Wade said in a statement.

Radio host Don Imus teased Kerry during the interview today about the canceled appearances and the criticism from his party. Democrats, Imus said, hope Kerry will keep quiet until Election Day. ``Stop talking. Go home, get on the bike, go windsurfing anything,'' Imus said. ``Stop it. You are going to ruin this.''

To contact the reporter on this story: Roger Runningen in Washington at rrunningen@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Ken Fireman at kfireman1@bloomberg.net