The many many flip flops of John Kerry... Posted on Thursday, September 16, 2004 The many many flip flops of John Kerry... John Kerry's opponet in the 2004 presidential elction that is. Here is a heartfelt list of all the flip flops George 'Wrong' Bush, Dick 'Lord Vader' Cheney, and Zell on Earth Miller. BUSH PLEDGES NOT TO TOUCH SOCIAL SECURITY SURPLUS... "We're going to keep the promise of Social Security and keep the government from raiding the Social Security surplus." [President Bush, 3/3/01] ...BUSH SPENDS SOCIAL SECURITY SURPLUS The New York Times reported that "the president's new budget uses Social Security surpluses to pay for other programs every year through 2013, ultimately diverting more than $1.4 trillion in Social Security funds to other purposes." [The New York Times, 2/6/02] 2. Patient's Right to Sue GOVERNOR BUSH VETOES PATIENTS' RIGHT TO SUE... "Despite his campaign rhetoric in favor of a patients' bill of rights, Bush fought such a bill tooth and nail as Texas governor, vetoing a bill coauthored by Republican state Rep. John Smithee in 1995. He... constantly opposed a patient's right to sue an HMO over coverage denied that resulted in adverse health effects." [Salon, 2/7/01] ...CANDIDATE BUSH PRAISES TEXAS PATIENTS' RIGHT TO SUE... "We're one of the first states that said you can sue an HMO for denying you proper coverage... It's time for our nation to come together and do what's right for the people. And I think this is right for the people. You know, I support a national patients' bill of rights, Mr. Vice President. And I want all people covered. I don't want the law to supersede good law like we've got in Texas." [Governor Bush, 10/17/00] ...PRESIDENT BUSH'S ADMINISTRATION ARGUES AGAINST RIGHT TO SUE "To let two Texas consumers, Juan Davila and Ruby R. Calad, sue their managed-care companies for wrongful denials of medical benefits ‘would be to completely undermine' federal law regulating employee benefits, Assistant Solicitor General James A. Feldman said at oral argument March 23. Moreover, the administration's brief attacked the policy rationale for Texas's law, which is similar to statutes on the books in nine other states." [Washington Post, 4/5/04] 3. Tobacco Buyout BUSH SUPPORTS CURRENT TOBACCO FARMERS' QUOTA SYSTEM... "They've got the quota system in place -- the allotment system -- and I don't think that needs to be changed." [President Bush, 5/04] ...BUSH ADMINISTRATION WILL SUPPORT FEDERAL BUYOUT OF TOBACCO QUOTAS "The administration is open to a buyout." [White House spokeswoman Jeanie Mamo, 6/18/04] 4. North Korea BUSH WILL NOT OFFER NUCLEAR NORTH KOREA INCENTIVES TO DISARM... "We developed a bold approach under which, if the North addressed our long-standing concerns, the United States was prepared to take important steps that would have significantly improved the lives of the North Korean people. Now that North Korea's covert nuclear weapons program has come to light, we are unable to pursue this approach." [President's Statement, 11/15/02] ...BUSH ADMINISTRATION OFFERS NORTH KOREA INCENTIVES TO DISARM"Well, we will work to take steps to ease their political and economic isolation. So there would be -- what you would see would be some provisional or temporary proposals that would only lead to lasting benefit after North Korea dismantles its nuclear programs. So there would be some provisional or temporary efforts of that nature." [White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan, 6/23/04] 5. Abortion BUSH SUPPORTS A WOMAN'S RIGHT TO CHOOSE... "Bush said he...favors leaving up to a woman and her doctor the abortion question." [The Nation, 6/15/00, quoting the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, 5/78] ...BUSH OPPOSES A WOMAN'S RIGHT TO CHOOSE "I am pro-life." [Governor Bush, 10/3/00] 6. OPEC BUSH PROMISES TO FORCE OPEC TO LOWER PRICES... "What I think the president ought to do [when gas prices spike] is he ought to get on the phone with the OPEC cartel and say we expect you to open your spigots...And the president of the United States must jawbone OPEC members to lower the price." [President Bush, 1/26/00] ...BUSH REFUSES TO LOBBY OPEC LEADERS With gas prices soaring in the United States at the beginning of 2004, the Miami Herald reported the president refused to "personally lobby oil cartel leaders to change their minds." [Miami Herald, 4/1/04] 7. Iraq Funding BUSH SPOKESMAN DENIES NEED FOR ADDITIONAL FUNDS FOR THE REST OF 2004... "We do not anticipate requesting supplemental funding for '04" [White House Budget Director Joshua Bolton, 2/2/04] ...BUSH REQUESTS ADDITIONAL FUNDS FOR IRAQ FOR 2004 "I am requesting that Congress establish a $25 billion contingency reserve fund for the coming fiscal year to meet all commitments to our troops." [President Bush, Statement by President, 5/5/04] 8. Condoleeza Rice Testimony BUSH SPOKESMAN SAYS RICE WON'T TESTIFY AS 'A MATTER OF PRINCIPLE'... "Again, this is not her personal preference; this goes back to a matter of principle. There is a separation of powers issue involved here. Historically, White House staffers do not testify before legislative bodies. So it's a matter of principle, not a matter of preference." [White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan, 3/9/04] ...BUSH ORDERS RICE TO TESTIFY: "Today I have informed the Commission on Terrorist Attacks Against the United States that my National Security Advisor, Dr. Condoleezza Rice, will provide public testimony." [President Bush, 3/30/04] 9. Science BUSH PLEDGES TO ISSUE REGULATIONS BASED ON SCIENCE..."I think we ought to have high standards set by agencies that rely upon science, not by what may feel good or what sounds good." [then-Governor George W. Bush, 1/15/00] ...BUSH ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS IGNORE SCIENCE "60 leading scientists—including Nobel laureates, leading medical experts, former federal agency directors and university chairs and presidents—issued a statement calling for regulatory and legislative action to restore scientific integrity to federal policymaking. According to the scientists, the Bush administration has, among other abuses, suppressed and distorted scientific analysis from federal agencies, and taken actions that have undermined the quality of scientific advisory panels." [Union of Concerned Scientists, 2/18/04] 10. Ahmed Chalabi BUSH INVITES CHALABI TO STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS...President Bush also met with Chalabi during his brief trip to Iraq last Thanksgiving [White House Documents 1/20/04, 11/27/03] ...BUSH MILITARY ASSISTS IN RAID OF CHALABI'S HOUSE "U.S. soldiers raided the home of America's one-time ally Ahmad Chalabi on Thursday and seized documents and computers." [Washington Post, 5/20/04] 11. Department of Homeland Security BUSH OPPOSES THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY..."So, creating a Cabinet office doesn't solve the problem. You still will have agencies within the federal government that have to be coordinated. So the answer is that creating a Cabinet post doesn't solve anything." [White House spokesman Ari Fleischer, 3/19/02] ...BUSH SUPPORTS THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY "So tonight, I ask the Congress to join me in creating a single, permanent department with an overriding and urgent mission: securing the homeland of America and protecting the American people." [President Bush, Address to the Nation, 6/6/02] 12. Weapons of Mass Destruction BUSH SAYS WE FOUND THE WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION..."We found the weapons of mass destruction. We found biological laboratories...for those who say we haven't found the banned manufacturing devices or banned weapons, they're wrong, we found them." [President Bush, Interview in Poland, 5/29/03] ...BUSH SAYS WE HAVEN'T FOUND WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION "David Kay has found the capacity to produce weapons.And when David Kay goes in and says we haven't found stockpiles yet, and there's theories as to where the weapons went. They could have been destroyed during the war. Saddam and his henchmen could have destroyed them as we entered into Iraq. They could be hidden. They could have been transported to another country, and we'll find out." [President Bush, Meet the Press, 2/7/04] 13. Free Trade BUSH SUPPORTS FREE TRADE... "I believe strongly that if we promote trade, and when we promote trade, it will help workers on both sides of this issue." [President Bush in Peru, 3/23/02] ...BUSH SUPPORTS RESTRICTIONS ON TRADE "In a decision largely driven by his political advisers, President Bush set aside his free-trade principles last year and imposed heavy tariffs on imported steel to help out struggling mills in Pennsylvania and West Virginia, two states crucial for his reelection." [Washington Post, 9/19/03] 14. Osama Bin Laden BUSH WANTS OSAMA DEAD OR ALIVE... "I want justice. And there's an old poster out West, I recall, that says, 'Wanted: Dead or Alive.'" [President Bush, on Osama Bin Laden, 09/17/01] ...BUSH DOESN'T CARE ABOUT OSAMA "I don't know where he is.You know, I just don't spend that much time on him... I truly am not that concerned about him."[President Bush, Press Conference, 3/13/02] 15. The Environment BUSH SUPPORTS MANDATORY CAPS ON CARBON DIOXIDE... "[If elected], Governor Bush will work to...establish mandatory reduction targets for emissions of four main pollutants: sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, mercury and carbon dioxide." [Bush Environmental Plan, 9/29/00] ...BUSH OPPOSES MANDATORY CAPS ON CARBON DIOXIDE "I do not believe, however, that the government should impose on power plants mandatory emissions reductions for carbon dioxide, which is not a 'pollutant' under the Clean Air Act." [President Bush, Letter to Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-NE), 3/13/03] 16. WMD Commission BUSH RESISTS AN OUTSIDE INVESTIGATION ON WMD INTELLIGENCE FAILURE... "The White House immediately turned aside the calls from Kay and many Democrats for an immediate outside investigation, seeking to head off any new wide-ranging election-year inquiry that might go beyond reports already being assembled by congressional committees and the Central Intelligence Agency." [NY Times, 1/29/04] ...BUSH SUPPORTS AN OUTSIDE INVESTIGATION ON WMD INTELLIGENCE FAILURE "Today, by executive order, I am creating an independent commission, chaired by Governor and former Senator Chuck Robb, Judge Laurence Silberman, to look at American intelligence capabilities, especially our intelligence about weapons of mass destruction." [President Bush, 2/6/04] 17. Creation of the 9/11 Commission BUSH OPPOSES CREATION OF INDEPENDENT 9/11 COMMISSION... "President Bush took a few minutes during his trip to Europe Thursday to voice his opposition to establishing a special commission to probe how the government dealt with terror warnings before Sept. 11." [CBS News, 5/23/02] ...BUSH SUPPORTS CREATION OF INDEPENDENT 9/11 COMMISSION "President Bush said today he now supports establishing an independent commission to investigate the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks." [ABC News, 09/20/02] 18. Time Extension for 9/11 Commission BUSH OPPOSES TIME EXTENSION FOR 9/11 COMMISSION... "President Bush and House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) have decided to oppose granting more time to an independent commission investigating the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks." [Washington Post, 1/19/04] ...BUSH SUPPORTS TIME EXTENSION FOR 9/11 COMMISSION "The White House announced Wednesday its support for a request from the commission investigating the September 11, 2001 attacks for more time to complete its work." [CNN, 2/4/04] 19. One Hour Limit for 9/11 Commission Testimony BUSH LIMITS TESTIMONY IN FRONT OF 9/11 COMMISSION TO ONE HOUR... "President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney have placed strict limits on the private interviews they will grant to the federal commission investigating the Sept. 11 attacks, saying that they will meet only with the panel's top two officials and that Mr. Bush will submit to only a single hour of questioning, commission members said Wednesday." [NY Times, 2/26/04] ...BUSH SETS NO TIMELIMIT FOR TESTIMONY "The president's going to answer all of the questions they want to raise. Nobody's watching the clock." [White House spokesman Scott McClellan, 3/10/04] 20. Gay Marriage BUSH SAYS GAY MARRIAGE IS A STATE ISSUE... "The state can do what they want to do. Don't try to trap me in this state's issue like you're trying to get me into." [Gov. George W. Bush on Gay Marriage, Larry King Live, 2/15/00] ...BUSH SUPPORTS CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT BANNING GAY MARRIAGE "Today I call upon the Congress to promptly pass, and to send to the states for ratification, an amendment to our Constitution defining and protecting marriage as a union of man and woman as husband and wife." [President Bush, 2/24/04] 21. Nation Building BUSH OPPOSES NATION BUILDING... "If we don't stop extending our troops all around the world in nation-building missions, then we're going to have a serious problem coming down the road." [Gov. George W. Bush, 10/3/00] ...BUSH SUPPORTS NATION BUILDING "We will be changing the regime of Iraq, for the good of the Iraqi people." [President Bush, 3/6/03] 22. Saddam/al Qaeda Link BUSH SAYS IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEEN AL QAEDA AND SADDAM... "You can't distinguish between al Qaeda and Saddam when you talk about the war on terror." [President Bush, 9/25/02] ...BUSH SAYS SADDAM HAD NO ROLE IN AL QAEDA PLOT "We've had no evidence that Saddam Hussein was involved in Sept. 11." [President Bush, 9/17/03] 23. U.N. Resolution BUSH VOWS TO HAVE A UN VOTE NO MATTER WHAT... "No matter what the whip count is, we're calling for the vote. We want to see people stand up and say what their opinion is about Saddam Hussein and the utility of the United Nations Security Council. And so, you bet. It's time for people to show their cards, to let the world know where they stand when it comes to Saddam." [President Bush 3/6/03] ...BUSH WITHDRAWS REQUEST FOR VOTE "At a National Security Council meeting convened at the White House at 8:55 a.m., Bush finalized the decision to withdraw the resolution from consideration and prepared to deliver an address to the nation that had already been written." [Washington Post, 3/18/03] 24. Involvement in the Palestinian Conflict BUSH OPPOSES SUMMITS... "Well, we've tried summits in the past, as you may remember. It wasn't all that long ago where a summit was called and nothing happened, and as a result we had significant intifada in the area." [President Bush, 04/05/02] ...BUSH SUPPORTS SUMMITS "If a meeting advances progress toward two states living side by side in peace, I will strongly consider such a meeting. I'm committed to working toward peace in the Middle East." [President Bush, 5/23/03] 25. Campaign Finance BUSH OPPOSES MCCAIN-FEINGOLD... "George W. Bush opposes McCain-Feingold...as an infringement on free expression." [Washington Post, 3/28/2000] ...BUSH SIGNS MCCAIN-FEINGOLD INTO LAW "[T]his bill improves the current system of financing for Federal campaigns, and therefore I have signed it into law." [President Bush, at the McCain-Feingold signing ceremony, 03/27/02] 26. 527s Bush opposes restrictions on 527s: "I also have reservations about the constitutionality of the broad ban on issue advertising [in McCain Feingold], which restrains the speech of a wide variety of groups on issues of public import." [President Bush, 3/27/02] …Bush says 527s bad for system: "I don't think we ought to have 527s. I can't be more plain about it…I think they're bad for the system. That's why I signed the bill, McCain-Feingold." [President Bush, 8/23/04] 27. Medical Records Bush says medical records must remain private: "I believe that we must protect…the right of every American to have confidence that his or her personal medical records will remain private." [President Bush, 4/12/01] …Bush says patients' histories are not confidntial: The Justice Department…asserts that patients "no longer possess a reasonable expectation that their histories will remain completely confidential." [BusinessWeek, 4/30/04] 28. Timelines For Dictators Bush sets timeline for Saddam: "If Iraq does not accept the terms within a week of passage or fails to disclose required information within 30 days, the resolution authorizes 'all necessary means' to force compliance--in other words, a military attack." [LA Times, 10/3/02] …Bush says he's against timelines: "I don't think you give timelines to dictators." [President Bush, 8/27/04] 29. The Great Lakes Bush wants to divert great lakes: "Even though experts say 'diverting any water from the Great Lakes region sets a bad precedent' Bush 'said he wants to talk to Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien about piping water to parched states in the west and southwest.'– [AP, 7/19/01] Bush says he'll never divert Great Lakes: "We've got to use our resources wisely, like water. It starts with keeping the Great Lakes water in the Great Lakes Basin...My position is clear: We're never going to allow diversion of Great Lakes water." [President Bush, 8/16/04] 30. Winning The War On Terror Bush claims he can win the war on terror: "One of the interesting things people ask me, now that we're asking questions, is, can you ever win the war on terror? Of course, you can." [President Bush, 4/13/04] …Bush says war on terror is unwinnable: "I don't think you can win [the war on terror]." [President Bush, 8/30/04] …Bush says he will win the war on terror: "Make no mistake about it, we are winning and we will win [the war on terror]." [President Bush, 8/31/04] TAXES – Openly Contradicting Himself ZELL MILLER'S says: "Republicans sold us out with a generation of trickle-down economics that blew the deficit sky-high, drove poverty through the roof, and squeezed the middle class like a lemon at a county fair. They gave themselves the goldmine, and they gave the rest of us the shaft." [Source: Zell Miller speech, 2/25/96] ZELL MILLER'S Does: Sen. Zell Miller voted for almost $2 trillion in tax breaks, the majority of which go to wealthy Americans. Those tax cuts he voted for created the largest deficit in American history, at the same time poverty rose for two straight years for the first time in almost a decade. Miller said, "I'm proud that I was a part of [the tax cuts] as a principal cosponsor." [Source: Zell Miller's book, 2003] SOCIAL SECURITY & DEFICITS – Serving Up More Waffles than a Waffle House ZELL MILLER'S says: In 2000, Miller said he "supports protecting Social Security and paying down federal debt as higher priorities than tax cuts." He also stated, "I think the best tax cut we could give to our children is to use the budget surplus to pay down the national debt." [Sources: Florida Times-Union, 11/5/2000; Macon Telegraph, 10/30/2000] ZELL MILLER'S does: Miller voted for the president's two major tax cuts, which make up the largest contributing factor to the record-high deficits. He also supports the White House's proposal to make those tax cuts permanent. According to the non-partisan Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, at a time of concern about Social Security's solvency, the plan Miller and the White House have pushed will "cost more than three times as much over the next 75 years as the entire 75-year Social Security shortfall." Even when Miller had a chance to live up to his promises, he refused. When the Senate pushed to cut President Bush's tax cuts in half and divert the resources saved into paying down the debt and shoring up Social Security, Miller skipped the vote. [Sources: CBPP, 3/17/03; Senate Vote #93, 3/25/03] HOMELAND SECURITY – A Willingness to Be Dishonest About National Security ZELL MILLER'S WORDS: When Republicans attacked the patriotism of triple amputee Vietnam War hero Sen. Max Cleland (D-GA) because he voted against controversial provisions of the Homeland Security bill, Zell Miller was outraged. He said, "My friend Max deserves better than to be slandered like this." [Gainesville Sun, 10/16/02] ZELL MILLER'S DEEDS: In 2004, Miller appeared on Fox News to disparage Democrats for trying to shape the best Homeland Security bill possible. He said Democrats "time and time again opposed President Bush's Bill that wanted to set up a Homeland Security Department" – ignoring the fact that Democrats were the first to propose such a department, and that the White House actually originally opposed the idea. He also forgot to mention that all but eight Democrats voted for the bill. [Source: Fox News, 1/15/04; Senate Vote #249, 11/19/02] ELECTION 2004 – Ignoring His Own Praise to Suck Up to the GOP ZELL MILLER'S WORDS: In a 2001 speech, Miller called Kerry "one of this nation's authentic heroes, one of this party's best-known and greatest leaders – and a good friend." He said, "John Kerry has fought against government waste and worked hard to bring some accountability to Washington…He fought for balanced budgets before it was considered politically correct for Democrats to do so. John has worked to strengthen our military, reform public education, boost the economy and protect the environment." [Source: Zell Miller speech, 2001] ZELL MILLER'S DEEDS: In an effort to ingratiate himself to the White House, Miller in May 2004 gave a speech claiming, "With John Kerry on national security, it's vacillate, retreat and turn over to the U.N. With John Kerry on domestic policy, it's tax, spend and redistribute income." He called Kerry's Senate voting record on national security "shameful," even though Kerry has cast the exact same votes on intelligence funding as Miller. [Source: AP, 5/15/04; Senate Votes, 12/06/00; 12/13/01; 9/25/02; 11/21/03] The Record He Doesn't Want You To See A look at Zell Miller's past – and present – shows that beyond the folksiness is a politician with a questionable civil rights record, and a history of using his public office to pad his own wallet. CIVIL RIGHTS – An Embarrassing Record, Noted By Many CIVIL RIGHTS GROUPS CONDEMN ZELL'S MOCKERY OF THE TERM 'LYNCHING': "Zell Miller of Georgia came under fire from civil rights activists who demanded an apology from the conservative Democrat after he equated his party's opposition to the nomination of a conservative African-American judge to a lynching. 'Either Senator Miller has conveniently forgotten a frightening period of American history, or he is willfully demeaning all those African-Americans who were hung from trees throughout the period of racial segregation in the South,' said Wade Henderson, the director of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights." [CNN.com, 11/14/03] RIDING THE COATTAILS OF A RACIST GOVERNOR: According to the Augusta, Georgia, Chronicle, "Miller got started as executive secretary to Gov. Lester Maddox 30 years ago," became his chief of staff, and rode Maddox's name to his own prominence. According to the Washington Post, Maddox was an open segregationist, who "chased African Americans out of his restaurant with an ax handle." According to the Georgia Humanities Council, after the death of Atlanta native Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., "Maddox greatly overreacted with a heavy-handed police presence, and he refused to order flags at state facilities to be lowered to half-mast. As the leader of the state's delegation to the 1968 Democratic convention in Chicago, Maddox fought against the civil rights aims of the party." [Augusta Chronicle, Editorial, 9/13/98; Washington Post, 2/14/04; GeorgiaEncyclopedia.com - Georgia Humanities Council and the University of Georgia Press] ZELL LED PUBLIC OPPOSITION TO CIVIL RIGHTS ACT: As a congressional candidate in 1964, Miller not only pledged to vote against the Civil Rights Act, he attacked those who were pushing it. He said President Lyndon Johnson "is a southerner who has sold his birthright for a mess of dark porridge." As Georgia history professor James Cobb said, "Had he lived and run again, Kennedy would not have benefited in Georgia from the opposition to the Civil Rights Act voiced by a certain congressional candidate in 1964," Zell Miller. U.S. Rep. John Lewis (D), who led the fight for civil rights, said of Miller's conduct, "It is unbelievable. It is unreal. It is a shame and a disgrace. This is the same Zell Miller who said 40 years ago that President Lyndon Johnson had sold his soul when he signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964." [Source: Front Page Magazine, 11/28/03; Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 11/9/03; Office of Congressman John Lewis, 6/25/04] BUSINESS – Conflicts of Interest Galore USING THE GOVERNORSHIP TO CASH IN WITH BIG TOBACCO: "Zell Miller moved to easy street within months of leaving the Georgia governor's mansion, according to documents filed in connection with his race to hold onto his newly appointed U.S. Senate seat. His earnings increased nearly six-fold - to about $682,000 - as he brought home paychecks from three colleges, numerous corporate boards and tobacco products giant Philip Morris, for whom he worked as a consultant." [AP, 8/25/00] GOP DEMANDS MILLER ANSWER CONFLICT OF INTEREST CHARGES: When Miller immediately began raking in corporate cash after leaving the governor's office, "Chuck Clay, chairman of the Georgia Republican Party, said it sounds like Miller was a lobbyist and called for him to explain further the exact nature of his duties. 'I think it does raise questions when you have become a lobbyist. Legitimate questions should be asked about the nature of those relationships. What were you doing for your pay?' Clay said." [AP, 8/25/00] POLITICS – Betraying the People Who Elected Him USUALLY SOFT-SPOKEN CARTER SAYS MILLER HAS MISLED HIS OWN STATE: "Former President Jimmy Carter says the appointment of Georgia's Zell Miller to the Senate was a mistake because his fellow ex-governor 'betrayed all the basic principles that I thought he and I and others shared,' the former president first said. 'I would rather not even comment about Zell Miller on the radio,' then proceeded to call the appointment 'one of the worst mistakes' then-Democratic Gov. Roy Barnes made in his four years in office." [Atlanta Journal Constitution, 12/11/03] Source http://www.americanprogressaction.org/site/pp.asp?c=klLWJcP7H&b=118263 I dare you to go check it! He opposed federal funding for abortions -- with no exceptions in the case of rape or incest. He voted against the Equal Rights Amendment for women, along with 146 other members of Congress in 1983. On Education, he consistently opposed funding of Head Start and voted against creating the Department of Education. Cheney opposes gun control limits. He was one of just 21 members of Congress, in December of 1985, to vote against a ban on armor piercing bullets -- called cop killer bullets. Three years later he was one of only four members of the House voting against a ban on plastic guns that could slip through airport security machines undetected. The National Rifle Association did not oppose this ban. Also in 1988, Cheney voted to scrap a proposed national seven-day waiting period on handgun purchases. On the environment, Cheney opposed refunding the Clean Water Act. He voted to postpone sanctions slapped on air polluters that failed to meet pollution standards. And he voted against legislation to require oil, chemical and other industries from making public records of emissions known to cause cancer, birth defects and other chronic diseases. Dick Cheney consistently voted to raise military spending. He also supported aid to the Nicaraguan rebels, even after a moratorium on funding was passed. As for his votes, Cheney consistently received very high marks from conservative groups ranking his record. Cheney voted as a fiscal conservative too, supporting legislation to balance the national budget. Bush ads released April 26 recycle some distortions of Kerry's voting record on military hardware. We've de-bunked these half-truths before but the Bush campaign persists. The ads -- many targeted to specific states -- repeat the claim that Kerry opposed a list of mainstream weapons including Bradley Fighting Vehicles and Apache helicopters, and also repeat the claim that he voted against body armor for frontline troops in Iraq. In fact, Kerry voted against a few large Pentagon money bills, of which Bradleys, Apaches and body armor were small parts, but not against those items specifically.