I will be voting to give the president of the United States the authority to use force, if necessary, to disarm Saddam Hussein because I believe that a deadly arsenal of weapons of mass destruction in his hands is a real and grave threat to our security.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Kerry justifies voting for force against Iraq due to the threat of weapons of mass destruction.
- In plain terms
- I voted to allow force because I saw weapons of mass destruction as a real threat.
- What can you take from it?
- Support military action when there is credible evidence of mass destruction threats.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- When is force justified preemptively?
- How much risk is too much?
Another view
Intelligence about WMDs can be flawed or misinterpreted.
More from John Kerry
If [George H.W.] Bush is shot, the Secret Service has orders to shoot Dan Quayle.
Permalink to quote #18 What we need now is not just a regime change in Saddam Hussein and Iraq, but we need a regime change in the United States.
Permalink to quote #20 Someone has to die so that President Nixon won't be, and these are his words, 'the first President to lose a war'.
Permalink to quote #17
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