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The Providence Phoenix

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TALKING POLITICS
Democrat challenges Kennedy on support for war
BY IAN DONNIS

Of all the storylines brewing for the primary election on Tuesday, September 14 — ranging from the thinning of the field for legislative races in November to a stealthy Republican bid to unseat Cranston Mayor Stephen P. Laffey — the most quixotic might be Providence storyteller Mark Binder’s challenge to US Representative Patrick J. Kennedy.

For his part, though, Binder says that taking on one of the most powerful and best-financed Democrats in Rhode Island — particularly after Kennedy voted to support the move toward war in Iraq, a contrary stance from that of his father, Senator Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts — is part of the point. "One reason why I didn’t start sooner, I thought someone else was [going to run]," says Binder, who formally unveiled his Democratic challenge in July. "Everyone says exactly the same thing — he’s a Kennedy and he’s rich. It’s very difficult for anyone to get the courage up to oppose that."

By all accounts, Binder, 41, is running a shoestring campaign against Kennedy, who had a $1.2 million war chest at the time of his last campaign finance report. Reminded that money is the mother’s milk of politics, Binder quips, "I’m a Biafra baby." Considering Kennedy’s vote to authorize American force in Iraq, though, the challenger (whose Web site, www.markbinderforcongress.com/, articulates other views, including supporting efforts to eliminate US dependence on fossil fuels by 2020) says he brings a level of moral authority to the primary election.

Binder contends that the war in Iraq has played into Osama bin Laden’s hands by fanning anti-US resentment and having other adverse consequences. "I study and teach akido," he says. "One of the lessons is that when you oppose a force, it pushes back — you give it strength. The war in Iraq is as huge a mistake as we could make. It has not reduced terrorism, it has increased." Asked about the future of the US presence in Iraq, the candidate expresses uncertainty about the best course of action. "I don’t see the win-win situation yet," he says. "I see a lose-lose situation right now — how are going to lose with the least amount of damage? I’d like to find a win-win."

Asked whether the congressman has revised his support for the war, Kennedy spokesman Sean Richardson said in a statement, "Given what we knew in the fall of 2002, Congressman Kennedy continues to believe his carefully considered judgment at that time was the right decision. If he had known then what we know now, however, he obviously would have reached a different conclusion. Not only was the intelligence about Iraq’s weapons programs wrong and selectively disseminated, but it is also apparent that the Bush administration’s blundering foreign policy and mismanagement of the war have created diplomatic and foreign policy scars that will take decades to heal."

Responding to Binder’s suggestion that Kennedy may have supported the authorization of US force because of electoral challenges from David Rogers, a Republican former Navy SEAL, Richardson says, "As the congressman has said in the past, politics has never and will never play a role in decisions concerning the lives of our troops . . . Any suggestion to the contrary is offensive."

Qualms about his support for the war notwithstanding, there’s no disputing the clout of Kennedy, a member of the powerful House Appropriations Committee. Not surprisingly, Richardson says, "The congressman believes he should be reelected because he delivers for Rhode Island, bringing opportunities for Rhode Islanders to create better lives for themselves and their children . . . The campaign is an opportunity to continue his ongoing dialogue with his constituents so he can continue to serve their interests in the US House of Representatives."


Issue Date: September 10 - 16, 2004
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