By By JOHN EBY / Dowagiac Daily News
The United States is fighting a war in Iraq "for no reason. It was either started based on a lie or based on bad information. Both are bad for America because it makes us look pretty bad in the world," Democratic congressional candidate Kim Clark said Monday night in Dowagiac.
Addressing more than 30 people who attended a meet-the-candidate night hosted by Board of Commissioners candidate Jim Kladis at The Marketplace, Clark said, "I was on 'All Things Considered' (on National Public Radio for today) and they asked me about that," Clark said. "I said, 'We have the best country in the world, the best system in the world, and our message stops at the water's edge. We can't get our message around the world and we need to because our actions and our words as a country are not matching.
"Our actions and our words are not clear to poor folks in Iraq who are fighting for their lives. Over 100 poverty-stricken Iraqis were killed this morning because they were standing in line to get jobs. Now they're targeting poor folks. We have to take some responsibility for that because we started it."
"It's a great year to be a Democrat," the Three Oaks businessman said.
"If you've ever wondered about being a Democrat, now is not the time to wonder. You have the moral high road. Remember 2000? Our chins were on the ground. We had Monica (Lewinsky). We had some problems."
But in 2006, "Our sad Republican friends are not going to be at the polls," he said. "Their chins are on the ground right now and they feel bad that we've wasted more money than any Congress in the history of the nation. They feel bad that we've spent more in one session of Congress than every president and administration combined. It's a crime. There are a couple of words (of what to do). One starts with 'impeach.' The other starts with 'investigate.' We have a system of checks and balances that was built into the Constitution and it hasn't been used in about six or seven years because we've only had one party doing everything. Remember the Contract with America? It was a great idea. But we broke the contract and sold off all of the assets of the 'company,' America.
"If you've got a child or a grandchild or know a child," Clark continued, "they're inheriting $19,400 in debt when they reach 18 years old. Every one of them! They didn't do a thing to decide that, but they are going to have to pay that money back. It's not right."
Asked about the hundreds of billions owed to China, Clark said, "Two things have to happen. We have a trade agreement to buy and sell. Right now, we're only doing one of those two things. We're only buying. China is not really buying stuff from us.
"The second issue is that country manipulates currency. It artificially inflates the yen to keep it high and keep us 'poor.' When we stop them from doing that, things will get even real quick. That's a matter of days of work, not months. We have to look at all the trade agreements, NAFTA, CAFTA and China, as an issue."
America must also "mean what we say and do what we say," according to Clark. "Right now our word doesn't have a lot of meaning across the world. When we walk in and say we're going to be greeted as liberators or major combat operations are over or people will throw roses at our feet, people notice that's not true after a while."
Clark added, "I need (voters') help because I will not do this, you will. You will go to the polls (next) Tuesday and you will vote, and that's how I will become a Congress member" against Republican incumbent Fred Upton of St. Joseph.
"If you don't, don't complain. If you don't vote, you don't matter. That's how it works in the country. I think you're wonderful people, but you're about to matter or not matter based on your decision and your action. I'll take it from there."