Kerry touts health care plan

by Dana J. Parker
The Metropolitan

In his most recent campaign appearance in Colorado, Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry was met by an appreciative crowd of roughly 1,800 at Rangeview High School in Aurora on Friday, Sept. 17.

The event was billed as a town hall meeting and took place in the high school's gymnasium, which was covered with banners that read "Fighting for Affordable Healthcare."
"George W. Bush has done nothing about improving access to health care," Kerry said in his hour-long speech. "I'm going to make our health care system work for America."

If he is elected, Kerry said he would enact a 50 percent tax cut for small businesses and the self-employed. He said he would roll back President Bush's tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans, and with that funding he would immediately offer health insurance to all children, lower the age to buy Medicare to 55, and allow anyone to buy into the federal health insurance program that is available to members of Congress.
Health care costs are skyrocketing, tuition is up and wages are down, which is unacceptable in our country, Kerry said.
He went on to criticize President Bush for everything from taxes to the war in Iraq.

"I wouldn't have done just one thing differently; I'd have done everything differently," Kerry said about the war in Iraq. "W stands for wrong."

(Bradley Wakoff / The Metropolitan)
Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry speaking Friday, Sept. 17 at Rangeview High School in Aurora. Kerry spoke to a large audience about issues ranging from health care to the war in Iraq.

Co-president of the Auraria Young Democrats Nathan Pitman, who attended Kerry's speech, said he believes Kerry was right about the war in Iraq.
"From what I hear, he (Kerry) is working on a detailed plan of how we're going to get out of there," he said.
Kerry had a special message for those currently serving in Iraq.
"I know what it's like to fight when there are questions swirling at home," he said. In Vietnam, he said, "we confused the war with the warriors. We're not going to let that happen again."
According to Pitman, at the Bush rally three days prior, security was kicking out Kerry supporters. He said no one at the Kerry speech was asked to leave, not even those holding pro-Bush signs. For him, that drove home the differences between the two parties.
"For me, I think they (the Kerry campaign) said it's a free country, please stay and maybe we'll change your mind," Pitman said. "I dislike Bush, I think anyone, including a blind monkey could do a better job."
Kerry thanked the attendees for their warm welcome "home" (he was born at Fitzsimmons Army hospital in Aurora) and said the visit was due to the thoughtfulness and creativity of one of the high school's teachers.
Matt Bergles, a history and civics teacher at Rangeview, said he told his students at the beginning of the year that this is an exciting time to be studying civics and that he would do his best to get both candidates to come and talk to them.

He said he woke up on the morning of September 14 and realized President Bush was in town and Kerry was scheduled to visit Friday.
He said he tried to call the Bush campaign to invite the president to speak, but was unable to get through.
"A lot of Americans are having trouble getting through to the president," Kerry said.
Bergles said he called and invited Kerry to appear at Rangeview, thinking the campaign would politely refuse, but the campaign was coincidentally looking for a high school at which to appear.

"By Wednesday, the Secret Service was here and we were setting up for the national press," Bergles said.

Bergles, who is also a University of Colorado student and has completed coursework for a doctorate in public administration, said he's been deluged with thank you's since the event and they're still discussing Kerry's visit in his civics and history classes at Rangeview.

After Kerry spoke for an hour, he opened the floor up for questions.

The crowd mainly consisted of Kerry supporters, therefore hard questions were not easy to find. Most audience members delivered words of encouragement.

"Back in the 60's, there used to be a saying, 'Ask what you can do for your country'," said one man. "What you can do for your country is win the presidency."