Seattle students got a glimpse of who could be the next first lady yesterday, as Teresa Heinz Kerry spoke to a large crowd of mostly women at Seattle Central Community College. The event, called "Women for Kerry Rally," was designed to inspire women voters, including UW students, to be the change the nation needs. "Teresa Heinz Kerry I think is a model woman for the 21st century, she's independent, she's spunky, she speaks her mind ... she is dedicated to causes and helping the world be a better place," said UW senior Vy Nguyen. Kerry criticized the Bush administration and suggested a number of ways the United States would be better, including in foreign policy, if her husband, John Kerry, were the next president. "John will present to the world a U.S. that is strong but not threatening, compassionate but not condescending and proud but not arrogant," she said. Kerry criticized Bush's actions in Afghanistan and Iraq. "We need to separate Osama bin Laden and the Taliban from Iraq and Saddam Hussein," she said. Kerry claimed the Bush administration failed the United States by sending in Afghan warlords to search for bin Laden once he was cornered in the mountains of Tora Bora. "He went from being Osama bin Laden to Osama been lost," she said. Kerry went on to say that by the election it may be "Osama been found."
Nguyen came to the event to get involved with the issues that concern her as a young person. "I think the issues at stake are of vital interest to our generation, and I feel it's a great tragedy that people are not getting more involved," said Nguyen. "These are issues that are going to affect generations to come. These are things that I want to protect from my kids when I choose to have them." Kerry said under a Kerry administration, youth would be given much more opportunities in health care and education. "We need to dedicate ourselves to the young people of the country," she said. "Children should have healthcare, no matter where they're from." Kerry spoke prevalently on her husband's plan for education, claiming that schools would have improved facilities and smaller class sizes. However, much of her speech criticized the current administration,. "We need a president who not only faces complexity, but enjoys it; likes people from other parts of the world; respects and is curious about science," she said. "One of our frontiers is going to be alternative energy, so that no boy or girl will ever have to wear a[n] uniform because of our need for oil." |