"I voted for the 87 billion dollars, before I voted against it"

1. Half of the part of the 87 billion that went to Iraq Reconstruction aid would be a loan to Iraq, which would pay it back once it was stabilized and began to make proper money on its oil.

2. The 87 billion should come from rolling back the 2001 Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans, earning over $400,000 a year.

3. The 87 billion would be divided about evenly between military spending, and reconstruction aid for Iraq and Afghanistan, instead of a roughly 80-20% ratio.

John Kerry supported each of these amendments to the 87 billion dollar aid package to Iraq and Afghanistan. #1 failed only because President Bush threatened to veto the bill if even 10 billion dollars came in the form of loans, see here. The bill including this provision actually was put to a vote in the Senate, where it passed, 51-47, supported by most democrats, including Kerry, plus 8 republicans. It didn't get voted on in the house, however, and died. #2 (which Kerry co-authored himself) and #3 were overruled by the Republican majority. Kerry was dissatisfied with the state of the bill and frustrated with the poor leadership and planning of the war thus far, and so cast his infamous 'no' vote. The bill passed 87-12. There was no flip-flopping, Kerry fought hard for the version he wanted, and he didn't get it, so he voted no on the version that didn't provide any way to pay for the bill. It's sad the Bushy has to resort constantly to these lowball tactics of reciting the infamous quote that we've heard too many times already. Politics are not that simple, are not in black and white, and are more complex than many voters (and quite possibly Bush himself) realize. The fact that this quote seems to be such a prevalent theme in the President's rhetoric suggests that manipulation and half-truths are the only way Bush can win. Furthermore, the fact that Bush threatened to veto the bill if the loan provision was included is a lot more frightening, and powerful, than Kerry's 'no' vote.