Kerry's Courage

WSJ:

we all know that personal bravery is not the same as political leadership. The doubts about Mr. Kerry concern not his courage but his judgment and conviction, and have been formed as the result of public service that is far longer than his admirable four months in Vietnam. Those doubts are both political and philosophical. ... Mr. Kerry says that unlike Mr. Bush he'll bring the allies along in support of U.S. action, and it's tempting to believe that a new President could somehow rally the French and Germans back to our side. But this ignores our diverging strategic interests. The French want the U.N. to become a brake on the U.S. "hyperpower," and much of Europe would rather appease Islamic terror than fight it. This won't change merely because Americans elect a new President, and it would be nice to hear Mr. Kerry say he understands this.

John Kerry was a hero in Vietnam. And that's not a bad start to being a good commander and chief. As the article points out though, he certainly hasn't been hawkish as a Senator or displayed much political courage. Bill Clinton, in his speech, claimed that John Kerry has taken some positions over the years that were pretty unpopular with Democrats. I'll take that at face value, but even so, has he ever faced a serious political challenge since he was elected a Senator? With the long-time friendship and support of Ted Kennedy I doubt it. None of this necessarily means that Kerry does not posses political courage, but at the least it seems to me that this courage has not been tested. His various stands on Iraq (as shown dramatically in this republican video) leads one to question the strength of his convictions over time. I would like to hear Kerry explain how he will convince more allies to join us. I would like to hear his plans for dealing with Iran and North Korea. I would like to hear that he is committed to supporting democracy, rather than just stability in Iraq. I doubt I will get any of this though.