Sen. John Kerry has had a long and distinguished record, one that can’t be hidden or misunderstood. Now he is running for the most powerful position in the United States, if not the world. He believes the mistakes made by President George W. Bush in the war in Iraq can hide his own record of inconsistency and inactivity. He may have strong convictions, this he alone knows; but he certainly lacks the leadership qualities needed for the job.

There is so much controversy surrounding the race for president that the race can only be judged on one variable: the facts. We have seen everything ranging from the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth to the CBS scandal. So we, as the public, have nothing more to base our vote on other than the records of the two candidates.

First, Kerry simply lacks the headship to steer this great country. His record is unquestionably horrific and when confronted with it, he swindles the truth. For instance, he confused the truth in the third debate. “I’ve actually passed 56 individual bills that I’ve personally written. And in addition to that, they’re not always under my name. There’s amendments on certain bills,” Kerry said.

In actuality he has been the lead sponsor on 316 Bills, five of which were passed and made into laws. This is an obvious attempt to slither out of trouble. I know he is a well-spoken man, but facts are facts. Yesterday’s USA Today poll stated that voters believe Bush is more trustworthy than Kerry by a whopping 11 percent. This shows that people are finally trapping Kerry in his premeditated fabrications.

He claims to fight for big results such as health care reform. Yet again, this is another obvious diversion from his record and an attempt to deceive the American people. In the New York Times on Feb. 8, 2004, David Rosenbaum wrote, “Critics assert that he lacks legislative accomplishments, for all his talk of ‘leading fights’ on issues like health care. They note that much of the legislation that became law, for which he was chief sponsor, involves matters like ocean research, protecting marine mammals from commercial fishing and providing grants to small businesses owned by women — hardly the fuel that drives presidential campaigns.” I see health care was not a priority. The record speaks for itself.

Finally, Kerry claims to be stern and unwavering. I guess sometimes he just forgets where he stands. A plethora of people believe that he is against outsourcing due to his commercials attacking Bush, but others believe he deems it to be an inevitable process. In an article published in the Wall Street Journal on Aug. 9, 2004, he said “I am not trying to stop all outsourcing, but as president, I will end every single incentive that encourages companies to outsource.”

This doesn’t sound too convincing. Has he gone from politicizing outsourcing for popular gain to becoming an advocate of globalization? This was just another trick to lure in more votes. Subsequently, none of us know where he stands on the issue; therefore, he is neutral. This could be the reason why the country prefers Bush as a strong and decisive leader by a massive 21 percent, according to a Gallup poll.

The bottom line is this: It is easy to watch negative commercials and deceiving rhetoric, but to truly understand a candidate you have to review the facts.

Erik Raymond is a sophomore majoring in political science.