[VDARE.COM note: Encore Booknotes is rerunning a interview promoting Michelle's book Invasion: How America Still Welcomes Terrorists, Criminals, and Other Foreign Menaces to Our Shores. Watch it here.]

"I do not fault George Bush for doing too much in the war on terror," droned Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry at a campaign event in Washington this week.

Zzzzzz. 

"I believe he's done too little."

What was that? My ears perked up slightly. Would this "proven leader" who claims he will "stand up to the special interests" talk about the need for racial, ethnic, nationality, and religious profiling? Would he attack the Bush White House for appeasing the ethnic grievance industry and keeping silly Norm Mineta in his Cabinet during these deadly serious times?

Or would he propose a temporary visa moratorium on terror-friendly countries, such as Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Morocco?

Or how about the open-borders lobby? Would Kerry have anything to say about the continuing security threat that unchecked illegal immigration poses to the "hardworking families" that he claims he represents?

Naaah.

Kerry, you see, was speaking before the International Association of Firefighters, whose president, Harold Schaitberger, is national co-chair of the Kerry for President Committee. Their complaint is not that Bush has done too little to fight terrorism, but that he has showered too little government funding on certain Democratic constituencies. Hence, the First Responders Fake-out.

Kerry's big proposal to fight the global war on terrorism (borrowed from Bill and Hillary Clinton) is to add 100,000 "first responders" to the ranks of firefighters and emergency medical personnel in cities and town across the United States.

In other words: Wait until the terrorists strike us again and then do a really, really good job of cleaning up the mess afterwards.

Of course, our brave firefighters and cops and emergency personnel need better training and equipment to respond in the event of another attack. But responders, no matter how courageous, prevent nothing. Dialing 911 is not the solution to stopping another 9/11.

"When it comes to protecting America from terrorism," Kerry complains, "this Administration is big on bluster and short on action."

And what does Kerry have to offer? More bluster about the old Clintonian "law enforcement" approach to prosecuting al Qaeda. More jury trials for terrorists.

The federal prosecution of the 1993 World Trade Center bombers in our civilian court system demonstrated the pitfalls of prosecuting the War on Terror like an episode of the TV show "Ally McBeal"—a pathetic courtroom comedy. The trials gave the bin Laden network a multi-million-dollar, tax-subsidized defense team, free translation services, personal dry-cleaning services, and access to information that was allegedly used by Islamists "to become more adept at eluding surveillance."

All of the convicted World Trade Center bombers received life sentences behind bars, where they rejoiced when they heard the news that the Twin Towers had fallen. Two had faced the death penalty, but were spared by a minority-dominated jury that swallowed the race-baiting of traitorous defense witness Ramsey Clark (the former U.S. attorney general under Lyndon Johnson). Clark testified that no member of a racial minority group—African-American, Arab or otherwise—could expect a fair trial in the U.S. He also blamed the Gulf War and U.S. sanctions on Iraq for creating the psychological "suffering" that led to the embassy attacks.

On another front, convicted mastermind Sheik Omar Abdul Rahman may have exploited his right to counsel in order to establish a terrorist message pipeline from behind bars. His radical lawyer, Lynne Stewart, faces trial this spring on charges of providing material support to terrorists; she is accused of aiding a plot to kidnap and kill people to help win the release of Rahman and making false statements regarding her efforts to pass messages between Rahman and his followers around the world.

The Bush administration has moved beyond reactively serving terrorists with their legal papers to proactively busting sleeper cells, detaining enemy combatants before they set off their bombs, setting up military tribunals, and deporting Arab and Muslim illegal alien suspects. What is John Kerry's plan?

Buying more walkie-talkies and playing "People's Court" with Islamic mass murderers.

Michelle Malkin [email her] is author of Invasion: How America Still Welcomes Terrorists, Criminals, and Other Foreign Menaces to Our Shores. Click here for Peter Brimelow's review. Click here for Michelle Malkin's website.

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