On NBC's ''Meet The Press'' in 1971, Kerry was asked whether he had personally committed atrocities in Vietnam. He responded:
On NBC's ''Meet The Press'' in 1971, Kerry was asked whether he had personally committed atrocities in Vietnam. He responded:
{{Cquote|''There are all kinds of atrocities, and I would have to say that, yes, yes, I committed the same kind of atrocities as thousands of other soldiers have committed in that I took part in shootings in free fire zones. I conducted harassment and interdiction fire. I used 50 caliber machine guns, which we were granted and ordered to use, which were our only weapon against people. I took part in search and destroy missions, in the burning of villages. All of this is contrary to the laws of warfare, all of this is contrary to the [[Geneva Convention]]s and all of this is ordered as a matter of written established policy by the government of the United States from the top down. And I believe that the men who designed these, the men who designed the free fire zone, the men who ordered us, the men who signed off the air raid strike areas, I think these men, by the letter of the law, the same letter of the law that tried Lieutenant Calley, are [[war criminal]]s.''"<ref>[http://hnn.us/articles/3552.html Vietnam 30 Years later: What John Kerry Said on Meet the Press], George Mason University, History News Network</ref>}}
{{Cquote|''There are all kinds of atrocities, and I would have to say that, yes, yes, I committed the same kind of atrocities as thousands of other soldiers have committed in that I took part in shootings in free fire zones. I conducted harassment and interdiction fire. I used 50 caliber machine guns, which we were granted and ordered to use, which were our only weapon against people. I took part in search and destroy missions, in the burning of villages. All of this is contrary to the laws of warfare, all of this is contrary to the [[Geneva Convention]]s and all of this is ordered as a matter of written established policy by the government of the United States from the top down. And I believe that the men who designed these, the men who designed the free fire zone, the men who ordered us, the men who signed off the air raid strike areas, I think these men, by the letter of the law, the same letter of the law that tried Lieutenant Calley, are [[war criminal]]s.''"<ref>[http://hnn.us/articles/3552.html Vietnam 30 Years later: What John Kerry Said on Meet the Press], George Mason University, History News Network</ref>}}
Kerry voted to give President George W. Bush the authority to go to [[Iraq War|war with Iraq]] in 2002, although in his 2004 Presidential bid he campaigned as being opposed to the war, and later said regarding his vote to give the President that authority, "There's nothing - nothing - in my life in public service I regret more, nothing even close. We should all be willing to say: I was wrong, I should not have voted for the Iraq War Resolution." <ref>https://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-kerry/mistakes-and-responsibili_b_31482.html</ref> Kerry's initial vote on the matter and subsequent revision on the topic caused many to label him a "flip-flopper" during his 2004 presidential bid.<ref>[http://www.washtimes.com/op-ed/20040716-083945-7626r.htm Kerry’s skewed priorities], ''The Washington Times'', July 16, 2004.</ref>
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===Comments on service in Iraq===
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On October 30, 2006, eight days before the 2006 elections, Kerry was a headline speaker at a campaign rally being held for unsuccessful Democrat [[California]] gubernatorial candidate Phil Angelides at Pasadena City College in Pasadena, California. Speaking to an audience composed mainly of college students, Kerry said, "
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{{Cquote|You know, education, if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well. If you don't, you get stuck in Iraq.}}
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After being criticized by President Bush and other leaders, in an effort to be funny Kerry stated "Let me make it crystal clear, as crystal clear as I know how. I apologize to no one for my criticism of the president and of his broken policy."
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After two days, Kerry wrote an apology on his [[blog]], claiming to be sorry if anyone 'misinterpreted his comments'.