Open Letter from VietNam POW USMC/USAF Col. George "Bud"

"I was a POW of the Vietnamese in Hanoi in 1971, and am aware that the testimony of John Kerry, the actions of Jane Fonda and Tom Hayden, and the radical left; all caused the Commies to conclude that if they hung on..they would win."... "His stories to the Senate committee were absolute lies..fabrications..perjury..fantasies, with NO substance. That dark shadow has defamed the entire Vietnam War veteran population, and gave "Aid and Comfort" to our enemies..the Vietnamese Communists."

The major issue in the Swiftboat stories is, and always has been, what John Kerry did in 1971 after he returned from Vietnam.

Kerry cast a long dark shadow over all Vietnam Veterans with his outright perjury before the Senate concerning atrocities in Vietnam. His stories to the Senate committee were absolute lies..fabrications..perjury..fantasies, with NO substance. That dark shadow has defamed the entire Vietnam War veteran population, and gave "Aid and Comfort" to our enemies..the Vietnamese Communists.

Kerry's stories were outright fabrications, and were intended for political gain with the radical left..McGovern, Teddy and Bobby Kennedy followers, Jane Fonda, Tom Hayden and the radical left who fantasized that George McGovern was going to be elected in 1972. Little wonder that returning soldiers from Vietnam were spit upon and castigated as "baby killers". A returned hero just said so.

Kerry cut a dashing figure as a war hero, lots of medals, and returned home because of multiple war wounds..even a silver star. His senate testimony confirmed what every hippie had been chanting on the streets.."Hey hey LBJ..How many kids did you kill today"? Kerry obviously was really running for political office, without announcing it...in 1971.

Until John O'Neill, himself a Swiftboat Commander, spoke out before the 1972 election against Kerry's outright deceptions, there was no one from the Swiftboat scene that could contradict Kerry' self serving lies.

I was a POW of the Vietnamese in Hanoi in 1971, and am aware that the testimony of John Kerry, the actions of Jane Fonda and Tom Hayden, and the radical left; all caused the Commies to conclude that if they hung on..they would win.

North Vietnamese General Bui Tin commented that every day the Communist leadership listened to world news over the radio to follow the growth of the anti-war movement. Visits to Hanoi by Jane Fonda and Ramsey Clark gave them confidence to hold in the face of battlefield reverses. The guts of it was that propaganda from the anti-war group was part of the Commie combat strategy.

While the Commies were hanging on, innumerable U.S. soldiers, sailors, marines and air force members were being killed in combat. Every battle wound to Americans after Kerry's misdirected testimony is related to Kerry's untruthfulness. John Kerry contributed to every one of these deaths with his lies about U.S. atrocities in Vietnam. He likewise defamed the U.S. to our allies and our supporters.

His conduct also extended the imprisonment of the Vietnamese POWs, of which I was one. I am certain of at least one POW death after his testimony, which might have been prevented with an earlier release of the POWs some 2 years after his 1971 testimony.

My friend and roommate Senator John S. McCain denounced the Swiftboat video by John O'Neill. I have a different opinion than my good friend John McCain. The Swiftboat tape is highly relevant evidence that replies directly to John Kerry's ongoing series of misrepresentation, and those tapes and the cable news shows are the only major contradictions to Kerry's postulating as a war hero.

The print press..Washington Post, NY Times, etc are avoiding the Swiftboat story because they want a democratic president.

John Kerry opened up his character as a war hero reporting for duty (Dem Convention), with a hand salute..and his band of brothers.. of which he was the chief hero. Most of his convention speech was about John Kerry..Vietnam war hero, and his band of brothers, John Kerry's character is not only fair game, it is the primary issue. His response to Swiftboats is like Bill Clinton's "is", as an answer to his lack of character.

The issue is trust. Can anyone trust John Kerry?? "Never lie, cheat, or steal" is the West Point motto. Should we elect another proven liar to lead us in wartime???

I draw a direct comparison to General Benedict Arnold of the Revolutionary War, to Lieutenant John Kerry. Both went off to war, fought, and then turned against their country. General Arnold crossed over to the British for money and position. John Kerry crossed over to the Vietnamese with his assistance to the anti-war movement and his direct liaison with the Vietnamese diplomats in Paris. His reward. Political gain. Senator. United States.

His record as a senator for twenty years has been pitiful. Conjure up, if you will, one major bill that he has sponsored.

Col. George "Bud" Day Medal of Honor Vietnam POW 1967-1973 Attorney 1949-2004 USMC- USA-USAF

Did a google search of Bud Day. Pretty impressive.

COLONEL GEORGE E. "BUD" DAY (RETIRED)

Colonel George E. Day is a veteran of more than 30 years service in the Armed Forces of the United States.

Colonel Day was born in Sioux City, Iowa, on February 24, 1925. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree and Doctor of Humane Letters from Morningside College in Sioux City, Iowa. He has also been awarded a Master of Arts degree from St. Louis University, a Juris Doctor from the University of South Dakota and a Doctor of Laws from Troy State University. Col. Day was admitted to the South Dakota Bar in 1949 and in Florida Bar in 1977.

Col. Day joined the Marine Corps in 1942 and served 30 months in the South Pacific as a noncommissioned officer. He received an appointment as a Second Lieutenant in the National Guard in 1950.

Col. Day was called to active duty in the Air Force in 1951 and entered jet pilot training. He served two tours in the Far East as a fighter-bomber pilot during the Korean War.

In April 1967, Colonel Day was assigned to the 31st Tac Fighter Wing at Tuy Hoa Air Base, Republic of Vietnam. He later moved to Phu Cat Air Base where he organized and became the first commander of the "Misty Super FAC's," an F-100 Squadron.

Shot down over North Vietnam on August 26, 1967, he spent 67 months as a Prisoner of War. Colonel Day was the only POW to escape from prison in the South. He is also credited with living through the first "no chute" bailout from a burning jet fighter in England in 1955.

At the time of his shoot-down, Colonel Day was one of the nation's most experienced jet fighter pilots, with 4,500 hours of single engine jet time, and more than 5,000 hours of flying time. He has flown all of the modern Air Force jet fighters including the F-80, F-84, F-100, F-101, F-104, F-105, F-4E, A-4J Mongoose, A-7, F-106, FB-111, F-15, F-16, CF-5, CT-33, and CF-18.

Col. Day holds every significant combat award and is the nation's most highly decorated officer, as well as the most decorated since General Douglass MacArthur. He holds nearly seventy military decorations and awards, of which more than fifty are for combat. Most notable are: the Medal of Honor, the Air Force Cross, the Distinguished Service Medal, the Silver Star, the Legion of Merit, the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Medal with nine Oak Leaf Clusters, the Bronze Star for Valor with two Oak Leaf Cluster, the Bronze Star, and the Purple Heart with three Clusters. Col. Day was presented Vietnam's highest medal by President Thieu, two Vietnamese Gallantry Crosses, and Vietnamese Wings, and wears twelve Campaign Battle Stars.

He is a member of the Medal of Honor Society, Legion of Valor, was the first President of NAM-POW's (the Vietnam POW organization), President of the MISTY SUPER-FAC Association, and a member of numerous military and fraternal organizations. Colonel Day was a member of the Code of Conduct Review Board, established by the Department of Defense in 1976 to review POW conduct.

Col. Day has taught World Politics, International Law and Political Geography at St. Louis University and Parks College of Aeronautical Technology. He taught Constitutional Law, Politics of the Middle East, and Communism in Eastern Europe at Troy State University.

Col. Day is a member of the Okaloosa/Walton Bar Association, Academy of Florida Trial Lawyers, American Bar Association, and American Trial Lawyers. He is a visiting lecturer at the Freedom's Foundation program at Valley Forge for both St. Francis College and the University of Scranton, and lectures young officers at the Air University at Maxwell AFB, AL several times each year.

Bud is married to his childhood sweetheart Doris Merlene Sorensen of Sioux City, Iowa, and has four children. Steven Michael of Shalimar, Florida, Capt. George Everette, Jr. (Class of '85 Air Force Academy) F-16 pilot, twin daughters Sonja Smith of Fort Walton Beach, Florida and Sandra Mathers of San Diego, California (whose husband is Navy helicopter pilot). George Day has two grandsons Jacob and Joshua, three granddaughters Noel Elizabeth, Victoria Leigh, and Audrey Marie. He resides in Shalimar, Florida and has a law firm in Fort Walton Beach, Florida where he is a trial Lawyer.

Col. Day is a past Florida State Republican Committeeman, and a past member of the Board of Directors of the Medal of Honor Society. He is a past National Commander of the Legion of Valor and was a delegate to Republican Conventions, Chairman of the Reagan Committee in Okaloosa Count, Florida. In 1984, he was National Chairman of Veteran's for Reagan and campaigned extensively for and with the President. He campaigned nationally for President Bush in 1992.

Col. Day received the BUSINESS ASSOCIATE OF THE YEAR 1988 from the American Business Women's Association.

Col. Day has published numerous articles on fighter performance, an article in the Saturday Evening Post, Air Force Magazine, and is the author or "RETURN WITH HONOR" his POW autobiography.

Governor Martinez appointed Col. Day a Commissioner of Veterans Affairs. He is a past Secretary of Florida Veterans Affairs Commission.

Senator Connie Mack placed Col. Day on the Defense Advisory Committee and he serves as a director of the Air Force Armament Museum.

He is a past advisor to the Air Force Association, Washington, D.C.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.