If anybody who was ever in combat gets in the news the media will inevitably at one point or another label that person a war hero.
Within the spheres of Manhattan and LA veterans are semi-mythical creatures. Media sorts may not necessarily respect millitary service but they find it so unutterably rare and remarkable that they simply must find a way to express their wonder at people who were actually in the military. So John Kerry's a war a hero, even if everybody else in the country has a fat uncle with better war stories.
Only if they are a democrat or, at the time they are labeled "hero", are somehow allied with and therefore an "honorary" democrat (Sen. McCain, for example). You've gotta understand the rules in order to play the game.