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Vietnam Is a Double-Edged Issue
Washington Post ^ | 2/21/2004 | Paul Farhi

Posted on 02/26/2004 9:10:13 AM PST by secretagent

...Moreover, in recent days Republican operatives have been circulating copies of Kerry's testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in April 1971, which has formed the basis of much of the conservative critique about Kerry's efforts against the war....

Although many of the alleged atrocities have never been verified -- and some have been disproved -- Kerry told the Senate that such stories were not isolated occurrences but had happened "on a day-to-day basis with the full awareness of officers at all levels of command."...

...Historian Douglas Brinkley, the author of the recently published "Tour of Duty: John Kerry and the Vietnam War," calls Kerry's atrocity comments "greatly exaggerated" and "the weak link" in his Senate testimony.... "

...A spokeswoman for Kerry's campaign, Stephanie Cutter, said yesterday, "If you look at that testimony, he was reporting what he had heard at the Winter Soldier investigations. He was reporting this. Does he stand by what he heard? Since that day, it has been widely reported that terrible things happened in Vietnam. If you read the testimony in its entirety, you see that he was paying great tribute to those who were serving."...

John Hurley, the national director of Veterans for Kerry, said Kerry had no intention of taking back anything he said....

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: 1971; 2004; dougbrinkley; exaggerated; kerry; tourofduty; wintersoldier
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I wonder if Kerry fears an examination of the WSI, or if if he really believed in the truthtelling of most of the witnesses. I think he did believe, but we'll see, hopefully.

Although many of the alleged atrocities have never been verified -- and some have been disproved

In the WSI itself? Plenty of debunked atrocity mongers outside the WSI, but I've not heard of a single named WSI witness debunked so far.

Off to work - back later today.

1 posted on 02/26/2004 9:10:14 AM PST by secretagent
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To: secretagent
This issue has become so tiresome it died a couple of months ago. Kerry and the Dems are having to bring it to life every time they turn around.
2 posted on 02/26/2004 9:13:58 AM PST by writer33 (The U.S. Constitution defines a Conservative)
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To: secretagent
"....the national director of Veterans for Kerry, said Kerry had no intention of taking back anything he said....

Ahh yes, now he's infallible. Next he'll be a candidate for Pope.

3 posted on 02/26/2004 9:20:10 AM PST by NetValue (They're not Americans, they're democrats.)
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To: secretagent
If you read the testimony in its entirety, you see that he was paying great tribute to those who were serving."...

LOL, this has to go down as one of the great doublespeak, Orwellian-type explanations of the year. Kerry testified that the US soldiers all went around commiting war crimes, gunning people down, burning down their hooches - but this was paying them "a great tribute." LOL, some people have no shame at all. I think the whole "being on both sides of everything" disease has infected his idiot spokeswoman, too.

4 posted on 02/26/2004 9:37:28 AM PST by KellyAdmirer
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To: KellyAdmirer
---If you read the testimony in its entirety, you see that he was paying great tribute to those who were serving."...---

Only if you play it backwards at double speed, then you'll hear Kerry plainly saying, "I love Gen. Westmoreland." :^)
5 posted on 02/26/2004 9:46:48 AM PST by claudiustg (Go Sharon! Go Bush!)
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To: secretagent
"Moreover, in recent days Republican operatives have been circulating copies of Kerry's testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in April 1971, which has formed the basis of much of the conservative critique about Kerry's efforts against the war...."

This is what pisses me off most about the mainstream media. Whenever a negative story exists about a Democrat, the media attributes that story to "Republican operatives." Even if this is true, republican operatives shouldn't have needed to circulate his testimony since it is widely available for anyone willing to look...i.e, the media.

I've said this before, but it deserves repeating: The "media" is only happy to dig into the pasts of Republicans, using their vast resources. But when it comes to Democrats, the media sits on stories, waiting for Republican operatives to uncover what they've known all along.

This serves two purposes for the mediacrats: They not only get to shelter the Democrat for as long as possible, but when the story does break, the "media" can attribute the story to Republicans...creating an image that republicans fight dirty. The unfortunate fact is, Republicans often have to do the job of the mainstream media, since they've decided to put away their investigative journalist credentials when Democrats are around.
6 posted on 02/26/2004 9:50:45 AM PST by cwb (Kerry may have saved one man but he abandoned thousands of others)
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To: secretagent
Kerry was in country for but four months (gives another dimension to "Just For Kerry" -- "Just Four, Kerry").

How could he possibly have firsthand knowledge or observation of all that he claimed before the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee given his limited sphere of duty within the rivers of the Mekong Delta?

Could he have -- gosh! -- LIED to the Congress?
7 posted on 02/26/2004 9:53:29 AM PST by Chummy (Smokes for Votes, Bingo for Doyle, Casinos, Now, a Boozy AG - What happened to Wisconsin is the Dems)
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To: secretagent
If Kerry would just come down off his high-horse and admit his testimony was disgraceful and attribute it to being young and naive - I think he would get some slack on this issue. For him to claim he was being honest and "supporting the troops" is just asking for more trouble on this issue.
8 posted on 02/26/2004 11:08:28 AM PST by ghost of nixon
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To: cwb
"Moreover, in recent days Republican operatives have been circulating copies of Kerry's testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in April 1971, which has formed the basis of much of the conservative critique about Kerry's efforts against the war...."

GUILTY AS CHARGED..This Republican has sent it and the audio link of his testimony to every 50% of her email list. The other 50% are not interested in politics. I have about 100 on my list.

9 posted on 02/26/2004 12:10:18 PM PST by GailA (Millington Rally for America after action http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/872519/posts)
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To: writer33
This issue has become so tiresome...

"How many Vietnam Veterans does it take to screw in a lightbulb?"

"I don't know."

"That's right, you don't know, 'cause you weren't there, man!

10 posted on 02/26/2004 4:01:56 PM PST by secretagent
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To: NetValue
Ahh yes, now he's infallible. Next he'll be a candidate for Pope.

Kerry sure belongs in the big leagues. He ponders deeply.

11 posted on 02/26/2004 4:05:45 PM PST by secretagent
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To: secretagent
"That's right, you don't know, 'cause you weren't there, man!"


Of course he was. The media has verified it. Maybe he worked with the CIA and no one really knows if he was there. :)
12 posted on 02/26/2004 4:08:13 PM PST by writer33 (The U.S. Constitution defines a Conservative)
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To: KellyAdmirer
Kerry testified that the US soldiers all went around commiting war crimes, gunning people down, burning down their hooches - but this was paying them "a great tribute." LOL, some people have no shame at all. I think the whole "being on both sides of everything" disease has infected his idiot spokeswoman, too.

Kerry saved them from their sins by transferring the responsibility to our leaders.

Not really a two-sided postion, rather one carefully nuanced.

While Kerry himself didn't torture anyone, those boys from lesser families couldn't stand the pressure and went psycho. And Kerry, with his deep caring for the guy at the bottom, doesn't hold that against them

13 posted on 02/26/2004 4:12:27 PM PST by secretagent
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To: cwb
Good post #6.

The Rs sit in Congress and the White House, but the media culture remains Dem.
14 posted on 02/26/2004 4:15:08 PM PST by secretagent
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To: Chummy
How could he possibly have firsthand knowledge or observation of all that he claimed before the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee given his limited sphere of duty within the rivers of the Mekong Delta?

He cited witnesses who testified in the "Winter Soldier Investigation". He never claimed to see any really gruesome stuff himself.

15 posted on 02/26/2004 4:20:04 PM PST by secretagent
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To: ghost of nixon
If Kerry would just come down off his high-horse and admit his testimony was disgraceful and attribute it to being young and naive - I think he would get some slack on this issue. For him to claim he was being honest and "supporting the troops" is just asking for more trouble on this issue.

I heve never seen anyone ask Kerry if he still believes the testimony in the Winter Soldier Investigation.

16 posted on 02/26/2004 4:23:34 PM PST by secretagent
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To: secretagent
In the WSI itself? Plenty of debunked atrocity mongers outside the WSI, but I've not heard of a single named WSI witness debunked so far.

Really? My understanding from reading here at FR, is that it was precisely the "testimony" given at the WSI that was debunked. People not soldiers, testifying falsely under the names of real soldiers and so on.

17 posted on 02/26/2004 4:40:38 PM PST by cyncooper ("Maybe they were hoping he'd lose the next Iraqi election")
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To: cyncooper
Really? My understanding from reading here at FR, is that it was precisely the "testimony" given at the WSI that was debunked. People not soldiers, testifying falsely under the names of real soldiers and so on.

Yes, I thought the same. But the WSI atrocity witnesses itself remain untouched, so far, I now think.

The claim of WSI debunking all comes down to the historian Guenter Lewy, who claimed he either saw or got briefed with a summary of the NSI report that followed Senator Hatfield's request for an investigation of the WSI claims. That report has disappeared, so we have to take Lewy's word for it - for now.

Individuals associated with the WSI, most notably Al Hubbard (an executive in the VVAW and a WSI planner) got debunked. But not the witnesses, that I know of anyway.

All this may change as the election nears.

Correct me if I have this wrong, please.

Check out the best site for this I've seen so far - FR's own:

http://ice.he.net/~freepnet/kerry/

18 posted on 02/26/2004 5:20:24 PM PST by secretagent
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To: secretagent
Lewy's the one I've read about.

Will wait to hear more. Seems the issue is being looked into a bit.

On a side note, Chris Matthews had Bob Kerrey on a guest, and after a break he played a long montage of John Kerry, including his '71 senate testimony, and the thing was like a pro-Kerry commercial, with music and such. Bob Kerrey said he had goosebumps.

Then Chris demanded of Bob Kerrey why George Bush doesn't just admit he joined the National Guard to avoid Vietnam (we all know this is a bee Chris has had in his bonnet for awhile regarding Bush). Nobody notices that it is a not a question pending before the president, except on Hardball. Anyway, Kerrey said Bush served honorably, but if I understood the end of their conversation correctly, they both agreed Bush "owes it" to the American people to tell us how wrong Vietnam was.

WHAT?!

OK, just had to rant a little about that, and since it ended up with Bush "owing" us an explanation for Vietnam for some reason, according to Matthews and Kerrey, I thought it tangentially fit here.

Wait....I'm having a stream of conciousness revelation. The reason they want Bush to admit Vietnam was a mess and a mistake, is that would ease up pressure on any anti-war John Kerry activities. OK, I get it now.
19 posted on 02/26/2004 5:28:27 PM PST by cyncooper ("Maybe they were hoping he'd lose the next Iraqi election")
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To: secretagent
That's hearsay, nothing more.

Incredible.
20 posted on 02/27/2004 10:41:33 AM PST by Chummy (Could Kerry have *gasp* LIED to the Congress during his Vietnam testimony?)
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