1971 VIDEO: KERRY ADMITS THROWING OWN MEDALS; CONTRADICTS CURRENT CLAIMS

Drudge Report ^ | 4/25/04 | Drudge

[Nexus]

In an interview published Friday in the LOS ANGELES TIMES, Dem presidential hopeful John Kerry claimed he "never ever implied" that he threw his own medals on the Hill in 1971 to appear as an antiwar hero -- but a new shock video shows John Kerry's saying he did!

ABC's GOOD MORNING AMERICA is set to rock the political world Monday morning with an airing of Kerry's 1971 boast, sources tell the DRUDGE REPORT.

Developing...

[FairOpinion]

Here is the part from the LAT article:

Kerry's Lionizing Shift From Officer to Activist

http://www.latimes.com/la-na-kerry23apr23,1,66281.story

"At the end of the long line, Kerry unfastened the ribbons he wore for a week. Nearing "dozens of cameras, countless people watching," Kerry "took out the ribbon plate, pulled them off, said something — I do this sadly, or I do this with regret — and threw them over the fence."

He waited until "after everybody and all the cameras dispersed." Then, he took out two medals from his fatigue pocket and "threw the other things away." Emotionally spent, weeping, he embraced his wife.

"He looked fractured," recalls Chris Gregory.

The medals Kerry threw were not his own. One, he says, was offered from a patient in a Brooklyn VA hospital. The other was a Bronze Star handed over by a World War II veteran at a Massachusetts fundraiser — an incident also recalled by Gregory. Kerry never asked their names.

Myths of the Medals

Kerry says he never claimed to have thrown the medals as his own. But as his reputation grew as a shrewd political operator after his 1984 senate election, Kerry was dogged by a troubling political myth.

He was accused of discarding his ribbons and the medals of others in 1971 to appear as an antiwar hero, while keeping his own medals for use as political props years later — a charge echoing this election year.

"It's so damn hypocritical to get these awards, throw them in the dirt and then suddenly value them again," said B.G. Burkett, a Vietnam veteran and author who critiques Kerry's antiwar stance.

"I never ever implied that I did it," Kerry says wearily, adding: "You know what? Medals and ribbons, there's almost no difference in distinction, fundamentally. They're symbols of the same thing. They are what they are."


And another interesting tid-bit from the above mentioned article:

"The war kept drawing him back. Newly married and on honeymoon in France, Kerry detoured from his vacation to meet with South and North Vietnamese delegates to the Paris peace talks. How a 26-year-old private citizen without a political track record connected with the negotiators is unclear.

Through an aide, Kerry said he does not recall the details of the session — though he told the Senate in 1971 that negotiators for the communist North assured him that if the U.S. "set a date for withdrawal" from Vietnam, its "prisoners of war would be returned."

[July 4th]

Yeah, it's a little confusing at first. We "right wingers" never said that he threw his own medals - we said he threw someone elses. And Kerry said he threw his own. Now it's Kerry that's changed positions...again.

[sirchtruth]

"admits throwing own medals" is the wrong title, because he never threw his own medals. He claimed at one point they were his, but then we find out later they were belonged to someone else and he kept his. Then he said he never said they were his medals, and now drudge says GMA will show a video of him saying exactly that.

ROTFLMAO!

Does anyone know what "IS" means?

[Grig]

Having perfected the rope-a-dope tactic, President Bush is now employing a dope-a-dope strategy. He is using John Kerry to lure out Hilary Clinton so he can finish off her political career.

If the Clintons are smart, they would try to help Kerry just enought to make it past the convention, then pull the plug so 2008 is open for Hilary.

[syriacus]

Kerry sure has a poor memory. I wouldn't want to elect him as president.

[arichtaxpayer]

But we want Kerry to be the nominee at the DNC convention. A lot can happen between now and then, I wish it was SOONER.

[kennedy]

"I actually threw my own medals before I didn't throw them."

[finnigan2]

I'd be willing to bet money that the Kerry camp is, at this very moment, putting pressure on GMA not to air the video tomorrow morning. Furthermore, the leftists in the media, being shameless, will oblige.

[McGruff]

U.S. presidential candidate Senator John Kerry (D-Ma)
gathers his thoughts as U.S. Senator Tom Harkin (D-Ia)
looks on, immediately before Kerry got up to speak to a
campaign rally in Des Moines, Iowa, April 25, 2004.

Boy are you f*ing up.

[Mamzelle]

re: I'll be happy once the video is shown. Stories like this tend to disappear.)))

From your keyboard to the ears of Fox Network---bump

[Peach]

If someone at ABC leaked this to Drudge, it could mean that ABC was about to kill the story. Just like what happened with Lewinsky, Drudge got the story before the Liberal Media could make it disappear.

There is virtually no other explanation.

Nothing would convince me that ABC is running this of their own volition.

[Peach]

Ping aling.

Old Media is going to show Kerry is a liar? There has to be another explanation.

[Pukin Dog]

It is too late. Just as the media was forced by Drudge to report on Lewinsky, they cant get away with pushing this under the rug now. Kerry will be asked about this everywhere he goes.

[MEG33]

Sorry..we don't have the magic filter!You just have to stay on the astronomy threads only.

[Pukin Dog]

There has to be another explanation.

You can find it in a crusty black pantsuit.

[Irene Adler]

Both Clintons told just as many lies as did Algore. Every time they were caught in another lie, FReepers got on threads and said "This is it; this is the one which will bring them down," and it never, never happened, because coverage of their lies and corruption in the lamestream press went nowhere. Why does all this appear to be getting traction from the lamestream press regarding Kerry? All of his flaws should just be waved away, or remain entirely unmentioned, by the DNC-flak press.

It's a little early in the game for Hillary to sabotage Kerry for 2004 to leave a clear shot for herself in 2008, yet something of that sort appears to be going on.

I remain fairly convinced that Hillary does NOT want the nomination this year, but all this press jumping on Kerry really puzzles me. SOMETHING is going on, but what?

[GROOVY]

You know what? Medals and ribbons, there's almost no difference in distinction, fundamentally

I doubt it will work with fair minded people, but that will probably be his angle after the video is shown on GMA. He will say "uhhh.. I meant to say ribbons, not medals, it was a slip of the tongue".

[jackbill]

LOL! I've got Drudge opened in another window and every once in a while, I hear a bang!, which means my pop-up killer is zapping another pop-up from his site.... LOL!

Isn't that a great sound? I've been using a new browser for a couple of days (myIE2) which includes Ad Hunter. It kills them all, but lets you know when it is doing it. I love it. No more pop-ups.

[Peach]

I think you're right.

Last week I finished reading the book "Hillary's Secret War" for which Jim Robinson wrote the Foreward. The book is about her secret police that tried and still tries to destroy conservative political web site owners and reporters.

She has used those FBI files on the media as well as the RNC to great advantage.

I wonder if it's Diane or Charlie she has something on. LOL

[barker]

Replacement medals. May take hours to wade through all of this thread.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1122563/posts