Posted on 08/17/2004 7:59:52 PM PDT by neverdem
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Senator John Kerry denounced an advertisement by the liberal group MoveOn.org questioning President Bush's Vietnam-era service in the Air National Guard yesterday, a move likely to raise pressure on President Bush to condemn a recent commercial accusing Mr. Kerry of lying about his war record.
The new MoveOn advertisement, running in three states, accuses Mr. Bush of using family connections to get into the Air National Guard to escape combat in Vietnam and revisits accusations that he did not adequately meet his service requirements - charges that he denies.
Mr. Kerry's statement came hours after surrogates for his presidential campaign made similar accusations and was prompted by a plea from Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona, a friend of Mr. Kerry and a fellow combat veteran in Vietnam.
Earlier this month, Mr. McCain similarly called on Mr. Bush to denounce the advertisement criticizing Mr. Kerry, by a group called Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. That spot, in which fellow Vietnam War veterans said Mr. Kerry lied about the incidents for which he won his combat medals, stopped running last week but the group says it plans to run another one soon.
The Bush campaign has declined to denounce the Swift boat advertisement, saying it had nothing to do with the spot.
That decision created an opening for MoveOn, whose spot ends with a quotation from Mr. McCain about the Swift boat commercial earlier this month: "I think the Bush campaign should specifically condemn the ad."
In an interview with The Associated Press yesterday, Mr. McCain said Mr. Kerry should condemn the MoveOn spot because it's "the same line of scurrilous attack" leveled against Mr. Kerry by the Swift boat veterans.
Shortly afterwards, Mr. Kerry's campaign released his statement: "I agree with Senator McCain that the ad is inappropriate. This should be a campaign of issues, not insults."
Yesterday, Mr. Bush's campaign again refused to repudiate the Swift boat advertisement. Democrats say that spot was largely paid for by Bob J. Perry, a Texas homebuilder with longstanding ties to Mr. Bush's top political aide, Karl Rove. Mr. Perry has donated $200,000, the group said.
The Bush campaign and the group say they have had no contact and are not working in coordination, which would be a violation of campaign finance rules.
"The campaign has not questioned and will not question John Kerry's service in Vietnam," said Steve Schmidt, a campaign spokesman. "The president made clear on national television that he honors John Kerry's service in Vietnam."
Mr. Schmidt painted Mr. Kerry's repudiation of the spots as disingenuous, given that at a campaign-sponsored news conference earlier in the day Gen. Wesley K. Clark, who competed against Mr. Kerry in the Democratic primaries earlier this year, and Adm. Stansfield Turner, the director of central intelligence for President Jimmy Carter, echoed MoveOn's accusations that Mr. Bush used family connections to avoid combat.
"Kerry's condemnation reeks of hypocrisy given the fact that his campaign surrogates are on the attack echoing the same baseless charges," Mr. Schmidt said.
Echoing a line that the Swift boat veterans have used, Mr. Kerry's campaign said General Clark and Admiral Turner had earned the right to speak their minds.
"With their service, they've more than earned the right to speak out," Mr. Clanton said. "We're still waiting for the president to condemn the smear campaign against John Kerry's military service."
As of last night, it did not seem as if Mr. Kerry's condemnation of the Moveon advertisement would have any effect on the group's plans.
Eli Pariser, the head of the Moveon political action committee responsible for the spot, said of Mr. Kerry, "We feel he's entitled to his opinion."
But Mr. Pariser said he did not believe that the Moveon spot and Swift boat veterans' one were in the same league.
The Swift Boat Veterans for Truth has provided affidavits for the men making claims against Mr. Kerry in its first and last advertisement. But while some of the men served near Mr. Kerry's Swift boat, none in the advertisement served on it.
ping
And it's about damn time, too!
A thinly disguised setup to get the Bush Campaign to denounce the SWB Vets.
"Ok, you guys put out an anti-bush ad and then I'll denounce it right away. That will look good, huh? Damn, I'm smart!" (juts chin out)
Does this mean he was against it before he was for it or the other way around......I get so disoriented with his flip flops??????
So when is Kerry going to apologize for all those vets he slandered back in his anti-war days? Oops, I guess his position hasn't changed, has it?
BTW, Isn't the NYTimes supposed to be excerpted?
No, that's the LA Times.
The NYTimes calls that a condemnation?
Incredible!
woops. sorry John, you have a small problem.
The moveon.org advertisement is based on heresy evidence, and cannot be proven.
The Swiftvets adds are loaded with facts, sworn affidafits etc.
So yeah, you had better disown Moveon's adds, if you want any credibility at all.
Good try, Team Kerry but it is not going to work. You have had a year and a half of attacks on our president. You have allowed tens of millions of dollars to be spent on your behalf distorting the record and hurting our nation while we are at war. As Teresa would say, shove it.
Actually, Bush denounced all 527 funded advertising. Very correct and clever rebuttal. Too nuanced for John Boy to get I'm sure..
Contributions can also be sent to:
Swift Boat Veterans for Truth
c/o Weymouth Symmes, Treasurer
PO Box 26184
Alexandria, VA 22313
When contributing by check, please include your occupation and employer.
Checks should be made payable to "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth".
Thank's chief, it will be in the mail tomorrow.
If Bush does all we will hear from the media until election day is questions about whether Bush violated CFR
Yes, I knew it was the LA Times also. I guess the other paper was the Washington Post. They all run together, don't they? At least the lib papers are finally having to cover the story, even if they do it like a press release from the dims. The LA Times had a story in this morning too.
Denounce Michael Moore, the honored guest at YOUR convention, John!!!
President Bush is way ahead of Kerry on this. He already denounced ALL 527 ads.
I guess it is a good thing that we have truth on our side. Apparently, the Swifties are becoming effective.
Good cop, bad cop.
Guess I was a little slow.
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