Posted on 08/25/2004 4:47:21 PM PDT by kezekiel
WASHINGTON - The chief critic of John Kerry (news - web sites)'s military record told President Nixon in 1971 that he had been in Cambodia in a swift boat during the Vietnam War — a claim at odds with his recent statements that he was not.
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"I was in Cambodia, sir. I worked along the border," said John E. O'Neill in a conversation that was taped by the former president's secret recording system. The tape is stored at the National Archives in College Park, Md.
In an interview with The Associated Press on Wednesday, O'Neill did not dispute what he said to Nixon, but insisted he was never actually in Cambodia.
"I think I made it very clear that I was on the border, which is exactly where I was for three months. I was about 100 yards from Cambodia," O'Neill said in clarifying the June 16, 1971, conversation with Nixon.
Chad Clanton, a spokesman for the Democratic presidential candidate, said the tape "is just the latest in a long line of lies and false statements from a group trying to smear John Kerry's military service. Again, they're being proven liars with their own words. It's time for President Bush (news - web sites) to stand up and specifically condemn this smear."
O'Neill served in Vietnam from 1969-70 and says in a recent book that he took command of Kerry's swift boat after the future Massachusetts senator returned home from the war.
O'Neill has emerged as a leading figure in the attacks on Kerry's war record. He is co-author of "Unfit for Command," which accuses Kerry of lying about his record, and is a member of Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, which has aired two television commercials harshly critical of Kerry.
In the book, O'Neill wrote that Kerry's accounts of having been in Cambodia on Christmas Eve of 1968 "are complete lies."
"... Kerry was never ordered into Cambodia by anyone and would have been court-martialed had he gone there," he wrote. O'Neill wrote that the Navy positioned its own craft along the border area to make sure no American vessels strayed across the border from Vietnam.
In an interview Sunday on ABC's "This Week" O'Neill said: "Our boats didn't go north of, only slightly north of Sedek," which he said was about 50 miles from the Cambodian border.
Kerry's campaign has acknowledged that he may not have been in Cambodia on Christmas Eve of 1968, as he has previously stated. The campaign says Kerry does recall being on patrol along the Cambodia-Vietnam border on that date, although it's unclear if he crossed into Cambodia.
Referring to the tape of the Oval Office meeting with Nixon, O'Neill criticized Kerry for making claims, including in the Senate, that he was in Cambodia.
"I've never represented on the floor of the Senate, or told people 50 times like John Kerry did that I was in Cambodia. That never happened. And I don't think he was ever there either," O'Neill said.
The snippet of taped conversation surfaced after more than a week of controversy surrounding claims that Kerry lied about his actions in a war in which he won five military medals. The Democrat and his allies have vigorously attacked such claims as a smear, laboring to undermine the charges as well as cast doubt on the men who are making them.
For his part, Kerry accused the swift boat group of being a "front group" that was doing Bush's dirty work.
The Bush campaign denies any involvement with Swift Boat Veterans for Truth.
Oh, I dunno... what we strongly suspected during the Reagan years has become blatant in the Bush years--the mainstream media is solidy Democratic and any pretense of professionalism is perfunctory when the chips are really on the line. Kerry has all the credentials he needs in his ABB degree--Anybody But Bush. The editors, producers, and writers in the lamestream media will not let him down, when you can bet that almost to a person they are personally invested in seeing Bush out of office.
Of course, in classic projection, the more blatantly partisan they get, the more they will denounce Fox News, talk radio, bloggers, and Drudge.
BTW, what was the question asked of O'Neill to which he responded?
I suspect that O'Neill was posted to a border patrol after Kerry left.
There's just a couple of itsy bitsy things the mainstream media doesn't get..... JOHN O'NEIL IS NOT RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT!!! JOHN O'NEIL DID NOT USE HIS CAMBODIA STATEMENT FOR ANY SORT OF CAREER OR PERSONAL ADVANCEMENT!!!
That is all.
The real question to ask..........Did he show Nixon his lucky hat?
August of 2004 will be remembered as The Great Unmasking---the ultimate incontrovertible confirmation of the MSM partisan agenda.
"Chad Clanton, a spokesman for the Democratic presidential candidate,"
Nice try, Chadboy, spokesman number what is it, 35? 40? Don't quit your day job, if you have one.
Don't worry about it. Every time they accuse any of the Swifties of anything, it picks that scab open again!!! The media, trying to carry Frenchie's water, are absolutely killing him with these stories!!! Way to go you idiots in the media!
Nothing coming thru at all, other than the stink of flop sweat.
"I think I made it very clear that I was on the border, which is exactly where I was for three months. I was about 100 yards from Cambodia," O'Neill said in clarifying the June 16, 1971, conversation with Nixon.
From what I understand, it is clear from the tape that O'Neil and Nixon were refering to the Cambodian border region, not actually going inside Cambodia. Stripped of all context, it looks shady, but even a cursory examination shows it not to be anything interesting. Once again, the media is inventing news.
This is reminiscient of the 'Facts are stupid things' quote, where Reagan's following clarification was ignored, and the press ran with the original misstatement ad naseum.
Anyone think Kerry will be asked about his voting record, at some point?
O'Neill was asked about this and said he was talking about a time after Kerry left in a place outside the delta in the open ocean off the south coast of Vietnam. Apples and Oranges.
Actually I heard about this earlier (either today or yesterday; too many dead brain cells to recall exactly when). Sorry about the harsh tone in my earlier post.
You are no journalist, reporter, nor anything worthwhile except a RAT HACK who needs to discover first hand the ins and outs of the unemployment line!
Actually the "campaign" floated the idea that he was in Cambodia on another date too. Anyway, the reporter is disingenuous in relying on the "campaign" rather than requesting access to all relevant records.
If we actually knew what Kerry's military service records said we would know what was in error, wouldn't we?
For some reason Kerry doesn't want to release the records. I wonder why.
They are talking in an echo chamber, and they think they are convincing.
Normal people hear what O'Neill said, and they get it. They hear what Kerry said, and they get that too. They know what Kerry did when he got home, and they get that too.
O'Neill is solid, he is honest as the day is long, his story doesn't waver, and people can see him stating his case calmly while his attackers are beyond hysterical.
Kerry is toast. If they are down to slicing and dicing O'Neill's words to produce a falsehood where there isn't one, then they are over. Someone needs to tell them, gently, or else we will tell them less gently a couple of months from now.
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