A question of character

The American Thinker ^ | Nov. 21, 2004 | David Isaac

[Kitten Festival]

Pundits have cast around for the reasons behind President Bush’s remarkable victory. Some have seized on moral values, or a poorly run Democratic campaign, even Kerry’s personality. One cause most overlooked in the mainstream media is a small group of Vietnam veterans, a bunch of political amateurs, the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, who redefined the central issue of the election.

The Swifties, as they call themselves, made the election a referendum on character. Their ads, and best-selling book Unfit for Command, said that Senator Kerry is a man who lacks the character to be Commander-in-Chief. He gamed the system to win medals under false pretenses, lied about aspects of his service (he never spent Christmas in Cambodia) and, above all, turned on his fellow soldiers, falsely accusing them of systematically engaging in war crimes while he met twice with the enemy in Paris in time of war.

Bush’s election architect, Karl Rove, was himself surprised at the group’s impact. On Fox News Sunday, he credited them with galvanizing Republican and veteran voters. “I was really surprised how strongly men and women who had served in Vietnam and in the Armed Forces felt about that,” Rove said.

[the Real fifi]

Well, he cannot, but we can .