Posted on 12/17/2004 9:38:15 PM PST by freespirited
The Houston telephone book lists more than 16,000 lawyers, some clearly more famous than others. Very few – perhaps only one – can credibly claim to have helped pull the hand brake on a presidential campaign.
John O'Neill had his day on the national stage 33 years ago, but this year he emerged from the weeds of his comfortable anonymity because of a burning belief that John Kerry would make an awful commander in chief – and had to be stopped.
In February, Mr. O'Neill rallied more than 200 fellow Vietnam vets to form Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, one of the independent political groups known as 527s made possible by campaign finance reform. . . .
Mr. O'Neill was no stranger to the argument. He had debated Mr. Kerry in 1971 on national television. More than three decades later, with his old nemesis running for president, major newspapers and networks mostly ignored Mr. O'Neill for months, until his anti-Kerry broadside Unfit for Command stormed the best-seller list. So huge was the Swifties' impact that traditional media grudgingly picked up the story, if only to challenge their claims.
But the fog of political warfare they generated never quite dissipated. Mr. Kerry, a Navy vet, made his military service the centerpiece of his campaign, but the Swiftie assault stopped the Democrat's momentum cold. Mr. Kerry never fully regained his offensive footing.
Love him or hate him, Mr. O'Neill turned a presidential election on its ear. For his drive, vision and influence, we name him a 2004 finalist for The Dallas Morning News Texan of the Year.
(Excerpt) Read more at dallasnews.com ...
Thanks for that info. Bless these fine Democrats for all of us hopefully are AMERICANs First and PARTY second. I have no problem with Democrats that care about this country, and put our country FIRST. In theory, we probably have many similar philosophies to Patterson & O'Neill. They both are brave men for going against the leftists who call themselves Democrats.
I never forget that Jim Rob was a Democrat also. LOL.
In Texas, one way you can tell party affiliation is how one votes in the primary election. Otherwise there's no method for knowing. We just don't register in a party, unless we are active in party business, such as being a precinct chairman, etc. Then we have to declare our affiliation by having voted in the primary.
Thanks for the link to "Dereliction of Duty" I must purchase it. I suppose he had to be a Democrat to carry Clinton's football and spend so much time with him. How interesting. It's nice to know there are decent Dems around. They are Zell Millers. :-)
Hope to see you when you come this way w/JimRob.
Kerry won't sue O'Neil. Gary Condit won't sue Dominick Dunne.
Kerry won't sue O'Neil. Gary Condit won't sue Dominick Dunne.
Here's my vote too.
Nice post.
Thanks.
To read the latest on the Franchurian Candidate's bizzare exploits, click the picture, goto "last," and work backwards:
If you would like to help the Swift Boat Vets ( as I have, and I urge all to do-- even a few dollars will help ) kindly click on this logo:
Take a look at these short video clips, especially the last one. You will walk away with a heavy heart.
"I do think he has said he is a registered democrat. But I could be wrong.
And Mr. O'Neills's comment to Kerry vis a vis a lawsuit, Bring it On.
LOL, discovery would be revealing."
____________________________________________________________
That's what did it for me. If O'Neill had not been telling the truth then Kerry should have had it out with him in court as soon as the SwiftVets spoke up. But the Kerry team would do anything EXCEPT that.
It was truly amazing to watch him and his fellow swifties handle their many interviews. Just watching the likes of Carville, Podesta and Chrissy Matthews spew foam and imprecations while they maintained their dignity and their aim had to have convinced many fence-sitters that there must have been something to what they said.
Here's mine: Thank you, thank you Swiftboat Veterans!
Here's mine: Thank you, thank you Swiftboat Veterans!
If KBH doesn't run for re-election..how about O'Neill for the Senate..the image of O'Neill and Kerry on the floor together would be priceless..
Conservative? I doubt it. He repeatedly said he would have voted for Edwards, the fourth most liberal in the Senate who is a trial lawyer and ran on a class warfare theme. Doesn't sound conservative at all.
Nevertheless, as a conservative, I feel indebted to him.
It's a hangover from the old days when whoever won the Dem primary was certain to win the general election. So, everyone voted in the primary. Then became Dem or Rep in the general election for party positions such as chairman, national convention delegates and other things.
When you go to vote now, all names are in one book at your precinct/polling place, and you sign as having appeared. You then choose which primary you wish to vote in and that is it.
Absentee/early voting is kept track of by computer, or even manually in the less populated counties, and reflects whether you have or have not yet voted in a particular election.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.