Posted on 09/30/2007 1:28:52 PM PDT by Fedora
”His boat took 188 enemy hits”: Another Kerry Swift Boat story surfaces
By Fedora
During the 2004 campaign, John Kerry faced a firestorm of controversy over the events surrounding the awarding of his third Purple Heart and his Bronze Star. One inconsistency investigators noticed was that although military documents described Kerry’s Swift Boat team as facing “about 5000 meters” of enemy fire while travelling down a 75-yard-wide stretch of the Bay Hap River, there was no record of any bullet damage to craft or crew. Not publicized in 2004 was another discrepancy magnifying this issue: while Kerry was making his first Congressional run in fall 1972, newspapers around the country ran stories by reporter Tom Tiede claiming that Kerry’s boat “took 188 enemy hits”.
On October 25, 1972, page 18D of the Burlington, North Carolina Times-News carried an article by Tiede titled “John F. Kerry. . .The Candidate Who’s Got It All Going” which stated:
Kerry, you'll recall, is the thrice-wounded Vietnam naval veteran (his boat took 188 enemy hits) who brought GIs to the front lines of antiwar battle in 1969.
Versions of Tiede’s article echoing this “188 enemy hits” claim appeared in the Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune on October 25, 1972, in the Danville, Virginia Register on October 26, 1972, and in the Uniontown, Pennsylvania Evening Standard on November 1, 1972.
Declassified military records of the incident in question make no reference to these “188 enemy hits”, and what is recorded raises questions about how this story got started.
The incident involved five Swift Boats, which had moved near the Bay Hap River’s banks to maneuver around a fishing weir. Moving along the left side of the river was PCF-3 under Lieutenant Dick Pees, followed by PCF-23 under Lieutenant Jack Chenoweth. On the right side were PCF-94 under Kerry’s command and PCF-43 under Lieutenant Donald Droz. Trailing behind both pairs of boats near the center of the river was PCF-51 under Lieutenant Larry Thurlow, the patrol’s mission commander. Also travelling with the patrol were members of a Special Forces team.
As the boats were passing the weir, a mine went off. Discrepancies surround what damage was caused by the explosion, as well as whether or not the explosion was followed by enemy fire.
The Naval paperwork on the incident was probably filed by Kerry, judging by Kerry’s 1971 Senate testimony and the recollection of other Swift Boat veterans. Additional paperwork for Special Forces was probably filed by Lieutenant James Rassmann, who often performed this duty for his unit.
The after-action report released during the 2004 campaign describes a mine going off “UNDER PCF-3” and “CLOSE ABOARD PCF-94”. Elsewhere it states, “MINE DETONATED UNDER PCF-3. . .TWO OTHER MINE EXPLOSIONS”. However, the boat damage report lists no damage to PCF-3 but severe damage to PCF-94, which is described as having its wiring, generator, steering, and bilge pump in inoperable condition. Yet despite describing PCF-94 as being in this condition, the report states that “94 TOWED PCF 3 AS BUCKET BRIGADE CONTROLLED FLOODING”.
The after-action report describes mine explosion injuries to several crew members of PCF-3, but Kerry is the only one on PCF-94 listed with mine explosion injuries. There are no descriptions of bullet damage to any craft or crew.
The after-action report and casualty report state that “KERRY SUFFERED SHRAPNEL WOUNDS IN HIS LEFT BUTTOCKS AND CONTUSIONS ON HIS RIGHT FOREARM WHEN A MINE DETONATED CLOSE ABOARD PCF-94”. The after-action report characterizes Kerry’s right forearm injury as “MINOR”. The recommendation for Kerry’s Bronze Star--submitted by Kerry’s commanding officer Lieutenant Commander George Elliott and citing as an eyewitness Kerry’s second-in-command Del Sandusky--elaborates that a mine “detonated close aboard PCF-94, knocking 1st LT RASSMAN into the water and wounding LTJG KERRY in the right arm. . .LTJG KERRY. . .managed to pull LT RASSMAN aboard despite the painful wound in his right arm.” Kerry’s Bronze Star citation, originally written by Admiral Elmo Zumwalt and later revised under Secretary of the Navy John Lehman’s signature, substitutes for the above-mentioned contusions the detail that Kerry’s arm was “bleeding”.
However Kerry’s contemporary war journal, cited in a 2004 biography by Douglas Brinkley, indicates that his shrapnel injury actually came from an earlier rice-bin explosion, not the mine explosion. Prior to the mine explosion, Kerry’s Swift Boat team had assisted its Special Forces counterparts in clearing a village suspected of harboring Viet Cong. While the Green Berets were blowing up rice bins, “I got a piece of small grenade in my ass from one of the rice bin explosions,” Kerry recorded.
Eyewitness accounts help explain some of the other discrepancies surrounding Kerry’s injuries. James Rassmann told the Boston Globe on August 6, 2004 that it was his understanding that Kerry’s arm wound was caused by the mine explosion throwing Kerry into his boat’s pilot house. Two witnesses to Kerry’s arm injury, Van Odell and Jack Chenoweth, contend that Kerry’s arm was not bleeding. This is consistent with the after-action and casualty reports’ characterization of Kerry’s arm injury as “contusions”. If Kerry’s arm had been hit by a bullet, it seems likely he would have suffered bleeding rather than contusions. This may suggest that later paperwork revisions characterizing his arm as “bleeding” were an attempt to reconcile his wound with the claim that his injury was caused by gunfire.
Discrepancies surrounding the mine explosion and resulting boat damage remain to be explained. Kerry and Rassmann gave inconsistent accounts about which boat was over the mine when it went off, contradicting other eyewitnesses and compounding the confusion in the documentary record.
In a eulogy for Swift Boat gunner Tom Belodeau in 1997, Kerry recalled that it was a mine exploding under his own boat which knocked a Green Beret overboard. But Brinkley’s 2004 biography recorded Kerry’s recollection that when Rassmann fell overboard he was sitting on another boat across the river, PCF-3. A Kerry campaign press release from January 17, 2004 introduced Rassmann as “traveling down the Bay Hap river in a boat behind Kerry’s when both were ambushed by exploding land mines and enemy fire coming from the shore.” However when Rassmann spoke to the Democratic National Convention in July 2004, he described his memory of eating a cookie on Kerry’s boat when a mine knocked him into the water.
At least four witnesses from other boats only recalled a mine going off under PCF-3, not under Kerry’s boat. In interviews PCF-3 skipper Dick Pees recalled sitting in his disabled boat, and PCF-23 skipper Jack Chenoweth recalled having to slam his engines into reverse to avoid running into PCF-3. PCF-23 gunner Van Odell and mission commander Larry Thurlow supported this account of the incident.
Witnesses were divided over whether there was hostile gunfire or rocket fire. Most of Kerry’s crewmates, two witnesses from other boats, and Rassmann recalled what they interpreted as hostile fire. At least ten witnesses from other boats disputed this.
Kerry’s PCF-94 crewmates David Alston, Eugene Thorson, Michael Medeiros, and Del Sandusky recalled hostile fire, as did Rassmann. Alston was later discredited when it was demonstrated that he was not present at events he claimed to have witnessed.
PCF-43 gunner Wayne Langhofer recalled, “There was a lot of firing going on, and it came from both sides of the river.” PCF-51 crewman Robert Lambert also interpreted bullets he saw striking the water as coming from hostile fire.
However, Pees, Thurlow, Chenoweth, Odell, PCF-43 gunner Robert Hornberger, and others present recalled no hostile fire. Odell elaborated,
As the 3 boat passed the weir on the narrowest part of the river it was hit by a mine, which lifted it completely out of the water. I immediately began firing my twin 50’s towards river left to suppress any fire. I fired a couple of hundred rounds and realized we were not receiving any return fire from either bank. The other boats quit firing and we commenced rescue operations for the PCF-3 crew and boat. WE DID NOT RECEIVE ANY FIRE FROM EITHER BANK. Our boat picked up members of the disabled PCF-3.
Others present similarly recalled firing at the banks but observing no return fire.
Some witnesses reported that after the mine went off, Kerry’s boat accelerated ahead out of the kill zone for a few minutes before returning. This would have meant the other boats were shooting at the banks from behind Kerry’s boat as it sped away, which may help account for the difference in perception between Kerry’s crew members and other witnesses. Likewise, it is easy to see how Rassmann and Lambert could have interpreted the Swift Boat team’s precautionary fire as enemy fire.
But whether there was enemy fire or not, it is difficult to conceive how Kerry could have pulled Rassmann out of the water while his boat was sustaining 188 enemy hits, or how his boat could have sustained 188 hits without suffering any recorded bullet damage, or how his boat could have helped tow PCF-3 after sustaining 188 hits. And it may be difficult for Kerry to explain why no reference to these 188 hits appeared in military records predating publicity for his 1972 Congressional campaign.
LOL! I believe that occurred just before Kerry torpedoed an enemy battleship singlehandedly by swimming at it full-speed. He then rescued Aquaman from drowning before going on to his secret CIA mission in Cambodia. The real reason he was there for Christmas was that by posing as Santa, he was able to infiltrate numerous Cambodian Communist homes, leaving bombs under the trees. He then stealthily returned to Vietnam, swimming across a piranha-infested river under a moonless sky. The piranhas had been imported from the Amazon for special effects purposes to shoot Kerry’s documentary re-enactment of the incident, coming soon to a theater near you. Disclaimer: some things depicted in this documentary may not have actually happened. Shot on location in Massachusetts.
Forging a Paper Hero: The Mystery of Kerry’s Medals
Paperless Archives was also selling a CD with Kerry's military files on it along with the first 11 FBI VVAW files, which may still be available.
Thanks. It would’ve been news to the crew of PCF-3 that they were evacuating from the area in their disabled boat.
This is the World of Commander McBragg
Your hair will curl in the World of McBragg.
He fights monsters galore
And then asks for still more
Or so says the brag of McBragg. . .
I try to give even a despicable, self aggrandizing, seditious, back stabbing, lying, thing like Hanoi John the benefit of the doubt, there is another possible scenario:
Hanoi John is into full “War Hero” mode while having drinks with the reporter. He’s kicked back and reminisces. The reporter is gazing at him with admiration. With every drink and every “Oh Wow” from the reporter the stories get stretched even further. His self inflicted booboo at Camrahn Bay wasn’t the result of his ignorance but the result of intense enemy action. The self inflicted wound down in the Delta caused by a few grains of rice hitting his butt become an intense enemy action. More drinks, more exclamations of awe from the reporter ...
He had to change his shorts 22 times every mission?
The .22 short sub sonic round is preferred by most professional assassins, but it has little penetration. Even a .22 LR minimag would have a difficult time penetrating 1/4” aluminum.
Well, when he tossed that grenade in the pile of rise he did pick up some rice grains in his butt. Maybe they shattered?
See post 125.
does just fine on possum, and armadillo and a skull.
Yes, on both accounts. The USN would not have approved the issuance of the PH without that documentation. It has to be in Kerry's file. I say that as a former naval officer. The data was obviously fabricated not only based on Hibbard's statements, but also, those of Adm. William Schachte who was on the skimmer with Kerry and was the senior officer present and Dr. Letson who treated him.
Kerry has not authorized the release of that information because it could probably raise more questions than it would answer.
You need both and you can't put yourself in for a PH. There has to be a paper trail. Dr. Letson treated Kerry. I don't know who wrote the medical treatment report, Dr. Letson or the corpsman present at the time. Very rarely are such reports written long after treatment. It is done contemperaneously. If Kerry shopped around for a phony report, then that would have a name on it. The point is that Kerry has not released any documentation on the first PH except the certificate. On the other two PHs, he released the after-action reports. A medical report alone is not sufficient. You have to document the injury came from hostile fire. Max Cleland was not entitled to a PH despite being a triple amputee.
From Unfit for Command: pp. 38-39
Q. How did Kerry get a Purple Heart from the incident then?
Grant Hibbard. I don't know. It beats me. I know I didn't recommend him for a Purple Heart. Kerry probably wrote up the paperwork and recommended himself, that's all I can figure out. If it ever came across my desk, I don't have any recollection of it. Kerry didn't get my signature. I said "no way" and told him to get out of my office.
"Amazingly, Kerry somehow "gamed the system" nearly three months later to obtain the Purple Heart that Hibbard had denied. How he obtained the award is unknown, since his refusal to execute Standard Form 180 means that whatever documents exist are known only to Kerry, the Department of Defense, and God. It is clear that there should be numerous other documents, but only a treatment record reflecting a scratch and a certificate signed three months later have been produced. There is, of course, no "after action" hostile fire or casualty report, as occurred in the case of every other instance of hostile fire or casualty. This is because there was no hostile fire, casualty, or action on this "most frightening night" of Kerry's Vietnam experience. Dr Louis Letson agreed with Grant Hibbard. Kerry's injury was minor and probably self-inflicted."
Assuming that to be the case and also assuming, I'm afraid, that the information wasn't somehow purged from Kerry's records, barring full public disclosure with the execution of a new SF 180 by Kerry (which ain't gonna happen), there appears to be only one avenue of approach open to possibly shedding some light on this issue, at least in the short term...interrogatories of the 3 recipients named in Kerry's SF 180 release.
This would have to be done quite publicly by a reporter, news organization or media entity whose query could withstand the ensuing avalanche of opprobrium from Kerry and the left. Michael Dobbs of the Washington Post or Tim Russert come immediately to mind but I doubt a "Profiles in Courage" award will be headed their way anytime soon in that regard. However, Jeff Beatty's campaign for Kerry's senate seat might offer an opportunity for some Massachusetts media entity to pick up the gauntlet. Howie Carr, call your office.
I would rule out that Kerry's records have been purged. The USN would not allow it and I doubt that it could be done without anyone noticing or reporting it. Moreover, "missing records" would raise more questions.
I seriously doubt that the three MSM reporters who were allowed access would agree to be grilled by anyone. They were selected because of their affinity for Kerry. I agree that Jeff Beatty could and should make this an issue in the 2008 campaign.
Kerry will cry that he is being "swiftboated" again, but Beatty represents the kind of challenger Kerry fears most. Historically, Kerry has always pulled the "war hero" card against his Rep opponents who never even served. Hence their fear of raising anything questioning Kerry's war record or his subsequent anti-war activities including meeting with the Vietnamese communists twice in Paris while still a member of the USNR.
Jeff Beatty is a decorated veteran and Purple Heart recipient. He is the first person to have served with 3 of our most elite Anti-terrorism Units. He was a Delta Force Officer in the first Blackhawk shot down. He was a Special Agent of the FBI, advising the FBI National Hostage Rescue Team and he was a CIA Counter-terrorism Officer with half a dozen years of service, mostly in Europe and the Middle East running successful operations against terrorists and nations hostile to the United States.
Kerry fears any opponent with this kind of resume. That said, for a Rep to win in MA is going to take a small miracle. If the information on Kerry's first PH could be found, it might prove to be the "magic bullet" to take him down once and for all.
I'd suggest that, in itself, would be noteworthy and eminently exploitable.
Yep. Here are some of the key articles:
You do good work.
Thanks!
I can already picture an ad...Beatty's citation along with the documentation and Kerry's citation with...?????.
I give Tiede the benefit of the doubt because he was a seasoned reporter and not running for office, in contrast to Kerry who was running for office and had a known history of making exaggerated claims prior to this. The principle of giving the benefit of the doubt does apply where there is doubt, but with Kerry there is no doubt that for some years prior to this he had been trumping up his military credentials in order to shape his political image, so with Kerry the operant principle is, “Fool me twice, shame on me.” Also, again, I don’t see why Tiede would randomly pick the number “188” unless Kerry volunteered it. Finally, I did not post Tiede’s article as a whole for copyright and readability reasons, but it includes several direct quotes from Kerry, and it sounds like it is drawing from Kerry campaign material. Its main focus is on Kerry/JFK comparisons, which are developed extensively in order to portray Kerry as a future Presidential candidate. It only touches on Kerry’s military record enough to sketch a portrait of him against that background. It only makes two brief mentions of Kerry’s medals—the passage I quoted, and an allusion to Kerry returning his Silver Star at Dewey Canyon III (”He became a new kind of hero—-a man who won Silver Star for bravery and then gave it back to the government out of resentment for its occasion.”). It doesn’t sound like Tiede had any specific or extensive discussion with Kerry about his medals.
It’s a fine varmint round, but when the varmint is behind 1/4 inch aluminum ...
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