Posted on 06/22/2008 11:27:28 AM PDT by neverdem
For most people, “Swift boat” has become a political verb, a synonym for the kind of attack that helped destroy the presidential campaign of Senator John Kerry in 2004.
But for a group of Vietnam veterans at the center of the attacks, it is still a fresh fight.
On Friday, the group, who served with Mr. Kerry in Vietnam, sent a letter to T. Boone Pickens, the billionaire Texas oilman who helped finance the 2004 attack advertisements, taking him up on a challenge he issued last November: that he would give $1 million to anyone who could disprove a single charge the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth made against Mr. Kerry.
The letter-writers served alongside Mr. Kerry during the events that the Swift boat group insisted he had embellished or made up to win his military decorations.
Identifying themselves as “patriotic, concerned veterans” they say the accusations of the Swift boat group damaged their reputations and deeply affected their families, “tarnished the sacrifices we made, called into question the medals we were awarded and challenged the very authenticity of our service.”
The group is working with Mr. Kerry, who himself seized on the challenge soon after Mr. Pickens made it at an American Spectator dinner. In a letter, he offered to meet with Mr. Pickens to rebut the charges. Mr. Pickens wrote back to say that he was good for his money, but that Mr. Kerry would have to provide his military record, the journal he kept in Vietnam and movies and tapes made in his tours there.
Mr. Pickens also qualified his challenge, saying he meant that someone would have to prove false things in the group’s television advertisements — putting aside a best-selling book and extensive news media interviews that attracted the bulk of the attention. He challenged...
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
The DD-214 is a Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty. I have a DD-214 from when I was released from Active duty, but not one from my transfer to the retired reserve. (w/o enough good years to be entitled to retired pay or benefits)
If Kerry got in trouble over his activities in Gay Paris *after* his release from active duty, but while still in the inactive reserve, it won't show up on his original DD-214. His purple hearts would of course, but not the original citations, just the information that he'd gotten them... somehow or another.
Study Finds Little Benefit in New SAT
Toddlers to be taught about human rights
From time to time, I’ll ping on noteworthy articles about politics, foreign and military affairs. FReepmail me if you want on or off my list.
According to last week’s Newsweek, ‘unnamed sources’ close to Kerry say he wants to be Obama’s Sec. of State. Words fail.
Yes, you are. Maybe you don't understand what I am saying.
It was this anomalous PH, "earned" before he joined CD 11 but "claimed" and "awarded" afterwards, that gave him his ticket home. I.e., Kerry's Purple Hearts were not awarded in the same sequence in which he was wounded.
According to his PH award certificates and transmittal letters, Kerry received his first PH [CD 14 training mission--Dec 2, 1968] on Feb 28, 1969. His second PH for wounds received on Feb 20, 1969 was awarded on March 5, 1969 and the third PH for wounds on March 13, 1969 was awarded April 17, 1969. The bottom line is that they were awarded in sequence, but the first PH was awarded almost three months after the event.
There is an overlap between the second PH event on Feb 20 and when Kerry received official authorization on Feb 28 for the first PH. I find it dubious that Kerry could have initiated the paperwork for the first PH after Feb 20 and got it approved by Feb 28. That said, we really do need to see the documentation on how he was awarded the first PH. There are many questions, especially the fact that no after action report was ever filed.
Hence the need to have revised to honorable in 1986. Interesting how the signing authority (Sec. Lehman? [memory]) doesn’t remember signing.
Good point spookie.
Thanks for the ping!
Nonetheless, as you point out, there are questions...
Today, Newt Gingrich brought back the smear that the Swiftboat Veterans are liars. It’s disgusting a Republican would take Kerry’s side and insult veterans. He needs to be challenged just as much as Kerry was.
Etiam non princeps sed usque ad genua, Principis Pacis!
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.