Posted on 07/03/2008 10:30:26 AM PDT by Interesting Times
FALLS CHURCH, Va., July 3 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As the Presidential campaign heats up, John Kerry and various members of the liberal media continue to wrongly use the term "Swiftboating" as a shorthand reference for false attacks on a candidate's record. Kate Zernike recently demonstrated the tactic in the New York Times:
"Swift boat" has become the synonym for the nastiest of campaign smears, a shadow that hangs over the presidential race as pundits wait to proclaim that the Swiftboating has begun and candidates declare that they will not be Swiftboated.
In To Set the Record Straight: How Swift Boat Veterans, POWs and the New Media Defeated John Kerry, authors Scott Swett and Tim Ziegler counter the implications of the "Swiftboating" meme in a heavily researched 400-page work that provides the first in-depth historical assessment of the impact of veterans on the 2004 Presidential campaign. "The 'Swiftboating' slogan is used by leftist politicians and members of the old media to smear the Swift Vets and other anti-Kerry veterans as liars. The truth is that they were effective because they supported their charges with evidence. A second goal of this tactic is to preempt any criticism of Sen. Obama and the other Democrats they are trying to elect - however accurate and relevant such criticism may be," said Scott Swett, the primary author of To Set the Record Straight.
The authors have made the book's tenth chapter available online. "An Incident on the Bay Hap River" (http://www.tosettherecordstraight.com/docs/CH10.pdf) is a complete account of the "No Man Left Behind" engagement - the centerpiece of Kerry's 2004 campaign. The event was featured at the Democratic National Convention and in millions of dollars of TV advertising. New witnesses include a former Forward Air Control pilot and the mission's Special Forces commander. The evidence overwhelmingly supports the Swift Vets' key contention: that Kerry's boat was the only one to leave the scene of a mine explosion, rather than the only one to return to rescue an officer in the river.
To Set the Record Straight is the definitive account of the ad hoc political movement that dominated the 2004 Presidential campaign. Based on hundreds of in-depth interviews with key participants and two years of meticulous research, the book tells the inside story of how a group of Vietnam veterans and their supporters delivered the explosive truth about John Kerry's military service and pro-Hanoi activism to the American public, despite the relentless efforts of old media gatekeepers to silence and discredit them.
Swett said, "In fact, John Kerry lost all the key debates in 2004. Since then, he and his supporters have tried to paper over his failure with sloganeering and empty promises of new evidence." He added, "The 2004 campaign can now be seen as a watershed in American political history, marking the first time that online forums and blogs were able to have a real impact on the national conversation. These new media outlets made it impossible for the liberal press to hide or dismiss what the veterans had to say."
"The Swift Vets have disbanded, but Kerry and the old media are trying to use the battle they lost in 2004 as a political weapon in 2008. It's revealing that when Sen. Obama's surrogates attack John McCain's military service, as they have done several times recently, that doesn't seem to qualify as 'Swiftboating'."
To Set the Record Straight is essential reading for those who care about politics, the media, current events or the U. S. military. The book can be purchased online at ToSetTheRecordStraight.com and at Amazon.
A battling-for-history ping....
well worth buying and reading.
In NewYorkTimesWorld thats what it means. In the real world, its telling an inconvenient truth about a candidate, usually one he and the NewYorkTimes have worked to keep well hidden.
It doesn't qualify under both definitions of 'Swiftboating'. To a conservative, swiftboating means to tell the truth about liberals. To a liberal, swiftboating means pretending conservatives are not telling the truth about liberals.
BTTT
IMHO, the long suffering Viet Nam vets and their families defeated Kerry.
The Swift Boat Vets brought Kerry’s dismal record and his horrific lies before congress to the forefront.
We owe all VN vets and their families a debt of gratitude but the Swift Boat Vets opened the door to the truth.
Absolutely!
Still waiting for J F’n K to collect his million dollar check from T. Boone!! (tick...tock...)
Thanks for all your hard work. In a way, I wish Obama would pick Kerry as his running mate. I kind of miss watching the legend he created about himself fall apart as the truth was revealed by the vets who were there.
I agree. All of us know what the Swift Boat Vets did. It is expected that the socialist media misinform to promote their agenda. Staying informed via alternate media is our only defense.
We'd all OD on stentorian tones.
Interesting point. I was assuming a broader definition of swiftboating -- "saying anything liberals don't like."
Me too, but I'm not sure Obama needs much help in Massachusetts. Or, for that matter, that Kerry would be much help in Massachusetts...
Dueling bullfrogs. (cue "Deliverance" theme...)
Great posting!
Scott thanks for the post and pings.
When I am around liberals trying to blame 9/11 on America, and when they try to say our Swiftboaters were liars, I stop their rants immediately.
I tell them I have no room in my life for God Damned Liberal liars.
Next time you hear somebody making noises about the Swift Vets, just hand them this.
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