Posted on 08/20/2004 10:23:10 AM PDT by GulliverSwift
BOSTON -- Democratic presidential candidate John F. Kerry on Thursday lashed back for the first time against a group of Vietnam veterans critical of his wartime service, accusing them of doing President Bush's "dirty work" and suggesting that he, in turn, will challenge Bush's military record.
Two weeks after the veterans launched a television ad questioning Kerry's actions in Vietnam, the back-and-forth over the former Navy lieutenant's record enveloped the campaign, as new records undercut the credibility of one of his critics.
During a speech to several thousand firefighters, Kerry directly challenged allegations by the group, Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, that he concocted his wartime injuries for political gain.
"More than 30 years ago, I learned an important lesson -- when you're under attack, the best thing to do is turn your boat into the attacker. That's what I intend to do today ...," he told members of the International Association of Fire Fighters.
"Thirty years ago, official Navy reports and every person there documented my service in Vietnam and awarded me the Silver Star, the Bronze Star and three Purple Hearts. Thirty years ago, this was the plain truth. It still is. And I still carry the shrapnel in my leg from a wound in Vietnam."
Kerry's angry response Thursday marks an abrupt shift in strategy for the candidate, who had let surrogates address the accusations. Not only did the Massachusetts senator strike back personally, his campaign produced a new television ad defending his service, a slew of military records and a clutch of fellow veterans to testify to his actions.
The Swift boat group had run a 30-second television ad in three battleground states challenging the basis of Kerry's war record, saying he lied about his experiences, didn't deserve his medals and betrayed fellow servicemen by protesting the war after returning to the U.S. Though limited in its initial reach, the ad quickly gathered steam as a point of debate on websites, talk shows and cable television.
The campaign's full-front attack Thursday amounted to recognition that the anti-Kerry group's accusations could tarnish one of the candidate's greatest assets -- his decorated military service.
The attacks may have already hurt. According to a new poll by CBS News, Kerry has lost ground among veterans since the Democratic National Convention, when he ran neck-in-neck with Bush among those voters. Now, the president has an 18-point lead in that group, according to the poll, which surveyed 1,009 adults nationwide.
Meanwhile, newly released military records Thursday contradicted an account given by Larry Thurlow, a Swift boat group veteran who disputes that Kerry came under fire during a 1969 mission on the Bay Hap River. The candidate won a Bronze Star for his actions that day, when he fished a Green Beret officer out of the water.
A document recommending Thurlow for a Bronze Star said that his boat, along with Kerry's and three others, fielded constant bullets that day, according to The Washington Post. Thurlow insisted Thursday that the records were based on Kerry's account; he maintained his contention that Kerry lied about enemy fire.
None of the men in the Swift boat group, including Thurlow, actually served in Kerry's patrol boat during the war. A Los Angeles Times review of their accusations found that, in addition to Thurlow, other members also have given contradictory accounts of incidents and offered evidence of Kerry's alleged wrongdoing based on memories of events that they say they witnessed from a boat or two away.
Military documents and accounts of crewmates who actually served with Kerry support the view put forth by the candidate and his campaign -- that he acted courageously and came by his five medals honestly.
McCoy Motors
But the Swift boat group is standing by its account of events. It announced Thursday that it would unveil a new ad Friday. Spokesman Mike Russell declined to describe its content, or say where it will be aired.
Kerry, in his speech to firefighters, noted that Robert J. Perry, a Texas developer and longtime contributor to Bush, has given the group $200,000. Harlan Crow of Dallas, CEO of Crow Holdings and the controlling shareholder of Trammel Crow Company, the nation's largest commercial real estate firm, gave the group $25,000 on May 10.
The anti-Kerry ad aired in Wisconsin, Ohio and West Virginia from Aug. 5-12.
"They're a front for the Bush campaign," Kerry said. "And the fact that the president won't denounce what they're up to tells you everything that you need to know -- he wants them to do his dirty work."
Kerry suggested that he will challenge Bush's own service record in the Texas Air Guard, signaling an intensely personal turn in the debate over the candidates' wartime credentials.
"The president keeps telling people he would never question my service to our country," he said. "Instead, he watches as a Republican-funded attack group does just that. Well, if he wants to have a debate about our service in Vietnam, here is my answer: 'Bring it on!'"
Bush's re-election campaign denied the president is backing the Swift boat group, but Bush, the White House and the campaign again declined to denounce the ad.
"Sen. Kerry knows President Bush has called his service in Vietnam noble," said spokesman Steve Schmidt, adding that Bush has also called for an end to campaign advertising by independent groups.
Russell also flatly denied that the organization is supported by the Bush campaign, describing Kerry's comments predictable.
"We know the laws, and we abide by them," said Russell, noting that the group is an independent committee.
Initially, Kerry was inclined to ignore the group and its ad. When the Swift boat group's ad was released, he was in the middle of a post-convention, cross-country campaign swing, and aides said he did not want to give his critics more attention by responding directly.
But the anti-Kerry veterans -- and their challenge of Kerry's credibility -- continued to gain notice. The group has raised $450,000 in donations from more than 10,000 contributors since the ad debuted, largely through the group's Web site.
Meanwhile, some of Kerry's fellow veterans urged David Thorne, one of his closest friends and advisers, to persuade the candidate to respond more forcefully.
"I think every veteran familiar with the situation who heard what was running around was enraged," said Paul Nace, a longtime friend who served with Kerry in the Navy. "And so I think all of us wanted the campaign to get John and everybody else to respond."
Kerry reversed course Wednesday night after arriving in Boston from a campaign trip to Cincinnati. As his motorcade pulled up to his Beacon Hill townhouse, he asked senior adviser David Morehouse, communications direction Stephanie Cutter and press secretary David Wade to come inside.
With campaign manager Mary Beth Cahill on the phone, Kerry told his aides, "I think it's time to go at this."
Aides hired a delivery service to drive through the night from Washington to Boston with thick, bound copies of Kerry's Naval record to distribute to reporters traveling with the candidate.
The campaign cut a new commercial overnight that features former Green Beret Jim Rassmann testifying about how Kerry pulled him from the river in the middle of a firefight.
The ad is set to air Friday in Ohio, West Virginia and Wisconsin -- the same states where the Swift boat group showed its commercial. In airing it, the campaign reversed a decision to hold off on new television commercials until September.
Meanwhile, the campaign has hired Joe Lockhart, a Clinton White House spokesman, and Joel Johnson, a lobbyist who also worked for Clinton, to help field incoming attacks.
Cutter said that if charges about his service continue, Kerry will "talk comparatively" about his military record and that of Bush, who has been shadowed by questions about whether he fulfilled his required service while in the Texas Air Guard.
Kerry has reversed himself several times on whether he feels it's appropriate to go after Bush's military service.
In February, when other Democrats demanded that Bush release his military records, Kerry said he would not pursue such a line of attack. Then in late April, when critics accused Kerry of lying about throwing his war medals away during a war protest, he fired back by charging that Bush could not account for all his time in the National Guard.
But earlier this week, Kerry condemned an ad by one of his allies that accused Bush of using family connections to avoid military service as "inappropriate" -- even as some of his surrogates repeated the ad's charges in a press conference arranged by the campaign.
On Thursday, the candidate took a different tack, saying he learned the lesson to fight back when attacked."I'm not going to let anyone question my commitment to defending America -- then, now, or ever," he said.
I just get the feeling that we're seeing the beginning of one of the biggest political meltdowns in our history.
So what? Bush has no war record. He's been up front and honest about that. He served in the NG and got an honorable discharge. He said he honored Kerrys service and would not and has not challenged it. Fellow vets are. Not Bush.
Bush's take on this will no doubt be that he's not here to discuss JF'nK's war record, nor his own -- a topic which has already been run into the ground, and all accusations found baseless. He's here to talk about the events of today, and ... [insert details here].
Bush will also make excellent headway by pointing out that JF'nK has actually supported most of his policies in the past, before he stopped supporting them for this campaign. He can paint JF'nK as the feckless, opportunistic, jackass that he is.
Kerry will get shredded.
Once he begins attacking the president about his service record, that opens up Kerry's record to further scrutiny by the MSM - they would really have no choice. Right now, the media can largly ignore the controversy because neither of the candidates have really been talking about it - it's been independent groups... But now...
Kerry is going to take it to a whole new level, and I have a funny feeling he may regret it very shortly...
Ah yes. Bush needs to have a "no comment" policy on the Swift Boat ads. Let Kerry take the personal initiative to launch attacks on W's war record. He's only digging it deeper and deeper and deeper...
ROFLMAO..... That is priceless
Kerry's the one who brought up his wartime service, and he's ticked because his serviec has been proven to be a fraud.
"More than 30 years ago, I learned an important lesson -- when you're under attack, the best thing to do is turn your boat into the attacker. That's what I intend to do today ...,"
as soon as I make sure one of my crewmen has the old Super-8 camera locked and loaded.
That a Boy F'n, be sure to piss off all the people serving in the National Guard. Somebody needs to tell this pompous elitist that he needs to put down the shovel and back away from the hole.
GWB doesn't have a war record, and he's never pretended otherwise. Kerry misses the point-it's not the record-it's the lies.
Freakin brilliant (as always).
Is that available on a T shirt? I want one if it is.
Yeah - Kerry is like one of those spoiled rock stars that no one ever says "No!" to ;0)
Kerry Kool-Aid: It changes flavors between sips.
Ooh! Good one!!!
Excuse me...Kerry already has gone after the President's service. President Bush has released all information due to the hounding by the press. John Kerry hasn't released his records ...I wonder why? Let's see, instead of disputing this ad factually (maybe he can't because it's true), Kerry intends to attack the President...who has nothing to do with this ad. Kerry you are a typical Dem liar and a loser (also a clymer-big time).
First of all these 527 groups have the right to free speech.
While your crying about the swift boat men, go ahead and denounce your DNC back Michael Moore, moveon, and other socialist funded groups.
Mr. Poodle you can't have it both ways.
How much longer is this delay going to be? Seems like Superlib, John F'n Kerry would rather spend another month or so debating military histories while devoting a scant week or two on John F'n Kerry's real achilles heel, those 19 years in the senate he spent sucking off the public tit. Now he wants to waste time in a backhanded way saying National Guard service isn't real service. Because that's exactly what he thinks but won't say it directly.
-Jazhawk
I propose a duel. Kerry and Bush both fly F102s and fight to the death. The winner is president.
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