Friday, August 06, 2004
Vietnam Era Comparison-- Kerry vs. Bush
The last few weeks have seen the emergence of a group of angry Vets calling themselves Swift Boat Veterans for the Truth which maintains that Kerry's war record, and the honors he received, were bogus. A TV ad to this effect was put out this week, the content of which was roundly criticized by Senator John McCain. Turns out the company that produced the ad was the same one that had created the now-infamous slanderous ad against McCain that cost him the South Carolina primary in 2000, leaving W free to claim the GOP nomination.
A book is due out next week penned by two of the organization's top folks which puts their claims into print. Beacuse of heavy coverage given this tome by such non-biased sources as Drudge and Limbaugh it has moved to No. 1 on the Amazon pre-press list. Major weight in the book is given to an affidavit signed by Kerry's former swift boat commander, Lieutenant Commander George Elliott. Elliott is quoted in the book as affirming that Kerry lied about his actions, the danger his crew and comrades were in, and the nature of his injuries. However, just today Elliott admitted making "a terrible mistake" by signing the affidavit that is such an important part of this smear campaign. He went on to say:
"(H)e regretted signing the affidavit and said he still thinks Kerry deserved the Silver Star.
''I still don't think he shot the guy in the back," Elliott said. ''It was a terrible mistake probably for me to sign the affidavit with those words. I'm the one in trouble here."Elliott said he was no under personal or political pressure to sign the statement, but he did feel ''time pressure" from those involved in the book. ''That's no excuse," Elliott said. ''I knew it was wrong . . . In a hurry I signed it and faxed it back. That was a mistake.""
So where did this group come from? Its main backer appears to be Bob Perry, a wealthy (surprise) Texan (double surprise) big time GOP funder (surprise trifecta). Perry refused comment. When asked by Senator McCain among others to strongly refute the ad, which was funded by a private 527 organization and not directly by the Bush campaign or RNC, White House spokesman Scott McClellan refused to do so.
Man, these people will literally stop at nothing. Luckily, the denouncing of the ad seems to be getting more press than the highly dubious claims in it.
Several analysts have noted that Bush is dangerously close to going too negative and alienating potential swing voters, typically considered a sign of desperation in a campaign.
The last few weeks have seen the emergence of a group of angry Vets calling themselves Swift Boat Veterans for the Truth which maintains that Kerry's war record, and the honors he received, were bogus. A TV ad to this effect was put out this week, the content of which was roundly criticized by Senator John McCain. Turns out the company that produced the ad was the same one that had created the now-infamous slanderous ad against McCain that cost him the South Carolina primary in 2000, leaving W free to claim the GOP nomination.
A book is due out next week penned by two of the organization's top folks which puts their claims into print. Beacuse of heavy coverage given this tome by such non-biased sources as Drudge and Limbaugh it has moved to No. 1 on the Amazon pre-press list. Major weight in the book is given to an affidavit signed by Kerry's former swift boat commander, Lieutenant Commander George Elliott. Elliott is quoted in the book as affirming that Kerry lied about his actions, the danger his crew and comrades were in, and the nature of his injuries. However, just today Elliott admitted making "a terrible mistake" by signing the affidavit that is such an important part of this smear campaign. He went on to say:
"(H)e regretted signing the affidavit and said he still thinks Kerry deserved the Silver Star.
''I still don't think he shot the guy in the back," Elliott said. ''It was a terrible mistake probably for me to sign the affidavit with those words. I'm the one in trouble here."Elliott said he was no under personal or political pressure to sign the statement, but he did feel ''time pressure" from those involved in the book. ''That's no excuse," Elliott said. ''I knew it was wrong . . . In a hurry I signed it and faxed it back. That was a mistake.""
So where did this group come from? Its main backer appears to be Bob Perry, a wealthy (surprise) Texan (double surprise) big time GOP funder (surprise trifecta). Perry refused comment. When asked by Senator McCain among others to strongly refute the ad, which was funded by a private 527 organization and not directly by the Bush campaign or RNC, White House spokesman Scott McClellan refused to do so.
Man, these people will literally stop at nothing. Luckily, the denouncing of the ad seems to be getting more press than the highly dubious claims in it.
Several analysts have noted that Bush is dangerously close to going too negative and alienating potential swing voters, typically considered a sign of desperation in a campaign.
Comments:
Post a Comment
