The Democrat Convention---2004

Gallup
08/04/04: July 30 -Aug 1 1,129 Likely Voters MOE ± 3%
Bush-Cheney: 51% (Trend: 50%, 47%, 46%, 7/30-31, 7/19-21, 7/8-11)
Kerry-Edwards: 47% (Trend: 47%, 49%, 50%, 7/30-31, 7/19-21, 7/8-11)

From www.scaryjohnkerry.com:

"We have learned that John Kerry just lost 50% of his "Band of Brothers" support. Ralph Dobson has confirmed that he now considers Kerry unfit to be President of the United States. That leaves only a single officer who still endorses him out of the 23 shown in the photo."

... nine out of ten guys that actually served with him, under his command, on that boat out there in Vietnam, supporting him ...

"My name is Steve Gardner. I served in 1966 and 1967 on my first tour of duty in Vietnam on Swift boats, and I did my second tour in '68 and '69, involved with John Kerry in the last 2 1/2 months of my tour. The John Kerry that I know is not the John Kerry that everybody else is portraying. I served alongside him and behind him, five feet away from him in a gun tub, and watched as he made indecisive moves with our boat, put our boats in jeopardy, put our crews in jeopardy... if a man like that can't handle that 6-man crew boat, how can you expect him to be our Commander-in-Chief?"

-- Steven Gardner

"While in Cam Rahn Bay, he trained on several 24-hour indoctrination missions, and one special skimmer operation with my most senior and trusted Lieutenant. The briefing from some members of that crew the morning after revealed that they had not received any enemy fire, and yet Lt.(jg) Kerry informed me of a wound -- he showed me a scratch on his arm and a piece of shrapnel in his hand that appeared to be from one of our own M-79s. It was later reported to me that Lt.(jg) Kerry had fired an M-79, and it had exploded off the adjacent shoreline. I do not recall being advised of any medical treatment, and probably said something like 'Forget it.' He later received a Purple Heart for that scratch, and I have no information as to how or whom.

"Lt.(jg) Kerry was allowed to return to the good old USA after 4 months and a few days in-country, and then he proceeded to betray his former shipmates, calling them criminals who were committing atrocities. Today we are here to tell you that just the opposite is true. Our rules of engagement were quite strict, and the officers and men of Swift often did not even return fire when they were under fire if there was a possibility that innocent people -- fishermen, in a lot of cases -- might be hurt or injured. The rules and the good intentions of the men increased the possibility that we might take friendly casualties."

-- Commander Grant Hibbard, USN (retired)


"My daughters and my wife have read portions of the book 'Tour of Duty.' They wanted to know if I took part in the atrocities described. I do not believe the things that are described happened.

"Let me give you an example. In Brinkley's book, on pages 170 to 171, about something called the 'Bo De massacre' on November 24th of 1968... In Kerry's description of the engagement, first he claimed there were 17 servicemen that were wounded. Three of us were wounded. I was the first..."

-- Joseph Ponder

"During Lt.(jg) Kerry's tour, he was under my command for two or three specific operations, before his rapid exit. Trust, loyalty and judgment are the key, operative words. His turncoat performance in 1971 in his grubby shirt and his medal-tossing escapade, coupled with his slanderous lines in the recent book portraying us that served, including all POWs and MIAs, as murderous war criminals, I believe, will have a lasting effect on all military veterans and their families.

"Kerry would be described as devious, self-absorbing, manipulative, disdain for authority, disruptive, but the most common phrase that you'd hear is 'requires constant supervision.'"

-- Captain Charles Plumly, USN (retired)


"I do not believe John Kerry is fit to be Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces of the United States. This is not a political issue. It is a matter of his judgment, truthfulness, reliability, loyalty and trust -- all absolute tenets of command. His biography, 'Tour of Duty,' by Douglas Brinkley, is replete with gross exaggerations, distortions of fact, contradictions and slanderous lies. His contempt for the military and authority is evident by even a most casual review of this biography. He arrived in-country with a strong anti-Vietnam War bias and a self-serving determination to build a foundation for his political future. He was aggressive, but vain and prone to impulsive judgment, often with disregard for specific tactical assignments. He was a 'loose cannon.' In an abbreviated tour of four months and 12 days, and with his specious medals secure, Lt.(jg) Kerry bugged out and began his infamous betrayal of all United States forces in the Vietnam War. That included our soldiers, our marines, our sailors, our coast guardsmen, our airmen, and our POWs. His leadership within the so-called Vietnam Veterans Against the War and testimony before Congress in 1971 charging us with unspeakable atrocities remain an undocumented but nevertheless meticulous stain on the men and women who honorably stayed the course. Senator Kerry is not fit for command."

-- Rear Admiral Roy Hoffman, USN (retired)

Cease and Desist Letter to Kerry Campaign
Thursday, July 01 2004 @ 10:00 AM PDT
Alvin A. Horne
Attorney at Law
Houston, Texas

Marc Erik Elias, Esquire
General Counsel
John Kerry for President, Inc.

RE: Photograph on pages 24 and 25, Newsweek issue dated March 8, 2004 and Kerry Campaign Lifetime Ad dated May 3, 2004.

June 1, 2004

Dear Mr. Elias:

I'm a former Swift Boat officer and early member of Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. I am also an attorney licensed and authorized to practice law in the State of Texas. Below are listed the names of eleven Swift Boat officers of a total of 20 depicted in the referenced photograph with your client, Senator John Kerry. They are:

George Bates
Thomas Heritage
Terrance Costello
Robert "Rocky" Hildreath
Robert Elder
William Houle
George Elliott
William Schumadine
Al French
Larry Thurlow
Jim Galvin

These officers demand that Senator Kerry's campaign cease and desist from all uses of that photograph, taken on January 22, 1969. To my knowledge, of the remaining eight individuals, Mr. Gilbert and Mr. Crosby are deceased and Messrs. Baker, Bernique, Imbrie and MaCann have not indicated a willingness to presently take any position regarding Mr. Kerry.

First, the use of the eleven images in this political campaign wrongfully and incorrectly suggests their present endorsement of his candidacy for President of the United States of America. By letters delivered to the campaign on May 17 and on May 4, 2004, their objections to the use of the photograph in his campaign and their belief that he is unfit to serve as the Commander-in-Chief were made very clear. In fact, as has long been evident to Senator Kerry, all of these gentlemen have felt anything but comradeship with him at any time since his slanderous testimony before Congress in 1971 and other pronouncements that he and they committed war crimes and atrocities. These pronouncements were at least made in Mr. Kerry's book, New Soldier, repeated in Tour of Duty and affirmed as late as Senator Kerry''s appearance on Meet the Press in April of this year. In that process he tarred the entire serving military in Vietnam with his black brush.

Second, no prior consent was sought or obtained from any of these eleven boat officers before the release by Mr. Kerry or his associates of that photograph to Newsweek, or later to those who crafted his Lifetime ad, a calculated invasion of their privacy rights for personal political gain. None of these officers, at the time of the unauthorized release or any subsequent use of the photograph by the campaign of their images were public figures, as that term is understood within the law. We all know of the aspiring politician who seeks to be photographed with whomever they think is the "Great One" of the time. In this case Mr. Kerry has reversed the ploy to suggest a favorable relationship different than the truth. In no way do these gentlemen seek any limelight not now required by the Senator's distortion of the past and his wrongful claim to the American public that these men are his band of brothers.

Lest anyone yawn and be tempted to write this demand off to political hyperbole during the election season, please convey to Senator Kerry that his blatant and continued corrupt use of this photograph is at least on par with successful claims made by individuals suing commercial advertisers for non-consented use of their images. They sought profit in dollars; he seeks profits in votes.

I look forward to Senator Kerry's immediate compliance with the essence of this demand. If that compliance is not forthcoming or if I fail to receive any satisfactory written response from you within ten days of the date of this letter, then further appropriate action will be taken.

Respectfully,
Alvin A. Horne
CC:
Marc Erik Elias, Esquire

LOL Nimh ... he probably paid them off

And while you're looking up the nine

We usually patrolled the narrow waterways of the Mekong delta, flanked on both sides by thick jungle. [..] Machine-gun fire, rocket-propelled grenades, it all came fast and furious, and Lieutenant Kerry had to make quick, life-or-death decisions for the entire boat. [..]

Manning the deck guns, most of us got wounded sooner or later, including Lieutenant Kerry. It would have been easiest, in an ambush, to simply rake the shore with return fire and roar on down the river to safety. But Lieutenant Kerry was known for taking the fight straight to the enemy. I can still see him now, standing in the doorway of the pilothouse, firing his M-16, shouting orders through the smoke and chaos.

Once, he even directed the helmsman to beach the boat, right into the teeth of an ambush, and pursued our attackers on foot, into the jungle. In the toughest of situations, Lieutenant Kerry showed judgment, loyalty and courage. Even wounded, or confronting sights no man should ever have to see, he never lost his cool.

And when the shooting stopped, he was always there too, with a caring hand on my shoulder asking, "Gunner, are you OK?" I was only 21, running on fear and adrenaline. Lieutenant Kerry always took the time to calm us down, to bring us back to reality, to give us hope, to show us what we truly had within ourselves. I came to love and respect him as a man I could trust with life itself.

[John Kerry] is an ironman. He possessed and displayed the qualities to be president. [..] I'm talking straight: He always put his men's welfare first, and was tough, tough, tough. He was a great leader." [..]

"John Kerry is the veteran's veteran," Wasser says. "He had a presence. I trusted him then, and I trusted him now. He made good, sound command decisions. We lost no one.

"I want someone for president who is tested, and this man is tested.

"John Kerry is a proven commander."

"In Febuary of 1969 Gene Thorson was patrolling the rivers of South Vietnam with Sen. John Kerry. [..] Thorson was the aft gunner on the boat commanded by Kerry. The year they served together was long enough for Thorson to recognize leadership qualities in the Democratic challenger.

"He had outstanding insticts, I'm glad he was there," Thorson said. "I never heard him get on anybody for anything. And after a fire fight he was the first one to ask if you were all right. He really cared about all of us and he's going to be a great president." [..]

"Gene is a shy man and he didn't talk much about Vietnam until recently [his wife Betty said]. I have seen a different side of him since he's been campaigning. He does it for John Kerry and he does it for the veterans."

Kerry believed if they turned the three swift boats he commanded toward the shore, he would transform a long, horizontal target of three boats traveling side-by-side into a narrower, vertical one. [..]

Thorson said the idea was strange at first, but in retrospect, he firmly believes he wouldn't be alive if the soldiers hadn't gone on the offensive.

"The Viet Cong was waiting to ambush us," Thorson said. "We would have been blown out of the water by a guy with a rocket launcher if we hadn't done it that way."

Sandusky described Kerry as a fearless and compassionate leader in battle. [..]

When one veteran asked Sandusky about Kerry critics who say the senator didn't earn his military medals, Sandusky rebuffed the criticism in a deep, raspy voice.

"I know he earned every one of them," Sandusky said. "He saved my life, and I saved his."

"In Febuary of 1969 Gene Thorson was patrolling the rivers of South Vietnam with Sen. John Kerry. [..] Thorson was the aft gunner on the boat commanded by Kerry. The year they served together was long enough for Thorson to recognize leadership qualities in the Democratic challenger.

We have all these glowing accolades from a crew that was with him less than four months?

And a statement from his commanding officer who says he was removed from duty?

Something isn't adding up.

His constant bragging and exxageration of his accomplishments ever since to get elected to public office doesn't change the fact that most actual Vietnam vets have turned their backs on him.

Fox - I guess we'll have to do our own research

Well, we all know how unbiased CBS is LOL.

What was the exact question, I wonder.

Okay Nimh. Step by step. You have a reference to a year's service there. We know that can't be right.

You have another reference to a six-man boat. But we have nine testimonials supporting Kerry and one criticizing him. How long were any of these guys actually on Kerry's boat? And how many others were there that we don't yet have testimonials from?

Grant Hibbard, Kerry's commanding officer, is not complimentary about Kerry. You can do your own search and make up your own mind whether his criticisms are now politically motivated as is suggested by Wikipedia.

You could very well be right Nimh. But I'm sorry. It just isn't adding up.