DOES HE SEEM LIKE HE NEEDED ENCOURAGEMENT TO DO THIS?:

'I will do everything I can to stop John Kerry becoming the commander-in-chief of this nation's armed forces' (Charles Laurence, 22/08/2004, Daily Telegraph)

In his first interview for the British press, the Vietnam veteran leading the attack on John Kerry tells Charles Laurence why he must act
Need to get away

The Vietnam veteran at the heart of an increasingly vicious campaign to discredit John Kerry's "war hero" status has vowed to do "whatever it takes to stop that man becoming commander-in-chief of America's armed forces".

In an outspoken interview with the Telegraph, John O'Neill, speaking in his publisher's office in the shadow of Capitol Hill, denied being a Republican stooge, saying that his campaign to prevent Mr Kerry reaching the White House was driven by personal loathing of the Democratic presidential nominee. [...]

"John Kerry ravaged the souls of people," said Mr O'Neill, his face trembling with rage as he talked of events that happened more than 30 years ago. "I don't really care about the presidency, but that is why I will do everything I can, whatever it takes, to stop that man becoming commander-in-chief of our armed forces.

"I am not a Republican. I tend to support the Democrats more than the Republicans at home in Texas, and in this election I would have voted Democrat. I would vote for John Edwards [the vice-presidential candidate] for president. But I will do everything I can to stop John Kerry."

He admitted that it was the senator's behaviour following the war - Mr Kerry served just four months in Vietnam before being repatriated after receiving his third Purple Heart medal for combat wounds - that motivated his campaign. He pointed out that he had attacked Mr Kerry during a television debate about Vietnam as long ago as 1971.

According to Mr O'Neill, Mr Kerry was known in Vietnam as "the jerk who wants to be President" and returned home to make a name for himself as a leader of the Vietnam Veterans Against the War. He testified to the Senate, led marches on Washington and - to Mr O'Neill's enduring ire - accused the American forces in Vietnam of routinely abusing the civilian population and of "war crimes".

Mr O'Neill said: "That buzzard got out after four months and betrayed the people he served with. Millions of people opposed the war. I have no problem with that. But it is a whole different world to come back and say that the kids you served with are war criminals, and the people in your command are war criminals.

"We were still riding the river and this buzzard was in Paris, on television, talking to a Viet Cong in their so-called peace delegation while the Viet Cong were killing our men. We lost 55 men in that campaign."

While Mr O'Neill accused Mr Kerry of "embroidering and exaggerating his war", and of "posing and posturing", surprisingly he also conceded that although publicly he supported specific claims about the accuracy of Mr Kerry's war record, much of the detail was in fact lost in the fog of war and conflicting memories.

So, the question is: how did Rove get to him in 1970.

MORE:
Loophole lures Kerry into the fray (FRASER NELSON, 8/22/04)

A SPECTACULAR malfunction in laws designed to clean up US politics has sent almost $250m (£135m) into the hands of ‘para-political’ groups dedicated to negative campaigning in the race for the White House.

A cast of billionaires, including financier George Soros and film producer Stephen Bing, are bankrolling a new breed of pressure groups which can raise limitless cash as long as they agree not to support any one candidate.

The majority focus on attacking President George W Bush - ensuring a flood of the venomous political attacks which have characterised the race for the White House in recent weeks.

But it is the pro-Bush group Swift Boat Veterans for Truth that appears to be causing the most damage to a candidate.

Ironic, huh?

Posted by Orrin Judd at August 22, 2004 12:00 AM