August 25, 2004
WILL THEY STOP THE SLAUGHTER?
Letter to John Kerry (GeorgeWBush.com, 8/25/04)
August 25, 2004I know some of you are pessimistic but, really, is this campaign going to lose to that campaign?Senator John Kerry
304 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510Dear Senator Kerry,
We are pleased to welcome your campaign representatives to Texas today. We honor all our veterans, all whom have worn the uniform and served our country. We also honor the military and National Guard troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan today. We are very proud of all of them and believe they deserve our full support.
That’s why so many veterans are troubled by your vote AGAINST funding for our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, after you voted FOR sending them into battle. And that’s why we are so concerned about the comments you made AFTER you came home from Vietnam. You accused your fellow veterans of terrible atrocities – and, to this day, you have never apologized. Even last night, you claimed to be proud of your post-war condemnation of our actions.
We’re proud of our service in Vietnam. We served honorably in Vietnam and we were deeply hurt and offended by your comments when you came home.
You can’t have it both ways. You can’t build your convention and much of your campaign around your service in Vietnam, and then try to say that only those veterans who agree with you have a right to speak up. There is no double standard for our right to free speech. We all earned it.
You said in 1992 “we do not need to divide America over who served and how.” Yet you and your surrogates continue to criticize President Bush for his service as a fighter pilot in the National Guard.
We are veterans too – and proud to support President Bush. He’s been a strong leader, with a record of outstanding support for our veterans and for our troops in combat. He’s made sure that our troops in combat have the equipment and support they need to accomplish their mission.
He has increased the VA health care budget more than 40% since 2001 – in fact, during his four years in office, President Bush has increased veterans funding twice as much as the previous administration did in eight years ($22 billion over 4 years compared to $10 billion over 8.) And he’s praised the service of all who served our country, including your service in Vietnam.
We urge you to condemn the double standard that you and your campaign have enforced regarding a veteran’s right to openly express their feelings about your activities on return from Vietnam.
Sincerely,
Texas State Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson
Rep. Duke Cunningham
Rep. Duncan Hunter
Rep. Sam Johnson
Lt. General David Palmer
Robert O'Malley, Medal of Honor Recipient
James Fleming, Medal of Honor Recipient
Lieutenant Colonel Richard Castle (Ret.)
MORE (from OJ)
Cleland Tries to Deliver Letter to Bush (The Associated Press, Aug. 25, 2004)
Former Democratic Sen. Max Cleland tried to deliver a letter protesting ads challenging John Kerry's Vietnam service to President Bush at his Texas ranch Wednesday, but neither a Secret Service official nor a state trooper would take it. [...]Encountering a permanent roadblock to Bush's ranch, Cleland left without turning over the letter to anyone. [...]
A Texas state official and Vietnam veteran, Jerry Patterson, said someone from the Bush campaign contacted him Wednesday morning and asked him if he would travel to the ranch, welcome Cleland to Texas and accept the former senator's letter to Bush.
"I tried to accept that letter and he would not give it to me," said Patterson. "He would not face me. He kept rolling away from me. He's quite mobile."
Patterson, who spoke with the president on the phone, said the campaign asked him to give Cleland a letter for Kerry written by the Bush campaign and signed by Patterson and seven other veterans.
"You can't have it both ways," the letter said. "You can't build your convention and much of your campaign around your service in Vietnam, and then try to say that only those veterans who agree with you have a right to speak up."
Here's the second letter--in cards you'd call it a trump:
August 25, 2004Senator John Kerry
304 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Senator Kerry,
We are pleased to welcome your campaign representatives to Texas today. We honor all our veterans, all whom have worn the uniform and served our country. We also honor the military and National Guard (search) troops serving in Iraq (search) and Afghanistan (search) today. We are very proud of all of them and believe they deserve our full support.
That's why so many veterans are troubled by your vote AGAINST funding for our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, after you voted FOR sending them into battle. And that's why we are so concerned about the comments you made AFTER you came home from Vietnam. You accused your fellow veterans of terrible atrocities - and, to this day, you have never apologized. Even last night, you claimed to be proud of your post-war condemnation of our actions.
We're proud of our service in Vietnam. We served honorably in Vietnam and we were deeply hurt and offended by your comments when you came home.
You can't have it both ways. You can't build your convention and much of your campaign around your service in Vietnam, and then try to say that only those veterans who agree with you have a right to speak up. There is no double standard for our right to free speech. We all earned it.
The pitiful thing--besides wheeling out ole Mad Max for the sympathy vote--is that the thousands of Kerry advisers think stunts like this, which only keep the story alive, are clever. Posted by David Cohen at August 25, 2004 3:21 PM
As with the Cease and Desist order response to Kerry's lobbying of a Swift Vet mentioned earlier, it would seem that the Kerry Campaign's strategic mistake has been to assume that they would be dealing with the same Stupid Party™ leadership they deal with in D.C.
Posted by: Raoul Ortega at August 25, 2004 3:34 PMMr. Judd;
Isn't the letter you cite the exact same letter Mr. Cohen cites at the top? It's definitely a great letter but twice in one post seems a bit excessive.
Posted by: Annoying Old Guy at August 25, 2004 4:17 PMWhen President Bush decided to make the Senator an object of ridicule it seemed like a daring thing to do--who knew Mr. Kerry thought his own campaign was a joke?
Posted by: oj at August 25, 2004 4:18 PMI read the AP story and took note that the letter Sen. Cleland was delivering was signed by several other Democrat senators. One of these Sen. Harking of Iowa. I believe that it's been noted on other blogs that Mr. Harkin was involved in his own inflated war record dust up in the early 90s. I believe it had something to do with him claiming to have flown combat missions in Vietnam while actually shuttling aircraft between japan and the phillipines for repair. Am I wrong? If its true I find it funny they would have him sign it.
Posted by: mc at August 25, 2004 4:38 PMJerry Patterson for President!
Posted by: James Haney at August 25, 2004 6:08 PMI have severl lawyer friends in Houston who know O'Neil. To a man, in separate conversations with me, they say that word on the street is that he is absolutely loaded for bear. Kerry hasn't seen anything yet. While no one claimed actual first hand knowledge of "October Surprise" ads, everybody says there is one (or more?).
I have always though Bush would win, probably ending up (if it were a two man race) with 53-55% of the vote. Given the way the Kerry campaign is going, they may have to stop this one on cuts before Columbus day.
Posted by: Dan at August 25, 2004 6:30 PMI've been visiting the leftier blogs, and commenters in those fevered dens are convinced that the Swiftvets are being exposed as total frauds, that Kerry's campaign is cleverly and effectively parrying the Swifty ads, that the Swifty campaign is blowing up in Bush's face, and that Kerry is coming out of the fray looking like a mature, measured sage and all around mentsch.
So who's on crazy pills, them or me?
Posted by: Twn at August 25, 2004 7:13 PMThe problem with the lefty blogs is that very few understand the military, the sense of betrayal many veterans felt about Vietnam (both from the anti-war crowd and the US govt.), and the personal animus towards Kerry (which has been percolating a long time). Likewise, they don't really understand that any 'leftist' candidate is going to peak at about 46-48% of the vote, unless the right is running Pat Buchanan.
Plus, while many 60s folks are re-living their dream days due to the on-going casualties in Iraq, they don't remember that Islamic murderers killed about 3000 Americans right here at home. That didn't happen in Vietnam - had the North Vietnamese sent commandos to kill people in San Francisco, Hanoi would have been bombed a lot sooner.
The war may not be popular, but people know that Bush will fight it. Kerry will not. Watching him speak at Cooper Union yesterday was like watching a robot talk about about his humanity.
Bush can win upwards of 56-57%, but Kerry is going to struggle to hold what he has. It is now more conceivable that Kerry will get 42% than 49%. Hence the media's insanity. And the braggadocio on the lefty blogs. Their confidence reminds me of people in 1998-99, who had never seen a bear market. But 1973-74 was only a few years ago.
Posted by: jim hamlen at August 25, 2004 8:24 PMCleland has used up the sympathy and respect I had for him by trying to use his injuries to stifle debate. I actually laughed out loud when I read "He kept rolling away from me. He's quite mobile."
The lefties were very confident that they would do well in the 2002 elections, and they were soundly thrashed.
Posted by: Thom at August 25, 2004 10:17 PM