On Wed, 2 Jul 2008 19:59:10 -0400, "Dad" fisher.net> wrote:

no more credibility for Dad. Apparently he cannot distinguish truth
from bull shit.

Kerry felt he did not have to respond to the alligations, they were so
absurd.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swift_Boat_Veterans

Truth of allegations
A major part of the SBVT controversy centered on the group's
testimony. Among the first to question the first ad was Republican
Senator John McCain, a Bush supporter, Vietnam veteran, and former
POW. He said, "I condemn the [SBVT] ad. It is dishonest and
dishonorable. I think it is very, very wrong".[27] As a naval aviator
in Vietnam, McCain had no firsthand knowledge of Kerry's service. The
SBVT statements were accompanied by sworn affidavits, although one
affiant, Al French, later admitted he had no firsthand knowledge of
what he had sworn to.[50]

The first SBVT ad was contradicted by the statements of several other
veterans who observed the incidents, by the Navy's official records,
and, in some instances, by the contemporaneous statements of SBVT
members themselves.

Several major newspapers were also skeptical of the SBVT allegations.
For example, a New York Times news article stated, "on close
examination, the accounts of Swift Boat Veterans for Truth prove to be
riddled with inconsistencies."[51] ABC News's The Note opined, "the
Swift Boat ad and their primary charges about Kerry's medals are
personal, negative, extremely suspect, or false."[52] Regarding the
medal dispute, a Los Angeles Times editorial[53] stated, "Not limited
by the conventions of our colleagues in the newsroom, we can say it
outright: These charges against John Kerry are false." The editorial
argued this position on the basis that "Kerry is backed by almost all
those who witnessed the events in question, as well as by
documentation." On August 22, 2004 The Washington Post reported: "An
investigation by The Washington Post into what happened that day
suggests that both sides have withheld information from the public
record and provided an incomplete, and sometimes inaccurate, picture
of what took place. But although Kerry's accusers have succeeded in
raising doubts about his war record, they have failed to come up with
sufficient evidence to prove him a liar."[54]

The ABC television show Nightline traveled to Vietnam and interviewed
Vietnamese who were involved in the battle for which Kerry was awarded
the Silver Star. These witnesses disputed O'Neill's charge that there
"was little or no fire" that day; they said that the fighting was
fierce.[55] SBVT supporters question whether these witnesses are
reliable because they spoke "in the presence of a Communist
official",[56] but their account of enemy fire is substantially the
same as that previously given by another former VC to an AP
reporter[57] and by the American witnesses, including the only SBVT
member who was actually present that day, Larry Clayton
Lee.[58][59][60][61]

Jerome Corsi has said that a picture of Kerry's 1993 visit to Vietnam
hangs in the War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City as a gesture of
"honor" by the Communists "for his contribution to their victory over
[the] United States",[62][63] and John O'Neill has stated that Kerry
"is in the North Vietnamese war museum as a hero... . one of the
heroes who caused them to win the war in Vietnam".[64] The statement
is also repeated in "Unfit for Command" (pp 167-174). However, Josh
Gerstein of the New York Sun stated in this regard:

“ While the museum clearly honors opponents of the war from America
and other countries, it is not clear that the photo of Mr. Kerry is
part of that tribute. The picture of the senator hangs among a set of
photos devoted to the restoration of diplomatic relations between
America and Vietnam in the 1990s.
It was apparently taken as Kerry took part in a delegation President
Clinton sent to Hanoi in 1993. Other photos nearby show visits during
that period by former American officials who played key roles in the
Vietnam War, including a Navy admiral who has since died, Elmo
Zumwalt, and a defense secretary, Robert McNamara. A secretary of
state during ClintonÂ’s term, Warren Christopher, is also shown meeting
Vietnamese officials
”
— Josh Gerstein[65]

In this connection, the webpage Corsi and another anti-Kerry veteran
originally published on the Kerry museum photo contained the picture
of Robert McNamara's 1995 meeting with General Giap, who was
misidentified as "Mao Tse-Tung".[1](Photo #10).

In addition, John O'Neill said that in 1971 John Kerry "wanted to
abandon ship and leave the POWs [in Vietnam]" and that "[o]n the Dick
Cavett show and elsewhere, John Kerry‘s position was that we should
accept the Madame Binh seven-point proposal, which called for
unilateral withdrawal, setting a date after which at some future time,
we‘d negotiate the return of the POWs. So we would set a date. We
would withdraw and then we would begin to discuss how to bring them
home".[66] However, in the Cavett debate, Kerry actually said:

“ Now, if we were to set a date for withdrawal from Southeast Asia, we
can – the Vietnamese, first of all, have said it will be settled prior
to the arrival of that date, but we can set a time limit on that. If
the prisoners of war aren't back prior to the arrival of that date,
then I think we would have – for the first time in all of our history
in Vietnam we would have a legitimate reason for taking some kind of
reaction to it. ”
— John Kerry[67]

Early in the advertising campaign, Time magazine surveyed public
credence in the SBVT advertisements among those who viewed them. The
poll, conducted August 24 through 26, showed that about one-third of
viewers believed there was at least "some truth" to the allegations.
Among swing voters, about one-fourth felt there was any truth to the
ads.[68]

More recently, an early member of the group, Steve Hayes, stated that
he came to believe that the group was twisting Kerry's record, and
broke with the group and voted for Kerry. Hayes told the New York
Times:

The mantra was just 'We want to set the record straight,' Mr. Hayes
said this month. It became clear to me that it was morphing from an
organization to set the record straight into a highly political
vendetta. They knew it was not the truth.

Hayes also told the New York Times that he provided a long interview
to Kerry's supporters, backing their version of the incident for which
Kerry received the Bronze Star.[69]

[edit] Connections with Republicans
SBVT characterized itself as a non-partisan group both in the legal
sense and in spirit, yet several prominent individuals who assisted
SBVT also have had close ties to the Republican Party. According to
information released by the IRS on February 22, 2005, more than half
of the group's reported contributions came from just three sources,
all prominent Texas Republican donors: Houston builder Bob J. Perry, a
longtime supporter of George W. Bush, donated $4.45 million, Harold
Simmons' Contrans donated $3 million, and T. Boone Pickens, Jr.
donated $2 million. Other major contributors included Bush fundraiser
Carl Lindner ($300,000), Robert Lindner ($260,000), GOP contributor
Aubrey McClendon ($250,000), George Matthews Jr. ($250,000), and Crow
Holdings ($100,000).[70][71][72]

The initial communications consultant for SBVT was Merrie Spaeth, a
Reagan administration press officer and a volunteer consultant to Ken
Starr in the Clinton impeachment; she was also a spokesperson for
"Republicans for Clean Air," a 527 group opposing John McCain's 2000
presidential campaign and funded by Bush supporters who also helped
fund SBVT.[73][74] John E. O'Neill — the primary author of Unfit for
Command and a key player in the formation of SBVT — donated over
$14,000 to Republican candidates. He co-operated with the Nixon White
House in opposing Kerry in 1971, and seconded Nixon's nomination at
the 1972 Republican national convention.[75][76]

Retired Admiral William Schachte, a principal source for the SBVT
allegations about Kerry's first Purple Heart, has donated to both of
BushÂ’s presidential campaigns. Schachte was also a lobbyist for
FastShip, a firm that recently announced it was receiving $40 million
in federal funding for one of its projects. In addition, Schachte's
lobbying firm associate, David Norcross, was chairman of the 2004
Republican convention.[77] Chris LaCivita, Political Director of the
National Republican Senatorial Committee in 2002,[78] works as a
private contractor providing media advice for SBVT.[79]

The SBVT postal address was registered to Susan Arceneaux, treasurer
of the Majority Leader's Fund, a PAC closely tied to the former
Congressional leader, Republican Dick Armey.[80]

Republican activist Sam Fox's donation of $50,000 to SBVT during the
2004 campaign[81] caused a controversy when Bush nominated him to the
position of ambassador to Belgium. Because the Democratic members of
the Senate Foreign Relations Committee indicated that they would not
support his nomination, Bush withdrew the nomination; he appointed Fox
to the position on April 4, 2007, while Congress was in
recess.[82][83]

These ties, along with others (see below), led to suggestions in the
popular press that SBVT was a front group for Republicans.[84][85][51]

[edit] Connections with the Bush campaign
The Bush campaign became part of the general SBVT controversy when
McCain condemned the first SBVT ad, and said, "I hope that the
president will also condemn it." The Bush campaign did not condemn
SBVT or the SBVT ads. The campaign did not endorse the group either,
stating "We have not and we will not question Senator Kerry's service
in Vietnam."[86] Kerry was dismissive of this statement, saying, "Of
course, the President keeps telling people he would never question my
service to our country. Instead, he watches as a Republican-funded
attack group does just that."[87] Kerry also alleged that SBVT was "a
front for the Bush campaign. And the fact that the President wonÂ’t
denounce what they’re up to tells you everything you need to know — he
wants them to do his dirty work".[88] When pressed on the issue,
President Bush called for an end to all 527 group political
advertisements, and challenged Kerry to do the same.[89]

Critics and the Kerry campaign pointed to several specific connections
between SBVT and the Bush campaign. The Kerry campaign asserted that
Bush campaign headquarters in Florida distributed fliers promoting
SBVT events, a charge the Bush campaign denied.[90] Kenneth Cordier,
former vice-chair of Veterans for Bush/Cheney (in 2000) and volunteer
member of the Bush campaign veterans steering committee, appeared in
the second SBVT advertisement. The Bush campaign asked him to resign
and stated that it had been unaware of his SBVT involvement.[91]

On August 25, 2004, Benjamin Ginsberg, the top election lawyer to the
Bush campaign on campaign finance law, also resigned after it was
learned that SBVT was one of his clients. Ginsberg stated that he was
withdrawing to avoid being a distraction to the campaign. He declared
that he had acted "in a manner that is fully appropriate and
legal,"[79] arguing that it was not uncommon or illegal for lawyers to
represent campaigns or political parties while also representing 527
groups. He also maintained that he did not disclose to the Bush
campaign that he was simultaneously representing the SBVT group. After
leaving the Bush campaign, Ginsberg retained his status as counsel to
SBVT.

In January 2005, Governor Jeb Bush, the President's brother and
Florida chairman for his 2004 campaign,[92] sent a letter to SBVT
member and former POW Bud Day, thanking him for his "personal support
of my brother in his re-election." In addition, Governor Bush said of
the SBVT:

"As someone who truly understands the risk of standing up for
something, I simply cannot express in words how much I value their
willingness to stand up against John Kerry."[69][93]

[edit] FEC Filings
FEC Cases #5511 and #5525

On August 10, 2004, three campaign finance watchdog groups — Democracy
21, the Campaign Legal Center, and the Center for Responsive Politics
— jointly filed an independent complaint with the Federal Election
Commission (Case #5511).[94][95] The complaint alleged that SBVT's
sources of funding were in violation of federal election law in that
"Swift Boat Veterans for Truth (SBVT) is registered with the IRS as a
section 527 group but is not registered with the Commission as a
political committee. However, SBVT is, in fact, a federal political
committee."

On August 20, 2004, the Kerry campaign filed a complaint with the FEC
(Case #5525)[96][97] alleging that SBVT and 20 additional named
respondents had conducted campaign activity that "has been coordinated
with the Bush campaign and the Republican Party from the outset."
Under federal election law, SBVT, as a nonpartisan 527 group, was
barred from coordinating with any political campaign. The complaint,
citing the "ties" noted above, claimed a "web of connections to the
Bush family, high-profile Texas political figures, and President
Bush's chief political aide, Karl Rove".

The Bush campaign dismissed charges of ties and asserted there was no
co-ordination between SBVT and the campaign. Editorial opinion on the
evidence for co-ordination varied. ABC News' The Note stated, "There
is no evidence that the Bush campaign is orchestrating the Swift Boat
Veterans for Truth."[98] In contrast, the New York Times opined that
the SBVT attacks were "orchestrated by negative-campaign specialists
deep in the heart of the Texas Republican machine."[99]

FEC Findings - Cases #5511 and #5525

On December 13, 2006, in a consolidated finding, the FEC ruled against
the Kerry campaign allegations (Case #5525)[100] finding that...

Following an investigation, the Commission concluded that Swiftvets
did not unlawfully coordinate its activities with, or make excessive
in-kind contributions to, any federal candidate or political party
committee.

In addition, Kerry campaign complaints against 18 other respondents
were relegated to "dismissed-other" and 2 relegated to "Reason To
Believe/No Further Action" (RTB/NFA) status.

The FEC did, however, find for the joint complainants (Case
#5511)[101] in that the SBVT failed to register and file disclosure
reports as a federal political committees, and accepted contributions
in violation of federal limits and source prohibitions. SBVT was
assessed a fine of $299,500.

The conciliation agreement between the FEC and the SBVT also stated,
in part:

Indeed, the Commission has never alleged that the SwiftVets acted in
knowing defiance of the law, or with the conscious recognition that
their actions were prohibited by law, made no findings or conclusions
that there were any knowing and willful violations of the law in
connection with this matter, and, thus, does not challenge SwiftVets'
assertion of its good faith reliance on its understanding of the law.

Solely for the purpose of settling this matter expeditiously and
avoiding litigation, without admission with respect to any other
proceeding, and with no finding of probable cause by the Commission,
SwiftVets agrees not to contest the Commission's conclusions ... .

In addition, as part of the conciliation agreement, SBVT stated that
upon completing its obligations under the agreement, it "intends to
cease operations as an IRC Section 527 organization and to donate the
remainder of its funds to a charity supporting the families of U.S.
servicemen and servicewomen killed or wounded in the War in
Iraq."[100]

[edit] Disclosure of documents
During the campaign, SBVT criticized Kerry for not signing a Standard
Form 180 authorizing general public access to his Navy personnel
records.[102] Kerry responded that the documents were posted on his
website.[103] On May 20, 2005, Kerry did sign the SF-180 form
permitting release of his service records and medical records to
reporters from the Boston Globe, the Los Angeles Times, and the
Associated Press;[104] he refused a request by the New York Sun for
access to the records.[105] The Boston Globe and Los Angeles Times
reported that the records largely duplicated what Kerry had released
during the campaign.[106][107]

SBVT members also criticized Kerry for not releasing his own private
journals and letters. However, SBVT members themselves refused to
release documents. For example, a journal by another of the Swift boat
commanders and the relevant Navy records of some of the SBVT members
involved in specific allegations have not been released.[3]

The White House refused to release records detailing any Bush
administration contacts with prominent individuals associated with
SBVT. The denied Freedom of Information Act request was filed on
August 24 by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in
Washington.[108][not in citation given]

[edit] Relationship to Admiral Roy F. Hoffmann Foundation
In July 2006, controversy arose over donations SBVT made to a
non-profit organization, the Admiral Roy F. Hoffmann Foundation [109],
founded by the chairman of SBVT, Roy F. Hoffmann.[110] The address and
agent for service for the foundation is Political Compliance Services,
the same consulting firm, and consultant - Susan Arceneaux - used by
SBVT.[110]

According to reports and SBVT's own filings, SBVT donated $10,000 to
the Hoffmann organization in 2005, and in early 2006 donated another
$100,000 to the organization.[111][112][113] According to a website
purporting to quote SBVT treasurer Weymouth Symmes, the latter
donation was subsequently reimbursed by the foundation.[114]

According to the foundation's own website, SBVT has donated a total of
$500,000, SBVT co-founder John O'Neill has donated his proceeds from
the publication of the book "Unfit for Command," and one of SBVT's
major funders, T. Boone Pickens, has contributed nearly $2 million.
[109]

[edit] "Swift Boating"
Main article: swiftboating
Since the 2004 election, the term "Swift Boating" (or "swiftboating")
has become a common expression for a campaign attacking opponents by
questioning their credibility and patriotism. The term is most often
used with the pejorative meaning of a smear campaign,[115] but has
also been used positively by conservatives.[116]