Kerry’s home movies

Some Democratic Party hacks have claimed that the story about John Kerry’s staged Vietnam movies is staged itself. Here’s the original 1996 story, from that right-wing propaganda organ, The Boston Globe (my copy): At 2:45 a.m. yesterday, the men were gathering in the den and watching a series of 8mm films that Kerry had taken … Continue reading “Kerry’s home movies”

Some Democratic Party hacks have claimed that the story about John Kerry’s staged Vietnam movies is staged itself. Here’s the original 1996 story, from that right-wing propaganda organ, The Boston Globe (my copy):

At 2:45 a.m. yesterday, the men were gathering in the den and watching a series of 8mm films that Kerry had taken of the war experience they shared. He even pulled out a B-40 rocket that he captured in the Feb. 28 battle that earned him the Silver Star for bravery.

All of the men recalled, second by second, the series of fire fights on the river that day in which Kerry, they agreed, bravely led a mission that earned the entire boat a presidential citation. All were infuriated by a Globe business column published nine days before the election that raised doubts about whether Kerry’s actions were heroic.

Kerry used a clicker to freeze-frame the footage on the members of his crew. They were young then, and tan and strong. There were jibes about how much hair Del Sandusky, now a salesman in Illinois, had back then. The screen flashed a shot of Michael Medeiros, looking like a high school kid, smiling in sunshine that glinted off the waters of the delta.

Vallely teased Kerry about the films, which some have felt revealed that even as a young lieutenant, Kerry was so intent on his future political ambitions that he made sure he had his heroics captured on film. Kerry looked at Vallely over his bifocals and smirked.

Any questions?

7 thoughts on “Kerry’s home movies”

  1. You shot blanks again.

    You’ve failed to refute the charges made by the non-credible “Swiftboat Veterans for Truth” [sic] that a) Kerry ever dressed as an infantryman (why would a Navy officer do that if he’s planning on using the film for political gain???) and b) he faked scenes.

    This all reeks of desparation.

    BTW, where’s the films of your combat experiences???

  2. Uh- oh. Now you’re busted again…

    The first thing to be said is that the senator’s movies are not self-aggrandizing. Mr. Kerry is hardly in the film, and never strikes so much as a heroic pose. These are the souvenirs of a 25-year-old guy sent to an exotic place on an otherworldly mission, who bought an 8-millimeter camera in the PX and shot a few hours of travelogue, most of it pretty boring if you didn’t live through it.

    Keller also wrote that, according to the Swift Boat Sailors Association, “a group of veterans who manned” the kind of riverboat that Kerry commanded, “lots of enlisted men did the same.” Former Senator Max Cleland (D-GA), a strong Kerry supporter who lost three limbs in Vietnam, told Keller that he has hours of film from his service in Vietnam, which, Keller wrote, “he has had edited into a three minute meet-the-senator video.”

    As Media Matters for America has noted, both Patterson and O’Neill have a history of issuing false claims about Kerry. Patterson, author of the new book Reckless Disregard: How Liberal Democrats Undermine Our Military, Endanger Our Soldiers, and Jeopardize Our National Security (Regnery Publishing, 2004), severely distorted Kerry’s record on defense spending, intelligence spending, and veterans’ pay in two recent appearances on the FOX News Channel. Patterson also asserts in his book that “every terrorist” is “hoping” the Democrats win the upcoming U.S. election.

    O’Neill’s group, Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, was founded to discredit Kerry’s record during and after his service in Vietnam. His book Unfit for Command: Swift Boat Veterans Speak Out Against John Kerry is forthcoming from the conservative Regnery Publishing. As Media Matters for America has noted, O’Neill has long-standing ties to the GOP establishment, and O’Neill’s own p.r. adviser has described O’Neill as sounding like “a crazed extremist.” MMFA also noted O’Neill’s participation in Republican efforts to smear Kerry, dating back to the Nixon administration.

  3. Pot calls the kettle black: you cite Media Matters as your source. The head of Media Matters is David Brock, a man with long-standing ties to the Republican Party and status as the lead member of the Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy funded by Scaife to bring Clinton down.

    What is it about these ersatz Republicans that they have to attack each other?

  4. This is as close as Richard gets to admitting he’s wrong.

    Thanks for playing Rich, and I hope you enjoy the home version of the game.

  6. Yes, thanks again, Richard, and I hope you have fun with your home version of the game we give out as a consolation prize.

Comments are closed.