“In today’s Minneapolis Star Tribune, Strib editorial board member Jim Boyd writes that our analysis of John Kerry’s Christmas in Cambodia fable was “fraudulent.” He also calls us “smear artists,” and the Strib’s headline on his article says our analysis “can’t stand up to the facts.” When someone uses language that strong, you’d naturally expect him to have the facts to back up his words. Yet, for someone who purports to “fact-check” our article, Boyd’s tirade is remarkably fact-free.

First, the basics. We wrote that the Kerry campaign has had to retract Kerry’s oft-told tale of being in Cambodia on Christmas, 1968. Boyd does not dispute this. We wrote that there is no record of John Kerry being in Cambodia in December, 1968, or at any other time. Boyd does not dispute this. We wrote that Kerry’s commanding officers have emphatically denied that he was ever sent into Cambodia. Boyd does not dispute this. We wrote that not a single crewman who ever served with Kerry has supported Kerry’s claim to have been in Cambodia, and several crewmen have specifically denied that their boat was ever, at any time, in Cambodia. Boyd does not dispute this. We wrote that there is no record of Swift boats being used for clandestine missions, like the insertion of special ops, as claimed by Kerry. Boyd does not dispute this. We wrote that Swift boats were singularly unsuited for such secret missions, given their large size and extraordinarily large output of noise. Boyd does not dispute this.”

http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/007565.php

“In an October 14, 1979 review of “Apocalypse Now” in the Boston Herald, Kerry wrote:

I remember spending Christmas Eve of 1968 five miles across the Cambodian border being shot at by our South Vietnamese allies who were drunk and celebrating Christmas. The absurdity of almost being killed by our own allies in a country in which President Nixon claimed there were no American troops was very real.
If Kerry’s Cambodian adventure actually happened in January, why were the South Vietnamese soldiers still celebrating Christmas?

We pointed out that, as everyone in the blogosphere knows, Kerry’s account was false on its face, since Richard Nixon was not President in December 1968. In a laughably inept response, Boyd says that Nixon was then President-elect, so Kerry’s “discrepancy” was “understandable.” Obviously, however, President-elect Nixon was in no position to assure the American people that there were no troops in Cambodia.

There is a far more important point to be made, however. It was not just a slip of the tongue that caused Kerry to refer, repeatedly, to President Nixon’s statement that there were no troops in Cambodia. If he had attributed that statement to Lyndon Johnson, who was President in 1968, it would have made no sense. Johnson never said such a thing; the issue never came up during his administration.

But Richard Nixon did say that there were no American troops fighting in Cambodia. Our younger readers may not recall this, but Nixon’s statement to that effect was very famous, and very controversial. Richard Nixon said that we had no troops in Cambodia in a press conference on November 12, 1971, two and one-half years after Kerry had left Vietnam.”

“the initiation of the Khmer Rouge insurgency in 1967-68 to the fall of the Lon Nol government in April 1975″

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

Paul - 1967 was BEFORE 1968. The Khmer Rouge was in existence.

I agree with you that LBJ was still president in 68 - I helped unseat him in the primaries earlier that year. However that does NOT mean that we did not have cross-border operations.

I talked to veterans who told me about their crossing over into Cambodia during the same period.

“In July 1963, Pol Pot and most of the central committee left Phnom Penh to establish an insurgent base in Ratanakiri Province in the northeast”

That region is in the upper part of the Mekong delta which is readily accessable by boat from VietNam. Tonle Sap in particular is accessable by boat.

You just don’t see how absurd you are being do you?

On one foot you complain about the attacks on Kerry, then you turn around on the other foot and say that Bush deserved the attacks on him!

Well guess what goofball? There are plenty of us who thought Kerry deserved it too!

Too bad.

He deserved it for cocaine use and going AWOL.

Kerry didn’t.

So your argument is that the Democrats just were not as organized as the Republicans in their attacks against Bush’s service record?

LOL!

Do you actually stop to think about the things you type before you do?

Totally and utterly false, but that won’t stop them from saying it.

When the Swiftboat Liars say “I served with John Kerry in Vietnam,” it simply means they were somewhere in country at roughly the same time he was.

They didn’t know him from Adam. He was just another sailor on a boat at the time.

The ones who did know him have nothing but good to say about him–like Rasmussen, the Republican who maintains to this day that Kerry saved his life under fire.

Kerry spoke on the floor of the United States Congress.

Classified?

It is NOT classified that LBJ was President, at the time Kerry stated, and NOT Nixon!

It is NOT classified that the Khmer Rouge did not even exist, at that time!

You prove that one Paul. As you know; all details of the cross-border operations were classified.

Prove that John Kerry was in Cambodia, during Christmas, while Nixon was in office! LOL:

http://www.claremont.org/publications/pubid.356/pub_detail.asp

John Kerry LIED!

LBJ was President at the time Kerry listed. Kerry was NEVER sent to Cambodia. The “Swift Boat” Kerry served upon was not appropriate for a “covert mission” and the Khmer Rouge that he claims took shots at him, DID NOT EXIST at that time!

My GOD it is your stock and trade.

You LIVE on lying to people.

You sell them insurance and deny claims.

Oh truly you are the most despicable personage here.

If you did not exist I’d have to invent you.

Many of us do not fault Kerry’s actual service, at all. I make note of the fact that Kerry never spent the night in a hospital, and further note of the fact that those who served, with Kerry, doubt Kerry’s account of events, and the fact that Kerry, himself, tossed out his medals in a protest.

(Therefore, most of us have shown more respect, towards Kerry’s medals, than has Kerry, himself!)

I also make note of the fact that Kerry did LIE about being in Cambodia, over Christmas, under Richard Nixon’s term in office.

I do not think that Kerry served much time under Nixon, at all, for starters, lol!

And of course, Kerry never was in Cambodia.

Anyway, it is what Kerry did, when Kerry got HOME, that bothers me the most.

Kerry received a less than honorable discharge from the Naval Reserve. That discharge was later upgraded under the Jimmy Carter Amnesty program.

*****

Did the Democrats run attack ads over and over again?

Did “I served with George W. Bush” LIARS appear over and over again on Fox News?

Did they have a well-financed, orchestrated campaign to discredit Bush’s service?

No.

No.

And also,

No.

Listen to Reguliar–”But a nice try Ben to try and discredit an honorable man serving his country.”

Discredit an honorable man serving his country . . . hmmmm . . . that reminds of something . . . what does it remind me of . . . discredit an honorable man serving his country.

Now I remember, John Kerry, silver star, bronze star with V for valor, three purple hearts

We learned from that, CONs, we learned a good f***ing lesson from you.

This time YOU get the Swiftboat Ads.
——————————-
Yeah, Kerry got those in (cough) about three months time.

Besides, Kerry symbolically threw his medals away. He wanted nothing to do with them.

Why should you hold them up as an iconic symbol when Kerry is the one who threw them away?

Discredit an honorable man serving his country . . . hmmmm . . . that reminds of something . . . what does it remind me of . . . discredit an honorable man serving his country.

Now I remember, John Kerry, silver star, bronze star with V for valor, three purple hearts

We learned from that, CONs, we learned a good f***ing lesson from you.

This time YOU get the Swiftboat Ads.

Of course the Republicans started this Ben!

It isn’t like the Democrats attacked Bush’s National Guard service over and over and over again in 2000.

They would never have done that….

[sarcasm]

Oh wait, thats right, in politics both parties have been scrutinizing each others records whether they are Veterans or not.

“an honorable man serving his country.”

Regular - in my opinion that could apply to BOTH VietNam Vets McCain an Kerry. The Republicans have established “rules of engagement” that allow for discrediting such veterans. McCain carries tha mantle of that Party.

———————
Huge difference between the two Ben.

Kerry came home and testified (falsely) that Vietnam soldiers were committing atrocities and etc. Kerry joined forces with very radical forces that had direct ties to North Vietnamese Communists.

McCain has always been loyal to his country and always stood up for his fellow serviceman.

Regular - in my opinion that could apply to BOTH VietNam Vets McCain an Kerry. The Republicans have established “rules of engagement” that allow for discrediting such veterans. McCain carries tha mantle of that Party.