Posted on 08/27/2004 4:41:58 AM PDT by kristinn
In the midst of the controversy between the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth and Kerry campaign representatives about Kerry's service in Vietnam, new questions have arisen.
The Kerry campaign has repeatedly stated that the official naval records prove the truth of Kerry's assertions about his service.
But the official records on Kerry's Web site only add to the confusion. The DD214 form, an official Defense Department document summarizing Kerry's military career posted on johnkerry.com, includes a "Silver Star with combat V."
But according to a U.S. Navy spokesman, "Kerry's record is incorrect. The Navy has never issued a 'combat V' to anyone for a Silver Star."
Naval regulations do not allow for the use of a "combat V" for the Silver Star, the third-highest decoration the Navy awards. None of the other services has ever granted a Silver Star "combat V," either.
Fake claims not uncommon
B.G. Burkett, a Vietnam veteran himself, received the highest award the Army gives to a civilian, the Distinguished Civilian Service Award, for his book Stolen Valor. Burkett pored through thousands of military service records, uncovering phony claims of awards and fake claims of military service. "I've run across several claims for Silver Stars with combat V's, but they were all in fake records," he said.
Burkett recently filed a complaint that led last month to the sentencing of Navy Capt. Roger D. Edwards to 115 days in the brig for falsification of his records.
Kerry's Web site also lists two different citations for the Silver Star. One was issued by the commander in chief of the Pacific Command (CINCPAC), Adm. John Hyland. The other, issued by Secretary of the Navy John Lehman during the Reagan administration, contained some revisions and additional language. "By his brave actions, bold initiative, and unwavering devotion to duty, Lieutenant (j.g.) Kerry reflected great credit upon himself... ."
One award, three citations
But a third citation exists that appears to be the earliest. And it is not on the Kerry campaign Web site. It was issued by Vice Adm. Elmo Zumwalt, commander of U.S. naval forces in Vietnam. This citation lacks the language in the Hyland citation or that added by the Lehman version, but includes another 170 words in a detailed description of Kerry's attack on a Viet Cong ambush, his killing of an enemy soldier carrying a loaded rocket launcher, as well as military equipment captured and a body count of dead enemy.
Maj. Anthony Milavic, a retired Marine Vietnam veteran, calls the issuance of three citations for the same medal "bizarre." Milavic hosts Milinet, an Internet forum popular with the military community that is intended "to provide a forum in military/political affairs."
Normally in the case of a lost citation, Milavec points out, the awardee simply asked for a copy to be sent to him from his service personnel records office where it remains on file. "I have never heard of multi-citations from three different people for the same medal award," he said. Nor has Burkett: "It is even stranger to have three different descriptions of the awardee's conduct in the citations for the same award."
So far, there are also two varying citations for Kerry's Bronze Star, one by Zumwalt and the other by Lehman as secretary of the Navy, both posted on johnkerry.com.
Kerry's Web site also carries a DD215 form revising his DD214, issued March 12, 2001, which adds four bronze campaign stars to his Vietnam service medal. The campaign stars are issued for participation in any of the 17 Department of Defense named campaigns that extended from 1962 to the cease-fire in 1973.
However, according to the Navy spokesman, Kerry should only have two campaign stars: one for "Counteroffensive, Phase VI," and one for "Tet69, Counteroffensive."
94 pages of records unreleased?
Reporting by the Washington Post's Michael Dobbs points out that although the Kerry campaign insists that it has released Kerry's full military records, the Post was only able to get six pages of records under its Freedom of Information Act request out of the "at least a hundred pages" a Naval Personnel Office spokesman called the "full file."
What could that more than 100 pages contain? Questions have been raised about President Bush's drill attendance in the reserves, but Bush received his honorable discharge on schedule. Kerry, who should have been discharged from the Navy about the same time -- July 1, 1972 -- wasn't given the discharge he has on his campaign Web site until July 13, 1978. What delayed the discharge for six years? This raises serious questions about Kerry's performance while in the reserves that are far more potentially damaging than those raised against Bush.
Experts point out that even the official military records get screwed up. Milavic is trying to get mistakes in his own DD214 file corrected. In his opinion, "these entries are not prima facie evidence of lying or unethical behavior on the part of Kerry or anyone else with screwed-up DD214s."
Burkett, who has spent years working with the FBI, Department of Justice and all of the military services uncovering fraudulent files in the official records, is less charitable: "The multiple citations and variations in the official record are reason for suspicion in itself, even disregarding the current swift boat veterans' controversy."
Surfing around:
But Mr Brinkley rejected accusations that the senator had never been to Cambodia, insisting he was telling the truth about running undisclosed "black" missions there at the height of the war.
He said: "Kerry went into Cambodian waters three or four times in January and February 1969 on clandestine missions. He had a run dropping off US Navy Seals, Green Berets and CIA guys." The missions were not armed attacks on Cambodia, said Mr Brinkley, who did not include the clandestine missions in his wartime biography of Mr Kerry, Tour of Duty.
"He was a ferry master, a drop-off guy, but it was dangerous as hell. Kerry carries a hat he was given by one CIA operative. In a part of his journals which I didn't use he writes about discussions with CIA guys he was dropping off."
Do you have a better link?
Hey!
We were writing about these things 12 weeks ago!
Dead On!!!!!
and J Fin Kerry let us all down. The BOY has no HONOR. He has lost the right to even be called a man.
That's why we're all so cranky! We're so far ahead of this story, we're losing patience, waiting for the rest of the country to catch the hell up.
This works.
here's an old article:
http://daily.nysun.com/Repository/getFiles.asp?Style=OliveXLib:ArticleToMail&Type=text/html&Path=NYS/2004/02/27&ID=Ar00800
This guy can write, gets picked up by media, and seems to like looking into Kerry stuff...we need his e-mail address...
'JWR contributor Thomas H. Lipscomb, the founder of Times Books, is a contributing columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times and The New York Sun, where a shorter version of this story first appeared.'
tom@digitalfuture.org, schmooze@jewishworldreview.com
Thanks!! When I send stuff like this to the liberals who persist in sending me their liberal lies, I like to have the original source.
By THOMAS LIPSCOMB Mr. Lipscomb, the founder of Times Books, was the publisher of Admiral Zumwalt’s best-selling book, “On Watch.”
Kerry would not know shame if it, bitch slapped him in his french horse face.I believe the deceased naval officer's name to be Boorda. If I am wrong, fellow Freepers please correct me. Bush/Cheney 2004
As I stated earlier, the sKerry people are going to try to write the V device on the Silver Star off as a "clerical error" that sKerry had no idea was there.
Which makes me wonder how he could be making changes to his DD214 via the posted DD215 as late as 2000 and NOT SEE the typo, especially in a section that not only commands so much of his attention, but he was actually in there TO CORRECT!
Sounds to me like the 'esteemed' Senator was doing some preparatory career building to me...
Before this is over, I think we will know.
In an interview with Brit Hume, Colonel Bill Cowan said that all of Kerry's records have been declassified and can be found in the Naval Archives building.
They would not be easy to find but, if a reporter would take the time and do the digging, they could be located one by one.
The Swiftees know this, too, and my guess is that they're digging.
Looking more like the Manchurian Candidate all the time.
This may be a stretch, but it seems plausible to me.
There it is...
So much for that fraud Kerry supporter who called in after the replay of Frauds 1971 "testimony" before the Senate Committee:
I am a veteran! Served in Viet Nam when? Ummm... aaahhh... 1975... *pause*... I served four years and blah blah blah
Is anyone associated with Kerry NOT a fraud?
I must respectfully disagree. The MSM will cover for Kerry through the election. I guarantee it. They are Bush Haters and will do whatever it takes!
The press, who hounded Boorda, will...I say will give Kerry a pass. If you do not think so consider this. How would the MSM be covering a similar Bush scandal?
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