Posted on 06/15/2008 5:18:58 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama learned an important lesson from the 2004 presidential campaign: Dont be passive about false rumors.
When Democratic nominee and Vietnam War veteran John Kerry, who served with distinction in the U.S. Navy and won multiple Purple Hearts for wounds in battle, was attacked for a lack of patriotism, his campaign was slow to respond. Obama wont be so passive.
The scurrilous attack on Kerry, largely funded by Houston homebuilder Bob Perry, a Republican Party sugar daddy, was outlandish. A group called Swift Boat Veterans for Truth posted the ads, coining a new term for dirty politics - swiftboating.
Obamas campaign has had to fight swiftboating all year, regularly fielding wild rumors about his heritage, his patriotism and his religion. In most instances, the campaign staff fired back quickly to a targeted audience.
But after the dustup last week over comments attributed to his wife, Michelle, the Obama campaign took to the Internet with a vengeance and a new Web site. Michelle Obama was accused of using a derogatory term for white people, which she and her husband roundly denied when it was reported and deny again on the Web site.
The name of the Web site, fightthesmears.com, says it all clearly and concisely. Obamas camp will respond to smears instantly and forcefully. It will not be easily swiftboated, not be passive about rumors no matter how bizarre, not be caught unaware of the destructive potential of false statements.
Its an unfortunate reality of modern politics that the most absurd charges assume a life of their own on the Internet. Anyone can post any nutty thing, and it spreads like a virus. This is the new gutter politics, and it can be effective.
Obamas camp is smart to fight back aggressively. The Web site already answers not only the smear against Michelle, but disproves several others. Obamas birth certificate is posted to counter that hes not an American; his Christian upbringing is explored to prove hes not a Muslim; a video of him leading the Pledge of Allegiance in the Senate gives lie to the smear that he refuses to say the pledge.
Also, to counter the attacks on him using partial quotes (or entirely fabricated ones) from his books, the full texts are offered. This is an effective strategy to refute the smears, innuendos and outright lies that have accompanied Obamas successful campaign.
Obama and Republican presidential aspirant John McCain have spoken of rejecting smear campaigns this political season and raising the political debates to a new level. At this point, that looks more like hope than fact.
Even if they both take the high road, nothing will prevent hatemongers from spreading poison. Nothing will prevent radio personalities from repeating false, hateful smears, giving them another life. Nothing will prevent anonymous bloggers from posting pure fiction under the guise of political truths.
But Democrats have learned from the swiftboating of Kerry that they can and must fight back. Fightthesmears.com is an excellent tool for turning lies and smears back on their perpetrators and revealing the truth.
So if Obama denies it, it's off-limits? MMMmmmmkay!
Thin skinned is now a race.
Wonder how fair this “journalist” has been to GWB?
Has anyone checked their websewer to see if they have thrown his brother under the bus yet?

However, the website Obama has set up to ANSWER his critics are now turning and attacking McCain.
Further proving what a bunch of dolts the democrats are .. they don’t even know the Swift Boaters WERE IN VIETNAM WITH KERRY (or if they do know they’re lying about knowing).
It’s just another example of PAY-BACK by the dems when you outsmart them.
It is Austin Texas. One of the most liberal cities in America.
Obama is standing in a cesspool of deceit. He can’t fight the truth with more lies.
Obomba probably should not be passive about them, agreed. But its the true rumors that will do him in, and being passive or active about them won't make much difference.
Obama’s father was a muslim and his mother a convicted atheist. She was so rebellious against any traditional values she ran off to foreign countries and twice married men outside both her religion and race.
There is no way Obama had a “Christian” upbringing.
Other than that, good editorial.
Congressman Billybob
Latest article, "Gravity: Not Just a Good Idea, It's the Law"

Commander Obama braced to torpedo swift boats
The only other image like this that cracks me up EVERY TIME I view it is the Helen Thomas dog-face. These two images will live forever in the annals of the Enemy-within history.
Other than that, good editorial.
Congressman Billybob
Latest article, "Gravity: Not Just a Good Idea, It's the Law"
I drink my morning coffee everday from a mug with that seal on it. It just reminds me to stick my fingers in my ears when I start to hear a Democrat whine.
If a repub had set up thought police on the Internet the leftist media would freak but when a fellow Marxist does it , they rejoice. Like I have warned the OLD MEDIA want this Marxist to win so they can regain there old monopoly back. Obama and Michele aka Chairman Mao and Madame Mao once in power will shut down the new media , regulate the internet and shut down talk radio and threaten Fox News into submission. It looks like Matt Drudge is already playing along with the Obama thought police in a hope to stay open.
Naaaah.
The real lesson of the Swift Boat people is that the truth will out, no matter how much the MSM and the Democrats attack the people that tell the unpleasant truths about Democratic presidential candidates. That's why Hanoi John Kerry lost.
Obama has gotten into the fight ahead of any real opponent - they're out there warning the faithful against the evil (but factual) words of their opposition.
We're looking at democrats, socialists, and plain delusional people who are free to vote their fantasies.
We're looking at a political machine that knows it can define honest opposition as a cliche of greed and misanthropy - and get away with it - because the left has been setting this up since kerry got bit by his lies.
Obama intends to get away with his lies, he is already out there building defenses, and the best defense is a good (early) offense.
Don't kid yourself:
"Obamas camp is smart to fight back aggressively. The Web site already answers not only the smear against Michelle, but (several others)...This is an effective strategy to refute the smears, innuendos and outright lies that have accompanied Obamas successful campaign...nothing will prevent hatemongers from spreading poison. Nothing will prevent radio personalities from repeating false, hateful smears, giving them another life. Nothing will prevent anonymous bloggers from posting pure fiction under the guise of political truths."
Ain't amateur night. it's new and it's politics, and it's gonna hurt.
Nor can he be a born-again Christian, as someone who sat in a racist “church” for years and said or did nothing to stop it.
He’s as phony as it gets.
His own words are horrible enough.
Why would anyone even need to cook anything up?
He is a very dangerous man....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dl32Y7wDVDs
Austin, the San Francisco of Texas. A different place entirely.
The Austin Anti-American Hatesman.
If only Obama gave half as much thought about protecting The United States of America from her enemies within the borders and in foreign nations.
If Kerry had had the facts on his side, he would have responded in a heartbeat. He wasn't about to admit to the world that he had gotten self-promoted purple hearts for "wounds" that would not have caused a kindergartener to miss recess.
He CAME to Christ in his adulthood through Pastor Wright (20 years ago by his testimony).
So again, Barack needs to tell us what he was practicing before he came to Trinity because he has not come clean with the voting public.
If there is nothing wrong with being raised as a muslim why doesn’t he admit to it?
The newspaper employees left out, the follow through. Yes, fight back as Kerry has done but he's never followed through with any publicly verifiable proof as far as I know.
That Texas guy offered Kerry a million dollars, I believe, if Kerry could disprove some of the swift boaters' claims. A million dollars! Piece of cake -- if you got the proof. Was the offer a hoax? I don't think so. Why won't Kerry take him up on it?
Wot?
Kerry wants a wife to go with the fortune? Then he'll believe the money is real. . . .
How much truth is on Obama? Piles and piles:
Thank you for compilation. Makes it much easier to get the TRUTH out there.
The TRUTH BOAT getting ready to sail1
Off to check out the site.
Obama is evil and hatred personified.
Now he is lashing out against Americans who expose him?
Such behavior demonstrates that he is more evil than I thought.
If someone is “swiftboated,” it means they’ve been caught lying. So why not?
(lol — good imagery)
[Obama is gonna be sliced and diced.There is just too much on Obama, ]
Wow, great website. Just wait till testimonials from brother Roy, the militant muslim Luo get aired. I don’t think it’s going to be a Kumbaya moment.
Excuse me .. the website is being used to ATTACK the right.
You can pretend it’s to “refute” all you want .. but it has migrated (as all things liberal always do) into a monster. Another “war room” the same as the Clintons - where they controlled the media and everything about the candidate.
You can say it’s just “politics” but this is not the politics I remember being involved in. This is more propaganda than politics and I don’t like it one bit.
I do know what brought it on .. radio. When the conservatives took to the radio waves the liberals went ballistic realizing that their scheme to take over America was at risk. Today’s media is still bent on keeping the liberals in power .. but they’re really further from power than they’ve ever been .. and I still believe they will not make it back into the WH this time either.
And .. if people think they’re mad now .. just wait until they lose in November. I hope we’re all ready for another round of hostility.
What a pile of crap. Why do you continue to post this garbage?
Of course the term “Yellow Journalism” was coined long before the Swift Boat Vets.
And we pay good money for that liberal cr8P every day. Sigh.
Oh, I didn't realize you were the Big Kahuna here: I'll try and run threads by you before I post them. Will that suffice?
I've noticed that you regularily post inflammatory articles without comment, the pattern is obvious. You like to stir up trouble on FR. It's just my opinion but I think it's obvious to others too.
Yes, it is.
Please read before reacting.
So didn’t McCain ride to the defense of Kerry and renounce the Swift Boat Vets for Truth?
First of all, if every thread here is by a conservative, this becomes a "Rah-rah echo chamber" and we learn nothing about what the "other side" is up to. In military inteligence we called that "Know Your Enemy" and for good reason. Secondly, I did comment, see post #1. Thirdly, you & I are equal here, and neither of us is Jim Robinson. If Jim doesn't like my threads, he'll 86 me. Fourth, who are these "others" that you mention? I get 99.9% positive feedback from other FReepers, so, besides yourself, who thinks I'm a sh*t-stirrer?
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