Tuesday, May 18, 2004
Swift Boat Vets Accuse Kerry of Vietnam Photo Fraud
Eleven out of a group of 19 Vietnam Swift Boat veterans pictured in Sen. John Kerry's presidential campaign literature demanded on Monday that he stop misrepresenting them as supporters.
"Many of us don't want to be included in that picture because we have a rather unsavory feeling about this fellow," Kerry boatmate Bob Elder told radio host Linda Chavez.
"We regard the fact that he rallied the American public against his fellow comrades in arms as basically a betrayal of all of us."
Elder, Shumadine and nine others have banded together in a group they call "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth," which includes more than 220 Vietnam veterans who served in Kerry's unit.
Of the remaining six veterans pictured in the photograph, "one is deceased and three do not wish to be involved in any manner; only two of the 19 are believed to support Kerry," the group said in a Monday press release.
"His use of a photograph with his 18 comrades with knowledge that 12 of them condemn him ... is a complete misrepresentation to the public and a total fraud," Shumadine added.
In an open letter to Kerry included with the press release, the group said: "We did not give permission for you to use a photo including our image, nor do we support you. ... We join our fellow Swiftees who believe that someone who heaped scorn and lies on his own unit for his personal political gain is not fit to be Commander in Chief."
Eleven out of a group of 19 Vietnam Swift Boat veterans pictured in Sen. John Kerry's presidential campaign literature demanded on Monday that he stop misrepresenting them as supporters.
"Many of us don't want to be included in that picture because we have a rather unsavory feeling about this fellow," Kerry boatmate Bob Elder told radio host Linda Chavez.
"We regard the fact that he rallied the American public against his fellow comrades in arms as basically a betrayal of all of us."
Elder, Shumadine and nine others have banded together in a group they call "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth," which includes more than 220 Vietnam veterans who served in Kerry's unit.
Of the remaining six veterans pictured in the photograph, "one is deceased and three do not wish to be involved in any manner; only two of the 19 are believed to support Kerry," the group said in a Monday press release.
"His use of a photograph with his 18 comrades with knowledge that 12 of them condemn him ... is a complete misrepresentation to the public and a total fraud," Shumadine added.
In an open letter to Kerry included with the press release, the group said: "We did not give permission for you to use a photo including our image, nor do we support you. ... We join our fellow Swiftees who believe that someone who heaped scorn and lies on his own unit for his personal political gain is not fit to be Commander in Chief."
