Swiftboating?
For those with short memories let me take you back 20 years to 2004….
The term swiftboating (also swift-boating or swift boating) is a pejorative American neologism used to describe an unfair or untrue political attack. The term is derived from the name of the organization “Swift Boat Veterans for Truth” (SBVT, later the Swift Vets and POWs for Truth) because of their widely publicized—and later discredited—political smear campaign against 2004 U.S. presidential candidate John Kerry. Since the 2004 election, the term has come to commonly refer to a political attack that is dishonest, personal, and unfair.
(wikipedia)
I bring this blast from the past up because the Trump minions are swiftboating Walz…..
JD Vance appears to have settled on a line of attack against his rival to be vice president, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz—and it revolves around military service. The details:
- Walz served in the National Guard for 24 years before retiring in 2005 to run for Congress in Minnesota. Politico notes that Walz filed his paperwork to run in February 2005, roughly a month before reports came out that his unit might be deployed to Iraq and about five months before the official orders were issued.
- A former Guard colleague, Al Bonnifeld, says Walz knew of the potential deployment and wrestled with whether it was the right time to run for office. “He told us that he wanted to run for Congress, and he was in a tough spot, because he was pretty sure we were going to Iraq,” Bonnifield told NewsNation, per the Hill. But, Bonnifield noted, “we didn’t have orders. We didn’t have any kind of orders at all.”
- The Washington Post has one of the most thorough explorations of all this here. It includes the views of those such as Bonnifield, who praise Walz’s service, as well as those who served with Walz and are critical of him.
- Vance is essentially accusing Walz of cowardice and of inflating his service, attacks reminiscent of the infamous “swift boat” attacks on John Kerry in the 2004 election over his Vietnam War record, per USA Today. The story notes that Chris LaCivita, who led the attacks on Kerry, is now a senior adviser to the Trump campaign. The criticism of Walz on this front has surfaced previously in his Minnesota elections, without success. (Two Guard retirees wrote this scathing letter in 2018.)
- Vance also is calling attention to a Walz quote from a campaign event a while back in Minnesota (and being trumpeted by the Harris-Walz campaign) in which he referred to the “weapons I carried in war.” Walz never saw combat, prompting Vance’s jab: “Well, I wonder. Tim Walz, when were you ever in war?” For the record, Vance served four years in the Marines and went to Iraq, but he served in a communications role there and did not see combat, either, per the New York Times.
This is not all that surprising for when you have no defined policies then you personally attack your opponent hoping that the idiots will fixate on the BS and not on their lack of direction.
It worked well when used against Kerry and Trump hopes it will once again be a death blow.
This election is all about jibes and insults not policies and solutions.
I Read, I Write, You Know
“lego ergo scribo”
As we all know, this is just the beginning of the attacks on Walz and his background. At least they have a good counter, with Trump and his ‘bone spurs’.
Best wishes, Pete.
Yep but so far I have seen very little of that attack…..they should fight fire with fire. chuq
Even some of the republicans are warning Vance and Trump to back off of this line of attack. It’s a well known fact that Walz applied for retirement months before there was even a hint that his unit might be deployed overseas, and he was mustered out of the service weeks before there were any actual orders issued concerning the deployment. He’d been in the service for 24 years, for heaven’s sake, 4 years longer than what was required for retirement.
And years longer than Vance and 24 years longer than Trump. chuq
JDV should drop the military stuff and focus on the policies that W has advocated. There’s enough to disgust people just on that. Oh, but note JDV was in a war zone and as vulnerable as were all the rest of our soldiers stationed there. What democrats are able to dismiss and ignore is the present day war threatening America by China, Russia, Iran, N Korea, drug cartels and urban crime.
He was in a communications unit….not even as dangerous as being a grunt. No one is ignoring a thing….billions spent to thwart China, Russia and a bunch lip service on Iran and N. Korea. chuq
Carl I believe urban crime has fallen in the last 4 years….crime knows no president….it will be committed no matter which dullard is in the White House chuq
Yes, local crime not any P’s fault as you suggest so I guess the onus is on the courts and prosecutors to prosecute and stop the endless revolving door of last several decades. Multiple offenders should not be free to roam the streets. Both parties speak of freedom but as long as so many of us have been victims of crime much of our freedom and safety has dissolved. Freedom from fear has evaporated.
The only crimes I see as rampant is the lies and corruption by all the politicians. that should be prosecuted. chuq
117 shot, 17 dead in a Chicago weekend repeated all over urban America. You must be hanging out at the post office across the street from Earl’s barber shop. I imagine it is fairly peaceful there if you don’t count the ruffle of some leaves.
One city does not make a national crisis….It’s Als…..chuq
Idiots will always fixate on the BS– that is how Trump got elected the first time around.
True and many Dems fall for the hype as well chuq