So the "Vietnam Veterans against Kerry" group has now set up "Vietnam Veterans against McCain"

[beachmom]

http://rawstory.com/news/2007/AntiMcCain_vets_ready_their_salvo_against_0302.html

RAW STORY spoke last week with Kiley, as well as Ted Sampley, a North Carolina-based publisher who has been harshly criticizing McCain for more than 10 years. Sampley teamed up with Kiley in 2004 to found a similar group that targeted Senator John Kerry as he ran for president. They see McCain as an apologist for Vietnam's Communist government who sold out fellow POWs and servicemen missing in action from America's lengthy war in Southeast Asia.

...

Kiley will be working with Sampley, who produces the newspaper and website US Veteran Dispatch and served in the Army in Vietnam. The two worked together on the website Vietnam Veterans Against John Kerry, which they claim registered 20 million hits in 2004. He also speaks harshly of McCain on POW/MIA issues.

"He led the way on normalizing relations with Vietnam, and it took away all our leverage on prisoner of war issues," Sampley said. "McCain has proudly touted for years that he and Kerry were saviors of the POW issue, but he's really the betrayer of the issue."

Sampley has also long hammered away at McCain's mental state and argues that his experience in a Vietnamese POW camp makes him unfit to serve as president.




More at the link.

Thing is, I have ambiguous feelings on this. On one hand, these people are despicable and their attacks on McCain godawful. BUT, why did McCain take swiftboater money? He would get more sympathy from me if he hadn't done that.

[rox63]

1. I wonder what they'll do if McCain is the rethug nominee?

I can't see them doing anything that would damage the rethug against a Dem.

[MH1]

2. The only people Kerry and McCain "betrayed" in the POW issue

were the charlatans exploiting the grief of families of POWs.

Ted Sampley & company are a wholly different crew than the Swift Liars, although I am sure they were happy to enable the Liars in 2004.

What would be interesting is if the Swift Liars, Inc. were to use their considerable $$$ to drive a stake in the heart of Sampley's much more rag-tag organization.

As despicable as their tactics were, at least I can comprehend the motivation for the Swift Liars as genuine anger at Kerry's actions after he returned from Vietnam. (Well, at least the motivations of the rank and file swifties - the moneymen are still a different story). The Sampley crew, however, is completely lower than slime, except of course any of his followers who have only followed them because of having their grief over a loved one exploited.

[beachmom]

3. Well, well, well. The swiftboaters are coming to St. John's rescue:

http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/005084.php

Swift Boat Vet "Appalled" by McCain Smear

By Paul Kiel - January 16, 2008, 12:56PM

Is the ragtag Vietnam Veterans against John McCain giving swift boating a bad name?

Yes, said Swift Boat Veterans and POW’s for Truth treasurer Weymouth Symmes. "I don't think there's any truth to that at all. He was a hero, in my opinion. I'd be appalled if anybody questioned his war service."




Everyone oughta stew on this one for a while.

[karynnj]

4. Intersting

They didn't defend Kerry on the same charges and for a group who styled themselves as veterans, they sure overlooked a lot of holes in W's record. What is clear - is what the Nation (and you and others) have said, it was never about service. Not to mention that it is impossible to give swiftboating a worse name than it already has.

I would not be surprised if Senator Kerry, who has likely researched this as part of the effort to clearly reject all SBVT charges, does not help to blow this away. The leader of this group has to be a very sick sleaze that he would have created hope in the hearts of people who lost a son decades ago. He really needs to be shown for what he is.

[beachmom]

6. Nah. This is a time to sit back and see what happens.

I am amused to see all these goons slug it out. Swiftboaters vs. POW/MIA scam artist. It's like Alien vs. Predator. Why get involved? JK is their common enemy. It's best to see them tatter each other to bits, leaving them both weaker in the aftermath.

[sandnsea]

5. I think there are two groups

There is the one group of nuts that was against any reconciliation with Vietnam because they believe there are still POW's there. In their bizarre reality, they believe McCain was brainwashed when he was a POW otherwise he wouldn't have worked for reunification and sold the POW's down the river.

Then there's the other group of nuts, the swiftboaters who think John Kerry betrayed the country for his 1971 testimony, etc.

On the one hand, what's being done to McCain is disgusting. On the other, you reap what you sew or reep what you sow, or however you spell that and I don't want to look it up.