Like (I sure hope) most Americans, I think the "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth" is a bunch of Republican stooges who are out to smear John Kerry with claims that are, at best, questionable. A friend of mine who went to Vietnam says a lot of guys who received medals there might not have literally deserved them, so if some of Kerry's were based on exaggerations, that would not be unusual. I see no reason yet to assume that's the case but even if it is, it's of little relevance to whether he's fit to be Commander-in-Chief today. For that matter, I don't think the "frat boy" partyings of George W. Bush a few decades ago are all that important in judging his fitness to lead…and don't think we won't hear more about them in the weeks to come.
I'm sure those who were already disinclined to support Kerry welcome the attack on his medals. In politics these days, a lot of people aren't satisfied to believe that their guy is better than the other guy. Now, the other guy must be demonized as criminal, a fool, a pathological liar, a traitor and an all-around worthless human being. Kerry's war record was always an obstacle if you wanted to believe that of him, and it's probably nice to have someone provide you with an alternate version that removes that obstacle. Best of all, you don't even have to really believe it. You can just say, "I don't know…I hear Kerry may have cheated to get those medals…I hear Bush may have cheated on his National Guard service…let's just call that a wash." It's a nice way for some to neutralize an area where Kerry held a big advantage.
How many votes, if any, this whole thing will cost Kerry is a good guess…but you know who I do think is being hurt by this? John McCain. He's out there simultaneously denouncing the attack on Kerry's service record while he stumps for George W. Bush. That can't be a very comfortable position to be in.
McCain is one of those guys I've never quite known what to think of. I first became familiar with him when he was making some extraordinary gestures to soothe bad feelings on both sides in the aftermath of Vietnam. He reached out to some of the protesters and set what I thought was a fine example of how we all needed to put certain angers behind us. If McCain, who spent years in a P.O.W. camp could become friends with a noted anti-war activist like David Ifshin, that was cause for more optimism than a thousand speeches that "hope is on the way." I am a big believer in forgiveness and also in standing up for the other side when you think they're being wronged. McCain denouncing the nasty Swift Boats campaign against Kerry is exactly the kind of thing I've admired in the guy.
But then he's out there hugging Bush, campaigning for him, trying to do nothing that will alienate the Republican base that will select the 2008 nominee. Given what the Bush team did to McCain in the 2000 primaries, you have to wonder. Does he think Bush has nothing to do with the attacks on Kerry's record and/or can't be expected to denounce them? I doubt that, though that may have to be McCain's public position. Does he not hold Bush responsible for the attacks made on him? Again, doubtful. Has he merely forgiven Bush for those tactics because it will help the McCain in '08 campaign? If so, that's not the kind of forgiveness that once made me admire the senior Senator from the great state of Arizona. I know that he has to support the nominee of his party but there was always something nice about McCain that made me think he'd never let that obligation — or even the obvious thirst to be president — override a matter of principle. He always seemed like a Republican that Democrats could support. I am now less inclined to believe that and I'll bet I'm not the only person who feels that way.