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Intimidating Letter Sent by DNC to News Outlets

The DNC and Sen. John Kerry reportedly sent a misleading and threatening letter to station managers attempting intimidate them into not broadcasting an advertisement that is highly critical of Kerry. According to Human Events:

The letter claims the ad is "false" and "libelous" and suggests, in not-so-subtle terms, that TV stations should use their "legal authority" to refuse any requests for advertising airtime, stating that "because your station has this freedom [to refuse the ad], and because it is not a 'use' of your facilities by a clearly identified candidate, your station is responsible for the false and libelous charges made by this sponsor" (emphasis added).

As their first piece of evidence of the ad's supposed lies, the DNC/Kerry lawyers claim that the veterans in the ad "purport to have served on Senator Kerry's SWIFT Boat in Vietnam" but, "in fact, not a single one of the men who pretend to have served with Senator Kerry was actually a crewmate of Senator Kerry's." The problem is that none of these men claimed to have served on Kerry's SWIFT Boat. They simply said they "served with John Kerry" -- and they did. The letter goes on to make several more misleading statements about the advertisement, in an attempt to protect Kerry's "war hero" record.

Kerry has also lodged a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (article). On the wake of Sen. Kerry’s attack, the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth have followed their original advertisement with another that takes aim at Kerry’s characterization of Vietnam veterans as war criminals.

One may take issue with the continued skepticism and emphasis on Sen. Kerry’s service record; what does this have to do with the presidential race? The answer is two-fold. First, Sen. Kerry has emphasized his status as a war hero and used it to show he is qualified to handle international affairs. He has also used descriptions of his war experience to motivate U.S. policy while testifying before U.S. Senate Committees. Second, repeated exaggerations, distortion of the truth and failure to admit error reveals a fundamental character flaw that is unacceptable for a leader, no less the President of the United States. Sen. Kerry’s character is of prime importance and what he has said publicly should be used to evaluate his suitability for office.

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