Tell us more about this Cambodia thing, O'Neill

[hgc]

According to Pat Buchanan, in Human Events...
"During Christmas 1968," writes O'Neill, "Kerry was stationed at Coastal Division 13 in Cat Lo. Coastal Division 13's patrol area extended to Sa Dec, about 55 miles from the Cambodian border. Areas closer than 55 miles to the Cambodian border in the area of the Mekong River were patrolled by PBRs, a small river patrol craft, and not by swift boats."

"Preventing border crossings," writes O'Neill, "was considered so important at that time that an LCU (a large, mechanized landing craft) and several PBRs were stationed to ensure that no one could cross the border. A large sign at the border prohibited entry."

According to O'Neill, all of Kerry's commanders who are still alive deny he was ever ordered into Cambodia and insist Kerry would have been court-martialed had he ever taken his boat into Cambodia.Ah, but video has been found of John O'Neill talking to Richard Nixon in the Oval Office in 1971...O'NEILL: I was in Cambodia, sir. I worked along the border on the water.

NIXON: In a swift boat?

O'NEILL: Yes, sir.Hmm. Would seem to be a contradiction. How can swift boat veterans for truth all be liars?

[aerocontrols]

Originally posted by hgc

Ah, but video has been found of John O'Neill talking to Richard Nixon in the Oval Office in 1971...Hmm. Would seem to be a contradiction.

It would seem to be, had not O'Neill been talking about his service During the 1970 Cambodia Incursion (http://www.militaryhistoryonline.com/vietnam/vietnamization/cambodia.aspx), a year after Kerry left Vietnam. This was not a 'secret' mission, rather it was out in the open. The public knew about it.

Kerry's story is about the Mekong River, up to Sa Dec: As your quote indicates, O'Neill says it was impossible to cross the river in Kerry's patrol area in a Swift boat in 1968 - as Kerry claimed he did.

O'Neill is talking about a different patrol area, a year after Kerry left Vietnam.

Originally posted by hgc
How can swift boat veterans for truth all be liars?

You just have to want it bad enough, I guess.

MattJ

[Nasarius]

*cough*
http://mediamatters.org/items/200408250005
http://mediamatters.org/items/200408250004

[crackmonkey]

Let's look at this, shall we? He speaks to the President, then quickly corrects himself. He sas Yes - then corrects himself to clearly state that he was close to the border.
Kerry, on the other hand, explicitly stated that he was on a secret CIA mission into Cambodia on Xmas of '68. His crew contradicted him - not a soul agreed that he ever went into Cambodia - and so Kerry amended his tale to state that it WASN'T in fact on Xmas '68 - that he had said was forever seared into his memory - but at some later undetermined date.
Kerry explicitly claims that he was specifically sent on a mission into Cambodia, not that he strayed into Cambodian waters. When O'Neill was asked about this, he said taht he was referring to a different part of the river at a differnet date. You have to remember, as well - Kerry's claims were in the winter of 68/69 - O'Neill's conversation with Nixon happened years later, after US troops had made advances into Cambodia.
Bottom line - no one agrees with Kerry's version of events. Kerry himself didn;t agree, and changed his tune. Funny - if the Swiftboat guys are such 'liars', why did Kerry find them convincing enough to accept their version of Xmas '68, contradicting years of Kerry stump speeches?

[aerocontrols]

Originally posted by Nasarius
*cough*
http://mediamatters.org/items/200408250005
http://mediamatters.org/items/200408250004

Is this supposed to convince me that Media Matters can't tell the difference between 1968 and 1970 or between the Mekong Delta and Ha Tien?

The Kerry campaign won't say Kerry was in Cambodia for Christmas, (they've moved the timetable back to the end of March, which is plausible, and has the added bonus of being a time period for which they haven't released after-action reports as well as after Gardner left the boat) only his apologists in the media will do that. Fred Kaplan explained he could have been.

Are you still buying the idea that Kerry was in Cambodia for Christmas? Kerry and his campaign aren't claiming it anymore, though Kaplan and mediamatters still seem to believe it.

MattJ

[corplinx]

Originally posted by aerocontrols
Is this supposed to convince me that Media Matters can't tell the difference between 1968 and 1970 or between the Mekong Delta and Ha Tien?


Media Matters isnt a reputable source. I didn't think anyone would try to create a media watchdog group to the left of FAIR, but they did.