John Kerry defends Obama against vets attack

August 18, 2012 | Filed under: Politics | Posted by:


(Politico )Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) — himself a victim of a shadowy group attacking his military record — is coming to President Obama’s defense in a new campaign email to supporters.

“Seeing the new outrageous attacks made against President Obama from a shadowy Republican-allied veterans group called OPSEC, which take issue with the mission to kill Osama bin Laden, remind me all too well of the notorious ‘Swift Boat’ attacks I faced in the 2004 campaign,” Kerry wrote.

John kerry

In 2004, an outside group called “Swift Boat Veterans for Truth” formed to raise questions about his war record and air ads against him when he was running as the Democratic nominee for president. The ads didn’t run in many states, but they drew national attention (and earned media).

This week, two groups announced plans to air ads and video critical of Obama’s handling of national security, the war on terrorism and intelligence leaks within his administration. One of the groups avows political neutrality, but is run by a former Republican candidate for office. The other group is run by an avowed “birther,” who falsely questioned Obama’s place of origin in an interview with Foreign Policy.

“I honor and appreciate the service of my fellow veterans, but a false attack is a false attack — no matter who’s making it,” Kerry wrote.

“Throughout this campaign, Mitt Romney and his allies have shown that if the truth isn’t favorable to them, they have no problem claiming the opposite — and the reality is that President Obama has a foreign policy record that is among the strongest in recent memory,” Kerry wrote.

It’s the second time Kerry has lent his name to the Obama campaign this cycle. In March, he raised the specter of swift-boat style attacks against Obama in a campaign email, writing: “I know all too clearly that these guys will do or say anything to win. They’ll stop at nothing.”