Votes, Vets, VoteVets, And Swiftboating
According the The New York Times, VoteVets, a group comprised of Iraq and Afghanistan War Veterans, has a new advertisement that calls attention to some of Senator John McCain's recent statements about Iraq. See below.
Two things to note. First, the Times piece refers to McCain as the only veteran in the race. An astute commenter reminds everyone that, in fact, Ron Paul is a veteran. And just because his campaign lacks coverage, he shouldn't be taken for granted. Second, there's the issue of swiftboating. So, we want to ask you the following question:
Posted on February 25, 2008 by - Patrick James
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I don't know if this is better or worse than your average political ad. It isn't as brazenly dishonest as the swiftboat campaign. But it reminds me of swiftboating in some important ways.
1. VoteVets describes itself as "The Voice of America's 21st Century Patriots." So who are those who disagree? America's 21st century traitors? I'd be pissed if a group with the opposite political agenda represented itself this way.
2. Was McCain serious about the 1000 years figure? Is he really adamant about a 3008 A.D. withdrawal date? Nope. He was using hyperbole to make the (fair) point that we might need to stay in Iraq, on the sidelines, for a long while in a supporting role. VoteVets picked a cartoon version of his position.
Posted on February 25, 2008 — by DirtyFiveThirty
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