Swift Boat Vet Denounces Clark For McCain

Update: I contacted the McCain campaign to see what their position was on having Col. Bud Day, a participant in the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth campaign, defending John McCain and denouncing Wesley Clark. The email exchange:

Tommy Christopher - Phone Message: Re: Will JSM release his entire miltary record? If so, when? Col. Bud Day, who was affiliated with the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth appeared in the conference call today. Is JSM accepting their support?

Brian Rogers, McCain Spokesman: Tommy: I think you're a little bit confused here: Col. Bud Day was on the call today because he was Sen. McCain's commanding officer as a POW. Col. Day is one of the most distinguished veterans in America -- he was awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroism. He nursed Sen. McCain back to health after sustaining grave injuries after being shot down. See more of Col. Day here: http://cameron.blogs.foxnews.com/2008/05/08/colonel-bud-day-on-john-mccain/

TC: Col. Day was also a part of the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth campaign, which Senator McCain has previously denounced. My question is, does Col. Day's inclusion in his campaign now signal a reversal of that denunciation?

And are you able to address my other question? According to reports, only 17 out of over 600 pages of Sen. McCain's military records have been released. Will Senator McCain be releasing his entire military record, and if so, when?

BR: Obviously no change on Swift Boat Vets.

It appears that McCain's denunciation of the Swift Boat Vets is somewhat conditional, depending on the individual Swift Boat Vet. The McCain campaign hasn't responded to my follow-ups yet, including whether they will release McCain's full military record, but watch for updates. Here's the audio from that call.

Snuffy Smith Defends McCain, Denounces Clark

Barney Google, however, could not be reached for comment.

As reported here by Mark Impomeni, General Wesley Clark made several references to John McCain's military service on yesterday's "Face the Nation." The McCain campaign released the following statement, via email:

ARLINGTON, VA -- Admiral Leighton "Snuffy" Smith, USN (Ret.) today issued the following statement on Gen. Wesley Clark's attack on John McCain's military service record today on CBS' "Face the Nation":

"If Barack Obama wants to question John McCain's service to his country, he should have the guts to do it himself and not hide behind his campaign surrogates. If he expects the American people to believe his pledges about a new kind of politics, Barack Obama has a responsibility to condemn these attacks."

It is unclear, at this time, whether John McCain was standing directly behind Smith, shouting, "Yeah!"

Was General Clark out of line? Does Barack Obama have the "guts" to question John McCain's military record? Which candidate does Beetle Bailey support?

Update: Barack Obama addressed the issue, if obtusely, in today's speech on patriotism:

For those who have fought under the flag of this nation – for the young veterans I meet when I visit Walter Reed; for those like John McCain who have endured physical torment in service to our country – no further proof of such sacrifice is necessary.

And let me also add that no one should ever devalue that service, especially for the sake of a political campaign, and that goes for supporters on both sides.

First of all, I don't think anyone would argue that General Wesley Clark lacks standing to discuss McCain's military service, which is exactly the point of Smith's statement. Is it a fair topic of discussion during a political campaign? All things being equal, I would say no, but if McCain raises the issue, that's a different story. You know, like when he didn't support Jim Webb's GI Bill, and had this to say:

I will not accept from Senator Obama, who did not feel it was his responsibility to serve our country in uniform, any lectures on my regard for those who did.

Now, of course, if you're John McCain, you want to be able to wield your military service for political gain, while forbidding anyone to examine it. It is up to the news media to referee that fight.

First of all, does what Clark said constitute an "attack?" Here's the text quoted in the McCain email:

· Clark: "I don't think getting in a fighter plane and getting shot down is a qualification to become president." (CBS' "Face The Nation," 6/29/08)

· Clark: "He has been a voice on the Senate Armed Services Committee. And he has traveled all over the world. But he hasn't held executive responsibility. That large squadron in the Navy that he commanded -- that wasn't a wartime squadron." (CBS' "Face The Nation," 6/29/08)

Hey, your mother's not a wartime squadron!

True, his first statement is inartful and, perhaps, dismissive, but hardly the stuff of "Swiftboating." In fact, perhaps Clark should be commended for omitting that crashing 4 other planes is not qualification to become president.

On the other hand, the statements by Clark are bad politics. I understand the aim here. McCain's last shred of hope in this election rests on his heroic, tough guy image. He needs to be able to run around saying, "I'm a hero!" while preventing anyone from saying, "You're not running for Hero!"

Clark tries to deflate the significance of the McCain Myth, but he also punctures the myth itself. He would have done better to stick with his candidate's strategy of praising McCain's service, then pointing to his platform. There are plenty of outsiders working on exploding the myth.

The Obama response to this will be important to watch. The predictable response would be to denounce Clark's statement, while praising both men for their service. However, if Obama can somehow make McCain sorry he bit at this, it could set the table for the rest of this election.

The Obama campaign has not returned requests for comment, as yet. Obama is giving a speech about patriotism today, in Independence, MO. Expect Obama to address this issue then.