Round Two

The Swift Boat Veterans for Truth have allied themselves with POW's and are launching another round of attacks on John Kerry.

There's not much new in the story, other than some embedded advice from the Post to Kerry on how to respond.

The Swift boat group is widely credited by Republicans and Democrats alike for damaging Kerry's credibility this summer, when it aired statements from veterans who had served in the same naval unit as Kerry in which they contended that he did not deserve many of the war medals he was awarded. Kerry was criticized by many Democrats, including some of his aides, for failing to mount a quick response to the attacks, which were picked up and replayed on cable television for several weeks in August. In a matter of weeks, Kerry's support, especially among veterans, dropped significantly and the Democratic nominee fell behind Bush.

Kerry did not recover in the polls until he responded with a forceful denunciation of the ads. Since then, the Swift boat vets have struggled to grab as much national attention, but they still raised more than $15 million and have run numerous ads bashing Kerry. In New Mexico this week, hardly an hour went by without the Swift boat ads being broadcast.

David Wade, a Kerry spokesman, said the Democratic nominee will not respond to the new round of charges. "We will keep an eye on what they are doing, but we feel this is a widely discredited group who is doing the dirty work of President Bush. . . . They will not set the conversation for this campaign," he said. To defend Kerry, the campaign is running ads with military figures praising Kerry and his war service, Wade said.

Washington Post to Kerry - Fight Back!

But, in truth, Kerry did not recover in the polls until Bush's fumbling perrformance in the first debate.