Flea. The swift boat vets are conning you man!
The Swift Boat Vets changed that page you sent me the link to. Check this shit out. There is some sketchy shit going on.
Kerry says Schacte wasn't on the boat and the old version of the webpage didn't say anything about Schacte being on the boat. Then they changed the page to say that Schacte is on the boat. If you go to the link they actually have a mirror of the Swiftboat site so you can see the old version if you want.
http://mediamatters.org/items/200409030012Swift Boat Vets edited its website to conceal contradiction MMFA spotted
Three days after Media Matters for America first reported that the website of anti-Kerry group Swift Boat Veterans for Truth contradicted the account of the group's star witness -- retired Rear Admiral William L. Schachte Jr., who claims he was the commander on the December 2, 1968, mission for which the U.S. Navy awarded Senator John Kerry his first Purple Heart -- Swift Boat Veterans for Truth altered its website's account of the incident to make it consistent with Schachte's version of events. According to Schachte, Kerry did not deserve the award because the "skimmer" he supposedly commanded that night did not receive enemy fire, and Kerry's wound was the result of Kerry's own improper use of an M-79 grenade launcher.
The original version of the account on the Swift Boat Vets website begins:
The action that led to John Kerry's first Purple Heart occurred on December 2, 1968, during the month that he was undergoing training with Coastal Division 14 at Cam Ranh Bay. While waiting to receive his own Swift boat command, Kerry volunteered for a nighttime patrol mission commanding a small, foam-filled "skimmer" craft with two enlisted men.
As MMFA explained, this description matches Kerry's own account, as well as the account of Patrick Runyon and William Zaladonis, two enlisted men who insist that: (1) Schachte was not on the skimmer; (2) that Kerry was in command; and (3) that Runyon and Zaladonis were the only other people besides Kerry on the small craft.
The new, altered version of the Swift Boat Vets account reads:
The action that led to John Kerry's first Purple Heart occurred on December 2, 1968, during the month that he was undergoing training with Coastal Division 14 at Cam Ranh Bay. While waiting to receive his own Swift boat command, Kerry volunteered for a nighttime patrol mission on a small, foam-filled "skimmer" craft under the command of Lt. William Schachte. The two officers were accompanied by an enlisted man who operated the outboard motor.
The Web page's footer reads: "Last Updated Monday, August 30 2004 @ 09:09 PM PDT." -- three days after MMFA's item appeared.
Also Schacte has claimed to be a political independent. He may want to check his cancelled checks.
"Political independent" anti-Kerry vet Schachte contributed to George W. Bush in 2000 and 2004
On August 27, syndicated columnist Robert Novak presented his interview with retired Rear Admiral William L. Schachte Jr. -- who claims to be the fourth crewman on the boat who witnessed the events leading to Senator John Kerry's (D-MA) first Purple Heart -- as decisive evidence supporting the anti-Kerry group Swift Boat Veterans for Truth's allegation that Kerry did not deserve the award. John E. O'Neill, co-founder of Swift Boat Veterans for Truth and co-author of Unfit for Command: Swift Boat Veterans Speak Out Against John Kerry, cited Schachte in his book and in television appearances. While Novak wrote that Schachte "said he is a political independent who has voted for candidates of both parties," Schachte has a history of political contributions heavily weighted to Republicans, including $1,000 to George W. Bush's presidential campaigns in both 2000 and 2004.
Since 1997, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, Schachte has contributed $8,500 to federal candidates or national political organizations. All but $1,750 of those donations have gone to Republican candidates or to the Republican Party:
2004
$250 to Senator Charlie Condon (R-SC)
$1,000 to President George W. Bush (R)
2003
$500 to Representative James W. Demint (R-SC)
2001
$1,250 to Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC)
$250 to Representative Joel Hefley (R-CO)
$250 to Senator Wayne Allard (R-CO)
$250 to Henry Brown (R-candidate in SC)
2000
$250 to Republican Party of South Carolina
$750 to Henry Brown (R-candidate in SC)
$500 to Representative John M. Spratt (D-SC)
$1,000 to then-Governor George W. Bush (R)
$250 to H.B. "Buck" Limehouse (R-candidate in SC)
1999
$500 to Senator John W. McCain (R-AZ), presidential candidate
1998
$250 to Representative John M. Spratt (D-SC)
$1,000 to Representative Bob Inglis (R-SC)
$1,000 Senator Ernest F. Hollings (D-SC)
1997
$250 to Representative John M. Spratt (D-SC)
On August 27, writer and blogger Joshua Micah Marshall noted that Schachte is the new law partner of David A. Norcross at the law firm Blank Rome LLP. According to Blank Rome's website, Norcross "was recently appointed Chairman of the Republican National Convention's Committee on Arrangements for the 2004 Republican National Convention."