Captain’s Quarters keeps us again up to date on the Swiftboat contraversies. I still would like to know what records are available via FOIA and which are only available after the 180 request is processed.

Thomas Lipscomb breaks another major development in the Chicago Sun-Times this morning, and the Kerry campaign may need to do more backpedaling as a result. Former Secretary of the Navy and 9/11 Commission member John Lehman denies ever signing the modified citation Kerry’s site has prominently displayed for months, and states categorically that he didn’t write the additional language describing the engagement:
Former Navy Secretary John Lehman has no idea where a Silver Star citation displayed on Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry's campaign Web site came from, he said Friday. The citation appears over Lehman's signature.
"It is a total mystery to me. I never saw it. I never signed it. I never approved it. And the additional language it contains was not written by me," he said.
The additional language varied from the two previous citations, signed first by Adm. Elmo Zumwalt and then Adm. John Hyland, which themselves differ. The new material added in the Lehman citation reads in part: "By his brave actions, bold initiative, and unwavering devotion to duty, Lieutenant (jg) Kerry reflected great credit upon himself...."
Asked how the citation could have been executed over his signature without his knowledge, Lehman said: "I have no idea. I can only imagine they were signed by an autopen." The autopen is a device often used in the routine execution of executive documents in government.
Kerry senior adviser Michael Meehan could not be reached for comment on Kerry's records.

If the Kerry campaign backpedals any more, the website will look like this:

Under Construction

The site you are trying to view does not currently have a default page. It may be in the process of being upgraded and configured.

Please try this site again later. If you still experience the problem, try contacting the Web site administrator.

I need to wonder, how will this go down in the history books? Already some Democrats are starting to question how wise it was to run on a pro-defense platform. What are the masters of the democratic machine thinking now? Do they ever fact check their candidates for how the spin will play out? This time around, did it simply go as “Kerry’s a war hero, that’ll trump Bush?” Or did they actually look into his background, found out the fluff, and then just decide to see how it plays out.
And check out the photo caption contest.

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