WTF??

Roy F. Hoffmann, a retired rear admiral and a leader of the [Swift War Veterans for Truth] group, allowed that he had disagreed with Mr. Kerry’s antiwar positions but said, "I am not going to say anything negative about him." He added, "He’s a good man."

In a profile of the candidate that ran in The Boston Globe in June 2003, Mr. Hoffmann approvingly recalled the actions that led to Mr. Kerry’s Silver Star: "It took guts, and I admire that."

Mmmmmm.

George Elliott, one of the Vietnam veterans in the group, flew from his home in Delaware to Boston in 1996 to stand up for Mr. Kerry during a tough re-election fight, declaring at a news conference that the action that won Mr. Kerry a Silver Star was "an act of courage."

George Elliott, if I recall correctly, is the one who recently did 2 or 3 flip-flops about Kerry’s war record in the same week — first saying that he regretted signing the affidavit that accused Kerry of lying . . . then apparently reaffirming the affidavit that he regretted signing . . . and then going on what I am sure is a loooooong-overdue vacation (to the flip-flop funny farm?)

Adrian L. Lonsdale, another Vietnam veteran now speaking out against Mr. Kerry, supported him [in 1996] with a statement about the "bravado and courage of the young officers that ran the Swift boats."

"Senator Kerry was no exception," Mr. Lonsdale told the reporters and cameras assembled at the Charlestown Navy Yard. "He was among the finest of those Swift boat drivers."

Well, you get the idea. But read the full story. Not only will you learn about the flip-flops, but the money trail behind the Swift Boat ads. I won’t give it all away — but let’s just say that Bush’s shadowy network ain’t that shadowy anymore . . . ’cause now there’s some light on it.

Heh.