Batman rips Robin: Adm. Schachte disputes Kerry's 1st Purple Heart claim in new Novak column

I'm told that now coming across the newswires is a new column from Bob Novak that contains extensive quotes from Retired Rear Adm. William L. Schachte Jr. 

Schachte, call-sign "Batman," has broken his press silence to insist that he was indeed aboard the Boston Whaler or "skimmer" in the early morning mission on December 2, 1968, out of which Sen. John Kerry's first Purple Heart was awarded. Schachte maintains that Kerry's minor arm wound was indeed the result of Kerry — code-named "Robin" on this mission — being careless in firing an M-79 grenade launcher. Other officers are quoted to support the likelihood of Schachte's presence.

I'll update this post when I can find the full Novak column online.

Update:   There's a teaser in my comments.

Update (Fri Aug 27 @ 1:20am):  Here is a report on Novak's column from Andy Soltis in Friday's New York Post, entitled "Enemy Never Wounded Kerry: Admiral":

An officer who served with John Kerry yesterday finally broke his silence about the Swift vets controversy — and said Kerry accidentally wounded himself before requesting his first Purple Heart. In a detailed new account that is certain to fuel the growing controversy, eyewitness William Schachte Jr., a retired rear admiral, told columnist Robert Novak for today's papers that he was "astonished" to hear Kerry's version of the events of Dec. 2, 1968, when Schachte was in command of Kerry aboard a skimmer boat on the Mekong River.

Schachte said that Kerry:

• Wasn't wounded by hostile fire.

• Wasn't even under fire by the enemy.

• "Nicked" himself with a grenade launcher and "requested a Purple Heart" afterward.

If Schachte's version is accurate, Kerry would not have been eligible for the award, the first of the three Purple Hearts he received.

No link yet for Novak's actual column. 

Update (Fri Aug 27 @ 1:50am):  The Novak full column is on Townhall.com, and also in the Chicago Sun-Times.

Read the whole thing, twice. 

So was Schachte on the Boston Whaler/skimmer with Kerry or not?  To answer that question, say the word along with me now, just as Sen. Kerry — he of the searable memory — said it to Adm. Schachte when Senator recognized Admiral, after twenty years' separation from their night together on the Boston Whaler, in the U.S. Senate subway in the basement of the Russell Senate Office Building:

"Batman."

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[Editor's confession:  I am so red in the face with embarrassment.  In earlier updates I'd indicated that I didn't think Novak's column said anything one way or the other about whether there was or wasn't enemy fire.  I'd thought I'd seen it on my first pass through, then couldn't find it again.  But after further review, I've concluded that I was right the first time, and in my later looking, I just missed the very short, key lines:

Kerry's M-16 rifle jammed, so he picked up the M-79 grenade launcher, Schachte said.

"I heard a 'thunk.' There was no fire from the enemy," Schachte recalled.

I've shamelessly edited my updates and original post above to fit what I'd written in the first place before any editing, which is also what Novak's column actually says, because I think that would cause less confusion than a bunch of strikethroughs.  Mea culpa maxima!  Finally, I think Novak's wrong on one small detail — the "Batman" call-sign probably applied to Schachte, not the skimmer, per Unfit for Command (p. 36).]

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Update (Fri Aug 27 @ 3:00am):  Here's some info on Adm. Schachte (pronounced SHOCK-tee) from the law firm to which he's of counsel.  It's written to emphasize his legal, not his combat, experience, but it looks to me like he was one of the top lawyers in the Navy by the time he retired.  Note also that law school — University of South Carolina, J.D., 1973; George Washington University, LL.M., with highest honors, 1989 — came after Vietnam (as with John O'Neill), and that the words "war hero" aren't anywhere written (but feel free to draw your own inferences):

Bill Schachte (R. Adm. USN Ret.) has an extensive background in Naval and maritime issues.

After law school, he began his legal career assigned to the Naval Legal Service Office, Charleston, South Carolina. After receiving his Masters of Law, Rear Admiral Schachte served as the Head of the Law of the Sea Branch, International Law Division, Office of the Judge Advocate General. He was next assigned to the Office of the Secretary of Defense, International Security Affairs (ISA) and served as a member of the U.S. Delegation to the UN Conference on Law of the Sea. In 1984, Admiral Schachte was assigned as the Deputy Assistant Judge Advocate General (Military Personnel) where he served as the JAG Corps community manager and was also responsible for managing the LDO (Law) and Legalmen (LN) communities. In 1986, he was assigned as the Deputy Assistant Judge Advocate General (International Law), and additionally appointed by the Secretary of Defense as the Deputy DOD Representative for Ocean Policy Affairs. In May 1987, Admiral Schachte was appointed Acting DOD Representative for Ocean Policy Affairs while continuing to serve as Deputy Assistant Judge Advocate General (International Law). Subsequently, the Secretary of Defense designated him DOD Representative for Ocean Policy Affairs again, representing both the Secretary of Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff in that capacity until August 1989. In October 1992 Admiral Schachte was appointed Acting Judge Advocate General of the Navy. He served in these four assignments until he retired in October 1993.

During his distinguished Naval career, Admiral Schachte was a Vietnam volunteer and served in combat from January to December 1968. He also served as Executive/Operations Officer for Coastal Division Fourteen, Republic of Vietnam.

Admiral Schachte's personal decorations include the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, Distinguished Service Medal, Defense Superior Service Medal, the Legion of Merit with Gold Star (in lieu of second award), the Bronze Star with "V", the Meritorious Service Medal with Gold Star (in lieu of second award) and the Combat Action Ribbon.

I'd expect him to make a rather formidable witness.

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Update (Fri Aug 27 @ 8:20pm):  An anonymous commenter has provided a link to the Lisa Myers interview with Adm. Schachte.  It's strong stuff indeed.  As to why he was on the skimmer with Kerry:

The boats were manned by two officers and one enlisted person.  Officers because officers were briefed daily.  We had daily intelligence briefings seven days a week, with the latest intelligence from the area.  Or in the patrolling boat – officers would come back and debrief their area.  So, the officers had a good feel for everything that was going in our area of operation and our sectors.

The enlisted person operated the motor.  Now, this was my idea.  And I went on each one of these – in command of each one that we did up to and including the night with Lieutenant Junior Grade Kerry.

I did that because it was my idea and people volunteered for this.  And I didn't think it was right having one of these operations and being on a swift boat or back at Operations Center or something like that.

As to the events of that night:

This night, we were in an area – I recall we were so close to the beach you could actually hear the water lapping on the shoreline.  It was between two and three in the morning – I don't remember.  I detected what I thought was some movement.  So, I took one of the hand-held flares and popped it instantly.  It went up and when it burst – I don't know if you've heard that described, but it really lights up the area.  I thought I saw the same area of movement.  So, I opened up on it with my M-60.

Those guns were double loaded with tracers – Tango India, target identification.  And John, right after I opened up, opened up with his M-16 and I could see he was firing in the direction of my tracer fire, which is why we had the double-loaded tracer.  My gun jammed after the first burst and as I was trying to clear my weapon – John's gun apparently jammed too because he wouldn't fire anymore – I heard the old familiar, ‘thump’ – ‘POW!’.  And I looked, and John had fired the M-79 grenade launcher. 

We were receiving NO fire from the beach.  There were no muzzle flashes.  The water wasn't boiling around the boat as it were – and the only noise was the noise we were making.  So, I told the boat operator – the motor operator – to, you know, ‘let's leave the area.’ And we did, went back to port, eventually – went back to the swift boat and went back to port.

As to the immediate aftermath and Kerry's Purple Heart:

And that morning, I went in and debriefed my commanding officer – our division commander, then Lieutenant Commander [Grant] 'Skip' Hibbard.

And I told him what happened.  And I told him I was NOT going to be filing an after-action report, which is required if you have enemy action, because we had no enemy action.  And I also after giving him all the details and I said, 'Oh, by the way –'  and I don't remember my exact words – 'John nicked himself with the M-79.'  Those M-79s, by the way, have a kill radius of about five meters.  A  little over five yards.  But, there is a shrapnel area beyond that.  And that's what happened.  And I was upset because that could have gone in somebody's eye and so on and so forth.

The division commander said, 'Fine, understand – no after-action report required.'  Then, I found out that John had come in. And then I went back into a meeting and he had this small piece of shrapnel in his hand and he was requesting a Purple Heart.  I was opposed to that.  The division commander was opposed to that.

And John left our division four or five days later. I departed country maybe three weeks later.  Skip left a few days after I left.  So, we were all gone.  And I forgot about it.  Until some years later, someone told me – and I don't recall who – to my surprise, John had been awarded a Purple Heart for that incident.

And as to whether Sen. Kerry remembers being on the boat with Adm. Schachte:

And that's the way things were until about 20 years or so later.  I was then an Admiral and I was in uniform – didn't have my hat on; I'd left that someplace in an office I was visiting.  I was in the basement of the Senate Russell Office Building.  And you have this subway system in the Capitol.  I was waiting for a subway with a friend.

And he pointed – 'Look, that's Senator Kerry over there.' And I said, 'I know him.'  And he said, 'You do?'  And I hadn't seen or talked with John since Vietnam.  And I guess I embarrassed my friend because I said, 'Hey, John!'  Just like that.  Well, he turned around, looked at me – it's about 20 paces away – and he kind of strolled over to me.  And that call sign that night, if I haven't mentioned it, was 'Batman.'  I think I have. But, John walked over to me and got kind of close and he said, 'Batman.'

Sounds to me like Bill Schachte's presence on that skimmer was seared into young Lt. Kerry's memory.

Again, read the whole thing.  Myers did a fairly good job of probing Adm. Schachte's memories, motives, and so forth — even trying to bait him into name-calling (which he resolutely refused to do).  Myers also did a new telephone interview with William Zaladonis, who continues to deny that Schachte was present.