WaPo lets new Kerry ad lie go unremarked, mocks Dole, and republishes Russell account as gospel

My hopes that WaPo would maintain its pace of digging into the real issues of the SwiftVets vs. Kerry controversy are unfulfilled, at least by tomorrow's edition as online tonight.  Its new story by staff writers Lois Romano and David Nakamura presents a weak grab-bag of developments with not a hint of actual reporting to be found in it. 

WaPo leads off with news that Sen. Kerry is planning to run counter-advertisements in battleground states asking the Bush campaign to denounce the SwiftVets' ads.  Here's the new Kerry ad:

American soldiers are fighting in Iraq.  Families struggle to afford healthcare; jobs heading overseas.  Instead of solutions, George Bush's campaign supports a front group attacking John Kerry's military record, attacks called "smears, lies."  Senator McCain calls them "dishonest."  Bush smeared John McCain four years ago.  Now he's doing it to John Kerry.  George Bush, denounce the smear.  Get back to the issues.  America deserves better.

Probably most viewers of the ad won't know that by law, Bush can't coordinate with or direct a 527 organization like the SwiftVets.  Perhaps he could "denounce" the SwiftVets' ads without violating campaign finance laws, although even that is far from clear.  What is entirely clear, however, is that this ad is simply wrong in stating that "George Bush's campaign supports a front group attacking John Kerry's military record."  Not even the Kerry campaign's extremely strained claims of improper coordination between the Bush campaign and the SwiftVets in its FEC complaint come close to approaching a showing that the Bush campaign "supports" the SwiftVets as a "front group."

Update:  WaPo's Howard Kurtz, in his "Ad Watch" column, notes (boldface mine):

There is no evidence that the Bush campaign "supports a front group" that produced the attack ad. There are numerous ties between Bush aides and the veterans' backers, but there are similar ties between Kerry and some liberal groups running anti-Bush ads. Bush and his top strategists, however, have passed up numerous opportunities to condemn the Swift boat ad, calling instead for a moratorium on all advertising by outside groups.

(Hat-tip to Jim Garaghty's Kerry Spot on NRO.)  Mr. Kurtz, perhaps you should clue in your colleagues, Ms. Romano and Mr. Nakamura.

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This WaPo article goes on to report about former Sen. Bob Dole's scathing remarks about Kerry:

Yesterday [Sunday], former senator Robert J. Dole (R-Kan.), a World War II veteran and the GOP's 1996 nominee, attacked Kerry, agreeing with critics. "One day he's saying that we were shooting civilians, cutting off their ears, cutting off their heads, throwing away his medals or his ribbons," Dole said on CNN's "Late Edition." "The next day he's standing there, 'I want to be president because I'm a Vietnam veteran.' Maybe he should apologize to all the other 2.5 million veterans who served. He wasn't the only one in Vietnam."

Dole also questioned Kerry's commendations. "Three Purple Hearts and never bled that I know of," Dole said of the medal one gets for a combat injury. "I mean, they're all superficial wounds. And as far as I know, he's never spent one day in the hospital. I don't think he draws any disability pay. He doesn't have any disability. And boasting about three Purple Hearts when you think of some of the people who really got shot up in Vietnam."

Dole erroneously stated, "He got two in one day, I think." Kerry's Purple Hearts were received for different injuries over his four-month tour in Vietnam, during which he also received a Silver Star and a Bronze Star. Kerry spokesman Chad Clanton said, "It's unfortunate that senator Dole is making statements that U.S. Navy records prove false."

I don't have a full transcript of Sen. Dole's remarks.  I'd be curious to see whether, in context, Dole was still referring exclusively to Purple Hearts, or to medals generally, when he was quoted as saying, "He got two in one day, I think."  Because if so, Sen. Dole was absolutely correct — the Bay Hap River action and perhaps the exploding rice pile that preceded it on March 13, 1969, produced both Sen. Kerry's Bronze Star and his third Purple Heart. 

Hey, Chad Clanton! I'll bet you don't have the guts to say that to Bob Dole's face.  And you obviously lack the integrity to say to WaPo, "He didn't get two Purple Hearts in one day, he got a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star in one day instead."

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The WaPo article also picks up and reprints the new Jim Russell version of the Bay Hap River action, the Rassmann rescue, and Kerry's Bronze Star, quoting from Mr. Russell's letter to the editor in the Telluride newspaper today.  There's nothing else there — no verification of Mr. Russell's history, no comment on the inconsistencies between his story and those of other Kerry supporters.  Apparently the letter's appearance on the "letters to the editor" page of the Telluride Daily Planet is verification enough for all America to rely upon. 

For those unfamiliar with Telluride, Colorado (population 2221), its name is pronounced — as locals will tell you with glee — "To Hell You Ride!"  Great place to retire, wonderful little mountain village; it's not much noted for its international investigative journalism, until now.  If I were a WaPo reporter sweating in the DC heat of August, I can't think of a much better assignment than heading for Telluride right about now.

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Update:  Per tomorrow's NYT story about the new Kerry ad and Dole's remarks:

"John Kerry's a hero," Mr. Dole told Wolf Blitzer. "But what I will always quarrel about are the Purple Hearts. I mean, the first one, whether he ought to have a Purple Heart — he got two in one day, I think. And he was out of there in less than four months, because three Purple Hearts and you're out."

Mr. Kerry did not receive two Purple Hearts for events of the same day. He received them for the events of Dec. 2, 1968, Feb. 20, 1969, and March 13, 1969. Mr. Kerry often acknowledges that his wounds were not severe, but he still has shrapnel in his left thigh from the firefight that led to his second Purple Heart.

Well, okay.  It appears that Sen. Dole may have thought two Purple Hearts came on one day.  Nice of the NYT to correct him.  Would it have been, oh, maybe semi-decent journalism to also reveal as part of the snarky correction that Kerry did get a second, and far more rare, medal for the events of March 13, 1969?

The other interesting bit from the NYT piece:

[Democratic strategist Bill] Carrick and other Democrats said that this was a risky moment for Mr. Kerry's campaign.

"They've turned this into a raging national press story," Mr. Carrick said of the Swift boat group. "It is certainly keeping Kerry from discussing his own issues and agenda and getting on the offensive."

Another Democrat close to the campaign, who asked not to be quoted by name, was more dire.

"When you're basically running on your biography and there are ongoing attacks that are undermining the credibility of your biography, you have a really big problem."

Ayup.