Kerry wanted to fight back right away, but Shrum and other media advisers cautioned against it, concerned about fanning the flames. 'We watched as the story jumped from the Internet, to Fox News, to the other cable networks,' said Cahill. 'Our concern was we didn't want to help it along by our reaction.' The campaign hoped that the episode would blow over with minimal damage, as it had the previous spring. But this time, there was no prison scandal, or anything else, to swallow the swift boat veterans' crusade. 'The August echo chamber was a difficult environment because nothing else was going on,' said Thorne.
'The campaign collectively underestimated the effect of the swift boats. It was a collective mistake,' recalled Michael Whouley, a longtime Kerry operative. 'I think the candidate was probably the most concerned about it. It pissed him off, people attacking his Vietnam service.'
Kerry wanted to know what impact the ads were having. Shrum recalled that for days the polls indicated nothing. Then the damage began to show. 'As soon as we saw it, we moved,' Shrum said. By then, the damage had been done. "
From Squaring The Boston Globe
Article comments
1 - andy marsh
I still wonder why kerry never really responded to the swiftees..but I also wonder why he never signed the SF-180 also. I would bet there's a relationship that's bigger than anyone knows!
2 - andy marsh
I still wonder why kerry never really responded to the swiftees..but I also wonder why he never signed the SF-180 also. I would bet there's a relationship that's bigger than anyone knows!