CBS Poll: Kerry Still Losing Vet Vote to Bush
Military veterans still aren't buying into Sen. John Kerry's campaign sales pitch that his service in Vietnam qualifies him to be commander in chief, the latest CBS News poll shows.
The survey - taken on the eve of the Democratic convention and never mentioned in formal news reports - shows that veterans back President Bush over Kerry, 47 percent to 41 percent.
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Kerry's fellow Vietnam veterans were not surveyed independently. But anecdotal evidence suggests that most veterans of that era still harbor deep resentment against Kerry because of anti-war protests where he trashed his comrades in arms as war criminals and cavorted with Vietnam Veteran Public Enemy No. 1, Jane Fonda.
The survey shows some improvement for the Massachusetts Democrat over a CBS poll taken in June, where Kerry trailed Bush with veterans by 15 points. Still, if the presidential challenger doesn't top Bush in the veterans catagory by the end of the Democratic convention, it's sure to be a huge political embarrassment.
To that end, the Kerry-Edwards campaign has rounded up support from a handful of ex-military commanders such as former Joint Chiefs Chairman Adm. William J. Crowe, who also vouched for Bill Clinton's national security credentials in 1992.
But outside of a few of Kerry's Swift Boat comrades, of those who served with him in Vietnam seem to oppose his bid for the White House.
In May, 220 out of the 229 Swift Boat veterans contacted by the group "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth" signed an open letter questioning Kerry's fitness to serve as commander in chief.
Among those registering their objections to Kerry was the entire chain of command he served under in Vietnam, including Lt. Cmdr. Grant Hibbard; Lt. Cmdr. George Elliott; Capt. Charles Plumly; Capt. Adrian Lonsdale, USCG; and Rear Adm. Roy Hoffman.
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