Senator Durbin on "The New Vietnam Snipers"

<Senator Durbin took to the Senate floor Tuesday morning to denounce the Republican attacks on John Kerry's record. Senator Durbin reminded his colleagues that John Kerry was a decorated veteran who served two tours of duty in Vietnam, and that he never left a man behind, even at the risk of his own life.

Here's an unedited transcription of Senator Durbin's remarks:

MR. DURBIN: THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MR. PRESIDENT. I THANK THE SENATOR FROM CALIFORNIA FOR YIELDING PART OF HER TIME. MR. PRESIDENT, OVER 35 YEARS AGO JOHN KERRY FACED HIS ENEMIES IN VIETNAM. THERE WERE ENEMIES THERE WHO WERE INVOLVED IN SNIPER FIRE AGAINST JOHN KERRY, TRIED TRYING TO TAKE HIS LIFE AND KILL HIM BECAUSE HE WORE THE UNIFORM OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

SADLY, THE VIETNAM SNIPERS ARE STILL TRYING TO CAUSE DAMAGE TO JOHN KERRY. THE NEW VIETNAM SNIPERS COME FROM THE BUSH-CHENEY CAMPAIGN: KAREN HUGHES, SADLY, THE VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, AND OTHER CAMPAIGN OPERATIVES WHO ARE NOW ATTACKING JOHN KERRY BECAUSE HE SERVED OUR COUNTRY, HE WORE THE UNIFORM OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, HE VOLUNTEERED AND PUT HIS LIFE ON THE LINE IN VIETNAM.

THIS SHAMELESS EXERCISE BY THE BUSH-CHENEY CAMPAIGN MUST BE CALLED FOR WHAT IT IS. MANY OF US DID NOT SERVE IN THE MILITARY, EVEN THOSE OF US IN THE VIETNAM ERA. WE DID NOT VOLUNTEER FOR SERVICE AS JOHN KERRY DID. WE DIDN'T WEAR THE UNIFORM OF OUR COUNTRY PROUDLY, AS HE DID. WE DID NOT RISK OUR LIVES. INCLUDED IN THIS GROUP IS VICE PRESIDENT CHENEY, WHO USED HIS DEFERMENTS TO AVOID MILITARY SERVICE, AS HE WAS LEGALLY ALLOWED TO DO. AND YET WE HEAR NOW VICE PRESIDENT CHENEY LEADING THE ATTACK AGAINST JOHN KERRY, A MAN WHO VOLUNTEERED, RISKED HIS LIFE, AND RECEIVED AWARDS FROM THIS COUNTRY FOR HIS HEROISM.

THE BUSH-CHENEY CAMPAIGN. THE REPUBLICAN ATTACK MACHINE ON JOHN KERRY HAS, FRANKLY, CRITICIZED HIM FOR HIS TOUR OF DUTY IN VIETNAM, TWO TOURS OF DUTY IN VIETNAM. APPARENTLY, THAT WASN'T ENOUGH. THE FACT THAT JOHN KERRY EARNED A SILVER STAR, A BRONZE STAR, AND THREE PURPLE HEARTS WEREN'T GOOD ENOUGH FOR THESE BUSH-CHENEY CAMPAIGN OPERATIVES WHO NEVER MISS A CHANCE TO ATTACK JOHN KERRY FOR HIS MILITARY RECORD. THANK GOODNESS SENATORS OF THE STATURE OF JOHN McCAIN HAVE STOOD UP TO DEFEND HIS FELLOW VIETNAM VETERAN, JOHN KERRY. THEY HAVE SAID THAT JOHN'S SERVICE IS CLEAR AND UNEQUIVOCAL. HE RISKED HIS LIFE FOR AMERICA.

NOW, I'VE MET MEN WHO WERE IN HIS CREW, THOSE WHO TRAVEL WITH HIM IN HIS CAMPAIGN, HIS SO-CALLED BAND OF BROTHERS. THEY'RE IN THEIR LATE 50'S AND EARLY 60'S AND THEY GIVE UP WHAT THEY'RE DOING IS JOIN JOHN McCAIN ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL. THEY TELL THE STORY. THEY TELL THE STORY OF A YOUNG NAVY LIEUTENANT VOLUNTEERING TO SERVE THIS COUNTRY, LITERALLY RISKES HIS LIFE FOR THOSE AND HIS CREW OF THE AND THEY JOIN HIM ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL SAYING THEY'RE PREPARED TO FOLLOW HIM INTO BATTLE AGAIN.

BUT LISTEN TO WHAT'S DMG FROM THE OTHER SIDE-- BUT LISTEN TO WHAT'S COMING FROM THE OTHER SIDE. TO THINK OF IT. TO THINK THAT THOSE WHO DID NOT SERVE IN THE MILITARY ARE NOW CRITICIZING JOHN KERRY FOR HIS WAR RECORD IS REPREHENSIBLE. IT'S TIME TO PUT THE CARDS ON THE TABLE. JOHN KERRY NOT ONLY HAS NOTHING TO APOLOGIZE FOR WHEN IT COMES TO HIS MILITARY RECORD; HE CAN BE VERY PROUD OF IT. AND FOR THOSE WHO SAY THAT WHEN HE CAME BACK AFTER THE WAR AND WAS CRITICAL OF OUR VIETNAM POLICY THAT SOMEHOW THAT WAS WRONG, ONCE AGAIN, LISTEN TO SENATOR JOHN McCAIN, A MAN WHO NOT ONLY SERVED IN THE UNITED STATES NATIVE AS WELL BUT-- --IN THE UNITED STATES NAVY AS WELL BUT WAS A PRISONER OF WAR. JOHN McCAIN HAS COME FORWARD AND SAID THAT JOHN KERRY HAD EVERY RIGHT TO MAKE THE STATEMENTS AFTER THE WAR ABOUT HIS DISAGREEMENT WITH OUR FOREIGN POLICY.

AND SO, MR. PRESIDENT, WHAT WE FACE TODAY IS AN INCREDIBLE THING. THAT THE BUSH-CHENEY CAMPAIGN IS GOING TO ATTACK A DECORATED VIETNAM WAR VETERAN, RAISE QUESTIONS AS TO WHETHER OR NOT HE WAS DESERVING OF A PURPLE HEART, HOW COULD THEY STIEWP SO LOW?

HOW COULD THEY DO THIS WHEN SO MANY HE OTHER MEN AND WOMEN WHO OAVE SERVE SERVED OUR COUNTRY, W HAVE BEEN WOUNDED IN BATTLE, WHO HAVE RECEIVED PURPLE HEARTS, HAVE GIVEN ALL THAT WE WOULD EVER ASK OF AN AMERICAN CITIZEN, AND MAO TO DISEXAIRJ JOHN KERRY AND SAY THAT PERHAPS HE DOESN'T DESERVE ALL OF THE RECOGNITION HE'S BEEN GIVEN FOR HIS SERVICE IN VIETNAM IS ABOUT AS LOW AS IT GETS. I'VE LISTENED TO THESE COMMENTS. I'M PARTICULARLY DISTURBED THAT VICE PRESIDENT DICK CHENEY HAS BEEN THE AUTHOR OF SO MANY OF THESE COMMENTS AS WELL. YESTERDAY HE WAS IN THE MIDWEST AT WESTMINSTER COLLEGE IN FULTON, MISSOURI. HE WAS SUPPOSED TO GIVE A SPEECH ON THE FOREIGN POLICY OF THE UNITED STATES.

THE PRESIDING OFFICER: TIME OF THE SENATOR HAS EXPIRED.

MR. REID: I YIELD ONE MINUTE FROM SENATOR LEAHY'S TIME TO THE SENATOR FROM ILLINOIS.

THE PRESIDING OFFICER: WITHOUT OBJECTION, THE SENATOR IS RECOGNIZED.

MR. DURBIN: VICE PRESIDENT CHENEY WAS SUPPOSED TO SPEAK AT WESTMINSTER COLLEGE ABOUT FOREIGN POLICY, ISSUES IN IRAQ. INSTEAD HE WENT ON THE ATTACK, THE ATTACK ON JOHN KERRY AND HIS PATRIOTISM IN DEFENSE OF AMERICA. IT WAS SUCH AN EMBARRASSING MOMENT THAT WHEN HE LEFT, FLETCHER LAMPKIN E-MAILED THE STUDENTS, STAFF, AND FACULTY BASICALLY APOLOGIZING FOR WHAT VICE PRESIDENT CHENEY HAD SAID AT WESTMINSTER COLLEGE. VICE PRESIDENT CHENEY SHOULD KNOW BETTER. HE SHOULD KNOW THAT JOHN KERRY SERVED OUR COUNTRY AND SERVED IT WELL AND WITH

DISTINCTION AND HONOR. WHILE VICE PRESIDENT CHENEY DID NOT SERVE IN THE MILITARY, JOHN KERRY DID. IT IS TIME TO END THIS SHAMEFUL BUSH-CHENEY CAMPAIGN TAIK TACTIC

AND TO RECOGNIZE THE OBVIOUS: JOHN KERRY LED PEOPLE INTO BATTLE. I YIELD THE FLOOR.
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