# Senate candidate lies about service in Vietnam. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 18, 2010, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875 "2010-05-18T13:31:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Mr.Moto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de0a6/32.png) [@Mr.Moto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Moto)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/41 "2010-05-18T15:51:52Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > During a visit to West Virginia in January 2002, Bush joked, “I’ve been to war. I’ve raised twins. If I had a choice, I’d rather go to war.” I have never defended Bush’s war record overmuch - and I won’t here. But I must note that this was regarded as a joke by listeners - the news stories all say this was a joke. He was talking to a politician in West Virginia who recently had twin boys - and he was wisecracking about that. Read a certain way (in the joking tone likely present at the time) and claims of being a war hero likely weren’t implied at all - just claims that Barbara and Jenna turned the house into a war zone. This admittedly does not come through in print, and it is understandable that people might read a claim into it that I don’t think was implied at all. ---
**Author:** ![C3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/c3/32/3108_2.png) [@C3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C3)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/42 "2010-05-18T15:54:57Z")
> [@Mr.Moto](#): > > I have never defended Bush’s war record overmuch - and I won’t here. But I must note that this was regarded as a joke by listeners - the news stories all say this was a joke. He was talking to a politician in West Virginia who recently had twin boys - and he was wisecracking about that. > > Read a certain way (in the joking tone likely present at the time) and claims of being a war hero likely weren’t implied at all - just claims that Barbara and Jenna turned the house into a war zone. This admittedly does not come through in print, and it is understandable that people might read a claim into it that I don’t think was implied at all. What? Your explanation doesn’t make any sense at all. If by “war”, he meant the “war zone” that his girls created, why would he say he’d choose war over raising twins? That’s a ridiculous spin you’ve got going on there. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Moto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de0a6/32.png) [@Mr.Moto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Moto)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/43 "2010-05-18T16:05:44Z")
This is the only time he ever “claimed” to be any kind of war veteran, from what I can see, and he was clearly making a joke at the time. I typically let politicians off the hook for their jokes, even when they go wrong. That isn’t “spin” - just something I do. You can believe what you want about that statement. Obviously it has had a tremendous impact - since Bush’s political career has since ended, right? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![C3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/c3/32/3108_2.png) [@C3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C3)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/44 "2010-05-18T16:11:20Z")
Yeah, he was making a joke, but he was still implying that he’d been to war. He wasn’t saying war = raising twins. His joke wouldn’t make sense if that’s what he meant. And yeah, liars are never successful, right? ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/45 "2010-05-18T16:13:55Z")
Jesus Christ. I can’t believe this shit. What the hell was he thinking?! He could have said that he “served **during** Vietnam.” He could have said that he was a “Vietnam-era veteran.” But what was he thinking saying that he actually “served **in** Vietnam”? My wife actually woke me up as she was leaving for work this morning to tell me this, adding that no veteran would ever vote for him now. The worst part is that I actually think the guy would do a great job in the Senate. Up till now, his reputation in Connecticut has been rock-solid. He’s been Attorney General for nearly 20 years, and hasn’t been seriously opposed in years. He could have won election for any office he wanted, including Governor. He’s an extremely talented, hard-working, intelligent guy. He’s not your typical glad-handing politician; instead he’s more of a nose-to-the-grindstone, no-nonsense, workaholic. (Personal note: I actually bump into him about once a month and exchange pleasantries.) Now he has to go and do something like this. It’s reminiscent of Eliot Spitzer, another extremely talented former Attorney General (and later Governor) who threw his career away for something even more ridiculous. I’m very disappointed, and I think that it’s a damned shame. If this torpedoes his candidacy, it will be a loss for Connecticut and the U.S. Senate. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/46 "2010-05-18T16:18:45Z")
> [@Ace309](#): > > It’s hardly our fault. The Liberal Media doesn’t give us any choice. I was afraid _no one_ was going to get the obvious sarcasm in my post. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Lightnin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightnin/32/180_2.png) [@Lightnin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightnin)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/47 "2010-05-18T16:23:00Z")
As predicted, the right-wingers are having a field day with this: > [@](#): > > remember the Dem motto: > > “Character ? that don’t mean \*\*\*\*.” > [@](#): > > Pretty revealing of the liberal mindset huh? > [@](#): > > A Dem would rather vote for a liar than an honest person any day. > [@](#): > > The truth may not bother the Dem voters. He has such a huge lead, and the fact that his integrity is challenged may just be ignored by them. I don’t recall the members of that party ever being bothered by a lack of character in previous candidates. > [@](#): > > There’s nothing new or “bombshell” about a Dem, any Dem, telling a lie > to get elected, after they’re elected, or to get re-elected. That’s just a random sampling from one thread on one forum. Thanks for giving them the opportunity, Dick! ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/48 "2010-05-18T16:24:05Z")
> [@C3](#): > > Yeah, he was making a joke, but he was still implying that he’d been to war. He wasn’t saying war = raising twins. His joke wouldn’t make sense if that’s what he meant. And yeah, liars are never successful, right? Jesus Christ, are you that fucking stupid? ANYTHING pretty much goes in a joke, if you are actually attempting to make a joke. Stretching the truth, bad logic, and bald (bold?) face lies are part and parcel of jokeworld. ---
**Author:** ![C3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/c3/32/3108_2.png) [@C3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C3)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/49 "2010-05-18T16:30:58Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > Jesus Christ, are you that fucking stupid? > > ANYTHING pretty much goes in a joke, if you are actually attempting to make a joke. Stretching the truth, bad logic, and bald (bold?) face lies are part and parcel of jokeworld. :rolleyes: So, you’re agreeing with **Mr. Moto** that by “war”, Bush was just saying his girls made the house messy? And you’re calling me stupid? Jesus Christ your own fucking self. ---
**Author:** ![Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e36b37/32.png) [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/50 "2010-05-18T16:32:48Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > During a visit to West Virginia in January 2002, Bush joked, “I’ve been to war. I’ve raised twins. If I had a choice, I’d rather go to war.” > > [Link](http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2003/0309.mendacity-experts.html). > > Actually, no. > > I’ll agree that he’s a lying sack of shit, but he’s OUR lying sack of shit. If we were back in the ‘bipartisan’ era that David Broder longs for, where many Republican Congresscritters would support Democratic initiatives, and vice versa, I’d cheerfully sack him. > > But we’re not in that era anymore; we’re in a near-parliamentary situation, where the most important thing about a legislator, quite frankly, is whether s/he’ll vote Democratic almost all the time, or Republican almost all the time. > > I’m sure that Rob Simmons is a hell of a nice guy who, back in 1975, would have voted for reasonable Democratic legislation as a Republican Senator. But as a Republican Senator in 2011, he will rarely cross party lines, and will generally be one more vote to filibuster practically any Democratic legislation. > > I believe that passing Democratic legislation will make a positive difference in the lives of millions of Americans. Then I have to ask myself, for comparison’s sake, just how Blumenthal’s lies about his military service will affect the world, should he manage to get elected despite those lies. And I’m coming up empty here. It’s good to see someone come right out and admit this. I wish more people would do the same. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/51 "2010-05-18T16:34:05Z")
> [@C3](#): > > What? Your explanation doesn’t make any sense at all. If by “war”, he meant the “war zone” that his girls created, why would he say he’d choose war over raising twins? That’s a ridiculous spin you’ve got going on there. I don’t know if I’d call it spin, but it doesn’t make any sense. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/52 "2010-05-18T16:34:09Z")
> [@Mr.Moto](#): > > I have never defended Bush’s war record overmuch - and I won’t here. But I must note that this was regarded as a joke by listeners - the news stories all say this was a joke. He was talking to a politician in West Virginia who recently had twin boys - and he was wisecracking about that. > > Read a certain way (in the joking tone likely present at the time) and claims of being a war hero likely weren’t implied at all - just claims that Barbara and Jenna turned the house into a war zone. This admittedly does not come through in print, and it is understandable that people might read a claim into it that I don’t think was implied at all. Boy howdy, you’ll go a long way to try to pretend that a Bush lie isn’t a Bush lie. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/53 "2010-05-18T16:35:20Z")
Didn’t you learn _anything_ from right-wing radio? If they accept it at face value, it’s a rallying cry. If they point out that it’s bullshit, it was _obviously_ just a joke. Get with the program! ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/54 "2010-05-18T16:36:05Z")
> [@Lightnin](#): > > As predicted, the right-wingers are having a field day with this: > > That’s just a random sampling from one thread on one forum. Thanks for giving them the opportunity, Dick! Sadly, though, they’re right about at least one person on this forum, as **RTFirefly** acknowledges. I think it’s unfortunate that they are going to use this crap to paint all liberals or all Dems with the same rbush, because that’s obvious garbage; at the same time, I think it’s unfortunate that **RTFirefly** feels as they predicted Dems would feel. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tooth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@The\_Tooth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tooth)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/55 "2010-05-18T16:42:38Z")
> [@Camus](#): > > And bizarre. Harvard undergrad, Yale law school, a fellowship at Cambridge, clerking for the Supreme Court, and an aide in the Nixon White House. All in addition to his former and current positions in the Connecticut state House, Senate, and AG’s office respectively. Did he really feel like he had to make up some imaginary war service to be considered qualified for higher office? Worship of the military must be a close second behind some brand of Christianity when it comes to popular US religions. So he probably did feel as such. ---
**Author:** ![Duke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e8c25b/32.png) [@Duke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/56 "2010-05-18T16:51:18Z")
> [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](#): > > It’s good to see someone come right out and admit this. I wish more people would do the same. But it’s a problem more inherent to the two-party system than we as Americans would probably like to admit. I think everybody’s going to have their line over which a politician can go before you decide to vote for Someone Else. The fewer real choices you have, the farther away that line is going to be. Looking at it another way–I can see why some people are going to say to themselves, “Blumenthal lying about something that happened 45 years ago is not going to affect my day-to-day life, but the vote of a US senator might do just that.” Not that I agree or reject that argument, but it’s there. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/57 "2010-05-18T16:57:43Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > I believe that passing Democratic legislation will make a positive difference in the lives of millions of Americans. Then I have to ask myself, for comparison’s sake, just how Blumenthal’s lies about his military service will affect the world, should he manage to get elected despite those lies. And I’m coming up empty here. It’s not like he’s the only Democratic candidate, though. There’s Merrick Alpert, who should be doing a lot better in the polls than he is. Wanting to hold onto the seat doesn’t mean embracing any democrat out there, no matter how scummy. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/58 "2010-05-18T16:59:47Z")
> [@C3](#): > > :rolleyes: So, you’re agreeing with **Mr. Moto** that by “war”, Bush was just saying his girls made the house messy? And you’re calling me stupid? Jesus Christ your own fucking self. Damn, you are fucking dense. I’ve pretended to be or have done or suffered a gazillion things to set myself up for a “good” joke/line/comeback/snark/whatever. I seriously doubt I am the only one. Bush was trying to make a comedy comparision between war and raising twin girls. I am sure just about any parent could “get it”, even if they didnt find it particularly funny. And its not like he was telling this to a vet who had his legs blown in real action during a serious press conference so he could mislead folks about his frontline service. He was telling this to a fellow PARENT. If you want to bitch about his flyboy days not being real service or that whole AWOL thing, have at it. His poor decisions as president, got plenty to bitch about there. But your fucking retard fixation on an OFFHAND JOKE as some kind of solemn oath by Bush that he had in fact served on the frontlines and had seen combat just highlights you for the rabid, fucking, mega retard, Bush hater that you obviously are. And congrats on dragging up irrelevant ancient Bush history. Maybe we can get one of your retard cohorts from the Republican side to drag Clinton into this as well and totally derail a perfectly decent pitting of someone that deserves it. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/59 "2010-05-18T17:03:46Z")
Another facet to this story, that I think warrants equal parts entertainment, is that one of his opponents, one Linda McMahon, as in Mrs. Vince McMahon of World Wide Wrestling/Entertainment fame, has proudly taken credit for supplying some damning video to the Times for the job. As Pat Buchanan put it, ‘you don’t leave your fingerprints in Washington.’ I think Linda was taking pointers from the hubby and decided a nice folding chair across the back right in front of the referee was the way to go here. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2010, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875/60 "2010-05-18T17:09:22Z")
The McMahons are both unabashed conservatives, and they’ve used WWE programming to advance their political ideals in a frankly disgusting manner at times. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senate-candidate-lies-about-service-in-vietnam/539875.md?page=4)