Clements, O'Neill, Pierce, Wilson & Fulkerson
A Registered Limited Liability Partnership
Attorneys At Law
Wells Fargo Plaza
1000 Louisiana Street, Suite 1800
Houston, Texas 77002-5009
__________________________
(713) 654-7600
Facsimile (713) 654-7690
www.copwf.com

John E. O'Neill, Partner
(713) 6547604
 oneilljohn@copwf.com



August 2, 2004
Dear Station Manager:

Background

The purpose of this letter is to present some of the factual support for the advertisement "Any
Questions?" produced and used by Swift Boat Veterans For Truth ("Swiftvets"), an organization
properly registered under Internal Revenue Code ' 527, and which has filed all required reports.
Swiftvets is an organization led by Rear Admiral Roy Hoffmann, USN (retired), Commander of all
Swift boats in Vietnam during the period of John Kerry's four-month abbreviated tour in Swift boats
between late November 1968 and mid-March 1969. A list of the 254 members may be found on
www.swiftvets.com. A large majority of those who served with John Kerry in Swift boats in Vietnam
and whose location is known have joined the organization. Thus, for example, sixteen of the
twenty-three surviving officers who served in Coastal Division 11 with Kerry (the place where Kerry
spent most of his time) have joined the organization, together with most of Kerry's Vietnam
commanders and 254 sailors from Coastal Squadron One, ranging from Vice-Admirals to Seamen.

The purpose of Swiftvets is to present the truth about John Kerry's post-Vietnam charges of war
crimes and John Kerry's own Vietnam record. Swiftvets is uniquely positioned to do so since it
includes most of the locatable sailors and officers who served with John Kerry in Vietnam.

John Kerry has made his Vietnam record the central focus of his presidential candidacy, depicting
purported Vietnam events in nearly $100 million in advertising. Copies of ads such as "Lifetime" and
"No Man Left Behind" may be found on Kerry's website. Kerry's authorized campaign biography,
Tour of Duty: John Kerry and the Vietnam War, by Douglas Brinkley (New York: HarperCollins,
2004) ("Tour"), centers on his short Vietnam tour and contains Kerry's account of these events.
Additional accounts by Kerry of his Vietnam experience may be found on his website.

The Advertisement

A true and correct transcript of the advertisement entitled "Any Questions?" is attached as Exhibit 1.
Affidavits are attached (as Exhibits 2 through 14) from each participant in the advertisement, except
from John Edwards, the Democratic Vice Presidential nominee, whose often-repeated invitation to
learn about John Kerry by speaking to the men who served with him begins the advertisement. The
filmed comment of Senator Edwards has been made so many times as to be general knowledge.

As described in the attached affidavits, Al French (Exhibit 2), Bob Elder (Exhibit 3), Jack Chenoweth
(Exhibit 7), Larry Thurlow (Exhibit 10), and Bob Hildreth (Exhibit 14) were all officers in charge of
Swift boats in Vietnam in Coastal Division 11 with John Kerry. Coastal Division 11 was a small naval
unit with about one hundred sailors and fifteen or sixteen boats which operated in groups of two to
six boats. Each of these boat officers operated directly with John Kerry on numerous occasions. Van
Odell (Exhibit 6) is a retired Navy enlisted man who also served in Coastal Division 11 on the
Chenoweth boat, a few yards from John Kerry during Kerry's March 13, 1969 Bronze Star action.

Captain George Elliott, USN (retired), (Exhibit 4) was John Kerry's direct commander in Coastal
Division 11, while Captain Adrian Lonsdale, USCG (retired), (Exhibit 9) was Kerry's administrative
commander. Rear Admiral Roy Hoffmann, USN (retired), (Exhibit 8) commanded all Swift boats
(including Kerry's) in Vietnam. Each of these commanders interacted on numerous occasions with
Kerry and, for example, are discussed for many pages in Kerry's own authorized book, Tour.

Dr. Louis Letson (Exhibit 5) was the doctor in Cam Rahn Bay who treated Kerry's first Purple Heart
"wound," while Commander Grant Hibbard (Exhibit 11) was John Kerry's commander at Coastal
Division 14 where Kerry claimed to have suffered the wound. Finally, Joe Ponder (Exhibit 13) and
Shelton White (Exhibit 12) are veterans of Coastal Division 11 who were badly wounded near the
Song Bo De River where Kerry served most of his short tour.

The Kerry campaign has utilized a revolving group of eight veterans from Coastal Division 11 (none
of whom served with Kerry as much as two months). In stark contrast to this small stable of
supporters, the veterans on "Any Questions?" have intimate knowledge of John Kerry or (in the case
of Ponder and White) of the falsehood and injury of his false war crimes charges. Although many
more of the over 250 signers of the Swiftvets' letter served directly with John Kerry, it would be
hard to locate people with more detailed and first-hand knowledge of John Kerry's short Vietnam
stay than those in the advertisement. They are well-suited to respond with first-hand knowledge to
Edward's invitation. Their sworn affidavits are attached (in order of appearance in the advertisement)
as Exhibits 2 through 14.

Kerry's obtaining of three Purple Hearts permitted him to leave Vietnam some 243 days short of the
normal one-year tour. See Exhibit 20, Thrice Wounded Reassignment. Whether or not he
fraudulently obtained these awards (the Purple Heart being among the most sacred of all awards) is
critical to his true Vietnam story.

A. March 13, 1969: "No Man Left Behind" Incident

Attached as Exhibit 15 is Kerry's account of "no man left behind" where, in Tour of Duty, Kerry
repeats his now-familiar story of returning, wounded by an underwater mine, to recover a Special
Forces soldier, Jim Rassman, in a hail of fire pulling Rassman from the water with his bleeding arm.
Tour, at 31317. The story of Kerry's return to save Rassman, under fire and wounded from the
mine, has been told in many millions of dollars of Kerry advertising. See Kerry website; see also,
e.g., Kerry's full-page advertisement in The New York Times, which is attached as Exhibit 16.

Kerry's after-action report for that day is featured on his website. See Exhibit 17. KJW identifies the
report as Kerry's. Likewise, Kerry reported his shrapnel wounds to the Navy in an injury report:

"LTJG Kerry suffered shrapnel wounds in his left buttocks and contusions on his right forearm when a
mine detonated close aboard PCF94."

Exhibit 18. Exhibit 17 likewise identifies Kerry's "injuries" as contusion right forearm (minor) (i.e., a
small bruise) and a shrapnel wound left buttocks.

The regulations for the Purple Heart are attached as Exhibit 19 and, of course, exclude accidental
injury and self-inflicted wounds (except non-negligent wounds in the heat of battle). Although Kerry's
"minor" bruise could never entitle him to a Purple Heart, Kerry's reported shrapnel wound to his
"buttocks" (although minor according to the treating physician) from an enemy mine would have
entitled him to such an award (had he not been lying about its origin). Receiving the third Purple
Heart, within three days Kerry had requested reassignment from Vietnam on the basis of three
Purple Hearts some 243 days early. See Exhibit 20.

(i) The Purple Heart Lie

Kerry's third Purple Heart was his ticket home. It also was much of the basis of his Bronze Star,
repeating "his bleeding arm" and shrapnel wound from the mine story. The problem is that his
operating report was a total lie since Kerry's shrapnel wound "in the buttocks" came not from a
mine at all as he falsely reported, but at his own hand. Larry Thurlow, an officer on shore with Kerry
that day, recounts that Kerry's shrapnel wound came not from any mine, but from a self-inflicted
wound when Kerry (with no enemy to be seen) threw a concussion grenade into a rice pile and
stayed too close. See Exhibit 10, 6 3. This "brown rice" incident with rice/shrapnel lodged in Kerry
from his own grenade is also recounted by James Rassman, a Kerry supporter and "the no man left
behind" on page 105 of John F. Kerry: The Complete Biography By The Boston Globe Reporters
Who Know Him Best, by Michael Kranish, Brian C. Mooney, and Nina J. Easton (New York: Public
Affairs, 2004) (the "Kranish book"). See Exhibit 21.

Most surprisingly, John Kerry himself (while falsely reporting to the Navy and public that he suffered a
shrapnel wound from a mine explosion so as to get a third Purple Heart and go home) reflected in
his own journal that his buttocks' wound came, not from any mine but, rather, from a grenade
tossed into a rice cache by himself or friendly troops (in the absence of any enemy fire). "I got a
piece of small grenade in my ass from one of the rice bin explosions." Exhibit 15, Tour, at 313; see
also Exhibit 15, Tour, at 317. "Kerry . . . also had the bits of shrapnel and rice extracted from his
backside." See also the sworn statement of participants that there was no hostile fire (Exhibits 6, 7,
and 10). It also should be noted that the rice extracted from Kerry's backside could hardly be the
result of an underwater mine, as Kerry claimed in his operating report.

The conclusion is inescapable: that Kerry lied by reporting to the Navy that he had been wounded by
shrapnel in his backside from an enemy mine when in reality he negligently wounded himself and
then lied about the wound in order to secure a third Purple Heart and a quick trip home.

(ii) The Bronze Star Lie

As recounted in the attached affidavits of three on-scene participants (and verified by many others
present) Kerry's operating report, Bronze Star story, and subsequent "no man left behind" story are
a total hoax on the Navy and the nation. As recounted in the affidavits of Van Odell (Exhibit 6), Jack
Chenoweth (Exhibit 7), and Larry Thurlow (Exhibit 10) (and verified by every other officer present
and many others), a mine went off under PCF 3 some yards from Kerry's boat. The force of the
explosion disabled PCF 3 and knocked several sailors, dazed, into the water. All boats, except one,
closed to rescue the sailors and defend the disabled boat. That boat Kerry's boat fled the scene.
After a short period, it was evident to all on the scene that there was no additional hostile fire.
Thurlow began the daring rescue of disabled PCF 3, while Chenoweth began to pluck dazed survivors
of PCF 3 from the water. Midway through the process, after it was apparent that there was no
hostile fire, Kerry finally returned, picking up Rassman who was only a few yards from Chenoweth's
boat which was also going to pick Rassman up. Each of the affiants (and many other Swiftees on
the scene that day) are certain that Kerry has wholly lied about the incident. Consider this: How
could the disabled PCF abandon the scene of the mine? Why did Kerry have to "return" to the scene?

Kerry's account of this action, which was used to secure the Bronze Star and a third Purple Heart, is
an extraordinary example of fraud. Kerry describes "boats rcd heavy A/W and S/A from both banks.
Fire continued for about 5000 meters." Exhibit 17. In other words, the boats went through a double
gauntlet at about 50 yards distance that was 3.2 miles long (comparable to Seminary Ridge at
Gettysburg on two sides), and yet none of the other boats within feet of Kerry's boat heard a shot
or suffered an injury after the PCF 3 mine explosion, except for John Kerry's buttocks rice wound of
earlier origin.

Clearly, Van Odell is right when he says, "John Kerry lied to get his Bronze Star . . I know. I was
there. I saw what happened." As Jack Chenoweth swore, "his account of what happened and what
actually happened are the difference between night and day." Most poignantly, Larry Thurlow, whose
brave actions saved the PCF 3 boat that day after Kerry fled, has the right to say, "When the chips
were down, you could not count on John Kerry."

B. December 2, 1968 Purple Heart

On February 28, 1969, John Kerry received his first Purple Heart for an incident three months earlier,
on or about December 2, 1968. Kerry's account of the incident is contained in Tour of Duty, pages
147 and 148 (Exhibit 23). Kerry claims to have been with two crewmen, Zaldonis and Runyon. See
Exhibit 23. Neither Kerry, Zaldonis, nor Runyon claim to have seen any hostile fire. See Exhibit 24
(Kranish book, pp. 7273). A Purple Heart cannot be given for a self-inflicted wound under the
attached regulations.

Unmentioned in Kerry's Tour Of Duty version are the actual surrounding facts. Kerry, Lieutenant
William Schachte, USN, and an enlisted man were on the whaler. Seeing movement from an
unknown source, the sailors opened fire on the movement. There was no hostile fire. When Kerry's
rifle jammed, he picked up an M79 grenade launcher and fired a grenade at a nearby object. This
sprayed the boat with shrapnel from Kerry's own grenade, a tiny piece of which embedded in Kerry's
arm.

Kerry managed to keep the tiny fragment embedded until he saw Dr. Louis Letson. Dr. Letson's
affidavit is attached as Exhibit 5. When Letson inquired why Kerry was there, Kerry said that he had
been wounded by hostile fire. The accompanying crewmen indicated that Kerry was the new "JFK"
and that he had actually wounded himself with an M79. Letson removed the tiny fragment with
tweezers and placed a band aid over the tiny scratch. The tiny fragment removed by Letson
appeared to be an M79 fragment, as described by the personnel accompanying Kerry.

The next morning Kerry showed up at Division Commander Grant Hibbard's office. Hibbard had
already spoken to Schachte and conducted an investigation. Hibbard's affidavit is attached as Exhibit
11. Hibbard's investigation revealed that Kerry's "rose thorn" scratch had been self-inflicted in the
absence of hostile fire. Hibbard, therefore, booted Kerry out of his office and denied the Purple Heart.

Some three months later, cf. Exhibit 22, after all personnel actually familiar with the events of
December 2, 1969 had left Vietnam, Kerry somehow managed to obtain a Purple Heart for the
December 2, 1968 event from an officer with no connection to Coastal Division 14 or knowledge of
the December 2, 1968 event or of Commander Hibbard's prior turn down of the Purple Heart
request. All normal documentation supporting a Purple Heart is missing. There is absolutely no
casualty report (i.e., spot report) or hostile fire report or after-action report in the Navy's files to
support this "Purple Heart" because there was no casualty, hostile fire, or action on which to report.
The sole document relied upon by Kerry is a record showing the band aid and tweezers treatment by
Dr. Letson recorded by deceased corpsman, Jess Carreon.

There are no witnesses who claim to have seen hostile fire necessary for a Purple Heart (even a
rose thorn Purple Heart) that day. At least three witnesses, Dr. Letson (who spoke to the
participants and removed the M79 fragment), Lt. Bill Schachte (on the boat), and Cmdr. Grant
Hibbard (whose investigation revealed Kerry's application for a Purple Heart to be fraudulent), are
able to testify directly or based upon contemporaneous investigation that Kerry's first Purple Heart
was a fraud. Thus, Lewis Letson's statement that "I know John Kerry is lying about a first Purple
Heart" is conclusively established by the evidence. Like the third Purple Heart, Kerry's first Purple
Heart was essential to his quick trip home.

C. Christmas In Cambodia

If there is a consistent[1] repeated story by John Kerry about his Vietnam experience, it is his story
about how he and his boat spent Christmas Eve and Christmas of 1968 illegally present in Cambodia
and, listening to President Nixon's contrary assurances, developed "a deep mistrust of U.S.
government pronouncements." See Exhibit 24, Kranish book, p. 84. The point of his story was that
his government and his commanders were lying about Kerry's presence in Cambodia on Christmas
Eve and Christmas Day. During a critical debate on the floor of the United States Senate on March
27, 1986, Senator John Kerry said:

Mr. President, I remember Christmas of 1968 sitting on a gunboat in Cambodia. I remember what it
was like to be shot at by Vietnamese and Khmer Rouge and Cambodians, and have the President of
the United States telling the American people that I was not there; the troops were not in Cambodia.

I have that memory which is seared seared in me . . .

Exhibit 25, Congressional Record Senate of March 27, 1986, page 3594.

By way of further example, Kerry wrote an article for the Boston Herald on October 14, 1979:

"I remember spending Christmas Eve of 1968 five miles across the Cambodian border being shot at
by our South Vietnamese allies who were drunk and celebrating Christmas. The absurdity of almost
killed by our own allies in a country in which President Nixon claimed there were no American troops
was very real."

See Exhibit 26.

The Christmas in Cambodia story of John Kerry was repeated as recently as July 7, 2004 by Michael
Kranish, a principal biographer of Kerry from The Boston Globe. On the Hannity & Colmes television
show, Kranish indicated that Kerry's Christmas in Cambodia was a critical turning point in Kerry's life.

The story is a total preposterous fabrication by Kerry. Exhibit 8 is an affidavit by the Commander of
the Swift boats in Vietnam, Admiral Roy Hoffmann, stating that Kerry's claim to be in Cambodia for
Christmas Eve and Christmas of 1968 is a total lie. If necessary, similar affidavits are available from
the entire chain of command. In reality, Kerry was at Sa Dec easily locatable on any map more than
fifty miles from Cambodia. Kerry himself inadvertently admits that he was in Sa Dec for Christmas
Eve and Christmas and not in Cambodia, as he had stated for so many years on the Senate Floor, in
the newspapers, and elsewhere. Exhibit 27, Tour, pp. 213219. Sa Dec is hardly "close" to the
Cambodian border. In reality, far from being ordered secretly to Cambodia, Kerry spent a pleasant
night at Sa Dec with "visions of sugar plums" dancing in his head. Exhibit 27, p. 219. At Sa Dec
where the Swift boat patrol area ended, there were many miles of other boats (PBR's) leading to the
Cambodian border. There were also gunboats on the border to prevent any crossing. If Kerry tried
to get through, he would have been arrested. Obviously, Kerry has hardly been honest about his
service in Vietnam.

D. War Crimes

Returning to the United States, Kerry made speeches charging that U.S. forces in Vietnam were "like
the army of Genghis Khan," that "crimes were committed on a day-to-day basis with the full
awareness of all levels of command," and that our officers in Coastal Division were like Lieutenant
Calley. Kerry met on least two occasions with the North Vietnamese in Paris and is, in fact, honored
as a hero in the war museum in Ho Chi Minh City. See pictures on WinterSoldier.com and
SwiftVets.com. Joe Ponder is a widely quoted disabled vet from Coastal Division 11 who saw no war
crimes but knows that Kerry dishonored our unit. Exhibit 13. Shelton White, a badly wounded
Coastal Division 11 veteran, likewise saw no war crimes and remembers Kerry's betrayal. Exhibit 12.

Conclusion

As set forth at length, there is not only a reasonable factual basis for the statements in the ad; they
are virtually conclusively established by the documentation.

Thank you for your kind consideration. Please do not hesitate to call me if you have any questions.

Very truly yours,

Original signed by John E. O'Neill
John E. O'Neill JEO/cas

Attachments
Index Of Exhibits
1. Transcript of "Any Questions?" Advertisement, July 2004

2. Affidavit of Alfred J. French III, dated July 21, 2004

3. Affidavit of Robert G. Elder, dated July 21, 2004

4. Affidavit of George Elliott, dated July 21, 2004

5. Statement (notarized) of Dr. Louis Letson, dated July 21, 2004

6. Affidavit of Van Odell, dated July 21, 2004

7. Affidavit of Jack Chenoweth, dated July 21, 2004

8. Affidavit of Roy F. Hoffmann, dated July 22, 2004

9. Affidavit of Adrian L. Lonsdale, dated July 22, 2004

10. Affidavit of Larry Thurlow, dated July 22, 2004

11. Affidavit of Grant W. Hubbard, dated July 21, 2004

12. Affidavit of Shelton White, dated July 30, 2004

13. Affidavit of Joseph L. Ponder, dated July 21, 2004

14. Affidavit of Robert Hildreth, dated July 30, 2004

15. Pages 313 through 318 from Tour of Duty: John Kerry and the Vietnam War, by Douglas
Brinkley (New York: HarperCollins, 2004)

16. Advertisement entitled "He Asked What He Could Do For His Country. Then He Did It," The New
York Times, May 11, 2004, p. A13

17. After Action Spot Report for March 1969, pages 2 and 3 (obtained from www.johnkerry.com)

18. March 1969 injury report (4 pages)

19. Regulations governing award of Purple Heart

20. Thrice Wounded Reassignment, dated March 1969 (obtained from www.johnkerry.com)

21. Page 105 from John F. Kerry: The Complete Biography By The Boston Globe Reporters Who
Know Him Best, written by Michael Kranish, Brian C. Mooney, and Nina J. Easton (New York: Public
Affairs, 2004)

22. Citation for Purple Heart #1 (obtained from www.johnkerry.com)

23. Pages 147 and 148 from Tour of Duty: John Kerry and the Vietnam War, by Douglas Brinkley
(New York: HarperCollins, 2004)

24. Page 84 from John F. Kerry: The Complete Biography By The Boston Globe Reporters Who
Know Him Best, written by Michael Kranish, Brian C. Mooney, and Nina J. Easton (New York: Public
Affairs, 2004)

25. Congressional Record Senate, March 27, 1986, pages 3593 and 3594

26. Pages 398 and 399 from John F. Kerry: The Complete Biography By The Boston Globe
Reporters Who Know Him Best, written by Michael Kranish, Brian C. Mooney, and Nina J. Easton
(New York: Public Affairs, 2004)

27. Pages 213 through 219 from Tour of Duty: John Kerry and the Vietnam War, by Douglas
Brinkley (New York: HarperCollins, 2004)

[1]The three instances here of Kerry's fraud upon the Navy and the public are solely by way of
illustration. There are many examples of equal gravity.