The New York Times : Image : Connections and Contradictions
The above is an image from the NY Times, detailing the myriad connections between the Swift Boat Veteran's Tour group, the Bush Family, and Karl Rove. It's really quite detailed.
There is, however, a connection the Times article seems to have missed.
A lawyer for President Bush's re-election campaign disclosed Tuesday that he has been providing legal advice for a veterans group that is challenging Democratic Sen. John Kerry's account of his Vietnam War service.
Benjamin Ginsberg's acknowledgment marks the second time in days that an individual associated with the Bush-Cheney campaign has been connected to the group Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, which Kerry accuses of being a front for the Republican incumbent's re-election effort.
The Bush campaign and the veterans' group say there is no coordination. [...] Ginsberg said he never told the Bush campaign what he discussed with the group, or vice versa, and doesn't advise the group on ad strategies
One of the campaign's lawyers has been advising the SBVT group ... but there is no coordination. Right.
Even assuming that he's telling the truth, there's a quite clear and apparent conflict of interest. And any lawyer -- any person -- with a brain cell in his head would realize that no denial would be believed, and that the appearance of ... well, impropriety is probably too strong a term, but of coordination would be damaging to their candidate.
And this will, one hopes, be the one and only post on that particular mess. Someday, both campaigns will, it is hoped, decide to discuss issues again.
Posted by iain at August 25, 2004 12:47 AM
