Richard Blumenthal's 2008 Stamford Advocate Quote: 'I Wore The Uniform In Vietnam'

Deep in the archives of Connecticut's Stamford Advocate newspaper is a quote that lends more credence to the theory that U.S. Senate candidate Richard Blumenthal allowed the myth that he served in Vietnam to be spread unchecked.

"I wore the uniform in Vietnam and many came back . . . to all kinds of disrespect," Blumenthal told the crowd at a 2008 Veteran's Day parade, according to the Advocate. "Whatever we think of war, we owe the men and women of the armed forces our unconditional support."

The Plum Line's Greg Sargent obtained a full copy of the Advocate article from Nov. 10, 2008.

After The New York Times ran a front-page story earlier this week on Blumenthal's past statements about his service during the Vietnam era, Blumenthal fought back against the allegations in a press conference on Wednesday.

"On a few occasions, I have misspoken about my service and I regret that I take full responsibility," Blumenthal said. "But I will not allow anyone to take a few misplaced words and impugn my record of service to our country."

The Times reporting also came under fire as critics pointed out that the newspaper may not have provided additional context for Blumenthal's past statements on his service during the Vietnam war. The Times said it was standing by its reporting..

Here's a larger excerpt from the Stamford Advocate story from 2008:

After the hourlong procession, about 150 of the onlookers gathered in Veterans Park on Atlantic Street to listen to speeches by elected officials and event organizers.

After the band played the national anthem and Marines raised the American flag, state Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said Stamford's parade was the best in the state.

"I wore the uniform in Vietnam and many came back . . . to all kinds of disrespect," Blumenthal told the crowd. "Whatever we think of war, we owe the men and women of the armed forces our unconditional support."

Comments

[ajwriter]

02:24 PM on 05/24/2010

Here's an excellent review of the NY Times' shoddy defense of their article on Blumenthal:
http://mediamatters.org/blog/201005230001
"NY Times' Hoyt misses mark with defense of Blumenthal hit piece"

From the article:
"...the Times article offered significantly more evidence to support its conclusions than it actually provided."

"The Hartford Courant's Colin McEnroe contacted political journalists throughout the state, and with one exception, none stated that they had ever heard Blumenthal say that he served in Vietnam.

"If, as the Times claimed, Blumenthal had a "long and well established pattern of misleading his constituents about his Vietnam War service," one would think that the people that cover him every day would have noticed.""

I think there is far more evidence to call the Times reporter a liar than Blumenthal.

[massmantoo]

08:35 AM on 05/22/2010

Atleast, he served. Did She?

[ajwriter]

09:01 PM on 05/21/2010

From an AP story:
Blumenthal, who was in the Marine Reserve, said Tuesday that he meant to say he served "during" Vietnam instead of "in" Vietnam. He said the statements were "totally unintentional" errors that occurred a few times out of hundreds of public appearances.

A longer version of the video posted by McMahon, who said her campaign provided some research information to the newspaper, shows Blumenthal at the beginning of his speech correctly characterizing his service by saying that he "served in the military, during the Vietnam era."

[BarryWolk]

12:34 PM on 05/22/2010

Blumenthal has stated that he served in Vietnam on many occasions so don't make any more lame excuses for him! He is a liar who doesn't deserve to represent ANYONE other than his lying self. I pity the voters of CT!! They sure painted themselves into a corner that they will have to live with for at least 6 years.

[ajwriter]

02:25 PM on 05/24/2010

The Hartford Courant's Colin McEnroe contacted political journalists throughout the state, and with one exception, none stated that they had ever heard Blumenthal say that he served in Vietnam.

"If, as the Times claimed, Blumenthal had a "long and well established pattern of misleading his constituents about his Vietnam War service," one would think that the people that cover him every day would have noticed.""

I think there is far more evidence to call the Times reporter a liar than Blumenthal.

[ajwriter]

02:28 PM on 05/24/2010

Oops, my quotations didn't come out. Save for the last sentence of my post, I am quoting the article I link to in my post above.

Unless you're just a troll out to bash Blumenthal regardless of the truth, I hope you will consider how you would feel if people twisted something you said once and tried to hang you with it despite the huge amount of evidence to the contrary.

[Belisarius]

03:41 PM on 05/21/2010

What is wrong with Blumenthol's actions is that they show both a flaw in character and a flaw in judgment.

Blumenthal wanted to be characterized as a combat veteran when he clearly did not deserve it. He could easily have volunteered for duty in Viet Nam, but he did not. That lie is a big character flaw and it reduces his credibility, period.

And how could he think that he could get away with it. Amazing.

Those of you that would like to mitigate his actions with comparison to Bush flaws and others should ask yourselves this: Since when is an evil deed mitigated because there is a precedent? Is it OK for dems to lie because Bush did it? Nope.

[ajwriter]

12:39 PM on 05/21/2010

This is total deja vu from the way Al Gore was smeared.

When will Democrats get a spine (and I don't mean the lawmakers) and refuse to be drawn in by this crap? What happened to the last prominent Republican who leveraged deferments during Vietnam and spent some of that time drunk and AWOL? (nothing, except that his deferments and service, such as it was, in the reserves was glorified) (Interestingly, I slipped above and wrote "in Vietnam" instead of "during" BECAUSE IT'S COMMON USAGE.)

Blumenthal is a really good public servant who pissed off a lot of powerful people (like insurance companies) actually doing the right thing in his job. Don't let them use this despicable tactic to rob you of a good lawmaker.

He's been a lawmaker for 20 years. If he'd been lying all along, it would have come up, oh, sometime in TWENTY YEARS.

[am10]

01:51 PM on 05/21/2010

He's been at many local events where he was introduced as a Vietnam Vet. There was even a clip on the news from a small city event where he said "When we came home from Vietnam..." Every newspaper lists him as a Vietnam Vet and he did nothing to correct it.

As far as his service, yes he was good at one time. But lately he's been taking easy cases that make him look great. In the meantime, he did nothing to stop the prosecution of a teacher who faced jail for being computer illiterate. He's been tiring his electorate for a while.

[ajwriter]

02:26 PM on 05/21/2010

*I* say "when we came home from Vietnam" . I say "when we ended slavery" and "when we won the Revolutionary war." Sometime I might even say, "when we discovered fire." I am not a 300-year-old politician -- am I lying when I use the royal "we"?

You're getting on the bandwagon, joining the mob, without justification. George Bush defended his right to call himself a veteran. Veteran means you served, whether you were deployed overseas or not. I have friends in the military now who are actively a part of the Iraqi conflict, but their work is stateside. They could be deployed to the country, but haven't been. Would you require them to launch into a lengthy detailed description of their work if someone else calls them an Iraq war veteran?

Life is messy. If Blumenthal was such a liar, why is this only coming up now? Why didn't YOU correct it if it was such a travesty, some time in the last 20 years? In the context of his political life, hundreds of speeches, he has been clear and specific about his service. Look at the man in entirety instead of twisting around a few phrases.

[Belisarius]

03:26 PM on 05/21/2010

I remember when Al Gore claimed he invented the Internet, which was of course preposterous.

However, if he had said that he was the technology vice-president that ensured that the NSF was funded so that it could build the public Internet, then I would have believed him and cheered him on. Since he did not say that I decided he must not have a clue, even though he had some good bragging rights available.

[ajwriter]

07:16 PM on 05/21/2010

Gore never claimed he invented the Internet.
http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2007/10/gore200710

What were you really basing your opinion on? A real familiarity with the man and the facts, or stuff fed to you in sound bites and rightwing radio political opponents?

[ajwriter]

07:24 PM on 05/21/2010

Is he claiming to be a veteran?

He's only a veteran if he (from govt web site):
Engaged in active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and Coast Guard), or are a National Guard or Reserve enlistee who was called to active duty for purposes other than training, or were a cadet or midshipman at one of the service academies, and

He's not if he:
Ha[s] never engaged in active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces,
Are a National Guard or Reserves enlistee activated only for training,

So my question is:
Was he claiming to be a "veteran"?
Since you can be "active duty" stateside, was he or not?

[peowlemeow]

09:10 AM on 05/21/2010

He wore a uniform during the Vietnam War and says he got spat on or whatever.Personally I don't mess with soldiers,it seems a bit stupid and I never saw soldiers get messed with in the early 1970s in Boston .Vietnam was a crappy war in a beautiful place .WMDs or vengenance might be less stressful than dominos as a reason to go but it's still war .Fun for the winners and crud for everyone else.America trying to get comfy with war and phony reasons to go and people who go knowing it's phony is going to be trying at times but for the most part was an easy sell.
This guy should let the flag wave in front of a building and stop trying to carry it.He's getting too wrapped up in it.

[williamina]

09:21 AM on 05/21/2010

I am sorry the effects are still evident.

[AnotherMcIntosh]

10:55 PM on 05/21/2010

"He wore a uniform during the Vietnam War and says he got spat on or whatever."

He never said that.

It's now documented at MediaMatters that the New York Times reporter who claimed that quoted a source who, in turn, denies that she said what the reported quoted her as saying.

The person who made up the "I was spit upon" was a draft-doging, steriod-taking, Sylvester Stalone in his fictional movie Rambo. Saying it with sincerity didn't make it true. Can you believe that somebody spat on Stalone? Nobody spat on any returning troops from jungles of Viet Nam. No one should doubt this. If anyone does, they should find somebody returning from Iraq or Afghanistan and try it.

[Beau2]

09:10 AM on 05/21/2010

Real war Veterans are going to have a field day running commercials using this liar's own words to expose him as the weasel that he is.

For him to steal the valor of those who bravely served so that he might trade it for some votes, is beneath contempt.

I suspect that by the time the commercials stop, lying Blumenthal will clearly understand the difference between getting shot at and or killed IN Vietnam and collecting Toys for Tots IN Virginia.

This lying sack of bones deserves what is getting ready to happen to him.

PS - I hope the Veteran Groups that are going to go after this liar will post their web sites so that the rest of us can contribute to their efforts.

[PopsinAZ]

12:53 PM on 05/21/2010

BEAU - I am with you 100%. It is such a shame that so many politicians of both political parties are professional fabricators. They will say whatever they believe voters want to hear and/or make promises they have no intention whatsoever of keeping to be elected to public office. Blumenthal is typical. However, now that he has been caught in this obvious LIE he needs to withdraw from the Senatorial race. Hopefully, a more honest and forthright nominee will be chosen.

[AnotherMcIntosh]

06:49 PM on 05/21/2010

While you say that you are with Beau2 100%, its worth knowing that elsewhere he claimed that he was a veteran. Elsewhere he also claimed that "56,000 American soldiers died in Viet Nam."

If you had any military experience, you would know why his phraseology is wrong. The erroneous phraseology has been repeatedly pointed to this guy who claims to be a vet, yet he doesn't seem to have a clue as to what's wrong with it.

[Eris23Skidoo]

02:53 AM on 05/22/2010

Yeah, well, I'm a veteran and I don't appreciate your tone. I see nothing wrong with what Blumenthal has done. WE did fight the Vietnam war. We as a society. We also won the Revolutionary War and we helped the Russkies kick Hitlers' behind as well. I didn't personally play a role in any of those conflicts and neither did you. There are a few of us who helped the Russkies. What about the Mexican War? All those Mexico-haters justify the Arizona border because of the results of that conflict but can anyone name anyone living who bled over that border being formed? I didn't think so. But "we" still won that war, and we still brag about it--teabaggers brag about it as if they were there themselves and they feel much more entitled to the lands of Arizona than the people whose family were there before white people ever even knew it existed. Because "we" won that war.

You all make a real veteran sick. Quit trying to pretend you know what it is to be a veteran; that you know what it is to hear alarms during wartime and think your base is under attack; to worry whether you have what it takes to kill an enemy if you have to.

[kaspiahn]

08:57 AM on 05/22/2010

Well this real veteran can't under stand why you don't see something wrong with a guy taking credit for being IN vietnam. WE, America, did fight the war. But I was never IN vietnam...... BIG difference. He clearly was misleading the public and should be very ashamed. His lack of shame is really appauling.

[AnotherMcIntosh]

10:26 AM on 05/22/2010

Absolutely right.

It's worth noting that Beau2 is posing as a vet.

Elsewhere, at 10:33 AM on 5/20/2010, in response to a post by Maezeppa in which she said, "Many veterans hotly defend Blumenthal," he posted:
"Most do not. We defend the memory of those who gave all."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/19/times-defends-blumenthal_n_582615.html?
page=3&show_comment_id=47842153#comment_47842153

Finally, after I have called him out 9 times, he is now admitting that he is not a vet but he now falsely claiming that he ever represented himself as a vet.

[Deborah Barclay]

09:08 AM on 05/21/2010

The Hartford Courant publishes correction to yet another fabricated 'credential' by AG Richard Blumenthal. He was never 'captain' of the Harvard University Swim Team.Correction - Courant.com
www.courant.com
•State Attorney General Richard Blumenthal was never captain of the Harvard University swim team. A 1978 Courant story incorrectly reported that he was — an error repeated in subsequent Courant stories, including profiles in 1980 and 2004.

[Eris23Skidoo]

02:56 AM on 05/22/2010

And next you're about to claim that it was Blumenthal going around telling people he was a swim team captain, right? That he personally wrote the story that wrongly credentialed him as such a thing? Right......

[Snarkyone]

08:34 AM on 05/21/2010

Perhaps he went back to Vietnam after the war was over and took his old uniform with him to wear while visiting....Disgraceful behavior by someone who should know better.

[opines]

08:32 AM on 05/21/2010

When asked about my military service, I respond that "I volunteered for the draft toward the end of the Korean War. I was lucky and was sent to Germany."

If I said that I volunteered for the draft and served during the Korean War, it would be true but might leave the impression that I had seen combat.

To say that I served 'in Korea' would commend me for a career in politics. Ya know, by 'in Korea', I meant that I was 'in' the service during the War in 'Korea'.

[Eris23Skidoo]

02:58 AM on 05/22/2010

At the same time, you could give speeches about your recollection of the era, and you might say something like: "when we fought Korea, I remember how confused everyone was" or some such, and then I hope the entire MSM jumped all over you and acted like you were trying to pretend you were personally in Korea. That is what you are doing to Blumenthal.

[billhodges]

08:20 AM on 05/21/2010

He needs to quit or be booted out of this race. We have enough liars in Congress already. IMHO

[Eris23Skidoo]

03:02 AM on 05/22/2010

I think you right wingers just can't stand the idea of a liberal with military credentials being in congress. It just doesn't fit your meme, so you have to swift-boat liberal veterans. If I ever run for office I will refuse to talk about my service. It's none of anyone's damn business. I'm sick of seeing liberals' service being held against them while draft-dodging republicans take office while criticizing those of us who had the guts to put that uniform on in the first place. The nerve of you Dick Cheney types and George W types swift-boating the Kerry's and Cleland's of this world I will never understand.

[ajwriter]

03:58 PM on 05/24/2010

Which is why Democrats need to draw the line at the smear campaign against a good man. Congress will be a better place if there were more like him there.

Read about it
http://mediamatters.org/blog/201005230001

The NY Times needs to be called to task for their reporting travesty. And Democrats need to stand up against this kind of ugly smear tactic.

[hooktender]

07:55 AM on 05/21/2010

Do we really want somebody in the Senate who just can't seem to learn?

[Grandma Koolfinger]

07:43 AM on 05/21/2010

Why is anyone surprised when a politician lies or takes bribes or cheats on his wife? These actions are just microcosms of what they are doing to the American populace. They are one rung lower than pedophiles. Maybe two.

[Joseph Crudup]

07:27 AM on 05/21/2010

I live in ct NO BODY CARES HE IS VERY WELL LIKED HERE

[judgejay]

07:57 AM on 05/21/2010

I think your only fooling yourself. Dick is disliked by many due to his support of the use emminent domain in the KeloV. New London case. He is a self serving and now a confirmed liar on not just one but many occasions when speaking about his military service. I don't want this type of politician representing me or the state of CT. in the senate.

[Eris23Skidoo]

03:03 AM on 05/22/2010

I'll bet you're just fine with Joe Liebermann.

[johnsonc20]

09:33 AM on 05/21/2010

It makes sense. You are the jokers that gave us Joe Lieberman.

[GHO]

07:13 AM on 05/21/2010

Why is anyone surprised? A liar is a liar - not once, but always.