Lamont releases new ad, urges voters to sign the petition against swift-boat group

Today, Ned Lamont released a new TV ad entitled "Patriot" at the same time Joe Lieberman's swift-boat friends "Veterans for Truth" releases their pro-Lieberman ad. This so-called group are nothing more than Washington lobbyists and political operatives with ties to the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth and headed by no other than Dan Senor...you know, the former advisor to Iraq Coalition Provisional Authority who was partly responsible for losing 9 billion U.S. dolars under his watch as well as a source of the majority of the screw-ups after the U.S. took over Iraq.

Yeah, that guy.


The Lamont campaign had this to say about their new ad, Joe's swift-boat group, and reminds us that not all veterans are happy with our junior senator .

As we release our latest ad, "Patriot," Senator Lieberman has new friends releasing ads of their own: Allies of the infamous "Swift Boat Veterans." The group, "Veterans for Truth" has deep Republican ties, including former advisors to President Bush and is one of those mysterious 527 organizations shielded from disclosing individuals funding their effort.

[...]

The "Veterans for Truth" ad thanks Senator Lieberman for supporting President Bush and the Iraq War. But one Connecticut veteran shared his tale of Senator Lieberman's "support" in a letter to the editor of a local paper several weeks ago.

When Collin Halloran explained his unit had been issued sub-standard equipment, the response was that "[Senator Lieberman] left the impression that they believed we had the equipment we needed, despite the contrasting beliefs of soldiers in my battalion."

I am a registered Democrat and a soldier currently serving in Afghanistan with the 1-102 Infantry Battalion of the Connecticut National Guard. Last week I received some newspaper clippings in the mail that sparked my interest: Senator Joseph I. Lieberman has been successfully challenged and forced into a primary that will take place in August.

As some readers may have heard, in January my battalion was issued substandard equipment for our deployment to Afghanistan. Originally, we were issued M-16s rather than M-4 carbines, rifles with shorter barrels and collapsible butt stocks. As a politcally active member of the battalion, I began to get in touch with Representative DeLauro and Representative Simmons, who both responded quickly and enthusiastically. Senator Dodd also responded quickly and gave me prompts on how to further validate my request for weapns.

However, I did not receive a response from Senator Lieberman's office. I continued to leave messages for both him and his military aide, now senior counselor, Fred Downey, who reprsented Sen. Lieberman at the Battalion's send off ceremony on Jan. 4. After several messages, I finally received a return phone call. However, I was not met with the same enthusiams expressed by other legislators; I was immediately confronted with an inquisition that seemed to have the purpose of dispelling the belief that the battalion was ill equipped. Rather than listen to our specific concerns, the "benefits" of the M16 were highlighted and the advantages of the M4 were downplayed.

Lieberman's office left the impression that they believed we had the equipment we needed, despite the contrasting beliefs of soldiers in my battalion, some who have been on as many as five deployments. The others in Washington were not so quick to abandon us...

Lieberman has never hesitated to voice his support for the war, and recently voted against pulling troops out of Iraq, so where was he when over 500 of his own constituents were being sent overseas to fight on behalf of his great country? It appears the senator was so concerned with climbing the political ladder, he forget what his job is really about: the people...

When my absentee ballot returns to the States next month, Lamont's name, not Lieberman's, will bear the check. when August 8 arrives, will you stand for the hypocrisy?

Sincerely,

Colin D. Halloran

Letter Source: The Town Times - Middlefield, CT. June 30, 2006.

You see, not all veterans are proud of Joe's cheerleading of this war and many veterans in Connecticut are very upset about Dan Senor's swift-boat group attempts to attack Ned Lamont.

If you're just as outraged as many veterans are over the "Veterans for Freedom" smear campaign, please go to the Lamont campaign site and sign the petition which calls on Sen. Lieberman to denounce the ads.

You can view Lamont's new ad below.