The process of smearing a military veteran's service record for political purposes. Named after the Swiftboat Veterans for Truth, who discredited John Kerry's war record during the 2004 U.S. presidential election.
by SmileyScout January 21, 2006
A political ploy whereby allegations, falsehoods, exaggerations, or distortions are publicized to discredit a person or entity and have the intended effect that public attention is drawn to the ensuing controversy about the veracity of the allegations and away from some other political embarrassment.
Questions about Kerry’s military service and whether he deserved purple heart medals was swiftboating the public’s attention from whether or not Bush was AWOL.
by Nels Christianson October 14, 2006
The act of exposing the exagerated or inflated claims of a person seeking to promote themselves into a position of authority.
He would have gotten away with his outrageous lies if not for the swiftboating he received at the hand of his classmates.
by Bobby Farrelly August 24, 2006
Swiftboating is a term used to describe the campaign waged by a group named "Swiftvets and POW's for Truth" against presidential candidate John F. Kerry. A swiftboat is a navy craft with a shallow draft used in the Vietnam war (PCF - Patrol Craft - Fast); It is armed with machine guns, usually from two fixed points. It is the type of craft that Kerry served on in the Vietnam war.
Many (not all) of the swiftvets served with John Kerry and didn't believe he was presidential material. They went public with their beliefs. Among their claims was that Kerry gamed the system by receiving Purple Heart Medals for minor injuries in an effort to end his tour of duty. Kerry received three Purple Hearts in four months and shows no debilitating injury; which is most unusual. Moreover, he will not release his service medical records. The intersection of this data strongly suggests that the claims of the swiftboaters has a good foundation.
The petition from the Swiftboat Vets makes, among others, this claim against John Kerry:
". . .Upon your return from Vietnam, you betrayed your fellow veterans by accusing them of engaging in horrendous war crimes. Through your post-war activities, and during Senate testimony viewed by the entire nation, you created and nurtured the myth that American soldiers in Vietnam were involved in such crimes on a daily basis, and that such activity was sanctioned by our commanding officers. Specifically, you stated that we: "had personally raped, cut off ears, cut off heads, taped wires from portable telephones to human genitals and turned up the power, cut off limbs, blown up bodies, randomly shot at civilians, and razed villages in fashion reminiscent of Genghis Khan."
The above is a matter of record.
But, this is the political arena. Swiftboating is defined by some as the unwarranted trashing of a good person's reputation. Those are the people who like Kerry. Others will define it as truth coming forward about a person's character.
In the end, a person can fight a swiftboating claim against them by making all their records available for public viewing. For swiftboating to work, it must be stonewalled and the truth hidden. That's what Kerry did.
Many (not all) of the swiftvets served with John Kerry and didn't believe he was presidential material. They went public with their beliefs. Among their claims was that Kerry gamed the system by receiving Purple Heart Medals for minor injuries in an effort to end his tour of duty. Kerry received three Purple Hearts in four months and shows no debilitating injury; which is most unusual. Moreover, he will not release his service medical records. The intersection of this data strongly suggests that the claims of the swiftboaters has a good foundation.
The petition from the Swiftboat Vets makes, among others, this claim against John Kerry:
". . .Upon your return from Vietnam, you betrayed your fellow veterans by accusing them of engaging in horrendous war crimes. Through your post-war activities, and during Senate testimony viewed by the entire nation, you created and nurtured the myth that American soldiers in Vietnam were involved in such crimes on a daily basis, and that such activity was sanctioned by our commanding officers. Specifically, you stated that we: "had personally raped, cut off ears, cut off heads, taped wires from portable telephones to human genitals and turned up the power, cut off limbs, blown up bodies, randomly shot at civilians, and razed villages in fashion reminiscent of Genghis Khan."
The above is a matter of record.
But, this is the political arena. Swiftboating is defined by some as the unwarranted trashing of a good person's reputation. Those are the people who like Kerry. Others will define it as truth coming forward about a person's character.
In the end, a person can fight a swiftboating claim against them by making all their records available for public viewing. For swiftboating to work, it must be stonewalled and the truth hidden. That's what Kerry did.
The claims against this Senator with a sterling reputation are nothing but another form of swiftboating.
or
The Senator refuses to disclose records concerning his duty, dismissing it as "swiftboating."
or
The Senator refuses to disclose records concerning his duty, dismissing it as "swiftboating."
by Steven Maikoski August 29, 2006
To have your credibility attacked by an a dishonest political machine. Named for four ads run by a conservative group of Vietnam War veterans called Swiftboat Veterans for Truth (SBVT) during the 2004 presidential campaign.
The ads featured Vietnam veterans corroborating falsehoods about Kerry's service in Vietnam, and criticizing his testimony as a member of Vietnam Veterans Against the War before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
The accuracy of the ads was discredited by official Navy records, other veterans, and several of the SBVT's own members. In spite of media sources openly questioning their validity, they were effective in raising doubts about Kerry's war record in critical swing states. Bush, a draft-dodger, managed to win his second term in the 2004 election, largely due to the Swiftboat ads.
These days, when media figures have their image attacked, they claim they've been swiftboated in order to imply that the attackers are dishonest or using false information.
The ads featured Vietnam veterans corroborating falsehoods about Kerry's service in Vietnam, and criticizing his testimony as a member of Vietnam Veterans Against the War before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
The accuracy of the ads was discredited by official Navy records, other veterans, and several of the SBVT's own members. In spite of media sources openly questioning their validity, they were effective in raising doubts about Kerry's war record in critical swing states. Bush, a draft-dodger, managed to win his second term in the 2004 election, largely due to the Swiftboat ads.
These days, when media figures have their image attacked, they claim they've been swiftboated in order to imply that the attackers are dishonest or using false information.
Steve: The New York Post ran a story that Al Pacino is a child molester. They're trying to swiftboat him.
Bob: Wait, I read what that means on Urban Dictionary. According to the highest rated definitions, that means he's raping little boys.
Steve: What? That's not what swiftboated means at all, just look on wikipedia. Those definitions must have been written by Bush supporters.
Bob: Wait, I read what that means on Urban Dictionary. According to the highest rated definitions, that means he's raping little boys.
Steve: What? That's not what swiftboated means at all, just look on wikipedia. Those definitions must have been written by Bush supporters.
by kickflipthecat July 29, 2010
The upcoming ABC documentary 'The Path to 9/11' is expected to swiftboat the Clinton administration, accusing it of ignoring the terrorist threat.
by JwW September 07, 2006
John claimed to have saved a life in the local tragic fire. However, after noting that John was aat the time, actually in a bar 20 miles away by the bartender, John was Swiftboated by several other people the entire week following the fictitious claim.
by Mike52 Fleming October 28, 2006