The New Soldier: John Kerry and the VVAW

Since its publication in 1971, John Kerry's book "The New Soldier" has acquired almost legendary status. Rumors abound of political operatives scrambling to locate and suppress stray copies during Kerry's House campaign in 1972. Copies now sell on Ebay for upwards of $500.

In this section we present an overview of the book, along with most of the text and selected photographs. Much of the text consists of John Kerry's testimony before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations on April 22, 1971, and quotes from other members of the VVAW, mostly taken from the Winter Soldier testimony itself. Both of these are present in the Congressional Record, and are therefore in the public domain.

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Next -- The New Soldier: Preface

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The Winter Soldier Investigation

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*** BREAKING ***

John Kerry's photograph hangs in the War Protestors Hall of the War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City -- an indication of the value the Vietnamese communists place on Kerry's support of their efforts during the Vietnam War.

John Kerry at Vietnam Veterans Against the War Operation RAW anti-war gathering Sept. 7, 1970 with Jane Fonda. ----------

On January 31, 1971, members of Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW) met in a Detroit hotel to document war crimes that they had participated in or witnessed during their combat tours in Vietnam. During the next three days, more than 100 Vietnam veterans and 16 civilians gave anguished, emotional testimony describing hundreds of atrocities against innocent civilians in South Vietnam, including rape, arson, torture, murder, and the shelling or napalming of entire villages. The witnesses stated that these acts were being committed casually and routinely, under orders, as a matter of policy.

In April, the VVAW stormed Washington in a week-long protest. At the height of it, spokesman John Kerry went before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations to accuse the United States military of committing massive numbers of war crimes in Vietnam. The appearance launched Kerry's political career. The charges he made shocked and sickened a nation, changed the course of a war and stained the reputation of the American military for decades.

But the mass murder of civilians was never American policy in Vietnam. War crimes were the exception, not the rule. And the Winter Soldier tribunal itself -- which John Kerry had helped moderate -- turned out to be, in the words of historian Guenter Lewy, "packed with pretenders and liars."

Massachusetts elected John Kerry to the U.S. Senate in 1984. Now he is seeking the most powerful job in the world.

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If you're just passing through, try the quick tour: a list of key points, some memorable quotes, and a look at the Winter Soldier Investigation's claims and their debunking.

If you packed a lunch, consider taking a crack at the entire 32-page transcript of John Kerry's testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Check out our unique and growing collection of documents, clips and more. Or save yourself a few hundred bucks, and dig into John Kerry's The New Soldier.

If you've been here before, What's New lists and links our recent updates. In-depth essays are available in Special Features, along with some deeply disturbing early samples of Garry Trudeau's "Doonesbury." Several tons of additional information on the "war crimes" propaganda effort and its relation to the 2004 campaign can be found in our news articles section.

We present a remarkable assortment of letters from readers and our own commentary in Incoming.

Our newest topics are: a time line that lays out many events in the international war crimes propaganda effort, the complete transcript of the 1971 debate between John Kerry and fellow Swift boat skipper John O'Neill on the Dick Cavett Show, and a section tracking the activities of Swift boat veterans organizing to oppose Kerry's candidacy.

*** Now available: everything the FBI has made public concerning Vietnam Veterans Against the War ***