senator john kerry, a combat veteran who received three purple hearts and a bronze star and a silver star, he was slandered and slimed for his vietnam service in the swi swiftboating effort. a swiftboat used to be just a boat, until it bake shorthand for karl rove era conservatives going as far as to attack and lie about a combat hero s service record. and president bush s own avoidance of serving in vietnam through well-connected assignments, that issue somehow became a scandal working in the president s favor rather than against him on a disputed cbs news report on the subject led to the forced resignation of dan rather as that network s main anchor. dan rather has a new book out that in part re-litigates that issue of george w. bush s vietnam-era service still today. barack obama is a post-vietnam war president, our nation s first. he was a toddler when the war