DU Researchers: Is this an outright lie by John O'Neill on Cavett?

[Zorra]

I am having a problem finding John O'Neill's service records and information on how much time O'Neill actually spent in Vietnam.

O'Neill claimed, in a debate with John Kerry on the Dick Cavett show on June 30, 1971, that he spent almost 3 years in Vietnam:

MR. O'NEILL: No. I went to the Naval Academy and always figured, Mr. Cavett, that I would give the Navy an honest try, and after being in Vietnam for almost three years, I decided I wanted to go home back to Texas.

http://www.seanrobins.com/kerry/kerry_1971_06_30_Dick_Cavett.htm

However, this article from National Review Online says that O'Neill was in Vietnam for a little over 2 years:

After a little over two years' duty, O'Neill himself departed Vietnam with two Bronze Stars (with "V"s for valor in combat) pinned to his chest.

http://www.nationalreview.com/rose/rose200404211228.asp

Did O'Neill make a false claim on the Dick Cavett Show, or is this NRO article erroneous? If anyone has info on how long O'Neill actually spent in Vietnam, could you please post it for me? O'Neill seems to be lying an awful lot about John Kerry, and it would be interesting to find if he was "exaggerating" the amount of time that he served in Vietnam in this televised debate in order to make himself look more credible in the eyes of viewers.

Thanks!

[kentuck]

1. What did he get his Bronze Stars w/Valor for ?

Just curious?

[jeff30997]

2. Cleaning latrines.

[MrSlayer]

3. Semantics I think.

Neither give a definite amount of time. There better things to get him on.

[Zorra]

4. Possibly. I would still like to know, because

if he spent 2 years and 3 months in Vietnam, this is a little over two years, and not "almost 3 years" by any stretch. If this is the case, what motivation would O'Neill have for claiming that he spent almost 3 years in Vietnam?

If he spent 2 years and 9 months in Vietnam, I can buy the almost 3 years claim.

[comradebillyboy]

5. what he does now does not negate

what he did in viet nam.

[Zorra]

6. No, of course it doesn't. I am just curious if he was "stretching" the

truth about the length of his service in Vietnam.

There is conflicting information which, IMO, casts aspersions on O'Neill's character.

I mean, really, if John Kerry had claimed that he had served in Vietnam for almost a year, when he only served four months, the swiftboat liars and the RW media would be destroying him right now.

So, is O'Neill a "claimer" about his length of time in Vietnam?

[tom22]

7. I thought that

the service requirement for Acadamy grads was more than three years.

[BayouBengal07]

8. What bothered me about the Cavett debate

was something just as small- Kerry claimed to have 20,000 VVAW members around the country, then when O'Neill, less than 5 minutes later, cited the number 20,000, Kerry said "I'm glad all of a sudden the group's numbers have risen to 20,000...". Kerry just said there were 20,000!

[Sparkly]

9. I don't think Kerry said there were 20,000 in the group

I think he said the number who were members represented the feelings of 20,000 other veterans across the country, an estimate of how many were anti-war, but not necessarily members of VVAW.

Then O'Neill made them all members.

[Zorra]

10. I still can't find any other info about O'Neill's length of service in

Vietnam.

Help? Thanks!

[buycitgo]

11. duhhhhh....they're in the same place as *'s flight physical papers

gone

[Zorra]

12. LOL. Well, perhaps Mr. O'Neill could personally enlighten us?

[Zorra]

13. Strange that this information is not available.

[Julien Sorel]

14. Ultimately it doesn't matter.

O'Neil isn't running for office; Kerry is. No one will care whether it was 18 months, which I thought I heard him say at one point, or 3 years.

[dryan]

15. Remember this very well....

O'Neill is still on this tangent. He just wrote a book called "Unfit to Command".

[jhml]

16. Not very clear

Three years seem unlikely.

In O'Neill's WSJ article he says:


"Like John Kerry, I served in Vietnam as a Swift Boat commander. Ironically, John Kerry and I served much of our time, a full 12 months in my case and a controversial four months in his, commanding the exact same six-man boat, PCF-94, which I took over after he requested early departure."

Which would seem to suggest the normal 12 month tour.

But then:
=======================
"John Kerry's recent admissions caused me to realize that I was most likely in Vietnam dodging enemy rockets on the very day he met in Paris with Madame Binh, the representative of the Viet Cong to the Paris Peace Conference."
==============

Kerry met with the Madame Binh in Paris, I think in June or May of 1970 which would be beyond a 12 month tour for O'Neill

Finally the WSJ itself captioned O'Neill's article:

"Mr. O'Neill served in Coastal Division 11 in 1969-70, winning two Bronze Stars and additional decorations for his service in Vietnam."

That just says "Coastal Division 11" service so he might have been in Vietnam longer.

Still it "sounds" like less than 3 years to me.

[Zorra]

17. Thanks.

Found that also, but what I previously posted and what you posted is all I could find.

[Green Lantern]

18. Really immaterial

Kerry's people should show him on his Swift next to a jet with an empty cockpit. No voice over, no comments. just two photos.