I commented last week about how difficult it would be for Kerry to counter the 2nd SwiftVet's ad. He has not managed to. His attempts have boiled down to:

• The testimony was taken out of context, he was only relaying what others had told him. This doesn't work since no one forced him to relate those stories. Just the opposite, he chose them himself.
• Bush should condemn the SwiftVets. This approach backfired. Bush denounced all 527 ads and a few networks are admitting that the anti-Bush groups have spent around 30 times as much money as the pro-Bush groups.
• We should be talking about the issues like jobs, education, and medical coverage. Notice that he skips over terrorism. Bush didn't. When he condemned the 527s he said that the main issue is who can lead the war against terrorism.

The furor over the first ad continues. Very few people have seen the ad on TV (I never did) but everyone has heard about it. It is pretty well established by now that Kerry lied about being in Cambodia. Now his campaign has admitted that his first Purple Heart was not earned.

If finally happened - someone asked Kerry in front of a camera if he was ever in Cambodia. Too bad it was Jon Stewart and Kerry didn't answer.

"I'm sorry," Stewart said. "Were you or were you not in Cambodia?"Stewart and
Kerry then leaned in and stared each other down before Stewart asked about other
things Kerry's opponents are saying.

The Smoking Room has more on Kerry's appearance.