Jim Russell

From dKosopedia

Category: Swift Boat controversy

See also Swift Boat Veterans for Truth.

A Telluride lodge owner stepped forward Monday to defend Sen. John Kerry's Vietnam War record, saying fellow Navy veterans were using "ridiculous" charges to discredit the Democratic presidential contender.

Retired Navy lieutenant Jim Russell, 60, backed up Kerry's version of an incident more than 35 years ago. He said he watched from a distance as Kerry, who commanded a swift boat, rescued a soldier who had fallen into the Bay Hap River.

"I found him (to be) aggressive, tough and a by-the-book type of guy when he was in Vietnam, and he was definitely fit to serve," said Russell, who ended a six-year Navy career in 1971 and now runs the Alta Lake Observatory Lodge and a small catering business with his wife, Salli.

Russell said he was angered by recent attack ads against Kerry by a group called Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. He wrote a letter to the editor of the Telluride Daily Planet defending Kerry and on Monday ended up on a conference call with 64 reporters from across the country organized by the Kerry campaign.

"I was angry enough to do what I did and relive all this stuff again," Russell said Monday from his home in the tranquil San Juan Mountains. "I wanted to put it away, put it on the back burner. I didn't need this."