WAPO Corrects Covington Smear Story to Say Native American Activist Didn’t Fight in the Vietnam War
In an interview with CNN, Phillips claimed he was a Vietnam times veteran, WaPo appears to have assumed he meant Vietnam war veteran
Yet another key detail of the shameless Covington Catholic smear job has been clarified.
The Washington Post issued a correction to their coverage of the story.
Washington Post corrects key part of Covington story — Native American activist Nathan Phillips did not fight in the Vietnam War
https://t.co/AS7RnPMZB3— David Mastio (@DavidMastio) January 22, 2019
That correction reads:
Correction: Earlier versions of this story incorrectly said that Native American activist Nathan Phillips fought in the Vietnam War. Phillips served in the U.S. Marines from 1972 to 1976 but was never deployed to Vietnam.
The WaPo article originally read as follows:
In an interview with CNN, Phillips claimed he was a Vietnam times veteran, though the transcript says differently:
According to Cincinatti.com, Phillips refused an offer by a restaurateur to sit down with Covington Catholic High School students to “break bread and make amends.”
Nathan Phillips has turned down Cincinnati restaurateur Jeff Ruby’s invitation to “break bread and make amends” with Covington Catholic High School students.
On Monday, Ruby offered to fly Phillips first class to have dinner with the CovCath students at one of his high-end restaurants.
But after a little thought and consideration, Phillips reconsidered and is willing to stretch his 15 minutes of shame by offering to lecture Covington Catholic High School students on racism and cultural appropriation. Cincy ctd:
Nathan Phillips has changed his mind on meeting with CovCath students.
He’s offering to travel as a delegate representing the international coalition behind the Indigenous Peoples March to Covington Catholic High School in and have a dialogue about cultural appropriation, racism and the importance of listening to and respecting diverse cultures, he said in a news release.
“Race relations in this country and around the world have reached a boiling point,” said Phillips. “It is sad that on the weekend of a holiday when we celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., racial hostility occurred on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, where King gave his ‘I Have a Dream’ speech.”
Now, he says he’d like to use what occurred as a teachable moment.
Editor’s note: We have clarified the post to reflect what the audio of the video said, as opposed to the CNN transcript.
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Comments
Mr. Kim: Good philosophy, see good in bad, I like.
The upside of this story is that the unreported ‘March for Life’ was reported.
Why cater to this (expletive deleted)s fifteen minutes of shame. There no purpose served in accommodating this. Only bad things can come from giving him a platform.
American journalists – we’ll start to clarify on the 73rd hour, after 72 consecutive hours of our finest carpet bombing of the truth. We cannot sacrifice our virtue!
So he joins Sen. Blumenthal, Bill Clinton, Howard Dean and many other fine Americans in this distinction.
I’ll be 62 shortly and had to register for the draft in 1975 when I turned 18. The draft was essentially a gear turning process by that – time they were not actually selecting numbers. The fall of Saigon was a few months off, and American troop participation in Vietnam was minimal at that time. I went to my guidance counselor to request the Selective Service forms and he laughed as if it was such a remote likelihood of being drafted (and it was infinitesimal at that point) that he thought I would have done like most kids turning 18 at that time and not bother.
If this guy is 64 – it would be pretty unlikely he could have served in Vietnam.
Mr. Phillips truthfully said he is a Viet Nam era veteran, having served during the Viet Nam conflict but not in the theater of operations. Journalists and people of all walks of life demonstrate their own ignorance when they make the mental leap from serving at the time… to serving in combat.
No excuse for getting in the face of a teenager, but he is not guilty of claiming to serve in Viet Nam. Lord knows, the left is willfully ignorant of what the right actually believes, let’s not be guilty og the same thing.
There is a little misdirection in saying “Vietnam Era” . … unlike Wes Studi who actually served in Vietnam for 18 months.
The terms make a proper distinction. I too am a Viet Nam era veteran, having served during the same time frame and not serving “in” Viet Nam.
Not understanding the distinction is a lack of knowledge, ignorance, of what the term means.
I too am in your situation and when asked I merely say I’m a veteran and since the military never sent me there I leave Viet Nam out of the conversation
While the whole military was put under derision during the Vietnam War, there is a little thing called combat. The activist is a Vet… fine.. but clarification is still needed to separate those that served in the military, those that served in Vietnam but never saw combat and those that were in combat during the Vietnam Era. As Tet showed, the “front lines” can come to you rather than you going to them.
No truth can be enlightened out of claiming to be a “Vietnam era Vet.” The phrase is intentionally deceitful and self-serving, as it is being used to garner more sympathy and draw to his activism.
I would agree with Chris. I was a Vietnam Veteran in the Navy(65-67) and a Vietnam Era Veteran(73-76 ‘Nam era to 81) in the Marine Corps. Those were the terms that were used at the time as descriptors of my service.
https://m.cnn.com/en/article/h_1dc42c3dec10ec0d383aa008f55e4bf1
Phillips: And I’m a Vietnam veteran and I know that mentality of “There’s enough of us. We can do this.”
Phillips: And it’s because I’m a veteran — I’m a Vietnam veteran — that these two groups even have the right in this country to have protests,
you notice he didn’t say era….
he’s done this before. and I don’t have the time nor inclination to do your research for you.
Actually he did. The transcript is wrong. The first time his words were “I’m a Vietnam times veteran”. The second time was edited out of the recording so I don’t know what he actually said, but given that the transcript is wrong the first time I’d bet it’s wrong the second time too.
I can’t find the full interview.
In the transcript he says he’s a Vietnam veteran twice. We know that CNN transcribed it wrong the first time, but I cannot find out what he said vs. what was transcribed the second time.
I never heard the term “Vietnam Times Veteran” before.
The term the VA & Department of Labor uses is “Vietnam Era Veteran” for those who served more than 180 day of active duty (not for training). It is a criteria that most Reservists and National Guardsmen did not meet.
https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CFR-2004-title5-vol1/pdf/CFR-2004-title5-vol1-sec307-103.pdf
I am a Vietnam Era Veteran, but I usually refer to myself as a “Cold War Veteran”, because that better describes my career. Vietnam wasn’t the only place one could see a Commie with a loaded AK-47.
Phillips is wrong. Veterans aren’t the basis for the right to protest; that would be the Constitution. I’ll grant that “veterans protect our rights” but not that veterans give the Covington students or anyone else the right to protest.
Didn’t he claim to be a combat veteran? Or is that just something the media added to embellish the story?
No, he didn’t claim that. He didn’t even claim to be a Vietnam veteran, he said “Vietnam times”. The media misquoted him.
And yesterday I thought there was hope for you. How many people will discern the difference between ‘Vietnam era veteran’ and ‘Vietnam times veteran?” In truth, I believe he is a race-baiting crook.
If people don’t listen to him and jump to conclusions that’s their fault, not his. And of course if people misquote him that’s their fault, not his. You seem to think that if someone’s bad it’s OK to make things up about them. The fact that he’s a racist bully doesn’t justify lying about him, and the fact is that he did not claim to have served in Vietnam or to have seen combat.
He was speaking to a reporter and he knew the reporter’s ears would perk up when he said the word “Viet nam.” No one I know he was in the military during the Viet nam war but not in Viet nam says they were in the military during “the Viet nam Times.” Sneaky of him.
I’m 63 and served from 1974 through 1998 and I NEVER say I’m a Vietnam Veteran, which is what this lying wannabe war vet actually said.
That’s because you’re honest. Saying your’re a Vietnam Vet implies you fought in Vietnam.
You’d look sideways at a guy who said he was a Iraq War Vet who never deployed.
Yes, but he didn’t say that. CNN misquoted him.
Whoops, you’re right. I read the transcript because I didn’t want to hear his voice.
He’s being careful, isn’t he?
Doesn’t explain how he became a ‘Recon Ranger’ though…
According to the screenshot of the CNN interview’s transcript that we see near the top of this post, Phillips actually says he is a Vietnam veteran, and does not merely say he is a Vietnam era veteran.
What he actually said, and what they edited out in the transcripts is: “I’m a Vietnam times veteran”. That a strange way of saying Vietnam era and whoever typed the transcript removed “times” probably thinking it improved clarity. Since he was never deployed to Vietnam and joined the Marines after they were pulled from the country, it’s not really necessary to try to suggest a connection. My husband is a Vietnam era veteran but he’s never described himself in that way.
Which is why you never edit out any words from a quote without using an ellipsis. This is journalism 101, surprise surprise that CNN didn’t follow that.
That CNN transcript wasn’t even accurate??????
Gee, you wonder why they have a trust problem.
Thing is, it was likely deliberate on CNN’s part.
They had a narrative, and they figured that the illusion of him being a combat vet would draw even more outrage.
Liberals LOVE Vietnam Vets, but only when they can use them to advance their agenda.
He didn’t say he was a Vietnam Era vet. He told CNN, “I am a Vietnam veteran.” The Washington Post said he “fought in the Vietnam War.” Many alleged news outlets said the same thing or that he “served in the Vietnam War.”
There is no evidence that this man told anyone to make sure to describe his service as precisely and clearly as possible, and a lot of evidence that he purposefully misled.
Yeah, but if you didn’t actually serve in Vietnam why even bring it up?
Kinda like saying “I was an Astronaut” but – truth be told – you never flew because money for the Space Program ran out.
I am a Vietnam Era Vet and a Vietnam Theater Vet – one medal is for serving in the military during the war and the other for actually being in Vietnam when the shooting was going on.
So this guy is kind of Blumenthaling and faking it, IMO.
LOL
The news has been memory holed. He did call himself a Vietnam Veteran, and spoke of being spat on when he returned.
I am an actual Vietnam Veteran, having spent my year at the very safe Cam Ranh Bay, a couple miles from where Kerry miraculously got his first purple heart.
No one spat on me when I returned. I flew quite a bit in uniform and was treated quite well. I finished my BA at a Quaker college, and never encountered any disrespect.
yeah that was indiantimes article that has since been edited and I cannot find org version on wayback machine.
been looking at this guy for few years and did not have foresight to archive his articles.
dumb of me.
Chris
this is not Phillips first rodeo , he has allowed the media for 20 years of his activism to promote the Vietnam vet story with no dissuasion on his part . He used it to promote a documentary .
Lying by ommission is still lying .
He used the Vietnam Times because it was his definition of is is .
I dearly hope Covington CHS will politely take a pass on being lectured by Phillips.
The only known racists at that monument were the Black Hebrews.
ITA.
Bill Cunningham on his radio show today castigated the Bishop and the Mayor of Covington for their rush to judgment and urged anyone associated with Cov Cath to reject meeting with this clown.
Off topic, kinda….
The school had to close today due to security concerns.
Way to go, media (and that means BOTH sides of the media)
Check out WPO writer Michelle Boorstein.
https://twitter.com/mboorstein
She is retweeting this:
Before the Covington Catholic boys mocked a Native American veteran, they were harassing women. Shame on every media outlet, every Catholic priest and every person who defended these boys.
What was in a previous post:
As The Washington Post’s Michelle Boorstein reported, the incident magnified worries that the March for Life has “become too partisan and too aligned with politically conservative figures, Trump in particular.”
Man, they are working every avenue to make this into something that it is not.
Projecting is their specialty. Journalism is really dead.
I think Anonymous is winning this battle.
There is an 8 second video posted by a woman from CT showing a group of boys shouting “Maga” at her and her group from a park bench in DC. The faces of the boys cannot be seen so we have no idea if they are from CCHS. We also don’t know the full context of the video as the snippet captures the moment after the woman and her group have passed by the teens. One of the group turns around to shoot the video.
Those leftists desperately clinging to the original narrative are using this to further impugn the boys.
FWIW, the woman who posted the video has social media postings derogatory to blacks, Mexicans and gays but that doesn’t seem to matter because she hates Trump and is providing cover for the original reports.
They should ask Nathan if he knows any of the Black Hebrew Israelites.
I very rarely site a movie quote. Especially one as bad as The Last Castle. It’s been 20 years and I’m still ashamed. And here’s where I dig my own grave. There’s a scene where Redford looks upon the diorama of the Civil War and says only a man who never saw combat would have something like that.
He was exactly right. I never have been in combat. You will not find anything resembling that in my house. But I am still proud of my service.
Gosh it is getting better:
ABC’s Hostin: Covington Students Should Not Have Worn MAGA Hats to March for Life
Yep, kinda agree,but………
what she was wearing should not justify her being
I think the school and the boys have a good case of Defamation.
I would be filing those cases against anyone and everyone making statements from positions of power.
It removed my word blank
what she was wearing should not justify her being …(fill in the word blank)
I disagree. Why shouldn’t they? We have people that march their KIDS in pussy hats for crying out loud.
They shouldn’t because it takes away why they are there, March for Life.
But the false reporting is another topic all together. The kids did nothing wrong, but the media has. That is what needs to be called out. That is defamation and should be held accountable for.
Why? MAGA hats are signs of American pride. Better than pink pussy hats.
It is, but it is a distraction from the March for Life.
Trump has been an unapologetic pro-life President. The MAGA hard were totally appropriate.
You are correct, but Right to Life is not Trump. They will use Trump to diminish the message. They will use Trump to distract for the real purpose of Right to Life. Cov. needs to keep pressing why they were there and keep pointing out that they are trying to distracting from the true cause. Life. Everytime someone talks to Cov. people they should talk about the impact of abort against black and how it is being abused.
… stolen valor perhaps?
Excellent satire piece about him
https://quodverum.com/2019/01/23/my-service-in-vietnam.html
“Didn’t he claim to be a combat veteran? Or is that just something the media added to embellish the story?”
I never saw combat. But, I’ll let you In on my dirty secret. I figured out if I was good enough at my job nobody would want to fight me.
Where ever I sail I’m the 900 pound Gorilla. So, tell me about combat. I have already written about how horrified I was to grow up during the Vietnam era watching Sailors and Marines coming home horribly maimed. And, I joined anyway. It was my job to be really good at what I was doing.
I didn’t see combat either, but I was in Vietnam (71-72).
I have the utmost respect for those who did fight and especially those who died in that war, so I’ve never made a big deal of my time in service. I certainly wouldn’t use it to try to gain some moral high ground the way Mr. Phillips does.
This Phillips guy sure seems to be in the wrong place at the wrong time a lot.
From 2015, when he was in Ypsilanti, Michigan: Native American claims racial harassment by EMU students dressed as indians
http://archive.is/x4g48#selection-1355.0-1355.75
“Phillips says he was bombarded with racial slurs.
“(They said) ‘Go back to the reservation, you blank indian,'” he said.”
Shazam. Maybe those same EMU students were at the protest in D.C. yesterday.
In 2017, Phillips was in North Dakota in the thick of objecting to the Dakota Access Pipeline. Here, he is featured in ‘Vogue,’ of all places.
https://www.vogue.com/article/nathan-phillips-activist-song-peaceful-resistance-hope
There’s a plethora of articles over the years which reference or feature this guy. They all mention he is ‘a member of the Omaha Nation and a founder of the Native Youth Alliance,’ and by all accounts he currently lives in Washington D.C. with his ‘partner.’
This Phillips guy has ‘astro-turf professional protester’ written all over him.
There doesn’t seem to be any evidence that the first incident even happened. He may have made the whole thing up from scratch. Not just the way the conversation went but that there was even a conversation in the first place, or anyone to have one with.
Grifter, paid activist.
https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-01-21/native-american-harassed-maga-kids-exposed-outrage-culture-grifter
Snippity doo dah
It turns out that Nathan Phillips is raising money with the help of a major big-money left-wing operation, and has a history of appearing in the press claiming to be a victim of anti-Native racism.
—————————-
“[Phillips] is a Vietnam Veteran and former director of the Native Youth Alliance,” according to Heavy.
The Native Youth Alliance appears to be a standalone entity. However, as BigLeaguePolitics’ Patrick Howley points out, the larger well-funded Native Youth Leadership Alliance – which told us that it is not associated with Phillips – is currently promoting Phillips’ fundraising campaign stemming from the incident with the Catholic teens. The Native Youth Leadership Alliance (NYLA) is a non-profit organization that is funded by the same far-left power players who are often involved in bankrolling leftist causes. The organization’s funding partners include the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, and the Social Justice Fund Northwest.
More at link if you’re interested in the scam artist.
…next thing you know, they’ll discover that his drum was NOT a part of liawatha’s grandmother’s tribe!
I hope the school has the decency to turn him down. But from its initial reaction and (as far as I know) failure to apologize to the kids, I’m afraid it will not only take him up on it, but make attendance mandatory.
Yes, it is. And none of it came from the kids.
I grew up getting health care at a Navy hospital. My dad was Coast Guard. I grew up in the flight pattern of the Naval Air Station Alameda. That does not make me special.
What makes me special is this guy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=415HQ1t2ZNI
Gunny Holt cleaned up his act for the video.
And the SEALs would argue that I’m no one special.
Ensign Macklin, is that you?
It turns out Nathan Phillips was 1/1024th truthful.
You know, I’m from Vietnam times. I’m what they call a recon ranger. That was my role. So I thank you for taking that point position for me.”
https://www.vogue.com/projects/13542941/return-to-standing-rock/
So, I read that there was no such thing in Viet Name Era Marines… Maybe some one knows?
I am not an expert on the Marines but I have never heard them call themselves Rangers, that is an army term. They do have Recon units that ran lrrp patrols but they never called themselves Rangers.
Edson’s Raiders and Carlson’s Raiders during WWII.
Recon is strictly Recon.
There’s a new group to match the other services SOF but I don’t know their designation.
Why in the world should the kids not have worn MAGA hats to the March of Life? Now if the school wants to enforce “non-political,” then that is the school’s choice. Given that Trump is (now) pro-life, the GOP is almost all pro-life, the Dems are 99+% pro-abortion, it would seem that MAGA hats are entirely appropriate at a pro-life march. Don’t all pro-lifers think that eliminating – or at least limiting – abortion is a part of making America great again?
I notice that at the march that purports to be simply pro-women, that there was an awful lot of signs and apparel that were distinctly partisan. Was that inappropriate? Of course not.
The Left (and MSM) is working very hard to silence conservative voices in the public square, and the very last thing we need to do is to cooperate with them.
Agree, but Right to Life needs their own brand. MAGA is short term branding and not about Right to Life. Right to Life transcends parties and I think I saw somewhere that Millenniums are more pro-life. You are not going to win them over by shoving MAGA in their faces. Just like that Hilary Bumper sticker does not motivate you to be more democrat.
What struck me in that interview is that he was siding with the Black Hebrews and accusing the white kids of being racist and violent for their reaction, and that he thought they were going to beat those innocent people up, merely for exercising their first amendment rights. He allowed as how he might not agree with everything they said, but “some of it was educational, and it was truth, and it was history about religious views and ideologies”. Say what? Those foul-mouthed bigots are just expressing their views, and white people have no right to take offense?! That alone should be enough to show what a despicable person he is.
Let me share my “two days with the SEALs” story. Every intel officer has one. The SEAL platoon tried to gross me out. It didn’t work. So we got from White Beach to Kadena and me and the enlisted types broke up and the two SEA< officers headed toward the BOQ. That's Bachelor's Officer's Quarters
I happen to be first in line so I ask for a room. The young lady behind the counter says there are none. I step aside. My new best friend steps up, and she looks at his chest and sees the Budweiser, and asks, "Are you a SEAL?"
All of a sudden the Captain's suite becomes available. For those of you not familiar with Navy speak Captain is an O-6. One rank below Admiral or General. It's luxurious.
So I says to my new best friend, "Hey, can I sleep on your couch?"
They took pity on me and say yes.
So later we head to the O club and some AF corenell takes umbrage at my new best friend throwing popcorn at him.
It really wasn't nice of him but I really couldn't talk as I needed to sleep on his sofa. So my SEAL buddy gets into an argument with the guy and I basically wimp out. I tell him, "Maybe this will count as a plus on your resume but not on mine;"
Now, here's where it gets interesting. After the SEALs get kicked out and I return from Snake Alley we decide to make rice. And as Gino is throwing plates at me he gives me a black eye.
Can you believe that s***? I got into a fight with a SEAL and walked away with only a black eye.
As an Air Force Captain, I enjoyed going to Naval Bases.
Once there was no room in the Officer’s Quarters and I got stuck in the Chief’s Suite. I could do that kind of slumming any day!
We were both O-2s at the time.
I was a Vite Nam era vet (Army 64-68) Man, if only I could have a lifetime of indulgences for having spent three years in Germany sampling beer and chasing frauleins. Had some serious hang overs but they don’t give a purple star for that.
I salute, you, sir.
what a schmuck–a provocateur and a racist–a perfect foil for the left–zero personal honor and a total embarassment to all of us as well as the members of his own tribe(if in fact he is a genuine member of any tribe)–such a special marine
I wonder if he will protest next week’s episode of True Detective when the Vietnam vet native american literally goes native.
The first casualty of war is the truth. The left not only refuses to hear the truth, they are intentionally and maliciously spreading lies and hate. The left refuses to debate and labels those they disagree with as “immoral.” The left is actually losing the propaganda war, as demonstrated by buzzfeed and now the Covington incident. The leftist media has to burn to the ground (figuratively) before it can recover.
Remember John “I voted for Desert Storm before I voted against it” Kerry?
Grim – blogs at http://grimbeorn.blogspot.com
comment posted at
http://assistantvillageidiot.blogspot.com/2019/01/doesnt-add-up-arithmetic-only.html?m=1
referring to Phillips
This guy seems to be the first one with the DD-214. As expected, he was in the USMC, but the Reserves; definitely not in Recon; mostly he was an electrician, refrigerator mechanic. He did obtain an expert badge in rifle, went AWOL several times. No other distinction. Never served overseas.
Discharged at the rank of private, which is not exactly distinguished after a term of service.
DD214 link is a you tube video
https://youtu.be/CIXIzvyAlLA?t=316
Grim is ex-military, and explained in a comment to me that Phillips’ reference to ‘reccon ranger’ probably comes from the USMC version of the Army “I wanna be an Airborne Ranger’ cadence call.
Wow, this guy’s story is unraveling faster than a mummy on a merry-go-round!
Being discharged as a private means you were a total and complete piece of crap, and they let you go because it was too much trouble to go for OTH or DD.
you mean he wasn’t a recon ranger codetalker windbreaker?
color me shocked…
His DD 214 has been released by the DoD.
He was a refrigerator mechanic, never deployed, was discharged as a PRIVATE, and spent multiple stints in the brig for going AWOL.
Scumbag.
The guy is walking around banging a drum in people’s faces and because he is high on the grievance pecking order we have to pretend this is noble behavior?
The guy is walking around banging a drum in people’s faces and because he is high on the grievance pecking order we have to pretend this is noble behavior?
hindsight is 20/20.
wish I had captured all the times he said vietnam vet in internet archive.
especially since sites like indiantimes are scrubbing/stealth editing their references to him
He also claimed he was a “Recon Ranger” when in actuality it appears he repaired refrigeration units.
simply disgraceful how the media has vilified this young man–he showed remarkable poise and restraint during the entire event–much more patience than myself, particularly when all the racial epithets started flying and the other black jews joined-in–just remarkable for one so young–his parents should be very proud and one day he will be worth a lot more, both as a man and as a human being, than all his detractors put together