John Kerry's Swiftboat Defender Loses Silver Star Medal

It's a pretty serious occasion when the military strips a high honor like the Silver Star from someone to whom it was awarded:

Ben Smith catches a Navy Times report that Capt. Wade Sanders -- best known for vouching for John Kerry's dubious war record and introducing the candidate at the 2004 convention -- has been stripped of his Silver Star by the Navy:

"Had the subsequently determined facts and evidence surrounding both the incident for which the award was made and the processing of the award itself been known to the Secretary of the Navy in 1992, those facts would have prevented the award of the Silver Star," [Mabus spokeswoman Pamela] Kunze said.

Aside from improperly receiving a medal, and Sanders is currently in jail for child pornography.

My father-in-law was awarded a Silver Star for actions in WWII, but didn't actually receive it until many years later when after research his son discovered he'd earned the award but had never received it. They don't just give those things away.

Meanwhile, Kerry's Swiftboat record continues to take a beating.