I remember one retired lieutenant colonel describing a conversation he had with an angry trooper about the treasonous behavior of Jane Fonda in the midst of the 1968 Tet Offensive. The POWs are beaten. Here are her comments: Many of our veterans still call her Hanoi Jane thanks to her radio broadcasts, which attempted to shame American troops. After all, she is an American; surely shell carry the message home to the families that their husband or son is alive. President Lyndon Johnson, Democrat, in a special address to the American public, reported an attack upon a U.S. naval vessel in the Tonkin Gulf by a North Vietnamese torpedo boat. Nevertheless, there are Vietnam veterans out there who served in the war zone before 1969 who are convinced that Jane Fonda was in cahoots with the Commies during their own tours. Almost all the messages said we had no business writing about Fonda because she was a traitor. We once published an admiring profile of Benedict Arnoldwhose actions did the nation real damage in a way Fondas fulminations never couldand nobody made a peep. Us veterans will never forget or forgive her posing on a North Viet anti-aircraft gun, regardless whatever else she may or may not have done. re: Jane Fonda visiting BR this weekend Posted on 3/3/23 at 9:43 am to Chipand2Putts. And you know, maybe I was set up but I was an adult, its Im gonna take responsibility for it. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. I mean, he realized that. Laurie Dhue was a familiar presence on Fox in the early 2000s but left the network in 2008. The cameras flash. More than 58,000 Americans died in the war.. He collects a group of American POWs from their septic dungeons, cleans them up, and has them mustered on parade to show his guest how well his embattled nation treats its prisoners. Ms. Fonda only met with those POW's who had sold out their fellow POW's, who willingly (without torture) made propaganda statements for their captors, and who enjoyed privileges of medical care, food, and even night-time excursions into Hanoi to watch movies in return. . Id been getting pretty sour about the incensed patriots who would curse me and my family and confidently speak on behalf of all veterans living and dead, and the Great Jehovah and the Continental Congress, to declare I was a disgrace to America for running that storythen conclude by smugly assuring me they would never read it. That begs the question, responsible for what? Jane Fonda was more than just an actress born to a wealthy and prominent Hollywood family. The Washington Post spent that day with Fonda, following her and a dozen or so students to Fort Meade in Maryland, where they planned to hand out antiwar leaflets to soldiers. A young photographer took this harrowing image of the Vietnam War. It has simply been repeated over and over again, without proof, and duplicated on a number of websites. MacArthur asked Truman to permit Chiang Kai-Shek's troops to fight with Americans against the Red Chinese. : Yes, that one story was true. Read on. If you must know, my original draft did make reference to the one true story that you mentioned. Libertarian commentator Jedediah Bila appeared on Fox's "Outnumbered" and later turned up on ABC's "The View.". Fonda consorted with the enemy and made propaganda broadcasts on their behalf. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. Fonda was lambasted for her trip to North Vietnam in 1972 during the Vietnam War. I mean, the reality of it is that's not an apology. 1990) Pages 121-123. Four die; one, Col. Larry Carrigan, survivesjust barely, but it is he who tells about the incident. Truman refused. Meanwhile the mass media suddenly reversed its pro-war policy: denying our beleaguered troops moral support from home. Andrea Tantaros, former co-host of "The Five," filed a lawsuit saying that Fox News operated like a "sex-fueled, Playboy-Mansion-like cult.". . NORTH: In fact refused to apologize for the POW meeting, which was tantamount to, basically torture. COLMES: She did say that she was sorry. Quite the contrary. But Liberals in America's streets "protested" our victories and exulted in our defeats - thus, in patriots' eyes, giving the war a raison d'etre. "Claim: POWs were beaten for refusing to cooperate or meet with Fonda during her visit. Watch "Hannity & Colmes" weeknights at 9 p.m. This "police action" quickly developed into a full-blown but undeclared war. However, since the majority of the stories cited in the e-mail have no proof behind them, I had to either give the e-mail "thumbs down" or "thumbs up" on the basis of the overall validity. It meant re-taking the same bloody ground over and over again. Email us. But he never met Jane Fonda, and he has no idea how the maddening tale attached itself to him. JANE FONDA: It was a terrible mistake. She went to tour the countrys Megyn Kelly ended her 12-year run with Fox News in early 2017 in exchange for a weekday show at NBC. Switch to the dark mode that's kinder on your eyes at night time. I hardly even think about where I am sitting. Market data provided by Factset. Even so, I'm going to keep an eye open to purchase one of the urinal mats with her photograph depicted upon it. Hardly misdirected anger, Jane Fonda really was merely a silly and shallow child of privilege who allowed herself to be used for propaganda. It was treason, nothing more and nothing less. North Vietnam, 1972,: Jane Fonda is in the midst of her visit when an N.V.A. Nixon has responsibility for everything he did or didn't do on his watch. [1] Cited on November 24, 2004. I mean, that's like the bank robber saying, "I'm sorry I got caught.". WebNevertheless, there are Vietnam veterans out there who served in the war zone before 1969 who are convinced that Jane Fonda was in cahoots with the Commies during their own Why are people more angry at Jane Fonda that they are against, say, Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon, the people really responsible? This article was published more than4 years ago. Switch to the light mode that's kinder on your eyes at day time. Screw you. There is no doubt these treasonous no-win US wars were meant to disillusion the American nation into accepting loss of sovereignty and one world government." On this weeks edition of HBO Max and CNNs Whos Talking to Chris Wallace, the host covered much of that territory, including that 1972 visit. Jane didnt make her infamous and idiotic trip to Hanoi until 1972. MacArthur complained that his conduct of the war was compromised by spies within the U.S. government: "The enemy receives my (Pentagon) directives before I do". The people who are speaking out against the war are the patriots. She said the radio addresses were the only way to get access to American soldiers, because she was barred from meeting them at their bases in South Vietnam. And, as she does, each POW palms her a scrap of paper with his Social Security number written on it. Why? Jane didnt make her infamous and idiotic trip to Hanoi until 1972. Outspoken host Elisabeth Hasselbeck left "The View" to join "Fox & Friends" in 2013, which she exited at the end of 2015. Its folklore, but folklore of a curiously evolved sort. HANNITY: All right. I wanted to tell them what I was seeing as an American on the ground there. Jane Fonda came clean in an interview with Chris Wallace about her Hanoi Jane days and her failure as a mother. SEAN HANNITY, CO-HOST: Jane Fonda says she is sorry for some of her actions during the Vietnam War. . Politicians make mistakes that affect the body politic and statesmen sometimes direct a foreign policy that disregards individuals in the national interest. FONDA: I'm charging the government with genocide, with genocide. Her attackers renewed an old strike against the image of an actress who grew up as the daughter of the All-American Henry Fonda, yet became synonymous with the various rebellions of the Sixties. These horrendous claims went around the nation on the Internet, resulting in a great deal of anger and consternation among veterans. Fonda addresses the media in December 1972 to protest U.S. military involvement in the Vietnam War. You're a great American. She called our president, according to this report, "a new type of Hitler," pilots "war criminals.". Thats what made me laugh. [5] One man who was supposed to have encountered Jane Fonda, one Colonel Larry Carrigan, has denied any claim that he ever met her. I think that this is rather odd. I mean Alan, this woman was totally caught up in the age of the '60s, the rhetoric of the '60s, and quite frankly I feel sorry for her, because she's not out of it. She went to Hanoi that year to tour villages, cities and infrastructure. A series of photos of her sitting at an NVA anti-aircraft battery earned her the nickname Hanoi Jane and the undying spite of Vietnam veterans everywhere. There were also rumors she turned over secret messages from POWs to their captors. Bates (private citizen), What do all you old sober sides make of this thesis? Johnson solemnly announced that "Communist aggression must be stopped as a threat to American security!" Free shipping for many products! Talking Points, WATCH: Greg Gutfeld and Bill Maher Riff About Incest Porn Because They Are Hilarious Comedians And Hell Exists, Cocaine Bear, Hold My Beer: Production Company Behind Sharknado Releasing Meth Gator Movie This Summer. Id been getting pretty sour about the incensed patriots who would curse me and my family and confidently speak on behalf of all veterans living and dead, and the Great Jehovah and the Continental Congress, to declare I was a disgrace to America for running that storythen conclude by smugly assuring me they would never read it. Heres her explanation, from 2011: I had decided to do the broadcasts because I was so horrified by the bombing of civilian targets and I wanted to speak to U.S. pilots as I had done on so many occasions during my visits to U.S. military bases and at G.I. Did our government lie to us during Vietnam? In her 2005 memoir, My Life So Far, Fonda wrote of the infamous photo this way: Still,for some veterans, no apology from Fonda will ever change their views of her as an adversaryof America and the troops during wartime. It may be an old story, but being that she never stood trial for her actions still make her case an open book. Since the dawn of the Internet and a spate of anti-Fonda websites, there have been many fabrications and exaggerations regarding her actions, but her photo ops and press conferences to "give aid and comfort to the enemy" are not and never were in question. On the basis of those meetings alone, she proclaimed that American POW's weren't being mistreated, and that any who said they were mistreated werte either liars, or were simply experiencing punishment for their racist treatment and attitude towards their Vietnamese captors. She still does not know what she did wrong. SIGN UP FOR OUR FREE DAILY NEWSLETTER, FIRST TAKE, Megyn Kelly Trashed by Rosie O'Donnell as 'Spineless Wanna Be Barbie' for Jane Fonda Spat, 'Jane Fonda in Five Acts' Film Review: Doc Explores the Many Lives of the Actress-Activist, How Jane Fonda Explains 'Hanoi Jane': 'Regret to My Dying Day', said she was among those at Fox News sexually harassed by Ailes. JANE FONDA: Well, I didnt like it. It is giving them the advantage of the propaganda visibility that this woman lent to them. In no sense am I a Fonda apologist. I think so, and I would hope that all Americans will at least speak their minds at the movie box office and refuse to further enrich one of the greatest American traitors. NORTH: These are the things that this woman did, and she has not apologized. I don't want people putting words into my mouth, saying "you're going to tell us all these bankers and financiers are Jewish", for instance. The answer, of course, is that they won't. And exocide (ph) and biocide. I appealed to them to please consider what you are doing. On campus, she was pushing her movement to turn U.S. soldiers into pacifists. Here is my best, honest recollection of what took place. Now, I leave it NORTH: Well, yes, as a matter of fact I think she is. And the more they tried, the more I. JANE FONDA: I know what Im doing. If I was used, I allowed it to happen. I sang a song. We have no right to attack that country. How did we get into this war? Kellysaid she was among those at Fox News sexually harassed by Ailes. Its something very like the worst sort of lovers betrayal, the deep wound that time itself often is powerless to heal. Fonda has refused to tell her side of the story to historians investigating her role, purportedly because she was saving her story for her own memoirs, which are expected to be published soon. She did not merely criticize the authoritarian government of South Vietnam, or the dubious motives of powerful corporations that make up the American military-industrial complex. I am going to let the extract stand as it is, containing just enough truth to be uncomfortable, I think. "VIET NAM: A repeat scenario was played 10 years later under another banker-picked Democratic administration. HANNITY: Is Jane Fonda really sorry or just trying to sell her brand new book? By denying their mistreatment or not investigating their treatment,in an effort to sway public opinion to her own perceived vision of the national interest, she did harm to her countrymen in captivity. And I refused to have them scare me away from being actively against the Vietnam War. I plead with him, You have to be sure those photographs are not published. So did Joan Baez and William Sloane Coffin, Noam Chomsky and Pete Seeger, Rennie Davis and Judy Collins. In another she was looking into the WebIn July of 1972 Jane Fonda went to Hanoi, North Vietnam, for a two-week tour of the country. And four months later, the bombing stopped of the dikes. Shewas active in the Black Panthers and marched for the rights of American Indians, soldiers and working mothers. tips@mediaite.com. But because of the nature of Vietnam, McNamara said to me, if wed known what we know now it would have we should not have gone out. Peter Braunsteins article speculated that Jane Fonda had this ability to a degree unique in modern times. quote: Fonda was a political activist in the counterculture era during the Vietnam War. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Maybe John Nolte of Breitbart had the best of intentions, but his essay We Should Accept Jane Fondas Apology About Vietnam is an ethics mess. She said It is possible it was a setup, I will never know. One presumably claimed to have been struck by her, while another claimed to have had his confidence betrayed to his Communist captors. . I would like to hear more about this. She posed on an anti-aircraft gun used to shoot down our American pilots. Also Read: 'Jane Fonda in Five Acts' Film Review: Doc Explores the Many Lives of the Actress-Activist, She posed on an antiaircraft gun used to shoot down our American pilots. True, by Fondas admission. Whether Fonda wanted to shame troops is subjective. I'm not going to tell you anything of the sort. JANE FONDA: it was a mistake to go, I never wanted to go to any military installations. You will not be surprised to hear that I have bowdlerised the above considerably, removing racial designators and course expressions of various sorts. Fox News has enhanced the careers of numerous women who have served as hosts. Halyburton told him that the POW's had tried to debunk them even though they regarded Fonda as an unsympathetic figure. Heres the picture that was used to shut shut down American plants, critics, and there were millions of them, called you a Hanoi Jane and said you were a traitor. In it, she apologizes once again for insulting the men and women who fought in Vietnam. She said in a 1973 interview elaborating on the hypocrites and liars statement that it would be understandable for the North Vietnamese to torture POWs who tried to escape. No license is granted to the user of this material except for the user's personal or internal use and, in such case, only one copy may be printed, nor shall user use any material for commercial purposes or in any fashion that may infringe upon Fox News Network, L.L.C. Hows this for a story? Good question here Richard: "My question is, when will people like Fonda and Kerry (unlike Joan Baez) take responsibility for what they have wrought -- the totalitarian system that gave us re-education camps and the boat people?" Watch above via HBO Max and CNNs Whos Talking to Chris Wallace. The other stories allege a far more direct participation in war crimes on the part of Fonda. And, you know, I think they thought, Oh, shes this white privilege rich, famous daughter of all of that stuff. NORTH: As a matter of fact, no. After we published Peter Braunsteins article on Jane Fonda in our July/August issue, perhaps 60 people sent me this story. It was the last day of my two week time there. Fondas wide-ranging response went from apologetic to defiant and everywhere in between: CHRIS WALLACE: Your most famous protest was 50 years ago when you went to North Vietnam at the height of the war there. I think that there is a lot of selectivity going on. In 2015, about 50 veterans stood outside theWeinberg Center for the Arts in Frederick, Md., to protest Fondas appearance there. Heres how we saw the article we ran: It is a survey of the singular career of a woman who both drove and was driven by many of the largest social concerns of her era, and who came to embody some of them. She so symbolized the divided nation, hawks arrayed against her and doves siding with her, that she became a personal target, most recently with allegations about personal involvement in the mistreatment of POWs. She said:I have very few regrets. North Vietnam, 1972,: Jane Fonda is in the midst of her visit when an N.V.A. Her lawsuit started it all: Former Fox host Gretchen Carlson claims Ailes repeatedly sexually harassed her. She claimed she was sexually harassed by correspondent Brian Wilson and later spoke out against Fox News' culture after the Ailes scandal broke. Greta Van Susteren -- who had been one of Ailes' most stalwart defenders -- left in early September 2016 after saying that Fox had "not felt like a home" for years. but not for the rest of it. False. The Army builds a tolerance for violence, she shouted at the crowd. Again the secret policy of the financiers was: "containment of communism" while disallowing an American victory. And that we probably couldnt win it not because they werent a fabulous soldiers. Radio broadcasts, which attempted to shame American troops: Fonda did record messages that the North Vietnamese played for Americans to weaken their resolve. YOU'VE REACHED YOUR MONTHLY ARTICLE LIMIT. and how good she feels in her 70s. And you were photographed sitting on an anti aircraft gun. I think you'll find that those are things on a more personal level than stupdities and worse committed by LBJ, Congress, and Nixon. I mean, the reality is, there were 24,000 American troops on the ground in South Vietnam. Yeah, said my stepdaughter, Jill, when I told her about this. Why? One of the times it did, Im happy to say, was with Keith Nolan, the author of several books on the war, most recently Ripcord , a superb account of the 101st Airborne in the conflicts last great battle. Enjoy the rest of the conversation. To license content, please contact licenses [at] americanheritage.com. By July 1972, when Fonda accepted an invitation to visit North Vietnam, America had been at war overseas and with itself for years. The Roger Ailes and Bill OReilly scandals have cast even some old departures in a new light. COLMES: She didn't say the words she wanted her to say. His replacement, General Ridgway, said after the war: "The reason we didn't win is because I was under orders not to win". Please, you cant let them be published. Here's what she's got. The buck stops here. There was a real Colonel Carrigan, and he was a POW in Vietnam. But literally working hand-in-hand with the enemy to promote their cause to a worldwide audience was not protected by the First Amendment then just as it is not protected now. She was reportedly also an aspirant for a role on "Fox & Friends," the network's morning show. Legal Statement. There was a real Colonel Carrigan, and he was a POW in Vietnam. Status: TRUE" There's nothing like a historian 'cherry-picking' his citations or only presenting a partial 'truth' from his source. One of the definitions of treason is giving aid and comfort to the enemy. Forget? Whether youre a lifelong resident of D.C. or you just moved here, weve got you covered. CNN anchorChris Wallace grilled Hollywood legend and activist Jane Fonda over her controversial visit to North Vietnam that caused millions to dub her Hanoi Jane, and got a full spectrum response on the subject. Copyright 1949-2022 American Heritage Publishing Co. All Rights Reserved. And you were photographed sitting on an anti aircraft gun. They have never acknowledged their role in the killing fields of Cambodia and fail to discuss the fact that Vietnam, one of about four communist countries left on the face of this earth, is currently at the bottom rung of third world nations in terms of per capita income. Mr. Nolan wrote something that helped me better understand the fury of this sort of reaction. http://www.truthminers.com/truth/hanoi_jane.htm; Biden Should Remove Cuba from List of State Sponsors of Terrorism, Descendants of Slaveholder Donor Denounce Law School Name Change, How Social Media and Community Schools Could Fill in Gaps Teaching Black History, American Girl Dolls Declare the 1990s Ancient History, Review: DeSantis's Book is a Campaign Tome Written by ChatGPT, Reconsidering Phillis Wheatley's Place in the Revolutionary Era, Philosopher Lewis Gordon's Impact on Black Jewish History, Quintard Taylor's Black Past Project Fights Erasure of History, Review: The Unfinished Business of "Double V", One Reason to Confirm National Archivist Fast? "Because of this," the narrative continues, "I spent three days on a rocky floor on my knees with outstretched arms with a piece of steel placed on my hands, and beaten with a bamboo cane every time my arms dipped." She was a symbol of a divided nation. Read more >>, The magazine was forced to suspend print publication in 2013, but a group of volunteers saved the archives and relaunched it in digital form in 2017. I agree with TheWrap's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy and provide my consent to receive marketing communications from them. I mean again, I'm not trying to be pedantic about it, but an apology is, "I'm sorry for what I said. She was dubbed "Hanoi Jane" after traveling to the Communist capital. Shewas arrested before she got the chance, just as she had been at Fort Lewis, Wash., Fort Hood, Tex., and Fort Bragg, N.C. Fonda told The Post shed made talking to GIs herfull-time job. officer gets an idea. Troop B, 2nd squadron, 17th Cavalry, RVN, 1969-70 Fonda wasnt deterred. And it was a terrible mistake because of the image that it showed, which was not at all what the reality was. Thats all the ground troops were or redistributed. "Flashpoint Vietnam," the real story about the road to the war. JANE FONDA: It was a terrible mistake. [2] Peter Collier, The Fondas; A Hollywood Dynasty. And therein lies the difference. Market data provided by Factset. It is always distressing to find American citizens who benefit from the protection and assistance of this government lending their voice in any way to governments such as the Democratic Republic of Vietnam distressing indeed, said State Department spokesman Charles W. Bray, according to a July 1972 Reuters story. In 2005, she apologized again on 60 The charges against Fonda went beyond the notion that she was an apologist for the mistreatment of American prisoners of war. He didnt live to see it published. If a prisoner tried to escape, it is quite understandable that he would probably be beaten and tortured., Also Read: How Jane Fonda Explains 'Hanoi Jane': 'Regret to My Dying Day', Even she had to apologize years later for that gun picture True. He was denied his request to gather intelligence by aerial reconnaissance over China. In 1972, actress Jane Fonda traveled to North Vietnam on an anti-war mission. When Jane Fonda Rocked the U.S. Army A newly exhumed documentary delves into the actresss anti-Vietnam vaudeville tour of American military bases in 1972. The cover called her Ms. Thus, Europe, Russia, China, Korea, Viet Nam, Cambodia, Thailand, Japan, the Middle East were turned into killing grounds, and their existing governments destroyed. If even one of them were true, it would change the entire focus of my article. Did we lie about the body that we planted on Omaha Beach (search), trying to convince the Germans that we were going to land somewhere else? She called the POW's liars. After we published Peter Braunsteins article on Jane Fonda in our July/August issue, perhaps 60 people sent me this story. Fonda moves down the line, greeting each man with encouragements like Arent you ashamed you killed babies? as she shakes his hand. In replying, I discovered that the Good Book notwithstanding, a soft answer turneth away wrath no more than zo percent of the time. She said: I have very few regrets. A Vietnam War photographer captured the bloody Tet offensive. All were hired by Roger Ailes, the former network boss who exited in August 2016 amid a sexual harassment scandal. NORTH (on camera): What did the guys in your squad say about this? Communism is an atheistic system, and even advocating it is a serious offense in my eyes (with or without war crimes participation). It was to these traditional Americans, alienated by the Sixties, that the email was targeted, playing on their hopes that finally, at long last, Jane Fonda would have to answer for her choices. She said: I have very few regrets. _taboola.push({ And the question I have is 50 years later, how do you look back on that particular chapter? It is nothing more and nothing less than the full culmination of Greco-Roman Humanism as it has defined itself throughout the thousands of years. Even she had to apologize years later for that gun picture, but not for the rest of it. Each of them suggested that they had done at least one interview with Fonda, and individually they were looking into the historical accuracy behind the claims made about Fonda and why she became such a lighting rod for controversy. "War Stories," Colonel, we'll be watching this Sunday, 8 p.m. as usual. That's an apology. WebJane Fonda & TheVietnam War. She has reportedly been shopping a tell-all book this year. However, the fact that she advocated Communism does not give anyone license to make up stories or slander. For a great many people, its not enough that Jane Fonda went to North Vietnam, offered encouragement to an army that was daily killing her countrymen, climbed up on that anti-aircraft gun, insisted that all American prisoners were well treated, and so on. Deprived of American assistance, his army bereft of supplies, Chiang Kai-Shek retreated to the island sanctuary of Formosa and dug in. She is the daughter of legendary actor and WWII Naval Officer Henry Fonda. Those words were written by Michael Benge, a civilian advisor captured by the Viet Cong in 1968 and held as a POW for 5 years.