John Ellis O'Neill is a Vietnam War veteran and lawyer who was the spokesman for Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. Background O'Neill is from San Antonio, Texas. According to O'Neill, his grandfather taught at the United States Naval Academy and his father was a rear admiral. He said he followed his two brothers into the Naval Academy, graduating in 1967. O'Neill married the former Anne Bradley (1947–2006) in 1976, and the couple had two children. His book Unfit for Command is dedicated to her. Vietnam O'Neill served in the United States Navy during the Vietnam War. He commanded PCF-94, a swift boat that had previously been commanded by John Kerry, and returned from his tour of duty in June 1970. He was awarded two Bronze Stars during his service. Recruitment by Nixon White House In 1971, Kerry, representing Vietnam Veterans Against the War, testified to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that American soldiers were committing war crimes in Vietnam. Resentful of the allegations, O'Neill began giving television interviews opposing Kerry, supporting President Richard Nixon's Vietnam policies, and representing the newly-formed Vietnam Veterans for a Just Peace. According to a White House memo, O'Neill was disappointed with the negative reactions to his speaking appointments and was considering ending his advocacy by June 1971. The Nixon White House responded to Kerry's critical testimony by searching for and recruiting veterans who could counter Kerry's narrative. Impressed with one of O'Neill's appearances, Nixon's special counsel Charles Colson arranged for O'Neill and Nixon to meet on June 16. They spent almost an hour in the Oval Office, strategizing about how to stop Kerry. After the meeting, Colson and O'Neill began challenging Kerry to debate O'Neill on live television. Kerry agreed to a June 30 debate on the Dick Cavett Show on ABC. O'Neill strongly defended American incursions in Laos and Cambodia, and opposed anti-war veterans. He was particularly critical of claims regarding the commission of war crimes by US military personnel in Vietnam. Legal career After 1971, O'Neill moved out of the media spotlight. He studied law at the University of Texas, graduating first in his class in 1973 and being admitted to the bar in 1974. Appointed to the President's National Advisory Counsel on Supplemental Services and Centers, he served from 1973 to 1974. He was a law clerk to Supreme Court Justice William H. Rehnquist from 1974 to 1975. O'Neill subsequently returned to