Navy Times reports that naval vessels displayed onscreen at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, NC last week during a tribute to U.S. veterans were, in fact, Soviet-era Russian naval ships:
On the last night of the Democratic National Convention, a retired Navy four-star took the stage to pay tribute to veterans. Behind him, on a giant screen, the image of four hulking warships reinforced his patriotic message.
But there was a big mistake in the stirring backdrop: those are Russian warships…
Naval experts concluded the background was a photo composite of Russian ships that were overflown by what appear to be U.S. trainer jets. It remains unclear how or why the Democratic Party used what’s believed to be images of the Russian Black Sea Fleet at their convention.
A spokesman for the Democratic National Convention Committee was not able to immediately comment Tuesday, saying he had to track down personnel to find out what had happened.
The veteran who spotted the error and notified Navy Times said he was immediately taken aback.
Democrats have attempted to use their display of military pride to attack Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, who mentioned the military twice in his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention but did not single out the troops for tribute–a gesture that was performed during other parts of the convention.
The Democrats’ gaffe may undermine that message.
Photo credit: Navy Times
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