Ex-official says he helped Bush avoid Vietnam

Renewed focus on Bush time in military

Published on September 9, 2004 By blogic In Politics

After weeks of media scrutiny of Democrat John Kerry's record in Vietnam, Bush was broadsided by several challenges to his account of his six-year stint in the air guard in Texas and Alabama, including:

-- A CBS "60 Minutes" interview in which a former Texas speaker of the House said he helped secure a pilot's position for Bush in the Texas Air National Guard to keep him from being drafted.

-- New memos obtained by CBS News suggesting that Bush's squadron commander in Texas was under pressure from his superiors to give Bush a strong performance review, which he refused to do.

-- A Boston Globe investigation that concluded that Bush missed training assignments in Alabama and Massachusetts despite twice signing statements that warned that he could be put on active duty for two years for doing so.

During his "Mission Accomplished" photo op, George Bush strutted around in a Navy flight suit. Presidents who had really served their country -- Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Carter -- chose not to wear the uniform while in office, thinking it too reminiscent of fascist posturing.

Comments

ShoZan

on Sep 09, 2004

Or they couldn't fit into their old uniforms because they gained weight, but yeah the facist thing sounds like a good thing to say instead of I'm fat, or I can't fit in my uniform anymore.

drmiler

on Sep 09, 2004

-- A CBS "60 Minutes" interview in which a former Texas speaker of the House said he helped secure a pilot's position for Bush in the Texas Air National Guard to keep him from being drafted.

What they aren't telling you is he wasn' t in an elected position at the time so how could he help?

stevendedalus

on Sep 09, 2004

What they aren't telling you is he wasn' t in an elected position at the time so how could he help?

All it took was one phone call from W's father.

ShoZan

on Sep 09, 2004

From the Drudge Report, and it looks like the attack from Barnes is just as fishy as the Swift Boat Vets First Ad.

BUSH NATIONAL GUARD ACCUSER BEN BARNES 'TOP FUNDRAISER' FOR KERRY... [LINK]

Just in case you think I put a link to a site against Kerry, the link is http://www.johnkerry.com/pressroom/releases/pr_2004_0319b.html, right there for all to see until somebody yanks it so they don't get in trouble.

Excerpt:
VICE CHAIRS 100,000 and up

Jeremy Alters
Fernando Amandi
Ben Barnes

drmiler

on Sep 09, 2004

Reply #3 By: stevendedalus - 9/9/2004 2:04:07 PM
What they aren't telling you is he wasn' t in an elected position at the time so how could he help?
All it took was one phone call from W's father.

One phone call to who???

Draginol

on Sep 09, 2004

This demonstrates another example of just regurgitating left wing propaganda without thinking about it.

This guy is the vice-chair of Kerry's campaign in Texas and has previously stated that he did not have any contact with the Bush family.

Don Bemont

on Sep 10, 2004

I would basically agree with you, in that these charges and countercharges about irrelevant stuff from long ago, have no place anywhere near the center of the campaign.

However, the decision by some on the right to attempt to poke holes in Kerry's war record made this stuff pretty inevitable.

Kerry served his country bravely under dangerous circumstances, but, like most such narratives, the story has gotten overblown in the retelling. Bush stayed out of harm's way, and mostly out of invonvenience's way, as often happens with a kid from a privileged background. The facts around each case will of course, be murky, because these were not people in the spotlight in that era. Yet, for political gain, the Republicans produce revisionist witnesses (who would have thought? die hard Republicans!) to retell the story of Kerry, and the Democrats produce revisionist witnesses (who would have thought? die hard Democrats!) to retell the story of Bush.

The sad thing is that so many voters would actually respond to either side of this stuff, because it has little to do with who will do the best job for our country over the next four years.

JillUser

on Sep 10, 2004

These leftie loonies and the press who jump at any chance to discredit the President without checking the validity of the claim (I am referring to CBS not using their brains at all as far as this document is concerned) are their own worst enemies. This whole thing might just be the first nail in Kerry's political coffin.

Kerry's decision to run as the "I'm a Vietnam Hero" candidate was the first big mistake. He wanted to just sell us on what he did 30yrs ago without any questions about what exactly he did. Bush on the other hand has admitted to lacking in maturity back then. People now have what he has done for the last four years to go by. What has Kerry done lately?

drmiler

on Sep 10, 2004

People now have what he has done for the last four years to go by. What has Kerry done lately?

NOT a DANG THING!!!

Deference

on Sep 10, 2004

the press who jump at any chance to discredit the President without checking the validity of the claim

The press are nearly always opportunistic whores, regardless of who they hurt...

Don Bemont

on Sep 10, 2004

The press are nearly always opportunistic whores, regardless of who they hurt...

I agree. Unfortunately, that is the nature of visual media -- to be more a vehicle for entertainment than for serious issues. And, with the dominance of the visual media, the print media has increasingly followed suit, in order to remain economically viable.

The result is that neither candidate is encouraged to speak clearly on the issues, and, when one does, the reporting centers more on the likely result on the polls than on what the guy actually said.

For those who love "democratic" government, and believe that that was the main method by which America became great, it is heartbreaking to watch.

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