Two MOH Winners say Bush Didn't Serve

2 Democrats: Bush Let Guard Down
Gore Surrogates Revive Issue of Apparent Laxity in Candidate's Military Service

By George Lardner Jr. and Howard Kurtz
Washington Post Staff Writers
Friday, November 3, 2000; Page A22


Two high-profile surrogates for Vice President Gore, in an 11th-hour attempt to
exploit a dormant issue, yesterday castigated George W. Bush over allegations
that he did not fulfill some of his National Guard duties in the 1970s.



Democratic Sens. Bob Kerrey (Neb.) and Daniel Inouye (Hawaii), both Medal of
Honor winners, were drafted to attack Bush on a 27-year-old controversy that
the Gore campaign has avoided mentioning until now. They spoke by phone to a
veterans rally in Nashville led by Sen. Max Cleland (D-Ga.), a decorated
Vietnam veteran. Reporters were invited to listen by conference call.

Bush says he fulfilled all his obligations as a pilot in the Air National
Guard, but he has had difficulty rebutting charges that he played hooky for a
year.

"Where were you, Governor Bush?" Inouye asked. "What about your commitment?
What would you do as commander in chief if someone in the Guard or service did
the same thing?"

Kerrey questioned how Bush immediately got into the Guard "even though there
were 500 people ahead of him" at a time when "350 Americans were dying every
single week in Vietnam." Kerrey has been drawing a sharp contrast with Gore,
who served in Vietnam.

Bush spokesman Ari Fleischer called the attacks "the final throes of a campaign
that has now lost any semblance of decency. The governor, of course, was
honorably discharged, and these are inventions and fabrications. All the
questions have been answered."

But Gore spokesman Mark Fabiani said the senators "seem to have raised some
very important questions . . . that deserve an answer."

Bush signed up with the Texas National Guard for six years in May 1968, which
allowed him to avoid the Vietnam draft. He became an F-102 pilot in 1970 but
made his last flight in April 1972 before moving to Alabama to work on a GOP
Senate campaign. The dispute centers on what he did in the Guard between that
point and September 1973, when he entered Harvard Business School.

Bush campaign officials say their evidence shows that he did his duty in
1972-73, when he worked for six months on the Senate race in Alabama and then
returned to his home base outside Houston. But other documents in his Guard
record contradict that claim, and critics who have examined that record contend
that he also skimped on his obligations in 1973-74. It is safe to say that Bush
did very light duty in his last two years in the Guard and that his superiors
made it easy for him.

The personnel officer in charge of Bush's 147th Fighter Group, now-retired Col.
Rufus G. Martin, says he tried to give Bush a light load, telling him to apply
to the 9921st Air Reserve Squadron in Montgomery, Ala.

Martin said in an interview that he knew Bush wasn't eligible for the 9921st,
an unpaid, general training squadron that met once a week to hear lectures on
first aid and the like. "However," he said, "I thought it was worth a try. . .
.. It was the least participation of any type of unit." But Air Force Reserve
officials rejected the assignment, saying Bush had two more years of military
obligations and was ineligible for a reserve squadron that had nothing to do
with flying airplanes. Bush spokesman Dan Bartlett said Bush didn't know that
when he applied.

Bush had been notified that he needed to take his annual flying physical by his
26th birthday in July 1972, but the move to Alabama made that unnecessary. He
had been trained to fly F-102 fighter-interceptors, and none of the units in
Alabama had those planes. He could have taken the physical to preserve his
pilot's status but chose not to do so. "Because he wasn't flying," Bartlett
said.

On Aug. 1, 1972, Bush's commander in Houston, Col. Bobby W. Hodges, ordered him
grounded for "failure to accomplish annual medical examination." Some critics
say this should have triggered a formal board of inquiry, but Hodges said in an
interview that this was unnecessary because Bush accepted the penalty and knew
"he couldn't fly again until he takes a physical."

"It happens all the time," Hodges said of the grounding. "That is normal when a
Guardsman is out of state or out of the country."

In September, Bush was assigned to another Alabama unit, the 187th Tactical
Reconnaissance Group. Since "Lieutenant Bush will not be able to satisfy his
flight requirements with our group," the unit told him to report for
"equivalent training"--such as debriefing pilots--on the weekends of Oct. 7-8
and Nov. 4-5, 1972.

There is no evidence in his record that he showed up on either weekend. Friends
on the Alabama campaign say he told them of having to do Guard duty, but the
retired general who commanded the 187th, William Turnipseed, and his personnel
chief, Kenneth K. Lott, say they do not remember Bush ever reporting.

The Bush campaign points to a torn piece of paper in his Guard records, a
statement of points Bush apparently earned in 1972-73, although most of the
dates and Bush's name except for the "W" have been torn off.

According to the torn Air Reserve Forces sheet, Bush continued to compile
service credits after returning to Houston, winding up his fifth year with 56
points, six above the minimum needed for retention. However, Bush's annual
effectiveness report, signed by two superiors, says "Lt. Bush has not been
observed at this unit during the period of the report," May 1, 1972, to April
30, 1973.

Hodges also said he did not see Bush at the Texas base again after Bush left
for Montgomery. "If I had been there on the day[s] he came out, I would have
seen him," Hodges said.

Let's clarify this a bit. What the writer MEANT to say what that two DEMOCRATIC
PARTY politicians who just happened to have been awarded the Medal of Honor
have once again criticized President Bush's service in the Air National Guard.
The emphasis should not be that they won the Medal of Honor because there are
likely quite a few of the living holders of that medal who are not criticizing
President Bush's service in the Air National Guard. But as DEMOCRATIC PARTY
politicians, the two Senators have a powerful vested interest in criticizing a
Republican president if even the remotest possibility exists to do so.

Jerry Hall

First, what does the Medal of Honor have to do with politics? Nothing.

Second, we're talking about only two people. That's 2 out of 132 surviving
medal winners from WW2, Korea and Vietnam. If you do the math, that's 1.5
percent! Hardly a thought-provoking statistic.

If you were to poll the others, you may be shocked at the statistics. I know of
one locally who supports the President.

Ed
"If an enemy power is bent on conquering you, and proposed to
turn all of his resources to that end, he is at war with you;
and you -- unless you contemplate surrender -- are at war with
him." --Barry Goldwater

On 05 Jun 2004 13:01:19 GMT, ospam (TekTeam26)
wrote:

Let's clarify this a bit. What the writer MEANT to say what that two DEMOCRATIC
PARTY politicians who just happened to have been awarded the Medal of Honor
have once again criticized President Bush's service in the Air National Guard.
The emphasis should not be that they won the Medal of Honor because there are
likely quite a few of the living holders of that medal who are not criticizing
President Bush's service in the Air National Guard. But as DEMOCRATIC PARTY
politicians, the two Senators have a powerful vested interest in criticizing a
Republican president if even the remotest possibility exists to do so.

Jerry Hall

And the dateline is the Spring of 2000---four years ago!

Lots of information has been added since then and the Gore campaign
surrogates have pretty much disappeared from the political scene.


Ed Rasimus
Fighter Pilot (USAF-Ret)
"When Thunder Rolled"
Smithsonian Institution Press
ISBN #1-58834-103-8

Let's clarify this a bit. What the writer MEANT to say what that two
DEMOCRATIC
PARTY politicians who just happened to have been awarded the Medal of Honor...

People don't just "happen" to be awarded the MOH.

Try again.

Walt

First, what does the Medal of Honor have to do with politics? Nothing.

Second, we're talking about only two people. That's 2 out of 132 surviving
medal winners from WW2, Korea and Vietnam. If you do the math, that's 1.5
percent! Hardly a thought-provoking statistic.


That's pitiful.

Walt

Let's get something straight!

Whether George Bush "served" in the Air National Guard or not, today he has
almost three years experience as wartime Commander-In Chief of the greatest
military force in history of mankind, which John Kerry does NOT have!
Kerry's four months of dodging bullets and mooching medals hardly qualifies
as military Command-In-Chief experience, which is the job in question, not
being patrol boat commander!

Those two MOH winners cited need to get a sense of proportion, especially
Bob Kerrey who has been so blatantly partisan at political blame laying
while a member of that appalling 9/11 "Star Chamber" Congressional
Commission!

So either get it right or forget it!

WDA

end



"WalterM140" wrote in message
...
2 Democrats: Bush Let Guard Down
Gore Surrogates Revive Issue of Apparent Laxity in Candidate's Military
Service

By George Lardner Jr. and Howard Kurtz
Washington Post Staff Writers
Friday, November 3, 2000; Page A22


Two high-profile surrogates for Vice President Gore, in an 11th-hour
attempt to
exploit a dormant issue, yesterday castigated George W. Bush over
allegations
that he did not fulfill some of his National Guard duties in the 1970s.



Democratic Sens. Bob Kerrey (Neb.) and Daniel Inouye (Hawaii), both Medal
of
Honor winners, were drafted to attack Bush on a 27-year-old controversy
that
the Gore campaign has avoided mentioning until now. They spoke by phone to
a
veterans rally in Nashville led by Sen. Max Cleland (D-Ga.), a decorated
Vietnam veteran. Reporters were invited to listen by conference call.

Bush says he fulfilled all his obligations as a pilot in the Air National
Guard, but he has had difficulty rebutting charges that he played hooky
for a
year.

"Where were you, Governor Bush?" Inouye asked. "What about your
commitment?
What would you do as commander in chief if someone in the Guard or service
did
the same thing?"

Kerrey questioned how Bush immediately got into the Guard "even though
there
were 500 people ahead of him" at a time when "350 Americans were dying
every
single week in Vietnam." Kerrey has been drawing a sharp contrast with
Gore,
who served in Vietnam.

Bush spokesman Ari Fleischer called the attacks "the final throes of a
campaign
that has now lost any semblance of decency. The governor, of course, was
honorably discharged, and these are inventions and fabrications. All the
questions have been answered."

But Gore spokesman Mark Fabiani said the senators "seem to have raised
some
very important questions . . . that deserve an answer."

Bush signed up with the Texas National Guard for six years in May 1968,
which
allowed him to avoid the Vietnam draft. He became an F-102 pilot in 1970
but
made his last flight in April 1972 before moving to Alabama to work on a
GOP
Senate campaign. The dispute centers on what he did in the Guard between
that
point and September 1973, when he entered Harvard Business School.

Bush campaign officials say their evidence shows that he did his duty in
1972-73, when he worked for six months on the Senate race in Alabama and
then
returned to his home base outside Houston. But other documents in his
Guard
record contradict that claim, and critics who have examined that record
contend
that he also skimped on his obligations in 1973-74. It is safe to say that
Bush
did very light duty in his last two years in the Guard and that his
superiors
made it easy for him.

The personnel officer in charge of Bush's 147th Fighter Group, now-retired
Col.
Rufus G. Martin, says he tried to give Bush a light load, telling him to
apply
to the 9921st Air Reserve Squadron in Montgomery, Ala.

Martin said in an interview that he knew Bush wasn't eligible for the
9921st,
an unpaid, general training squadron that met once a week to hear lectures
on
first aid and the like. "However," he said, "I thought it was worth a try.
.. .
. It was the least participation of any type of unit." But Air Force
Reserve
officials rejected the assignment, saying Bush had two more years of
military
obligations and was ineligible for a reserve squadron that had nothing to
do
with flying airplanes. Bush spokesman Dan Bartlett said Bush didn't know
that
when he applied.

Bush had been notified that he needed to take his annual flying physical
by his
26th birthday in July 1972, but the move to Alabama made that unnecessary.
He
had been trained to fly F-102 fighter-interceptors, and none of the units
in
Alabama had those planes. He could have taken the physical to preserve his
pilot's status but chose not to do so. "Because he wasn't flying,"
Bartlett
said.

On Aug. 1, 1972, Bush's commander in Houston, Col. Bobby W. Hodges,
ordered him
grounded for "failure to accomplish annual medical examination." Some
critics
say this should have triggered a formal board of inquiry, but Hodges said
in an
interview that this was unnecessary because Bush accepted the penalty and
knew
"he couldn't fly again until he takes a physical."

"It happens all the time," Hodges said of the grounding. "That is normal
when a
Guardsman is out of state or out of the country."

In September, Bush was assigned to another Alabama unit, the 187th
Tactical
Reconnaissance Group. Since "Lieutenant Bush will not be able to satisfy
his
flight requirements with our group," the unit told him to report for
"equivalent training"--such as debriefing pilots--on the weekends of Oct.
7-8
and Nov. 4-5, 1972.

There is no evidence in his record that he showed up on either weekend.
Friends
on the Alabama campaign say he told them of having to do Guard duty, but
the
retired general who commanded the 187th, William Turnipseed, and his
personnel
chief, Kenneth K. Lott, say they do not remember Bush ever reporting.

The Bush campaign points to a torn piece of paper in his Guard records, a
statement of points Bush apparently earned in 1972-73, although most of
the
dates and Bush's name except for the "W" have been torn off.

According to the torn Air Reserve Forces sheet, Bush continued to compile
service credits after returning to Houston, winding up his fifth year with
56
points, six above the minimum needed for retention. However, Bush's annual
effectiveness report, signed by two superiors, says "Lt. Bush has not been
observed at this unit during the period of the report," May 1, 1972, to
April
30, 1973.

Hodges also said he did not see Bush at the Texas base again after Bush
left
for Montgomery. "If I had been there on the day[s] he came out, I would
have
seen him," Hodges said.

"WalterM140" wrote in message
...
2 Democrats: Bush Let Guard Down
Gore Surrogates Revive Issue of Apparent Laxity in Candidate's Military
Service


and you would believe them? How does receiving the Medal of Honor better
qualify them to pass judgement on anything? Bravery in combat doesn't
translate to superior analytical abilities. Furthermore they are, as the
title "2 Democats...." notes, Democrat politicians, and therefore their
views on this matter are going to be suspect to any reasonable person. Here
is a more balance analysis of Bush's service. Note it isn't from one of the
fringe publications you like to quote:

http://web.archive.org/web/200012022....com/bush.html

Jarg

WalterM140 wrote:
Let's clarify this a bit. What the writer MEANT to say what that two
DEMOCRATIC
PARTY politicians who just happened to have been awarded the Medal of
Honor...

People don't just "happen" to be awarded the MOH.

Try again.

Walt

You failed to mention that they both had won their MOHs long before they became
politicians. It was merely a credit to their good sense that those brave men
chose to become Democratic politicians.

George Z.

"George Z. Bush" wrote in message
...
WalterM140 wrote:
Let's clarify this a bit. What the writer MEANT to say what that two
DEMOCRATIC
PARTY politicians who just happened to have been awarded the Medal of
Honor...

People don't just "happen" to be awarded the MOH.

Try again.

Walt

You failed to mention that they both had won their MOHs long before they
became
politicians. It was merely a credit to their good sense that those brave
men
chose to become Democratic politicians.

George Z.



True, Democrat politicians have the advantage of representing poor thinkers,
so that was sensible given their limited reasoning abilities. Makes
reelection more likely.

But winning the Medal of Honor doens't indicate good sense. Bravery, yes.
Good sense, questionable.

Jarg