Bob Novak Tries To Discredit Ben Barnes

[Liberal_Dog]

On "Capital Gang", Bob Novak used his "Outrage of the Week" segment to discredit former Texas Lt Gov Ben Barnes. Novak claimed that Barnes was not Lt Gov at the time George Bush joined the Texas Air National Guard.

I decided to check this out for myself. I did a Google search and found that George W Bush joined the TANG on May 27th, 1968.



I read a number of articles on Ben Barnes and all of them said that Barnes was elected as Lt Governor in 1968 and that he served in that office from 1969 to 1973. So, it seemed that Novak was right.

Not so fast. I came across something very interesting. This is a list of Honorary Lifetime Members of the National Guard Association of Texas:

Hon Kay Bailey Hutchison US Senate 20 Mar 1999
Honorable George W. Bush Gov of Texas 22 Mar 1997
General Gordon R. Sullivan Chief of Staff, U.S. Army 28 Mar 1992
LTC John B. Conaway Chief, NGB 31 Mar 1990
LTC Emmett H. "Mickey" Walker Chief, NGB 15 Mar 1986
Mr. Charles R. Black NGAT Ins. Programs, World Service Life Ins. Co. 26 Aug 1984
MG Francis S. Greenlief Exec VP, NGAUS 31 Mar 1984
General Richard E. Cavazos Cmdr, FORSCOM 31 Mar 1984
Honorable Mark White Gov of Texas 31 Mar 1984
MSgt Wayne L. Fisk US Air Force, Scott AFB, IL 3 Apr 1982
Honorable Richard C. White US House of Rep, District 16 28 Mar 1981
Honorable William P. Clements Gov of Texas 29 Mar 1980
Honorable Preston Smith Gov of Texas 12 Apr 1969
Honorable Ben Barnes Lt Gov of Texas 6 Apr 1968
Honorable Waggoner Carr Att Gen of Texas 2 Apr 1966
LTG Lewis B. Hershey Dir of Selective Service 4 Apr 1964
Honorable John B. Connally Gov of Texas 30 Mar 1963
Honorable Price Daniel Gov of Texas 29 Apr 1961

When Ben Barnes was awarded his Honorary Lifetime Membership in the NGAT in April of 1968, he is already listed as Lt Governor of Texas.

If that is correct, Barnes indeed was Lt Gov whe George W Bush entered the TANG and Bob Novak, once again, is full of crap.

What is the truth here?

[Name removed]

1. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[troublemaker]

I think he was Speaker of the Texas House at the time

he was Lt. Gov and he did get chimpy into the guard, but it doesn't follow that he was Lt Gov when he aided chimpy. I thought his original story was that this happened while he was speaker.

[physioex]

2. Like anything that traitor Novak says is credible...

CNN has totally become freeper news. I suspect it is because Kingdom Holding Corporation, Kerr McGhee, and Citibank are their main advertisers...... Turn of that worthless "news" channel...

[Cleita]

3. Novak is an expert as saying enough to install an idea

in a listener's head, but he doesn't present the all the facts in the matter, so his doublespeak works, in a spin sort of way, except with sharp minded DUers of course. I heard him say that today and I thought that there was a lot more to this than he was telling.

[speedoo]

4. After we get rid of dumbya....

We need a serious effort to discredit Novak.. he is a total s***bag.

Outing Plame should have been enough but we need more.

[dogtag]

5. This is interesting

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/aponline/19990927/aponline190140_000.htm

[Norquist Nemesis]

8. Yes, it's the way the network operates

"Mr. Barnes was contacted by Sid Adger and asked to recommend George W. Bush for a pilot position with the Air National Guard. Barnes called Gen. (James) Rose (Texas Air Guard commander) and did so," the statement said.

"Neither Congressman Bush nor any other member of the Bush family asked Barnes' help. Barnes has no knowledge that Governor Bush or President Bush knew of Barnes' recommendation," the statement said
--
The Republican governor has said for several years that he received no special treatment. Both he and his father, the former president, have said they didn't ask for help in finding the Guard opening.

"I don't know if Ben Barnes did or not – but he was not asked by me or my dad," Bush said Monday.

It's the same way that things get done on the golf course. A little fun, a little discussion, a bit of planting the thought with the right person.

Technically, Bush nor any of his family asked Barnes. That in no way means that Bush didn't set things in motion for it to happen.

[A_Possum]

6. Silly

He was Speaker of the House and then Lt. Gov in 68/69, but oh oh oh oh oh my it's really important which office he mentions 35 years later, because that means Bush is really a big hero instead of a cowardly party boy.

Novak and your right-wing crew, you really are makin' fools of yourselves, ya'll hear now?

Stuff a sock in it.

[NightTrain]

7. There are e-mail spammers. There are used car salesmen. There are...

...microscopic bacteria that live in human diarrhea. And then there's Bob Novak. Any questions?

[lanparty]

10. I prefer diarrhea to ...

... Bob Novhak.

[lapfog_1]

9. Earlier thread

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x684640

Barnes was elected to Speaker of the House in 1965, and it was as
Speaker he helped young George W. Bush to jump over hundreds of
more qualified applicants to join the TANG.

Novacula is a freepin media whore who will say anything to cast doubt
and sow discord into "the enemy" (i.e. anyone to the left of him and
Genghis Khan)

[lanparty]

11. This is like saying that Poppy had nothing to do with Iran Contra ...

... because Poppy wasn't president during the affair.

I have TONS of documents to show that GW Bush was NOT president during Iran Contra. There is no need to look at presidential papers (including those of GW Bush) for evidence of Iran Contra involvement. The presidential papers of GW Bush will contain no damming evidence since GW Bush wasn't president during Iran Contra. THEREFORE, GW Bush couldn't possibly have exerted ANY influence in the Iran Contra scandal.



whatever ....

[Nordic]

12. A friend-of-Karl-Rove's LYING? NO!!!

Novak should be in jail right now.

Yet CNN lets him continue to abuse his position as a CNN employee to continue lying for Bushco.

If Novak is criminal, so is CNN.

[EST]

13. Cast your votes for msnbc and destroy cnn

Those creeping fascists deserve it, and with our help we may come up with a librul cable tv outlet yet! Write some more letters and emails-they are worling!

[Eric J in MN]

14. That list of lifetime honorable guardsmen could have been written

after 1968.

But as other people said, Ben Barnes could have had political power as Speaker of the Texas State House.