Texas official regrets allowing Bush to enlist in National Guard

[kskiska]

AUSTIN, Texas - (KRT) - On a videotape posted on a pro-Kerry Web site, former Texas Lt. Gov. and House Speaker Ben Barnes for the first time publicly took credit and apologized for helping President Bush secure a Vietnam-era slot in the Texas Air National Guard.

"I got a young man named George W. Bush into the National Guard ... and I'm not necessarily proud of that," Barnes, an Austin lobbyist and John Kerry supporter with a lucrative Washington practice, said on the tape. "It was the worst thing I did, was help a lot of wealthy supporters and a lot of people who had family names of importance get into the National Guard. And I'm very sorry of that and I'm very ashamed, and I apologize to you as the voters of Texas."

Barnes could not be reached for comment Friday.

The apology adds a new layer to a role Barnes acknowledged in 1999. During Bush's first presidential run, Barnes confirmed in a written statement that he had, at the request of a Bush family friend, contacted a Guard official to ask that Bush be allowed to enlist. The statement came after The Dallas Morning News revealed the sequence of events.

more…
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/news/special_packages/election2004/9517692.htm

[Erika]

1. And John Kerry Went to Nam!! !

For two tours.

Bush went to Alabama to work on a GOP election instead.

[bushisanidiot]

9. Fuckin A! Kerry VOLUNTEERED FOR COMBAT in Vietnam

with swiftboats as his first preference. That's no easy or safe duty..

Kerry is a very brave man. Pres AWOL was a scared little boy when he joined the guard and he was a scared little boy on 9/11.. talk about UNFIT for command..

[blm]

2. YES!!! Go KnightRidder.....

one of the few mainstream news sources that will print the truth.

[smiley_glad_hands]

3. Finally eom

[Nlighten1]

4. Chicken Hawks for Truth!

LOL

[PA Democrat]

5. Talk about a misleading headline!

"Allowing Bush to enlist." More like "pulling strings to get Bush admitted."

Jeez, those liberal media headline writers.

[Lefty48197]

6. sounds like Dan Quayle protecting Indiana from the VC

.

[pop goes the weasel]

7. Good for Barnes

It's nice to see Texas's Democrats waking up. It would have been nicer about 10 years ago, but this is still a good sign.

Thank you, Ben Barnes, for telling the truth, even at the risk of personal cost to your reputation and ability to lobby.

[Greyskye]

8. drip drip drip /eom

[Pirate Smile]

10. AP has picked it up. It is on Yahoo News

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040828/ap_on_el_pr/bush_national_guard&cid=694&ncid=1963&sid=96378798

[Skarbrowe]

11. Now if only CNN, MSNBC, ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS

and any other talking heads show would chew on this for a least a few days, I would think I lived in reasonably politically fair country.

[NoPasaran]

12. This is exciting!

http://news.google.com/news?q=Man+Ashamed+For+Getting+Bush+Into+National+Guard&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&tab=nn&filter=0&filter=0&start=100&filter=0&sa=N
Google "Man Ashamed For Getting Bush Into National Guard" returns 109 links at the moment! Woo Hoo!
:kick:

[karlrschneider]

13. Little kick here

:kick: