UK Guardian: Bush under pressure over military record

[sfecap]

Bush under pressure over military record

Sarah Left and agencies
Thursday September 9, 2004

The US president, George Bush, was today under growing scrutiny over his Vietnam-era service record after several different sources questioned his time in the Texas and Alabama air national guards.
In one of the most damaging attacks, Ben Barnes, the former lieutenant governor of Texas, said he had helped Mr Bush dodge the Vietnam draft by securing him a sought-after place in the Texas air national guard.

In 1968, the 29-year-old Mr Barnes was the Democratic speaker of the Texas House of Representatives. Mr Bush, who had just graduated from Yale, was coming up for the draft as his exemption for being at university expired. At the time, his father, George Bush Snr, was a US congressman.

In an interview last night, Mr Barnes told the US television station CBS that he had been approached by Sid Adger, an oilman close to the Bush family, who had asked whether he could find a place in the national guard for the young Mr Bush.

Mr Barnes - now a prominent supporter of John Kerry - told CBS he had used his connections to ensure Mr Bush was safely placed in the national guard, a post that made it unlikely he would be sent to fight in Vietnam.

(more)


http://www.guardian.co.uk/uselections2004/story/0,13918,1300834,00.html


This story seems to be getting some legs!

[ochazuke]

1. Bush lied again and again

when he said "I fulfilled my duties". Now, if he had only said that under oath, we could impeach the bastard. Oh, and if we had a Democratic congress as rabidly anti-bush as the real congress was anti-Clinton.

I'll settle for a few days (or weeks, or months) of watching him squirm. It's karma really: you put a firecracker up a frog's butt and this is what happens to you.

[2Design]

2. interesting how they always seem to find someone else to do

their dirty work...having a 'bush family friend' ask......

[Jack Rabbit]

3. Legs?

I hope so. For now, this seems to be another example of going to the British press to find out what's happening in America.

[demoman123]

5. Bush is like teflon, Kerry is like flypaper.

Especially on the war service issue. People think: "It was only the National Guard. Who gives a fuck?" But Kerry's medal issue has battlefield drama.

Of course, in the background is the fact that Dubya was dodging the draft and Kerry volunteered for combat, but somehow this goes unnoticed.

[Zorra]

4. kick

[chromotone]

6. Damn! Oil again?!!

...he had been approached by Sid Adger, an oilman close to the Bush family

I swear, "oilman" is fast becoming synonymous with "drug dealer" in my book...

They seem so..."oily."