Bush repaid Barnes for Air Guard fix!

[Gingergal]

So Ben Barnes gets bush into Texas National Guard in 1968 over more qualified applicants. Years later, he keeps quiet and allows bush to get elected governor of Texas. Bush repays him by saving a contract for Barnes' client to keep the Texas Lottery contract.
Look for vicious attacks against Ben Barnes. Barnes is an active Texas Democrat and fundraiser for the Democrats.
Add this story to the one that bush was wearing medals he was not entitled to and add to this mix the bush interview today where he says that they ought to drop Vietnam from the campaign. Now the tables have turned and bush is on the defensive over his actions during Vietnam. Hey george, you should have stopped the Swift Boat Liars. Sometimes you get what you've got coming to you.


From Greg Palast

<http://www.gregpalast.com/detail.cfm?artid=365&row=0>
"Here's what happened. Just after Bush's election, Barnes' client GTech Corp., due to allegations of corruption, was about to lose its license to print money: its contract to run the Texas state lottery. Barnes, says the Justice Department document, made a call to the newly elected governor's office and saved GTech's state contract.


The letter said, "Governor Bush ... made a deal with Ben Barnes not to rebid because Barnes could confirm that Bush had lied during the '94 campaign."

In that close race, Bush denied the fix was in to keep him out of 'Nam, and the US media stopped asking questions. What did the victorious Governor Bush's office do for Barnes? According to the tipster, "Barnes agreed never to confirm the story and the governor talked to the chair of the lottery two days later and she then agreed to support letting GTech keep the contract without a bid."

And so it came to pass that the governor's commission reversed itself and gave GTech the billion dollar deal without a bid.

[efhmc]

1. Been waiting for this one. All of those guys were in bed together

monetarily. There is no way around that fact but having moral second thoughts later in life is what makes people grow as humans and that is what happened here to Barnes.

[efhmc]

2. Wanted to add that keeping quiet would not have made a bit of

difference in that election against Ann. The problem there was that she and the rest of us Dems just did not take that little jerk seriously. So you can blame us for a great deal of the misery that the US has gone through in the last 4 years. SO sorry America.

[silverlib]

5. Thank you...

I've been staying out of all the glory posts about Barnes. I'm glad it came out and really hope Barnes has had a change of heart. He became a multi-millionaire over that lottery contract.

What did he get - 2 or 3 cents for every lottery ticket sold in Texas?

There must really be hope for the Democrats in Texas. I've been feeling it strongly. Barnes must be feeling it, too. I always felt that he was one of those Texas politicians who ran on the Democratic ticket, but voted like a Republican. He's just beginning to act like a real Democrat.

[seabeyond]

3. ought to drop Vietnam from the campaign

people keep saying htis as the ads continue and people on the news continue to talk about it. what kerry is suppose to lie down adn let them walk on him, cause bush, media decided it needs to end when they know it will continue. how stupid is this

i am hearing htis a lot and it is the simpliest in stupid

[Gman]

4. Barnes is NOT all that

he is NOT an active Democrat. He just came out of seclusion this year. He is NOT an active fundraiser, although he has been working this year behind the scenes. He made an appearance in the Texas delegation at the DNC... probably the first time he's been seen at a political function with Texans in over 30 years. Barnes is a conservative Democrat in the tradition of John Connally and Preston Smith and always has been.

Although I'm happy he went public with his story about Bush and the TANG, he has no political clout and/or electoral influence in Texas to speak of.

[DeepModem Mom]

6. kick

[girl gone mad]

7. This story has been around..

for a long time.

Barnes gave a sworn deposition in 1999 that there was no bribery involved. Bush was sweating bullets before Barnes testified. He was clearly afraid of what Barnes was going to say.

Unless Barnes reverses his earlier testimony (unlikely), we only have circumstancial evidence here. No smoking gun.

[girl gone mad]

8. Here's an old story on the lawsuit.

His name surfaced in a lawsuit filed in federal court in Dallas by the former executive director of the Texas Lottery. Lawrence Littwin has sued GTECH Corp., the lottery operator, alleging that the company is to blame for his firing in 1997, after four months on the job.

According to court records, Littwin's lawyers wanted to question Barnes, who used to lobby for GTECH, about whether GTECH was allowed to keep its lucrative state contract in exchange for Barnes' silence about the Guard matter.

That theory has been dismissed as unfounded by GTECH, Barnes and Bush.

Barnes testified for several hours Monday in a deposition in the case. Afterwards, his lawyer issued a written statement saying Barnes had been contacted by the now-deceased Sidney Adger, a Houston oilman and friend of the elder Bush.




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

[Keirsey]

9. That theory has been dismissed as unfounded by GTECH, Barnes and Bush.

LOL! What do people expect them to say: "I am guilty of bribery."

[jab105]

10. Maybe we should focus on the PRESENT instead of the pAST!!

We are playing into Bush's hands...his bet is that we get sidetracked by the past and everyone says who cares...ugh!!

Why do we fall for it every time...

I dont want to hear about Bush 35 years ago, I want to hear about him NOW...I wasn't the same person I am today 10 years ago (but I'm only 27)...so this 35 years ago thing is so missing the point!!