Dallas Morn News: Man named in Bush memo left Guard before doc. written

[Renew Deal]

BY PETE SLOVER

The Dallas Morning News


AUSTIN, Texas - (KRT) - The man named in a disputed memo as exerting pressure to "sugar coat" President Bush's military record left the Texas Air National Guard a year and a half before the memo was supposedly written, his own service record shows.

An order obtained by The Dallas Morning News shows that Col. Walter "Buck" Staudt was honorably discharged on March 1, 1972. CBS News reported this week that a memo in which Staudt was described as interfering with officers' negative evaluations of Bush's service, was dated Aug. 18, 1973.

That added to mounting questions about the authenticity of documents that seem to suggest Bush sought special favors and did not fulfill his service.

Staudt, who lives in New Braunfels, Texas, did not return calls seeking comment. His discharge paper was among a packet of documents obtained by The Dallas Morning News from official sources during 1999 research into Bush's Guard record.
<snip>

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/special_packages/election2004/9633814.htm?1c

[Norquist Nemesis]

1. An order obtained by ....

Gee! I wonder who gave them a heads up! :eyes:

[Proud2BAmurkin]

39. They didn't have telephones then. No way Staudt could have called him

to exert influence.

[Leilani]

2. Does not sound good?

[aquart]

5. Honey, a recently retired general still has clout.

And Bush was his special protegee. Of course he made calls for his benefit. Please.

[Leilani]

16. Please do not patronize me...

I simply asked a question.

And do not lecture me about Generals.

[TexasSissy]

33. He was a Colonel, I think. Still has clout, though.

[TexasSissy]

34. I'd have to read the memo to see if it said Col. Staudt was STILL

in the military. If it doesn't, it could just be referring to Staudt using his connections to try to influence matters, even though he had left the military the year before.

HOWEVER, keep in mind that the Dallas Morning News is VERY PRO-BUSH. It is a TEXAS newspaper, and additionally, it has ALWAYS FULLY SUPPORTED BUSH in EVERYTHING. It should be read and believed only with discretion in matters of politics.

[aquart]

3. Staudt could end the speculation.

Wonder why he doesn't?

Tee hee.

[yardwork]

4. Exactly what I thought!

He'll be forced out sooner or later by RoveCo and stammer something to the effect that nobody would ever have done such a thing....

[Walt Starr]

41. I wonder if Rather has a document

signed by Staudt telling Killian to sugarcoat the review?

[OneBlueSky]

6. I still think this whole thing is a BushCo setup . . .

to take attention away from their record and the important issues that should be central to the campaign . . . first we had the swift boat crapola and now this . . . wonder what's next? . . .

[IndianaGreen]

12. This is the same thing that I am thinking

Leak something that can be easily debunked, and once you show the documents are forgeries, convince people that everything else that was said about Bush being AWOL is also false.

[Guaranteed]

14. I think that's what they want you to think.

You're overanalyzing.

[Carla in Ca]

17. It does sound like something Rove would do

[Guaranteed]

7. Uhhhh...so? nt

[JI7]

11. just what i was thinking

[ContinentalOp]

8. Hmm, I don't quite get all of the implications with this whole story,

and I have no idea how military buerocracy works. But is it that much of a stretch to think that this guy still had some sort of political pull after he retired? Like "hey, ease off of this Bush character or things might get tough for you when you hope to get that next promotion." Or more likely an unspoken variation of that same dynamic.

[The Magistrate]

18. No, Sir

It is no stretch at all; indeed, it is just about what would be normally expected, particularly in a highly pliticized organization such as this one was.

"Can't nobody here play this game?"

"LET'S GO GET THOSE BUSH BASTARDS!"

[ochazuke]

9. Another 'so what' revelation

The implication is that this guy couldn't pressure Killian after he left his post as Killian's superior. Shaw, right. He might have had even MORE influence after he left. What do they call them? Elder statesmen, wire pullers, oya-bun, godfather... the list goes on.

[oasis]

10. Retired Generals still show up at the Army base golf course and do their

fair share of politicking.

[punpirate]

13. Staudt's signatures appear nowhere...

... and his discharge from the guard does not mean he could not have been interfering on behalf of the rich and privileged from a civilian position. Alternatively, Staudt could have been discharged from the TX ANG to take a civilian administrative position in the guard, or elsewhere in state government. Without that background, it doesn't mean that Staudt did not continue to exert influence on the guard.

[Guaranteed]

15. Man...these fuckers are trying so hard.

But we're going to bury them when we get ahold of one of those Composers.

6 feet deep.

[LynnTheDem]

19. Same man named in bush doc...

...told CBS that yes Killian was saying such things at that time and yes the documents soiund like what Killian was saying at the time.

So let's ask same man in bush doc about this.

Let's also ask same man in bush doc who called him from the WH, and let's take a look at the WH phone logs.

And let's have CBS play the recorded telephone interview they did with same man in bush doc.

:)

[Chili]

20. Staudt was Bush's mentor...

...and a brigadier general. No reason in the world why he wouldn't still be involved in pressuring to get him special privileges, retired or not. It's disingenuous for that article not to state the previous relationship. See this article for how involved Staudt already was.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/campaigns/wh2000/stories/barnes092199.htm

[allalone]

21. oh sure

like retiring is gonna stop him from meddling

[stopbush]

22. Hmmm? The same people who think an out-of-office-for-3.5-years

president has the clout to sabotage Kerry in the '04 election so his wife can run in '08 can't imagine a bush-friendly Colonel watching out for his golden boy's TANG career a mere 18 months after his discharge.

Why am I not surprised?

[gatorboy]

24. Exactly. Don't they forget? Clinton's running everything.

:eyes:

And as long as we're talking about retired Presidents, you can't tell me that Bush Sr. hasn't pulled a few strings since being out of office...

[Chili]

23. um...LOL

...this is what Stuadt had to say THIS February in regards to questions about Bush:

‘‘I love the guy,” Staudt said of Bush. ‘‘I'm so tired of this negative crap about him that I'd like to volunteer to build a barn and take you press guys out behind it and kick your asses.”

From this article: http://www.spokesmanreview.com/breaking-news-story.asp?submitdate=200431401040

Good grief.

ETA: MORE...

"Bush was sworn in as an airman the same day he applied. His commander, Col. Walter B. "Buck" Staudt, was apparently so pleased to have a VIP's son in his unit that he later staged a special ceremony so he could have his picture taken administering the oath, instead of the captain who actually had sworn Bush in. Later, when Bush was commissioned a second lieutenant by another subordinate, Staudt again staged a special ceremony for the cameras, this time with Bush's father the congressman – a supporter of the Vietnam War – standing proudly in the background."

From another, older article from the WP: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/campaigns/wh2000/stories/bush072899.htm

Oh, gag me. And THIS guy didn't clear the way for George every step of the way? Right.

[Guaranteed]

25. Kaboom.

Sounds like Staudt just might have had an interest in pressuring Killian.

[Chili]

26. check out the second article...

...it's even worse.

[baldingrockwarlord]

27. so is Staudt the new lynchpin....?

Is Staudt the new lynchpin holding the "fraud" claim together now that the typewriter/font/superscript issue has been debunked? First it was the claims that there was no machine back then that could superscript. Now it's the issue of Staudt having been discharged back in 72 , while still mentioned and referenced in a 1973 memo. How do we shoot this one down? And whats the next fake claim after this?

[Guaranteed]

28. Well, he's clearly very friendly with and close to Bush

so I'm sure he would put a call into his old underling to put some pressure on him.

I guess that's it.

[newyawker99]

32. Hi baldingrockwarlord!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[the Kelly Gang]

29. So you actually think CBS would risk loosing $$millions in advertising

by blowing their credibility over Bush documents ?? ..I think not

[a new day]

30. Staudt was pressuring Hodges

Am I missing something? It seems perfectly clear to me what was happening.

The first sentence of CYA memo: "Staudt has obviously pressured Hodges more about Bush." Later: "Harris gave me a message today from Grp regarding Bush's OETR and Staudt is pushing to sugar coat it."

It seems to me that Killian is stating what he thinks has happened, not that Staudt contacted him.

The politicing is going on between Staudt and Hodges, probably about what kind of perks Hodges will get when he retires. Killian is caught in the middle, hence CYA.

The "pressure" wasn't TXANG career pressure, which Hodges at least was immune from coming from his retired predecessor. It was pocket lining after retirement pressure, or lack of pocket lining if he didn't play ball.

[Snellius]

31. Here's a critical statement:

An unnamed "senior CBS official" told the Washington Post that one of the network's backup sources was retired Maj. Gen. Bobby W. Hodges, Killian's immediate superior. The CBS executive said a CBS reporter read the documents to Hodges over the phone, and that Hodges replied that "these are the things that Killian had expressed to me at the time," the Post reported Friday.


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5963843/

[Kadie]

35. Don't you think Dan Rather would know about this?

I am sure he was aware of it but is still confident enough in his story to stand behind it.

[cindyw]

36. Some info on Staudt. He was the one who accepted Bush in the guard.

It appears that Staudt was the man who Bush spoke with to get in. It is likely that he continued to go to bat for him after his he had left, in my opinion. After all he probably continued to assert influence in the community.

" A family friend of Bush’s father pulled strings to secure Bush’s spot; Bush joined the Texas Air National Guard after his student deferment ran out when he graduated from Yale in 1968. Before he graduated, Bush personally visited Col. Walter “Buck” Staudt -- the commander of the Texas Air National Guard -- to talk about the Guard. After Bush met with Staudt, he applied and was quickly accepted -- despite a waiting list of over 150 applicants. Staudt recommended Bush for a direct appointment, which allowed Bush to become a second lieutenant right out of basic training without having to go though officer candidate school. The direct appointment also cleared the way for a position in pilot training school. "

<New York Times, 9/27/99; Houston Chronicle, 10/10/92; Los Angeles Times, 7/4/99>


Also, see this from the Dallas morning news, it goes right along with Killian saying that they should pass on Bush and get a more qualified pilot for his slot.

" FACT: Bush Scored in 25th Percentile on Pilot Aptitude Test. When Bush applied for the Guard, his score on the Air Force pilot aptitude section, one of five on the test, was in the 25th percentile, the lowest allowed for would-be fliers. "

<Dallas Morning News, 7/4/99>

http://www.howardstern.com/mail/05.php

[Lex]

37. Even though he left the military he could STILL be trying to "sugar coat"

Bush's military screw-ups.

Those guys, even when retired, don't exactly lose their stature. It's the military--I mean, those guys are still treated with a tremendous amount of respect and deference.

So what if he were retired? He's still out there making calls on behalf of Bush.

[kentuck]

38. I'm beginning to think the entire Bush military record is a fake....

The "real" records were replaced by these fakes because he may not have rec'd an honorable discharge at all. Where is his DD214? What type of fonts are on it??

[RetroLounge]

40. So what?

Do you think Gen. Norman Schwartzcough (sp) (retired) has NO influence or political pressure left to exert because he's retired?

I'm pretty sure they had telephones back then...

RL

[MoonRiver]

42. That makes it all the more likely he would have put the squeeze on.

He wouldn't have to worry about getting in trouble if the facts came to light.