An Open Letter from Michael Moore to President Bush

[SeanAshi]

February 11, 2004 (67th anniversary of the Great Flint Sit-Down Strike)

Dear Mr. Bush,

Thank you for providing the illegible Xeroxed partial payroll sheets (or whatever they were) yesterday covering a few of your days in the National Guard. Now we know that, not only didn't you complete your tour of duty, you were actually paid for work you never did. Did you cash those checks? Wouldn't that be, um, illegal?

Watching the press aggressively demand the truth from your press secretary -- and refusing to accept the deceit, the dodging, and the cover-up -- was a sight to behold, something we really haven't seen since you took office (to watch or listen to the entire press conference, or to read the full transcript, go here).

More than one reporter pointed out that those pieces of paper your press secretary waved at them yesterday mean nothing. Even if they aren't forged documents, getting paid does not necessarily mean you showed up to do your duties. As retired Army Col. Dan Smith, a 26-year veteran, told the AP:

"Pay records don't mean anything except that you're in or you're out," said Smith. "It doesn't necessarily reflect what duty you've actually performed because pay records simply record your unit of assignment and then all of your pay and benefits per pay period."

Mr. Bush, this issue is not going to go away -- and I think yesterday's actions just dug you into a deeper hole. You're probably wondering why the heck this story won't just die. You probably thought that after I brought it up last month and then got slammed by Peter Jennings for uttering the "d" word, the whole matter would just disappear as fast as bag of blow being thrown out the window of a speeding car on a deserted Maine highway.

But your "desertion" didn't go away -- and here's the reason why. You have sent countless numbers of our sons and daughters in the National Guard to their deaths in the last 11 months. You did this while misleading their parents and the nation with bogus lies about weapons of mass destruction and scary phony Saddam ties to al Qaeda. You sent them off to a never-ending war so that your benefactors at Halliburton and the oil companies could line their pockets. And then you had the audacity to prance around in a soldier's uniform on an aircraft carrier proclaiming "Mission Accomplished" -- while the cameras from your re-election campaign ad agency rolled.

THAT is what makes this whole business of you being AWOL so despicable, and makes the grief-stricken relatives want to turn away from you in disgust. The reason your skipping-out on your enlistment didn't matter in the 2000 election was because we were not at war. Being stuck in a deadly, daily quagmire now in 2004 makes your military history-fiction and your fly-boy costume VERY relevant.

You still have not answered the questions surrounding your National Guard "service." Let me repeat them as simply as I can for you (all of them based on the investigative work of the Associated Press and the Boston Globe):

1. How were you able to jump ahead of 500 other applicants to get into the Texas Air National Guard, thus guaranteeing you would not have to go to Vietnam? What calls did your father (who was then a United States Congressman representing Texas) make on your behalf for you to get this assignment?

2. Why were you grounded (not allowed to fly) after you either failed your physical or failed to take it in July 1972? Was there a reason you were afraid to take the physical? Or, did you take it and not pass it? If so, why didn't you pass it? Was it the urine test? The records show that, after the Guard spent years and lots of money training you to be a pilot, you never flew for the rest of your time in the Guard. Why?

3. Can you produce one person who can verify that he served with you in the Guard during the year that your Texas commanders said you did not show up? Why have you failed to bring forth anyone who served with you in the Guard while you were in Alabama? Why hasn't ONE SINGLE PERSON come forward?

4. Can you tell us what you did when you claim to have shown up in Alabama for Guard duty? What were you duties? You were grounded, so what did they have you do instead?

5. Where are the sign-up sheets that would have your name and service number on them for each weekend you showed up? Aaron Brown on CNN told us how, when he was in the reserves, he had to sign in each time he reported, and his guest from the Washington Post said, that's right, and there would be "four copies of that record" in the files of various agencies. Will you ask those agencies to release those records?

6. If you were in fact paid for that time when you apparently went AWOL, will you authorize the IRS to release your 1972-73 tax returns?

7. How did you get an honorable discharge? What strings were pulled? Who called who?

Look, I'm sorry to have put you through all this. I was just goofing around when I made that comment about wanting to see a debate between the general and the deserter. I had no idea that it would lead to this. And there you were, having to suffer through Tim Russert on Sunday, saying weird things like "I'm a war president!" I guess you believe that, or you want us to believe that. Americans have never voted out a Commander-in-Chief during a war. I guess that's what you're hoping for. You need the war.

But we don't. And our troops in the National Guard don't either. I know you see the writing on the wall, so why not come clean now? We are a forgiving people, and though you will not be returned to White House, you will find us grateful for a little bit of truth. Answer our questions, apologize to the nation, and bring our kids home.

Yours,

Michael Moore
Fast bastard, he needs an audit. :bash: Michael Moore

[German_American]

Is that all lies like all of his other **** he has ever done in his life. That fat bastard needs to have a heart attack.

[Rantanplan]

Is that all lies like all of his other **** he has ever done in his life. That fat bastard needs to have a heart attack.

Could you please list up the lies in this Open Letter. I'm just curious. Thanks.

[soma]

I respect the right to self opinion, but this guy has got to lose some weight. No one will respect or listen to a shaggy fat ass, who can't even dress himself decently.

[Salty Dog]

Is that all lies like all of his other **** he has ever done in his life. That fat bastard needs to have a heart attack.

i second that.

[German_American]

I dont know if he was lieing I was just asking because most of his other stuff has been proven false. Many people here have tons of info about how much that crack head lies so I'm sure they are going to post sooner or later.

[Sir Zach of R.]

The dude looks like a hobo. I mean c'mon, he's too arrogant to turn any heads besides duci's.

[Rantanplan]

I respect the right to self opinion, but this guy has got to lose some weight. No one will respect or listen to a shaggy fat ass, who can't even dress himself decently.

His weight? Wow, this is a great criterion for somebodys credibility. Realy.

[Dennis G]

Is that all lies like all of his other **** he has ever done in his life. That fat bastard needs to have a heart attack.

Could you please list up the lies in this Open Letter. I'm just curious. Thanks.

This might help


February 11, 2004 (67th anniversary of the Great Flint Sit-Down Strike)

Dear Mr. Bush,

Thank you for providing the illegible Xeroxed partial payroll sheets (or whatever they were) yesterday covering a few of your days in the National Guard. Now we know that, not only didn't you complete your tour of duty, you were actually paid for work you never did. Did you cash those checks? Wouldn't that be, um, illegal?

Watching the press aggressively demand the truth from your press secretary -- and refusing to accept the deceit, the dodging, and the cover-up -- was a sight to behold, something we really haven't seen since you took office (to watch or listen to the entire press conference, or to read the full transcript, go here).

More than one reporter pointed out that those pieces of paper your press secretary waved at them yesterday mean nothing. Even if they aren't forged documents, getting paid does not necessarily mean you showed up to do your duties. As retired Army Col. Dan Smith, a 26-year veteran, told the AP:

"Pay records don't mean anything except that you're in or you're out," said Smith. "It doesn't necessarily reflect what duty you've actually performed because pay records simply record your unit of assignment and then all of your pay and benefits per pay period."

Mr. Bush, this issue is not going to go away -- and I think yesterday's actions just dug you into a deeper hole. You're probably wondering why the heck this story won't just die. You probably thought that after I brought it up last month and then got slammed by Peter Jennings for uttering the "d" word, the whole matter would just disappear as fast as bag of blow being thrown out the window of a speeding car on a deserted Maine highway.

But your "desertion" didn't go away -- and here's the reason why. You have sent countless numbers of our sons and daughters in the National Guard to their deaths in the last 11 months. You did this while misleading their parents and the nation with bogus lies about weapons of mass destruction and scary phony Saddam ties to al Qaeda. You sent them off to a never-ending war so that your benefactors at Halliburton and the oil companies could line their pockets. And then you had the audacity to prance around in a soldier's uniform on an aircraft carrier proclaiming "Mission Accomplished" -- while the cameras from your re-election campaign ad agency rolled.

THAT is what makes this whole business of you being AWOL so despicable, and makes the grief-stricken relatives want to turn away from you in disgust. The reason your skipping-out on your enlistment didn't matter in the 2000 election was because we were not at war. Being stuck in a deadly, daily quagmire now in 2004 makes your military history-fiction and your fly-boy costume VERY relevant.

You still have not answered the questions surrounding your National Guard "service." Let me repeat them as simply as I can for you (all of them based on the investigative work of the Associated Press and the Boston Globe):

1. How were you able to jump ahead of 500 other applicants to get into the Texas Air National Guard, thus guaranteeing you would not have to go to Vietnam? What calls did your father (who was then a United States Congressman representing Texas) make on your behalf for you to get this assignment?

2. Why were you grounded (not allowed to fly) after you either failed your physical or failed to take it in July 1972? Was there a reason you were afraid to take the physical? Or, did you take it and not pass it? If so, why didn't you pass it? Was it the urine test? The records show that, after the Guard spent years and lots of money training you to be a pilot, you never flew for the rest of your time in the Guard. Why?

3. Can you produce one person who can verify that he served with you in the Guard during the year that your Texas commanders said you did not show up? Why have you failed to bring forth anyone who served with you in the Guard while you were in Alabama? Why hasn't ONE SINGLE PERSON come forward?

4. Can you tell us what you did when you claim to have shown up in Alabama for Guard duty? What were you duties? You were grounded, so what did they have you do instead?

5. Where are the sign-up sheets that would have your name and service number on them for each weekend you showed up? Aaron Brown on CNN told us how, when he was in the reserves, he had to sign in each time he reported, and his guest from the Washington Post said, that's right, and there would be "four copies of that record" in the files of various agencies. Will you ask those agencies to release those records?

6. If you were in fact paid for that time when you apparently went AWOL, will you authorize the IRS to release your 1972-73 tax returns?

7. How did you get an honorable discharge? What strings were pulled? Who called who?

Look, I'm sorry to have put you through all this. I was just goofing around when I made that comment about wanting to see a debate between the general and the deserter. I had no idea that it would lead to this. And there you were, having to suffer through Tim Russert on Sunday, saying weird things like "I'm a war president!" I guess you believe that, or you want us to believe that. Americans have never voted out a Commander-in-Chief during a war. I guess that's what you're hoping for. You need the war.

But we don't. And our troops in the National Guard don't either. I know you see the writing on the wall, so why not come clean now? We are a forgiving people, and though you will not be returned to White House, you will find us grateful for a little bit of truth. Answer our questions, apologize to the nation, and bring our kids home.

Yours,

Michael Moore

[Rantanplan]

This argument convinced me. Thanks. You are OK. http://home.htp-tel.de/svenreimann/smilies/ggg.gif

[memphiz]

wow, that was interesting. i had no idea GWB jr. was a pilot like his dad, except he didnt fight in battle. im just curious why Bush didnt fly in 'Nam?
i personally think that if a president decides to go to war he himself should have faught in a previous battle so he can understand what the troops are going through. such as George Bush sr. in WW2

[wholagun]

Wouldn't it be good to find out if he actually did do all those things? Or do you guys not care that Bush Jr may have done all those things. I get the impression that everyone defends Bush without question, sure thats good but to follow blindly thats not healthy for a democracy and open society. If he did do all those things should'nt he be punished? II don't care how good the leader of my country is if he did something illegal he should face justice. Its people like Micheal Moore that keep democracy alive and well, being a pest, and pecking away leader he ensures that there is transpericy in government and that leaders do not step out of line.

[SeanAshi]

Bill Clinton didn't even have the balls to join up, he was a draft dodger.

[wholagun]

Bill Clinton didn't even have the balls to join up, he was a draft dodger.

And US economy never did better, also Clinton was the only president who's popularity went up not down throughout his presidency even despite the monica lewinsky scadal. Not even Bush did this, Clinton is the only one he came in with about 52% and came out with 72% or something like that. Doesn't matter that Clinton wasn't a military guy what does that have to do with anyting, army has generals that go to war and plan missions and advise the president, predient doesn't have to be in military to know how to do the right thing.

[Merik]

Im just wondering but was Bush in college before or after he joined the National Guard? Because if you were in college during Vietnam you could not get drafted at all so why does it matter if he joined the NG to avoid the war(which Im not saying he did)? Dumbass politics.

[usa320]

He flew F-106's in the 70's- which that fact alone is part of the reason why he never went to war. By the 1970's the F-106 was on its way out, and no guard units, or even active units, flying the F-106 were deployed to nam... It wasnt an approprate plane for that war. The F-106 is an interceptor- made to take out soviet bombers from long range, not tangle with MiG's and SA-2's.

[SeanAshi]

Im just wondering but was Bush in college before or after he joined the National Guard?
I think President Bush graudated from Yale and Harvard before he went into the military, or it was Yale then the military then Harvard.

[Jack Mehoff]

You need a college degree before you become a LT and a pilot.

[Merik]

You need a college degree before you become a LT and a pilot.

No you dont, you can be enlisted and get a commision while still in. Then you have to go to OCS, etc., etc.

[SeanAshi]

Clinton was the only president who's popularity went up not down throughout his presidency even despite the monica lewinsky scadal. Wasn't just Monica, there was Linda Tripp and Paula Jones, and a whole list of others, maybe Bi Bi rubbed off on him ;) But Clintons morales and ethics are in the gutter

No you dont, you can be enlisted and get a commision while still in. Then you have to go to OCS, etc., etc.

What about Warrant Officer?

[Jack Mehoff]

You need a college degree before you become a LT and a pilot.

No you dont, you can be enlisted and get a commision while still in. Then you have to go to OCS, etc., etc.

eh?

What? You don't believe OCS requires college credits and you are not a LT UNTIL you finish OCS

You can also get a direct commission but that's an extremely rare case

[Merik]

Warrant Officer is one of those MOS's thats between commissioned and enlisted. They are the lesser of the evils basically. And yes you can more than defiantly fly being a WO but only in the Army. In fact there is a Flight School after High School Army program that gives enlistees the chance to take the flight exam and become warrant officers flying helos.

Jack I know several pilots that never went to college and became officers through OCS. Well actually thats not entirely true, they never COMPLETED college I should say. But they still became officers.

[Jack Mehoff]

Jack I know several pilots that never went to college and became officers through OCS. Well actually thats not entirely true, they never COMPLETED college I should say. But they still became officers.


There's a waiver. The military give you certain amount of time before you finish your degree. If you don't get your degree within that given time frame, they will take away your bar.

I'm not entirely sure about this but this is what i heard

[MetalBoy]

Does anybody else find it ironic that the guys who scream the loudest about this (non)issue are the same kinds of people who would cream their pants to praise the courageousness of cowards like Private First Class Hinzman, Jeremy D, people who actually do desert?

[Seiyuuki]

Bill Clinton didn't even have the balls to join up, he was a draft dodger.

And US economy never did better, also Clinton was the only president who's popularity went up not down throughout his presidency even despite the monica lewinsky scadal. Not even Bush did this, Clinton is the only one he came in with about 52% and came out with 72% or something like that. Doesn't matter that Clinton wasn't a military guy what does that have to do with anyting, army has generals that go to war and plan missions and advise the president, predient doesn't have to be in military to know how to do the right thing.

A lot of people forget that along with the title "President," there is also the title "Commander-in-Chief - The supreme commander of all the armed forces of a nation or the officer commanding a major armed force (Definition provided by www.dictionary.com (http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=commander%20in%20chief))."



Personally, I would think a role like that require some military experience.

[SeanAshi]

Personally, I would think a role like that require some military experience
Absolutely, I know the number is low but how many US Presidents haven't served in the military?

[budanski]

The Gang That Couldn’t Shoot Straight: Dems Off Target on Bush AWOL Charge

mensnewsdaily.com (http://mensnewsdaily.com/archive/o/oconnell/2004/oconnell021304.htm)

February 13, 2004
by Brian O'Connell

It’s almost Valentine’s Day, and the fair and balanced national media is once again wooing Terry McAuliffe and the Democratic National Committee with an “all hands on deck” assault on President Bush and his military record.

Okay, that’s no story. It’s not exactly front-page news when the national media starts singing from the DNC hymnal. The real story is how the media has fallen for the woefully misreported story of Bush and his National Guard service spoon-fed to them by Democratic party operatives. Worse, in reporting the story, the media has failed miserably, as Tom Daschle might say, in getting the facts right on this story.

I have my problems with Mr. Bush these days – the absence of WMD's, exorbitant budget spending, a leaky immigration policy vessel, for starters. But the national guard story is nothing more than a partisan political fantasy concocted by Michael "The Next Fact I Get Right Will Be the First" Moore and that serial election loser Terry McAuliffe. The fawning national media is only too happy to carry water for the likes of Moore and McAuliffe, with an investigative journalist performance that would shame a high school newspaper reporter.

Here are the facts that the media couldn’t be bothered to check . . .

The AWOL imbroglio was triggered by Walter Robinson, a writer for my hometown paper The Boston Globe in 2000. Robinson interviewed Alabama Air National Guard General William Turnipseed, who ran the base at the time in question. Based on his interview with Turnipseed, and some baseless accusations by left-wing Internet provocateurs, Robinson questioned Bush's service record while he was in Alabama.

But Robinson had evidently engaged in some sloppy reporting -- at least Turnipseed thought so. The general responded to the piece by saying that Robinson -- like most members of the media -- had no clue as to how the military and the National Guard operated. He said that Bush was NEVER assigned to a unit at Alabama and was never ordered to do so. Bush was, in fact, still a member of the Texas National Guard during his stay in Alabama to run a political campaign. According to the excellent article “The Real Military Record of George W. Bush: Not Heroic, but Not AWOL Either” (http://web.archive.org/web/20001202233300/http://www2.georgemag.com/bush.html) that appeared in the October 10, 200 issue of George magazine.

Bush did try to apply for Alabama Air National Guard status, in spring, 1972 but was rejected on the grounds that the base did not offer duties that were equivalent to his duties in the Texas Air National Guard.

Later in 1972, in September, Bush was given the courtesy by the AANG of fly times and drill schedules so he could earn some extra credit while in Alabama (which he took limited advantage of but enough to secure the points he needed to satisfy his national guard obligations). But attendance, Turnipseed has said (and the Texas National Guard confirms this) was never compulsory. So, how can you be "AWOL" as McCauliffe carelessly states, when you have nothing to be AWOL from?

What's worse, few major media outlets (in fact, I haven't seen any) even went back to ask Turnipseed to get the story straight. One exception is The Globe’s Robinson, who has recants the charges in a recent story in the newspaper.

I also don't think it's fair that the left's hatred for Bush has resulted in an unwarranted smear campaign against the guy – enthusiastically aided and abetted by the supposedly objective media. Watching NBC's David Gregory and ABC's Terry Moran waving pom-poms on behalf of the Democratic National Committee's at a fractious White House press conference on February 10 was appalling. All they had to do was to gather the facts. Instead they seemingly relied on DNC talking points on the “story” to hammer beleaguered White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan

I understand the lefty media’s frustration -- a president that liberals' deem dim-witted and slow has, in 36 months, ousted two terrorist regimes, put others on notice (hello Libya; you too Syria, Iran and North Korea), brought the economy back from one of the US's worst recessions ever; cemented GOP majorities in the US House, US Senate and state governor offices, and has kept America safe from terrorists since 9/11. For Americans who view politics through a 9/11 prism, Bush is a fighter. That's an attractive quality in a President these days.

But to squander a legitimate political issue (the National Guard story has pushed the WMD disaster off the front pages and now the Kerry intern issue will continue to do so) in favor of a libelous, baseless accusation against Bush's military service is a dumb move by Democrats, with or without the aid of the press. The backlash issue alone will hurt whoever wins the party’s presidential nomination, never mind letting Bush off the hook and off the front pages on the WMD issue. That story had traction – but the Democrats chose to move on. Terry McAuliffe wouldn’t make much of a poker player -- he'd fold on two aces and go all in on a four and a six off suit..

Ultimately, the Bush AWOL story is a fantasy, right up there with the existence of the tooth fairy and the ability of leprechauns to locate gold. Yet it worries me that the media once again overlooks the facts to sharpen its teeth on the ankles of a public figure and smear his reputation. Bush, like Hillary Clinton or any one else, is fair game if you do a little digging and have the facts. But if you don't even try to dig up an easy paper trail, or worse, ignore the facts uncovered by that paper trail, and attack anyway, then the inmates are truly running the asylum.

The American public must think we in the media are all incompetent at best or vicious partisans at worst. And by the evidence presented in the national guard story, you really can't blame them.

[soma]

I respect the right to self opinion, but this guy has got to lose some weight. No one will respect or listen to a shaggy fat ass, who can't even dress himself decently.

His weight? Wow, this is a great criterion for somebodys credibility. Realy.

Yeah because we all know people don't care about others appearance, just their opinion :roll:

[Cael]

That's a nice article.


I understand the lefty media’s frustration -- a president that liberals' deem dim-witted and slow has, in 36 months, ousted two terrorist regimes, put others on notice (hello Libya; you too Syria, Iran and North Korea), brought the economy back from one of the US's worst recessions ever; cemented GOP majorities in the US House, US Senate and state governor offices, and has kept America safe from terrorists since 9/11. For Americans who view politics through a 9/11 prism, Bush is a fighter. That's an attractive quality in a President these days.

[Cael]

The Original Story (Published 10/10/00)
The Real Military Record of George W. Bush: Not Heroic, but Not AWOL, Either
By Peter Keating and Karthik Thyagarajan


For more than a year, controversy about George W. Bush's Air National Guard record has bubbled through the press. Interest in the topic has spiked in recent days, as at least two websites have launched stories essentially calling Bush AWOL in 1972 and 1973. For example, in "Finally, the Truth about Bush's Military Record" on TomPaine.com, Marty Heldt writes, "Bush's long absence from the records comes to an end one week after he failed to comply with an order to attend 'Annual Active Duty Training' starting at the end of May 1973... Nothing indicates in the records that he ever made up the time he missed." And in Bush's Military Record Reveals Grounding and Absence for Two Full Years" on Democrats.com, Robert A. Rogers states: "Bush never actually reported in person for the last two years of his service - in direct violation of two separate written orders."

Neither is correct.

It's time to set the record straight. The following analysis, which relies on National Guard documents, extensive interviews with military officials and previously unpublished evidence of Bush's whereabouts in the summer and fall of 1972, is the first full chronology of Bush's military record. Its basic conclusions: Bush may have received favorable treatment to get into the Guard, served irregularly after the spring of 1972 and got an expedited discharge, but he did accumulate the days of service required of him for his ultimate honorable discharge.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

At the Republican convention in Philadelphia, George W. Bush declared: "Our military is low on parts, pay and morale. If called on by the commander-in-chief today, two entire divisions of the Army would have to report, 'Not ready for duty, sir.'" Bush says he is the candidate who can "rebuild our military and prepare our armed forces for the future." On what direct military experience does he make such claims?

George W. Bush applied to join the Texas Air National Guard on May 27, 1968, less than two weeks before he graduated from Yale University. The country was at war in Vietnam, and at that time, just months after the bloody Tet Offensive, an estimated 100,000 Americans were on waiting lists to join Guard units across the country. Bush was sworn in on the day he applied.

Ben Barnes, former speaker of the Texas House of Representatives, stated in September 1999 that in late 1967 or early 1968, he asked a senior official in the Texas Air National Guard to help Bush get into the Guard as a pilot. Barnes said he did so at the behest of Sidney Adger, a Houston businessman and friend of former President George H. W. Bush, then a Texas congressman. Despite Barnes's admission, former President Bush has denied pulling strings for his son, and retired Colonel Walter Staudt, George W. Bush's first commander, insists: "There was no special treatment."

The younger Bush fulfilled two years of active duty and completed pilot training in June 1970. During that time and in the two years that followed, Bush flew the F-102, an interceptor jet equipped with heat-seeking missiles that could shoot down enemy planes. His commanding officers and peers regarded Bush as a competent pilot and enthusiastic Guard member. In March 1970, the Texas Air National Guard issued a press release trumpeting his performance: "Lt. Bush recently became the first Houston pilot to be trained by the 147th [Fighter Group] and to solo in the F-102... Lt. Bush said his father was just as excited and enthusiastic about his solo flight as he was." In Bush's evaluation for the period May 1, 1971 through April 30, 1972, then-Colonel Bobby Hodges, his commanding officer, stated, "I have personally observed his participation, and without exception, his performance has been noteworthy." In the spring of 1972, however, National Guard records show a sudden dropoff in Bush's military activity. Though trained as a pilot at considerable government expense, Bush stopped flying in April 1972 and never flew for the Guard again.

Around that time, Bush decided to go to work for Winton "Red" Blount, a Republican running for the U.S. Senate, in Alabama. Documents from Ellington Air Force Base in Houston state that Bush "cleared this base on 15 May." Shortly afterward, he applied for assignment to the 9921st Air Reserve Squadron in Montgomery, Ala., a unit that required minimal duty and offered no pay. Although that unit's commander was willing to welcome him, on May 31 higher-ups at the Air Reserve Personnel Center in Denver rejected Bush's request to serve at the 9921st, because it did not offer duty equivalent to his service in Texas. "[A]n obligated Reservist [in this case, Bush] can be assigned to a specific Ready Reserve position only," noted the disapproval memo, a copy of which was sent to Bush. "Therefore, he is ineligible for assignment to an Air Reserve Squadron."

Despite the military's decision, Bush moved to Alabama. Records obtained by Georegemag.com show that the Blount Senate campaign paid Bush about $900 a month from mid-May through mid-November to do advance work and organize events. Neither Bush's annual evaluation nor the Air National Guard's overall chronological listing of his service contain any evidence that he performed Guard duties during that summer.

On or around his 27th birthday, July 6, 1972, Bush did not take his required annual medical exam at his Texas unit. As a consequence, he was suspended from flying military jets. Bush spokesperson Dan Bartlett told Georgemag.com: "You take that exam because you are flying, and he was not flying. The paperwork uses the phrase 'suspended from flying,' but he had no intention of flying at that time."

Some media reports have speculated that Bush took and failed his physical, or that he was grounded as a result of substance abuse. Bush's vagueness on the subject of his past drug use has only abetted such rumors. Bush's commanding officer in Texas, however, denies the charges. "His flying status was suspended because he didn't take the exam,not because he couldn't pass," says Hodges. Asked whether Bush was ever disciplined for using alcohol or illicit drugs, Hodges replied: "No."

On September 5, Bush wrote to then-Colonel Jerry Killian at his original unit in Texas, requesting permission to serve with the 187th Tactical Reconnaisance Group, another Alabama-based unit. "This duty would be for the months of September, October, and November," wrote Bush.

This time his request was approved: 10 days later, the Alabama Guard ordered Bush to report to then-Lieutenant Colonel William Turnipseed at Dannelly Air Force Base in Montgomery on October 7th and 8th. The memo noted that "Lieutenant Bush will not be able to satisfy his flight requirements with our group," since the 187th did not fly F-102s.

The question of whether Bush ever actually served in Alabama has become an issue in the 2000 campaign-the Air Force Times recently reported that "the GOP is trying to locate people who served with Bush in late 1972 ... to see if they can confirm that Bush briefly served with the Alabama Air National Guard." Bush's records contain no evidence that he reported to Dannelly in October. And in telephone interviews with Georgemag.com, neither Turnipseed, Bush's commanding officer, nor Kenneth Lott, then chief personnel officer of the 187th, remembered Bush serving with their unit. "I don't think he showed up," Turnipseed said.

Bush maintains he did serve in Alabama. "Governor Bush specifically remembers pulling duty in Montgomery and respectfully disagrees with the Colonel," says Bartlett. "There's no question it wasn't memorable, because he wasn't flying." In July, the Decatur Daily reported that two former Blount campaign workers recall Bush serving in the Alabama Air National Guard in the fall of 1972. "I remember he actually came back to Alabama for about a week to 10 days several weeks after the campaign was over to complete his Guard duty in the state," stated Emily Martin, a former Alabama resident who said she dated Bush during the time he spent in that state.

After the 1972 election, which Blount lost, Bush moved back to Houston and subsequently began working at P.U.L.L., a community service center for disadvantaged youths. This period of time has also become a matter of controversy, because even though Bush's original unit had been placed on alert duty in October 1972, his superiors in Texas lost track of his whereabouts. On May 2, 1973, Bush's squadron leader in the 147th, Lieutenant Colonel William Harris, Jr. wrote: "Lt. Bush has not been observed at this unit" for the past year. Harris incorrectly assumed that Bush had been reporting for duty in Alabama all along. He wrote that Bush "has been performing equivalent training in a non-flying status with the 187 Tac Recon Gp, Dannelly ANG Base, Alabama." Base commander Hodges says of Bush's return to Texas: "All I remember is someone saying he came back and made up his days."

Two documents obtained by Georgemag.com indicate that Bush did make up the time he missed during the summer and autumn of 1972. One is an April 23, 1973 order for Bush to report to annual active duty training the following month; the other is an Air National Guard statement of days served by Bush that is torn and undated but contains entries that correspond to the first. Taken together, they appear to establish that Bush reported for duty on nine occasions between November 29, 1972-when he could have been in Alabama-and May 24, 1973. Bush still wasn't flying, but over this span, he did earn nine points of National Guard service from days of active duty and 32 from inactive duty. When added to the 15 so-called "gratuitous" points that every member of the Guard got per year, Bush accumulated 56 points, more than the 50 that he needed by the end of May 1973 to maintain his standing as a Guardsman.

On May 1, Bush was ordered to report for further active duty training, and documents show that he proceeded to cram in another 10 sessions over the next two months. Ultimately, he racked up 19 active duty points of service and 16 inactive duty points by July 30-which, added to his 15 gratuitous points, achieved the requisite total of 50 for the year ending in May 1974.

On October 1, 1973, First Lieutenant George W. Bush received an early honorable discharge so that he could attend Harvard Business School. He was credited with five years, four months and five days of service toward his six-year service obligation.

[SOG]

And US economy never did better, also Clinton was the only president who's popularity went up not down throughout his presidency even despite the monica lewinsky scadal. Not even Bush did this, Clinton is the only one he came in with about 52% and came out with 72% or something like that. Doesn't matter that Clinton wasn't a military guy what does that have to do with anyting, army has generals that go to war and plan missions and advise the president, predient doesn't have to be in military to know how to do the right thing.


"cough cough"



Gallup poll: Clinton popularity at all-time low
March 9, 2001
Web posted at: 1:36 PM EST (1836 GMT)

PRINCETON, N.J. (CNN) -- The popularity of former President Clinton has plunged in the wake of the pardons controversy to the lowest level ever, results of the latest Gallup Poll showed Friday, while his successor's (GEORGE BUSH) approval ratings have soared just as dramatically.

In a poll conducted Monday through Wednesday of this week, only 39 percent of respondents said they have a favorable opinion of the former president, while 59 percent said they have an unfavorable opinion of him. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

Clinton's previous low favorable rating was 42 percent, reached in early August 2000 and matched in a poll taken February 19-21, the Gallup Organization said. His previous high unfavorable rating was 55 percent in the February poll.

His favorable rating has fallen 18 percent since early December, while his unfavorable rating has risen by the same amount.

By contrast, the public's opinion of President Bush has climbed since Election Day. In this week's poll, 69 percent of respondents expressed a favorable opinion of Bush while only 28 percent were unfavorable. That compares with 53 percent favorable and 43 percent unfavorable in a poll taken Nov. 13-15, Gallup said.


"cough cough cough"



Surplus was there, prior to 9/11 and was already depleting prior to Bush's term.

Recession Began With Clinton, Says JEC
Quote:
"The death-drop of the stock market did not begin with the Bush administration in January 2001, says the congressional Joint Economic Committee (JEC), but in March 2000 under the Clinton administration when it began its all-out attack on the entrepreneurs of the booming U.S. high-tech industry. Indeed, The Economist reports that this poisoning of the economic stream even may have begun in the late 1990s. According to JEC Chairman Rep. Jim Saxton, "The 2000 NASDAQ collapse also corroborates a variety of other data indicating that a sharp economic slowdown was under way by the middle of 2000."


Joint Economic Committee's Website.

The JEC also found that job losses began under Clinton as well:
Quote:
"Virtually all of the net payroll job loss in recent years is accounted for by the manufacturing sector, and this decline in factory jobs began before the current Administration took office, Vice Chairman Jim Saxton said today. Opponents of the Administration have repeatedly claimed that its policies have caused the decline in manufacturing employment, but fail to explain how this trend began long before any changes in policy took place. The facts show that manufacturing employment reached a cyclical peak in 1998, trending downward thereafter. Consecutive monthly declines in manufacturing employment began in 2000. Moreover, manufacturing employment has been trending downward over a much longer period."

"cough..... ah, thats better."

[martinexsquaddie]

Basically jumped the queue to get a nice cushy number and stay out of the Draft thanks to connections.
personally I have more respect for someone who burned his draft card and said hell NO I won't go at least somebody like that took a stand.
Good o'l Bill snuck out the country and george found himself a safe billet niether took any risks

[Hullebullen]

Well, the way I see it, a president is bound to have advisors on military issues, right? It's not likely that he would start a war without discussing at least with some other people. Would a Delta guy make a better president than someone who worked as a company clerk. And would a company clerk make a better president than someone without any army experience at all. Me thinks not necessarily...

[German_American]

SOG thank you for clearing that up.

[scm77]

Does the Michael Moore honestly think that the President is going to do everything he asks? He needs to shut his fat ass up. :-*$

[bison]

please remember that commander in chief is a civilian position... giving the president direct military power is a bad idea (veit..cough..cough..nam)