Bush pledges to release Nat. Guard files, all of 'em!

[nixonwasbetterthanW]

time to hold his feet to the fire!

...
Russert: When allegations were made about John McCain or Wesley Clark on their military records, they opened up their entire files. Would you agree to do that?

President Bush: Yeah. Listen, these files I mean, people have been looking for these files for a long period of time, trust me, and starting in the 1994 campaign for governor. And I can assure you in the year 2000 people were looking for those files as well. Probably you were. And absolutely. I mean, I

Russert: But would you allow pay stubs, tax records, anything to show that you were serving during that period?

President Bush: Yeah. If we still have them, but I you know, the records are kept in Colorado, as I understand, and they scoured the records.

[imax2268]

1. I won't hold my breath...

just like the outing of the CIA agent...still waiting for something on that one...

[Catshrink]

2. "They scoured the records"

yeah, they cleaned 'em up.

Where are the records, Chimpy????

[tabasco]

3. Yeah, that's the ticket, the records are in Colorado!

But ya' know there's a lot of avalanches and other disasters in that area, yeah, THAT'S THE TICKET ! An avalanche! Destroyed 'em all, doggone it.

[GreatCaesarsGhost]

28. anyone know why he was discharged in CO?

he must have been assigned there, so how did he get to the colorado national guard?

[59millionmorons]

4. Yeah. If we still have them

Yo8u will not find these for sure.

[Jackpine Radical]

5. I didn't watch MTP (couldn't bring myself to)--but he SAID that?

"They scoured the records?"

[maddezmom]

9. he meant, we scrubbed the records clean

[rock]

22. Yes, but by a slip of the tongue

he told the truth.

[DAGDA56]

12. yeah, like it's öld news

Ï felt as if he was saying they tried and couldn't find any records...actually, almost a challenge to Tim and his "reporter buddies"to try and find W's military records...meaning no records=no story...of all the hundreds of thousands who served in the Guard, his are the records that got lost? He seemd pretty confident of it, too...

[kskiska]

25. Funny how his Texas driving records

were lost, too. Chalk it up to bad luck, I guess.

How did he know the records were in Colorado? He must have gone out of his way to find out at some point. This isn't something he would have offhandedly known.

[qanda]

6. Wow! That sounds very damning.

More or less, the records are gone!

[maddezmom]

7. sure, he'll open them up

because he knows they don't exist. Where are the people that served with him, why aren't they either backing him up or calling him out. makes me:puke:

[Katarina]

8. "Yeah. If we still have them"

and there ya go. If we still have them. :mad:

[teach1st]

10. It'll take a few weeks to "duplicate" the record, but they'll show... N/T

[Wickerman]

11. But would you allow pay stubs, tax records,

and Bush goes back to military records. Where are the tax records?

[DAGDA56]

14. Taxes?

We don'pay no stinkin'taxes!

[priller]

13. He said, 'btw, we did this in 2000'

Is he claiming that they released all his NG records in 2000? That's most definitely NOT the case.

[Dudley_DUright]

15. Thanks, I was just about to point out this big stinking lie myself

He is talking like the records have already been scrubbed ("scoured), which of course we know is true.

[salin]

16. If I recall in 2000 - the response was... that was looked at in 1994

in order to dismiss it. And it worked. Thing is, it finally is reemerging - and they can't play the same dodge. Something to do with a growing, gaping credibility gap. That's called accountability, George, when you lie and spin repeatedly, suddenly fewer folks just "take your word for it." You earned it - now live with it.

[dusty64]

17. This ought to be interesting

when all the records turn up missing. I think that should say it all.

[Torgo4]

18. Check Thread--Bush Honorable Discharge Is A Local Document

He technically had several months remaining on his contract. The National guard Discharge published was executed at his "unit" in Texas, then his records were shipped the Air Reserve Personnel Center in Colorado.
Note, Bush didn't even sign his Texas discharge paper (member unavailable to sign)!
His records are now at ARPERCEN in St. Louis, and even if the Texas microfiche was "scrubbed," ARPERCEN should have all of the original documents, including his FINAL discharge issued by Uncle Sam!

Just gotta hope that none of Bush's pirates got in there and "scrubbed' those records as well, 'cause they sure couldn't have done it before he was President.

[Cooley Hurd]

19. Missing military records are NOT the norm...

In an interview recently, fmr Sec of the Navy James Webb said that, in regards to Shrub's missing records, that it was basically unheard of for the military to lose records...

[Catshrink]

20. Here's the whole response on AWOL -- he didn't answer the question!

Russert: And we are back in the Oval Office talking to the President of the United States.

Mr. President, this campaign is fully engaged. The chairman of the Democratic National Committee, Terence McAuliffe, said this last week: "I look forward to that debate when John Kerry, a war hero with a chest full of medals, is standing next to George Bush, a man who was AWOL in the Alabama National Guard. He didn't show up when he should have showed up."

President Bush: Yeah.

Russert: How do you respond?

President Bush: Political season is here. I was I served in the National Guard. I flew F 102 aircraft. I got an honorable discharge. I've heard this I've heard this ever since I started running for office. I I put in my time, proudly so.

I would be careful to not denigrate the Guard. It's fine to go after me, which I expect the other side will do. I wouldn't denigrate service to the Guard, though, and the reason I wouldn't, is because there are a lot of really fine people who served in the National Guard and who are serving in the National Guard today in Iraq.

Russert: The Boston Globe and the Associated Press have gone through some of their records and said there’s no evidence that you reported to duty in Alabama during the summer and fall of 1972.

President Bush: Yeah, they re they're just wrong. There may be no evidence, but I did report; otherwise, I wouldn't have been honorably discharged. In other words, you don't just say "I did something" without there being verification. Military doesn't work that way. I got an honorable discharge, and I did show up in Alabama.

Russert: You did were allowed to leave eight months before your term expired. Was there a reason?

President Bush: Right. Well, I was going to Harvard Business School and worked it out with the military.

Russert: When allegations were made about John McCain or Wesley Clark on their military records, they opened up their entire files. Would you agree to do that?

President Bush: Yeah. Listen, these files I mean, people have been looking for these files for a long period of time, trust me, and starting in the 1994 campaign for governor. And I can assure you in the year 2000 people were looking for those files as well. Probably you were. And absolutely. I mean, I

Russert: But would you allow pay stubs, tax records, anything to show that you were serving during that period?

President Bush: Yeah. If we still have them, but I you know, the records are kept in Colorado, as I understand, and they scoured the records.

And I'm just telling you, I did my duty, and it's politics, you know, to kind of ascribe all kinds of motives to me. But I have been through it before. I'm used to it. What I don't like is when people say serving in the Guard is is may not be a true service.

Russert: Would you authorize the release of everything to settle this?

President Bush: Yes, absolutely.

We did so in 2000, by the way.

Russert: Were you favor of the war in Vietnam?

President Bush: I supported my government. I did. And would have gone had my unit been called up, by the way.

Russert: But you didn't volunteer or enlist to go.

President Bush: No, I didn't. You're right. I served. I flew fighters and enjoyed it, and we provided a service to our country. In those days we had what was called "Air Defense Command," and it was part of the air defense command system.

The thing about the Vietnam War that troubles me as I look back was it was a political war. We had politicians making military decisions, and it is lessons that any president must learn, and that is to the set the goal and the objective and allow the military to come up with the plans to achieve that objective. And those are essential lessons to be learned from the Vietnam War.


Oh yeah, I'm convinced.

[Toots]

27. without there being verification. Military doesn't work that way.

I agree so show us the records. Remember the Military doesn't work that way. They have records ask them to open them and on another note so does the IRS. We need to see those records as well. We will not accept they somehow went missing To many of your past records have somehow gone missing

[0007]

21. Didn't junior said the same thing about Harken Oil?

You can examine the Harken files anytime. Then Harken closed their files for anyone to see.

[Raster]

23. rhetorical question: Why is it the complete service records...

...of just about any male who served in ANY military capacity, NG included, can be located, but not for $hrub?

Hmmm....????

And I REALLY don't like the use of the word "scoured."

[Skittles]

26. EXCUSE ME

YOU COULD FIND MY MILITARY RECORDS AND I AM FEMALE.

[TacticalPeek]

24. Actually, thanks to Timmy's suckup-style questions, and lack of

followup, this morning's session leaves this matter exactly where it was last night.

Bottom line of the Bushit quoted above: everything is just like it was "in the year 2000", everybody's already looked for records, there will only be new material released "if we still have them", which "we" won't.

Timmy must have spent a blissful Saturday night with Mark Racicot. When aWol got his hackles up about people dissing the Guard, and said again that he "flew fighter jets", the blindingly obvious next questions would be "Then why did you not fly fighter jets the last two years of your hitch despite the expensive training you had received; why were you grounded from flying, why did you refuse to take the required physical, etc.?"

Russert used the only one-on-one interview with aWol about this matter to leave the controversy exactly where it was before the interview, which is exactly where Rove wants it: in deniability land.

[Moderator]

29. Locking

Rules to start discussion threads in the General Discussion forum.

...

7. Discussion topics that mention any or all of the Democratic presidential primary candidates are not permitted in the General Discussion forum, and instead must be posted in the General Discussion: 2004 Primary forum.

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