REMF Pub Congressman Promoted (Dying is for the common people)

[blackcat77]

As Rep. Steve Buyer stood today in the Oval Office, President Bush removed the Indiana congressman's silver oak leaves from his Army Reserve uniform and replaced them with silver eagle pins that designated his promotion to full colonel.

Bush pinned one eagle on Buyer's left shoulder, and Buyer's wife, Joni, pinned the other to his right during the private White House ceremony.

(...)

"It's a political ploy that will help him out in the election because they want to keep him in office," said Dennis Hardy, a Danville Republican.

Hardy, an adjunct professor at Ivy Tech State College, is an Army veteran and a member of the National Guard.

Hardy has accused Buyer of lying last year about being called to active duty to serve in Iraq.

Buyer took an indefinite leave from Congress in 2003, saying he had been called to active duty.

But after about two weeks, Army officials told Buyer they could meet their needs without him and did not want to jeopardize his or others' safety by sending a congressman to a war zone.

(...)

"This is his way of getting attention from the president to overshadow the fact that he lied to the speaker of the House about being mobilized," Hardy said of the White House ceremony.

Buyer has defended the president from Democratic attacks on Bush's National Guard duty. Buyer also has accused Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry of not having a record of support for members of the military and veterans.

Buyer said it was "out of bounds" to ask him whether the White House ceremony was connected to either his re-election or the president's campaign.

The White House did not respond to requests for comment.

http://www.indystar.com/articles/5/142404-7935-102.html