Former Dannelly worker: Bush not AWOL [another eyewitness steps forward]

THE DECATUR DAILY ^ | 2.16.04 | Eric Fleischauer

[Servant of the 9]

At that time, GHWB was just a former Representative from Houston, who had lost a race for the Senate and no one but Houston Republicans (there weren't many then) knew who any of them were.

So9

[Hon]

That makes FOUR eyewitnesses.

(As I've mentioned, there are exactly ZERO eyewitnesses to the event for which Kerry got a Silver Star.)

[ambrose]

Four?

I am aware of LeFevers, Calhoun, and now Copeland. Who is the 4th?

[demlosers]

Hey McAuliffe! Are you going to retract your AWOL accusation?

[SolidSupplySide]

John Anderson, a doctor who recalls examining Lt. Bush.

[hoosiermama]

Don't hold your breath!

[RobRoy]

The last two quoted questions in the article do need to be addressed. Or have they already been?

[EllaMinnow]

lookee here:

HMMMMM [Rich Lowry]
John Kerry last night disavowed any interest in attacking President Bush over his National Guard record: “I have suggested to some people who are my advocates who've gone that line of attack, it's not one that I plan to do, it's not one I have. I don't plan to do that and I've asked them not to,” he said. “But the president has to speak for his own military record. And those of you in the news media, obviously, have asked questions about it, and that's where I'll let it sit.”

But according to the Washington Post yesterday, Kerry aides were furious at Terry McAuliffe for raising the Guard issue – because he was doing it too soon for their purposes and in what they thought was a clumsy way:

"When Democratic National Committee Chairman Terence R. McAuliffe went on television two weeks ago to accuse President Bush as a young man of being 'AWOL' in his National Guard duty, party officials quickly heard complaints from the staff of presidential candidate Sen. John F. Kerry (Mass.).

Kerry aides were not upset about McAuliffe's negative tone, Democratic sources said. Instead, they were worried that the party chairman had raised the charge too early -- preventing Kerry from making more effective use of a potent issue later this year if he is the Democratic nominee…

Impugning Bush's patriotism with loaded terms such as 'AWOL' may muddy the real issue, Lockhart said. 'I didn't agree with the chairman of my party on that,' he said.

A Kerry aide said campaign advisers did not agree either, and called the DNC after McAuliffe's appearance on ABC's 'This Week.' But several Democratic sources said those calls were not about the substance of the charge, but about tactical factors. These officials said Kerry's team thought it better to have a veteran make any allegations about Bush's service, and they preferred to keep in reserve the contrast between Kerry's Vietnam combat duty and Bush's alleged absenteeism until Kerry had the Democratic nomination assured.

http://www.nationalreview.com/thecorner/corner.asp

[Polybius]

Years ago, my wife once performed one of her monthly Navy Reserve drills in Miami instead of in San Diego because we were visiting my realtives there at the time. I am sure that nobody from the C.O. of the Miami unit to the lowest E-1 would remember her today.

If my wife ever runs for President as a Republican, the news media will label her as having been AWOL or being a deserter.

If my wife ever runs for President as a Democrat, the news media will gush over her and hail her as a military heroine.

[YaYa123]

I just finished watching as much as I could stand of HARDBALL. Mathews is doing his whole show on VietNam. Well, that's what he said...actually he's doing a show on the cowardice of George Bush for going in the National Guard to avoid Viet Nam.

Chris Mathews is one sick dude!

[cyncooper]

Thanks to Rich Lowry who has been extremely strong of late. For several months now.

The media makes me sick with their "Kerry's stayed above the fray" attitude regarding the National Guard issue. Everything Kerry has said has kept it alive, just as when Clark declined to denounce Moore's use of the term "deserter". Both Clark and Kerry are former military men who well know the meaning of the terms "AWOL" and "deserter", yet they dare to allow the term to be used against the President of the United States without a murmur of protest.

I despise Kerry and his cowardly ways. I have never heard him say one gracious thing about President Bush.

[alnick]

So we're up to six eye witnesses to GWB serving in Alabama:

Calhoun
the girlfriend
LaFever
the doctor
Holcombe
Copeland

[KQQL]

MEDIA to BUSH...NOT GOOD ENOUGH...We want more.......Proof.

[jwalsh07]

Ddi Mathews stand up and brand himself a yellow coward for never having worn a uniform?

[cyncooper]

And just now Chris Matthews asks Doug Brinkley to compare the Kerry/Bush military records and Matthews pretends George Bush's Guard experience is exemplified by his Alabama stint.

Chris refuses to acknowledge the skill and yes, bravery, that George W. Bush displayed flying a fighter jet. Instead Matthews acts like "eating a sandwich" and reading magazines was the whole of Bush's Guard career.

[cyncooper]

Chris would say "that's different" as he's not sending troops off to war.

That's what he and the other media are crafting the argument around.

[Hon]

Kerry disappeared behind the hootch and came back with the rocket launcher over his head, saying he had dispatched the VC.

You can look it up.

[jwalsh07]

I know but I'm not buying the garbage he's selling. Of course he wasn't selling that garbage in '92 and '96 becuase his intellectual honesty list is about as long as his DD214.