Eye Witnesses (Four Who Remember Bush Serving in Alabama)

Bush Served Honorably ^

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Eye Witnesses

The following people have come forward and can confirm for us that George W. Bush was fulfilling his guard duty in Alabama.

Eye Witness #1

James Anderson was a physician for the Montgomery-based 187th Tactical Reconnaissance Group. His son, Montgomery physician Noble Anderson, said his father performed a routine examination on Bush at Dannelly Air National Guard base in 1972.

The military doctor says that Lt. Col. John “Bill” Calhoun brought Bush by his office for an exam, Noble Anderson said. James Anderson could not remember which month he saw Bush, only that it was some time in 1972. (Source: Jessica M. Walker, “Doctor Recalls Treating Bush,” Feb. 15, 2004, Montgomery Advertiser)

Eye Witness #2

Lt. Col. John “Bill” Calhoun that he remembers George W. Bush showing up for duty in Alabama in 1972, reading safety magazines and flight manuals in an office as he performed his weekend obligations.

“I saw him each drill period,” retired Lt. Col. John “Bill” Calhoun said. “He was very aggressive about doing his duty there. He never complained about it. ... He was very dedicated to what he was doing in the Guard. He showed up on time and he left at the end of the day.”

The 69-year-old president of an Atlanta insulation company said Bush showed up for work at Dannelly Air National Guard Base for drills on at least six occasions. Bush and Calhoun had both been trained as fighter pilots, and Calhoun said the two would swap “war stories” and even eat lunch together on base.

“He sat in my office most of the time he would read,” Calhoun said. “He had your training manuals from your aircraft he was flying. He'd study those some. He'd read safety magazines, which is a common thing for pilots.” (Source: Allen G. Breed, “Ex-Guardsman Says Bush Served in Ala.,” Feb. 13, 2004, Associated Press)

Eye Witness #3

Retired Master Sgt. James Copeland, who lives in Hartselle, retired from the Air Force on Jan. 31, 1980. He was the disbursement accounting supervisor, a full-time position, for Dannelly Air National Guard Base in Montgomery from Oct. 28, 1971, to Oct. 27, 1975. His office was less than 100 yards from the hangar where Bush performed drills.

Copeland, 65, remembers meeting Bush on two occasions. He does not remember the precise dates. On one occasion, Copeland said, Bush and Lt. Col. John “Bill” Calhoun came to Copeland's office with a question about Bush’s pay. Copeland is not sure, but he believes the question had to do with where to mail Bush's checks.

“You hear people saying that everybody (at Dannelly) knew the Bushes. Well, that's just a lie,” Copeland said. “He was just another pilot. No one paid any more attention to him than to anyone else. There was no hoopla.” (Source: Eric Fleischauer, “Former Dannelly worker: Bush not AWOL,” Feb. 16, 2004, The Daily Decatur)

Eye Witness #4

Joe LeFevers, a member of the 187th in 1972, said he remembers seeing Bush in unit offices and being told that Bush was in Montgomery to work on Blount's campaign.

"I was going in the orderly room over there one day, and they said, `This is Lt. Bush,'" LeFevers said Tuesday. "They pointed him out to me ... the reason I remember it is because I associate him with Red Blount." (Source: Mary Orndorff & Brett J. Blackledge, “Bush Was At Alabama Base, Says Ex-Guardsman,” Feb. 11, 2004, Birmingham News)

Corroborating Witness #1

Patsy Burks, Calhoun’s ex-wife said she remembered Calhoun's account.

“Bill did come home [from the base] and told me that Bush was there,” she said "I think what stuck in my head was that he was helping on the Senate campaign.

“What I do know about Bill is that whatever he says is the truth," she added. “This issue came up in the 2000 election. ... Bill did mention in 2000 that he contacted someone and said, 'If you need me to come forward, I will.' And they said, 'We're hoping that won't be necessary.'" (Source: Suzanne Malveaux and Justine Redman, “Retired Guardsman recalls president’s service in Alabama,” Feb. 14, 2004, CNN)

Corroborating Witness #2

Joe Holcombe, 71, was the office manager for Winton “Red” Blount in his unsuccessful race for the U.S. Senate in 1972. Bush was the county coordinator for Blount's campaign, Holcombe said.

“It wasn't too long after he joined the campaign that we learned he was in the National Guard. He was a jet fighter pilot, and that kind of singled him out. That made him seem more respectable to us, I think,” Holcombe said.

Holcombe said he remembers a specific conversation when the campaign manager mentioned Bush's National Guard duty.

“We were having a staff meeting late in the campaign. George wasn't there and I asked where he was. Jimmy said, 'He's in National Guard today.' That was on a Saturday. I dropped the subject because it didn't matter much to me at the time,” Holcombe said.

Holcombe said he also remembers Bush returning to Montgomery for National Guard duty after the campaign ended.

“He went home (in Texas) for a few days after the campaign ended. My understanding was that he came back in November, after the campaign, to finish out his National Guard obligation. He gathered up his stuff to take back to Texas with him,” Holcombe said.

Holcombe said he might have paid a bit more attention to Bush had he known the man was destined to be president.(Source: Eric Fleischauer, “Joppa man: Bush served in Guard in '72,” Feb. 13, 2004, The Daily Decatur)

Corroborating Witness #3

Emily Marks Curtis told The Times that she and Mr. Bush met in the summer of 1972 when he went to Montgomery from Texas to work in the U.S. Senate campaign of Winton Blount, a Bush family friend. She said the two became good friends.

After that election, she said, Mr. Bush returned to Texas. A few weeks later, he telephoned to say he was returning to Montgomery to complete drilling days at an Alabama squadron to which he had been transferred that year.

It has been standard procedure for many years for National Guard units to excuse members from scheduled drills for employment reasons, with the stipulation that missed drill time be made up.

“He called to tell me he was coming back to finish up his National Guard duty,” said Mrs. Curtis, who now lives in New Orleans. “I can say categorically he was there, and that’s why he came back.” She said that he rented an apartment for a two-week stay and that she met him for dinner several times.

“I didn't see him go to work. I didn't see him come home from work,” she said. “He told me that was why he was in Montgomery. There is no other reason why he would come back to Montgomery.” (Source: Rowan Scarborough, “Bush's drills with the Alabama Guard confirmed,” Feb. 11, 2004, The Washington Times)

________

There is a small reward out there for anyone who saw Bush and Democrats.com claimed Bush could get it if he provided his records. It was almost impossible for anyone to know about these rewards unless you roam the anti-Bush network of trolls. Are they going to pay up already?

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