Posted on 03/21/2007 6:35:17 PM PDT by West Coast Conservative
George P. Bush, a nephew of President Bush who was a hit on the campaign trail, has been accepted in the Navy Reserve as an intelligence officer and has begun the process of being commissioned for eight years of service.
Bush, 30, said in a telephone interview from his office at a real estate development firm in Fort Worth, Texas, that he was moved to join the service in part when he attended the rainy commissioning in October of the aircraft carrier named for his grandfather -- the USS George H.W. Bush.
"My grandfather's my hero, and what really sold me on the ultimate decision was having the chance to see the CVN-77 be commissioned under his name," he said. "That was pretty moving, and I had a chance to meet some Navy admirals, as well. I had a chance to talk to them briefly about the opportunity, and I was won over."
George Prescott Bush, the oldest son of former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, said the death of Pat Tillman, the NFL player and Army Ranger who was killed in Afghanistan in 2004 in what was later determined to be a friendly-fire incident, "was a wake-up call for me." He said he even "looked into active duty" and had somber conversations with his wife about the possibility.
Bush said he had not intended to announce his plans. "Honestly, I'm kind of a little disappointed that the word got out," he said. "I was hoping to keep this as confidential as possible. I'm not doing it for political purposes or anything along those lines. I'm just doing it because I've been inspired by the friends of mine that have served, either through the JAG (military law) program or through the Reserves. I thought this was a small way that I could get involved."
Bush, who said he plans to "stay out of 2008," is a leader of the Maverick PAC, which was formed by young Texas donors to the Bush-Cheney campaign. The group has a series of meetings scheduled with the Republican presidential candidates.
Bush expects to receive his commission in a month or two. He will go to officer candidate school in Rhode Island, then intelligence school in Virginia Beach. The commitment involves two weeks of annual training. He can volunteer for active duty or be deployed after he finishes his intelligence certification, which takes about two years.
He'll have to run a mile and a half in 13 minutes, which he said he can do now, but he's trying to get down to the 10 minutes and 30 seconds required for SEALs and special operations. He's also a golfer and weightlifter.
Bush is chief operating officer and part owner of his firm, which provides equity capital to developers, most of whom are involved in specialty shopping centers with high-end tenants such as Starbucks.
Though he was raised in Florida, Bush settled in Texas after graduating from Rice University and the University of Texas Law School. He is a member of the board of directors of the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce and the Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and is involved with the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. Bush attends a small Catholic parish in downtown Fort Worth.
Bush was known as "George P." during his frequent travels on his uncle's plane during the 2000 campaign. He drew shrieks from the ladies and was compared to John F. Kennedy Jr. when he spoke at the Republican National Convention. During the 2004 campaign, he was a clerk for a federal judge; the Hatch Act prevented him from getting involved until the final months, when he had a heavy schedule of appearances in swing states with large Hispanic populations, including Florida, Colorado, Nevada and New Mexico.
Bush wouldn't talk about any political plans of his own, but friends say they believe the family may soon be in store for another gubernatorial campaign.
That's called the Mark Kirk route, also followed by Gary Hart and Dick Lugar among others. Check with Duane Hunter regarding ground combat operations.
Jeb Bush/George P Bush 2016! < /S >
Aw, the Bush haters will be so disappointed that a Bush is joining the service. They like to spend their time making filthy, hate-filled remarks on why the Bush's don't serve.
Good for him. I admire him for wanting to serve his country.
In college, my roommate and I had a picture of George P. Bush on our wall, ripped out of a People's 50 most beautiful people edition....the guy is hot. And this just makes him hotter......:)
Delusional leftist twits really miss the USSR.
from wikipedia...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Prescott_Bush
"... George P Bush criticized the U.S. Border Patrol's use of guns which fire plastic pellets packed with chili powder. Bush was quoted as telling Mexican media, "If there has been American approval for this policy, that is reprehensible. It's kind of barbarous." He said the guns use were entirely due to "some local INS guy who's trying to be tough, act macho."
Good for him. It's admirable that he wants to serve his country.
Go Navy!
BUMP -- George P's new adventure is news.
God bless him ...and he's right about his Grandpop ..who's a real American war hero. What a wonderful thing that's he's also been inspired to serve. Fantastic!
Glad to read this Post; Thank You!!!..
Congratulations on his desire to serve and his good sense to choose the Navy. There should be more of this happenng, on both sides of the aisle.
LOL...I thought the same thing but checked her home page. :-)
I don't think he will start out as an admirable, more like an ensign.
Hey! Watch your mouth.
John Kerry was in the Naval Reserves, ya' know?
Word is that he was also in Vietnam.
I thought my screen-name itself would have been enough :)
And yes, my roommate was female as well.
Good point...Shows I don't know much about the Navy. :-)
THANK YOU for the ping . . . I applaud George P's commitment to service, particularly as a member of our military.
He might even learn that soldiers, not lawyers, insure the rights of citizens.... doubtful, but just maybe.
Yeah, it looks like the Naval Reserve will now be trashed as not being a part of the "real" military, much like the Texas Air National Guard was villified as being nothing more than a draft dodger's haven back in 2004.
There are plenty of reservists serving our country right now. And he will have to give up plenty of weekends and time with his family to fulfill his obligation, even if he is never called to serve actively.
We have an employee -- over 50 -- who is serving in Iraq right now. He joined the reserve for extra cash. But, he was eager to serve when called.
I saw Curad Kerry in Cambodia one night.
Was it SEARED into your memory?
This is wonderful news. I hope it starts a trend for Republicans.
Can't wait to see George P. run for office someday.
He sure got around in 114 days.
But then, professional Vietnam veterans are, well, professional.
/sarc off
Our reserves are an integral part of our miltary, and have been as long as I can remember. Today more than ever.
Maybe he will train under my nephew, who trains intelligence officers for the Navy.
I didn't know the Laos was in Cambodia.
Nothing like covering the bases in case Uncle Dubya runs in Mexico...
Yeah, because we hicks are REALLY dumping on poor-old P. Bush here on this thread. Just scroll down and see the racist comments. Why don't you insert your knee back into its socket.
>Jeb Bush/George P. Bush 2016!/S<
Bite your tongue!
For all those who follow tennis, he always reminds me of Pete Sampras.
How kind of him to say, but...
Can you imagine how awful if it were true?
That George H.W. Bush was your hero???
Pinging Daily dosers about Bush kin folk
If he served in a combat role, he'd be labeled as a "baby killer."
But because he will be in the Navy Reserve as an intelligence officer, he'll be a draft dodger.
Oh yes, oh yes..... LOL ;)
...after a few years on active duty.
It's great to see George P. doing this.
(My now 20 year old daughter got interested in politics at the age of thirteen because of George P. LOL! Whatever works!)
Thanks for the ping!
He is a hero to anyone who values courage and honor.
(I guess that wouldn't be you?)
Definitely a Sampras lookalike.
You're just Bush bashing. His mother is Mexican, so it's part of his heritage.
"John Kerry was in the Naval Reserves, ya' know?"
And in Hanoi's back pocket.
Extremely: Let me explain. I was talking about the leftist, psycho Bush haters. They're always taking the Bush family to task. Not the conservatives who have gripes against Bush.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.