This is being written as a journal in democraticunderground.com and crossposted on Dailykos and Myleftwing.
I urge readers of this series to obtain a copy of Unfit Commander by Glenn Smith, the only source of Bush's military papers in chronological order. Where internet references are not easily available I will give page numbers of this book for reference.
I also urge readers to become familiar with the report by Lt Col Gerald Lechliter, published in the NY Times, available at:
http://www.nytimes.com /....
Or Google: NY Times Gerald Lechliter. I will be referring to both of these sources in this study.
Many, many Thanks and an Airborne salute to Paul Lukasiak and his AWOL Project:
http://www.glcq.com /
I can be reached at concernedexlrrp@hotmail.com
(The author of this series is not a consultant, paid or otherwise, to anyone but America)
Journal Entry #27
Eric Boehlert's book: "Lapdogs," is illuminating to this study because it gives us a good accounting of the media during the time most pertinent to us in studying the media's response to the CBS papers. What you get from Boehlert is that there has been a years long spin game over Bush's records (and other issues) and he agrees that the media looked completely the other way over Bush's most obvious military discrepancies while focusing in on Kerry's records. Although the Swifboaters lies were specious and phony from the beginning, still the media allowed them ample airplay while ignoring all the inconsistencies in Bush's records
But we knew that already because not only do we know that they're covering up something; we know what they're covering up: crimes inherent in Bush's posted papers which the CBS memos illuminate.(the BMHP allows itself a modest bow here--you're reading this nowhere else)
I'm encouraged to see from the last poll that the great majority of you agree with me that the fact that the TXANG never investigated the most notorious case of forged TXANG in history indicates they're hiding something. Its only stating the freaking obvious--which has been hidden. Why wouldn't this agency leap to resolve this issue? Why have they made no attempt in almost 2 years? What are they hiding?
And why wouldn't Bush want it resolved officially? Or better asked: why would he and the TXANG get this "resolved" only in a completely unofficial, questionable way, using bloggers and the CBS "investigation" when they have the complete panoply of federal investigation agencies to do it for them, all of them fully staffed with authorized experts?
Their failure to protect the American Public from fraud surrounding federal documents in this affair is absurd--and completely unnoticed in the media. Even by people like Boehlert. A true statement to America's great shame: The federal government showed less effort to find and bring to justice the alleged "forgers" of these TXANG documents that if false libel the President and others than OJ has to find Nicole's killers. Anybody want to debate that?
Hey America---those apparently official, federal papers are still hanging out in society, completely unproven or disproven by anyone official--according to them , they never even took a look. Yet this is the most notorious case of "forged" TXANG (that's f-e-d-e-r-a-l) documents in History!
What's up with that? Don't you know when these people are lying to you yet, America? Don't you think they would have proven those papers false long since--if they could without destroying Bush?
Boehlert's book is good as far as it goes on this issue--echoing one of the major points about this: that its never been settled. But he falls prey to skipping the most basic and cogent points to this whole affair.
Like: George Bush knows whether the CBS papers are real or not. We've talked about this many times before and its something else that's freaking obvious, but hidden by the Bush administration and the media. His name is on every one of the CBS Papers and its him they're talking about--about historical events in his career that did occur, like his failure to take his physical, his flight suspension, his Alabama transfer. But more specifically, one of the orders--signed full signature by hs commander--purports to be an official order for him to take his physical. George Bush knows whether this order is real or not because he knows if this event--the order--did happen or not. He HAS to know this. Yet he and his aides have only given the most evasive answer to this question, although its one that should receive a loud, unequivocal and final NO! If that was the answer.
And Bush knows right now whether the CBS suspension order is the one Killian read and gave to him on August 1st, 1972 and then passed up the chain of command--its as simple as that. And he also knows that its missing from his record--and WHY its missing from his record.
This is a measure of how well they've smoked an mirrored this. I know Ive covered this extensively before but I now see that this is very important information you won't read anywhere else--information that was critical to judging the CBS papers. Information that's obvious to anyone willing to take a look at it--but was never reported in the media, not even Boehlert's book..
The CBS/Killian suspension memo represents a document that WAS written by Killian and sent up the chain of command as two confirmation documents show. We have the ignominious spectacle of two confirmation documents but not the document they're confirming. This is one of the reasons they scrambled Bush's papers up before they released them: to hide the fact that this and other documents were missing and to hide the falsifications done by Bush's commanders (all covered in previous BMHPs)
The document I'm referring to is easy to spot although evidently not one single person but me (I mean besides Bush &co) spotted it. Look at the ARPC Sep 22 1972 confirmation document: http://users.cis.net/... "... Verbal orders of the Cmdr on 1 Aug 72 suspending 1st Lt George W Bush...from flying status are confirmed..."
What this tells us, in plain, easy to understand English is that on 1st of Augustr, 1972, George Bush's commander issued him a suspension order verbally. What it doesn't say specifically but proves beyond a shadow of a doubt is that there was a paper copy of this order. Killian wouldn't have kept it all in his head, he wouldn't have phoned his order about what he did to HQ for confirmation. He wrote a memo about it and sent it up the chain of command--its what this and Hodgesd order ar confirming. They're confirming a written document that Killian did write, sign and send up the chain of command--otherwise there'd be no confirmation. Well, duh.
And that "Cmdr" had to be Killian, not Hodges. Hodges confirmation is dated Sep 5th over a month after the event and says nothing about "verbal orders" being given. But the CBS memo does. Hodges order is a confirmation order although the Bush administration pretended it was the original order until the CBS papers emerged.
Bush was also required to acknowledge this and it was required to be in the records of the 111th by AFM 35-13 para 2-10b2: "CBPO-SA will insure that the unit personnel record copy of an aeronautical order which ....imposes or revokes a suspension...will be acknowledged by the person concerned to indicate time and date of the receipt of orders..." But this important document, that Bush knows all about, that would prove or disprove the CBS papers once and for all, is missing from Bush's records. That itself is a crime, and one that Lechliter refers to this in his section "Altering Official Records:"
"... The charge has been made that Bush's records were "doctored" i.e. derogatory documents were removed or documents inserted to prove attendance at ANACDUTRA and INACDUTRA. These are serious charges since 18 USG #2071 punishes such action by a fine or imprisonment or both. These allegations could have been avoided if proper procedures had been followed when Bush's representatives reviewed his files in Texas. They never should have had unfettered access to the originals, or, if they did, a disinterested official should have monitored their perusal of the files. In the alternative, they could have been given copies. The WH further undermined their own case and fed the suspicion of file manipulation recently by itself requesting and releasing the records. Bush should have authorized the Texas ANG, the ARPC and any other record holder to release all the information through the Freedom of Information act..." (page 30)
And Bush obviously knows what his real suspension order looked like and if it is the same as the CBS version. Yet neither he nor his aides ever acknowledged this, even lied about it:
"...Q: Scott, on the National guard documents [the CBS Papers] do you have any suspicions about their authenticity?
McClellan: We don't know whether the documents were fabricated or are authentic....."
"Q: Were you duped, do you think?
M: Bill, thats assuming a lot of things. Like I said, we don't know whether the documents were fabricated or not..."
America: don't you know when these people are lying to you? You sure couldn't tell by the media. But you can read more about it in the next installment of the Bush Military History Project