Bush requires loyalty oath even from soldiers

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Wednesday September 15, 2004 · 11:51 AM PDT

2004/09/15 · 11:51

I read this interview with a returned medical corpsman many months back, but the "loyalty oath" issue makes it even more relevant today. We need to raise this issue, because it points out a key character flaw with Bush -- he's scared of half of America.

Remember Bush's Thanksgiving photo-op in Iraq, with soldiers cheering him as he presented turkee? Guess what, that crowd was screened too. Democrat soldiers don't count for much in Bush's military:

What did you think about President Bush's Thanksgiving visit to Iraq?

I was there when President Bush came to the [Baghdad] airport. The day before, you had to fill out a questionnaire and answer questions, that would determine whether they would allow you in the room with the President.

What was on the questionnaire?

"Do you support the president?"

Really!

Yes.

Members of the military were asked whether they support the president politically?

Yes. And if the answer was not a gung-ho, A-1, 100 percent yes, then you were not allowed into the cafeteria. You were not allowed to eat the Thanksgiving meal that day. You had an MRE.

What's an MRE?

Meals ready to eat. We also call them "meals refused by Ethiopians."

This is despicable behavior by the Commander-in-Chief. Clearly he wasn't there to support the troops, just to grab a a photo-op with a loyal crowd. I want a President who will visit all the troops, not just those who sign loyalty oaths. Clinton never demanded this crap.

Why is President Bush afraid of speaking to all Americans?

The interview has other gems. You should really go read the whole thing.

Do you think it matters that so many of the top people in the Bush Administration never served in combat?

Yes. It's quite a list. Bush, Cheney, Wolfowitz, Ashcroft, Rumsfeld, Rove, Rice, and many more. I'm still trying to figure out how Cheney managed to get five draft deferments. They say there is not one person in Congress today that has a son or daughter in combat. Neither house of Congress.

What do you think about that?

I think they would make different decisions if their sons and daughters had to go or if they had been there themselves. I really do. If Barbara and Jenna [Bush] had to put on a pack and go to war, I think Daddy would make different decisions....

How did you feel when you saw President Bush arrive in a flight suit on the aircraft carrier off the coast of San Diego, with the banner "Mission Accomplished"?

We laughed.

Why?

We have a saying about people who dress up in military uniforms, like Idi Amin or Mussolini. People like that have something to hide. The reason they wear the uniform is to make themselves feel big, feel proud.

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Bush requires loyalty oath even from soldiers

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