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Politics : PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: PROLIFE who wrote (620686)	9/9/2004 9:28:39 AM
From: E. T.	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 769670

Guard commander's memos criticize Bush By Dave Moniz and Jim Drinkard, USA TODAY WASHINGTON — President Bush's commander in the Texas Air National Guard concluded that Bush was failing to meet standards for fighter pilots, but the commander felt pressure from superiors to "sugar coat" his judgments, according to newly disclosed documents. The memos, obtained by USA TODAY and also reported Wednesday on the CBS program 60 Minutes, reveal that Bush's commander, Lt. Col. Jerry Killian, was critical of Bush's performance as a pilot in the latter years of his Vietnam-era Guard career. Killian cited Bush for "failure to perform" to Air Force and Air National Guard standards and called for him to be replaced "with a more seasoned pilot." The conclusions by Killian, who died in 1984, show Bush's performance declining between his 1971 pilot evaluation, which was glowing, and the time in 1972 when records show he began failing to show up for duty and failed to take a medical exam that was required for him to keep flying. Disclosure of the documents raised questions about why the reports have not turned up until now. The White House has said repeatedly that it has made public everything that is available. White House spokesman Dan Bartlett said the documents were in Killian's files and not part of Bush's record. He called the charges "old, recycled attacks that have already been discredited." (Related item: Bush military records) "I can't explain why that wouldn't be in his record, but they were found in Jerry Killian's personal records," White House communications director Dan Bartlett told CBS's 60 Minutes II, which first obtained the memos. Bartlett did not dispute the documents' authenticity. Killian's signatures on the memos match those on many of Bush's publicly released records. Bartlett said Bush's superiors granted permission to train in Alabama in a non-flying status and that "many of the documents you have here affirm just that.'' The military service histories of Bush and Democratic challenger John Kerry have become a central issue in the 2004 presidential race. An anti-Bush group, Texans for Truth, is to begin airing an ad on Monday in which a former lieutenant colonel in the Alabama Air National Guard says neither he nor his friends saw Bush in 1972, when the future president was supposed to be training with their unit. (Related story: Ad challenges Bush) Ben Barnes, a former speaker of the Texas House and former lieutenant governor, told CBS that he was responsible for getting Bush into the Guard ahead of several hundred men on a waiting list. He said he now regrets the favors done for Bush and others from powerful families. Joining the National Guard was a way to avoid the draft, the primary source of troops for the Vietnam War. usatoday.com