THE GEORGETOWNER
October 3, 2007
Rather Suit Will Show He Got
Bush ‘Guard’ Absences Right
By Robert Weiner and Rebecca Vander Linde
Documents released by the White House, little noticed at the time, showed that Dan Rather got President Bush’s National Guard absences right even though he got one source wrong.
DOD documents released by the White House under pressure in 2004 concerning Bush’s National Guard attendance and still up on the web today in the “Office of the Secretary of Defense and Joint Staff Reading Room”( See Part 7, page 23, 1972-1973) show that Bush missed at least seven consecutive months of the Guard, only sporadically attended other times, and missed key obligations, despite expectations of his superiors.
Also according to the DOD archive (Air National Guard,5 September 1972: See page 43), Bush was suspended from flying status effective 1 August 1972, for “failure to accomplish (attend) annual medical examination.” The orderwas signed by Bobby W. Hodges, Commander, and Major Rufus G. Marpin, Personnel Staff Officer.In the 2004 election, Bush’s staff (Dan Bartlett, communications director) offered a cover story that Bush“wanted” to change from flight status. Neither Bush nor Bartlett ever said why Bush did not cancel or delay his obligated physical to avoid the unchallenged permanent accurate record of absence and demotion.
As Bush concludes his presidency, it is important that his supposed ‘legacy’ be accurate. Part of what Bush has done in the White House and in his presidential campaigns is blow off his Guard absencesas though they did not occur. They did. The media should pin him down by asking where he was during the over seven months in question and how he ignored the obligation of his medical exam for which he was fired from flying status -- and not take ‘those are old questions which we’ve answered’ as an answer.Reports that he blew off the Texas Guard obligation to work in political campaigns in Alabama may well be true.
Rather was undoubtedly wrong to use a document unless verified first-hand on so politically charged a subject, from a source who was anti-Bush. However, when Rather says he got the story right, he did – but he could have used the White House and DOD’s own documents to prove it.
It’s a legitimate journalistic quandary whether you get a story right if you use a wrong source – unless there is proof from other separate irrefutable sources, as is the case. Bush’s guard absences are an issue that the DOD record proves stands on its own, no matter how many times the Right tries to deflect it.
Dan Rather’s legacy incidentally includes his saying some years ago—and I will never forget it—“Just because the President says it is so, does not make it so.” He was talking about reasons for the Iraq War. That is a statement that makes us proud of our free speech and freedom of the press in America. Rather was ahead of most journalists in the early stages of the War. So we should give Dan one. His Bush Guard absence story stands on its own despite a malicious source – and we can say that because of other unquestionable and unimpeachable official sources which we researched and saw ourselves.
(Robert Weiner was a senior public affairs director for the White House for six years in both the Clinton and Bush administrations. He now is president of Robert Weiner Associates Public Affairs: . Rebecca Vander Linde is senior media analyst and chief of research at Robert Weiner Associates Public Affairs.)