NOTE: THIS IS A WORKING DRAFT FOR COMMENT, AND IS
PART OF THE AWOL PROJECT, A LARGE SERIES OF ARTICLES EXAMINING
BUSH’S MILITARY RECORDS WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF THE FEDERAL STATUTES, DEPARTMENT
OF DEFENSE REGULATIONS, AND AIR FORCE POLICIES AND PROCEDURES OF THAT ERA.
(A “text only”
version of this article is available at www.glcq.com/discharge_text.htm
.)
COMMENTS,
CORRECTIONS, AND SUGGESTIONS SHOULD BE DIRECTED TO awol@glcq.com.
DISCHARGE? OR DESERTION?
HOW
THE BUSH FILES SHOW THAT BUSH DELIBERATELY IGNORED HIS LEGAL OBLIGATIONS TO
AMERICA’S NATIONAL SECURITY
(Note: For a more detailed explanation of Bush’s
military obligations, see BUSH'S ATTENDANCE OBLIGATIONS AS A MEMBER
OF THE US MILITARY. For fuller
details concerning reassignments between Air Force components THE RELOCATING GUARDSMAN: A PROCEDURAL PRIMER)
DISCHARGE
OR DESERTION?--BUSH’S PAYROLL RECORDS
DISCHARGE
OR DESERTION?--THE “ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNSELING”
DISCHARGE
OR DESERTION?--THE REQUEST FOR A DISCHARGE
HOW BUSH DIDN’T
SPEND HIS SUMMER VACATION
WRITTEN
ORDERS DISCHARGING BUSH FROM TXANG
APPENDIX 1: “STANDBY SCREENING” AS A REASON FOR BUSH’S
DISCHARGE
YOUR BASIC PARANOID CONSPIRACY THEORY…(a
personal note)
APPENDIX 2: AN
“HONORABLE DISCHARGE”?
SUMMARY
When
Bush joined the Texas Air National Guard, he agreed to be “immediately
available for any active duty” for six full years. When he decided to leave Texas to attend Harvard Business School,
he still had a year of obligation to complete.
Bush even signed a statement acknowledging that it was his
responsibility to find another unit where he could fulfill this
responsibility. The documents in the
Bush files, however, show that Bush had no intention of doing so.
These
documents include payroll records which reveal that Bush performed substitute
duty more than two months in advance of the scheduled mandatory drill in
September, 1973---training that, had Bush fulfilled his obligation to find
another unit, would have been performed in Boston. Another document shows that Bush never bothered to get the
necessary paperwork before he left for Boston that would have allowed him to
transfer to another unit to complete his obligation. And Bush’s failure to get a physical meant that he was
unqualified for any position in another unit.
Instead,
the evidence strongly suggests that Bush tried to “scam” his way out of
fulfilling his obligations by taking advantage of the “Standby Screening”
provisions of Air Force policies. This
evidence includes a request from Bush that he be transferred into a “Standby”
unit for which he was not eligible under the criteria established by the Air
Force.
Perhaps
most startling, however, is that the Bush documents indicate that the Air Force
did not consider Bush to have been “honorably discharged” from the Texas Air
National Guard. Bush was retroactively
placed on “Inactive Status” 16 days before the date of Bush’s discharge papers,
and “Inactive Status” meant that Bush had already been ““discharged for the
purpose of complete severance from military status.” In effect, the Air Force nullified Bush’s TXANG discharge papers
retroactively.
INTRODUCTION
When
George W. Bush joined the Air National Guard on May 26, 1968, he did so under
the authority of US Statutory law.
Those laws required him to serve for six years in the US Armed Forces, and to be a member
of the “Ready Reserve” for that period. (For a full review of Bush’s
obligations under statutory law, click here.) Bush
acknowledged this obligation, and the fact that it required that he be
“immediately available for any active duty” until May 26, 1974 unless there was
a “substantial change in [his] status or circumstances.”
Under
the law, being “available for any active duty” meant more than just being
willing to show up if he received orders; as a member of the Ready Reserve he
was required to be fully trained and qualified for his assigned job at all
times, both as an individual, and as a member of his assigned unit.
By
the summer of 1973, Bush had been shirking this obligation, and the Texas Air
National Guard (TXANG) had been covering for him, for over a year (See The Points Scam). But
this cover-up could only go on for so long; already the Air Force itself was
asking questions, and demanding answers, about Bush’s “Alabama year” (See The
OETR Scam).
So
it comes as no surprise that Bush decided to leave Texas to attend Harvard
Business School (HBS). TXANG had to
get rid of Bush, and Bush had to find a new way to avoid “fulfilling his
duty.”
DISCHARGE, OR DESERTION?--BUSH’S
PAYROLL RECORDS
Although
the first mention of Bush’s intention to quit the Texas Air National Guard is
found in a document dated July 30, 1973, Bush’s payroll records reveal that he
told TXANG about his plans prior to that date.
(For a complete explanation of how to read the payroll records
themselves, see Understanding Payroll and Points Records,
Part 1.)
The
payroll system did more than simply keep track of how much should be paid to
Guardsmen. It also kept track of whether
Guardsmen were accomplishing their monthly mandatory scheduled training with
their units (Unit Training Assemblies or UTAs.) If a member missed this mandatory training
because of “circumstances beyond his control” he could perform substitute duty
which would be credited toward those specific missed UTAs.
At
the bottom of most of the pages of Bush’s payroll records is the actual data
that was entered into the system which generated paychecks for Bush. Each period of substitute training is
matched with a specific missed period of UTA training in the payroll data
itself.
According
to those payroll records, on July 18 and 19, 1973, Bush performed four period
of “inactive duty training.” Those
days were credited as “substitute duty” for four periods of mandatory Unit
Training Assemblies (UTAs) that were scheduled for September 22 and 23,
1973. (Two training periods were
scheduled for each day of a UTA weekend)
In
the example at left, “20923” stands for the afternoon drill (“2”) scheduled for
September 23 (“0923”), and “20719” stands for afternoon training
(“2”) done on July 19 (0719). (Each
“UTA data line” on the payroll records has four pairs of these numbers, the
example shown is the final pair on this particular line.)
In
order for Bush to perform any substitute duty, he had to get advance
authorization from his unit commander, which required that he demonstrate that
“circumstances beyond his control” would prevent Bush from showing up for his
September UTAs. Thus, we know that Bush
notified TXANG of his intention to go to Harvard by July 18, 1973.
But
the payroll records reveal far more than that.
They show that Bush had no intention of fulfilling his statutory
obligation to train once he left Texas.
Bush had at least ninety days (he could perform substitute duty up to 30
days after a scheduled UTA) in which he could have found a unit near Harvard
where he could have trained. The
evidence that Bush performed “substitute duty” months in advance of the
scheduled September UTAs signals that Bush had every intention of deserting the
United States Armed Forces, despite his statutory obligation to serve for six
full years.
(There
is also a great deal of evidence that suggests that Bush received these UTA
credits fraudulently. See The Payroll
Scam.)
DISCHARGE OR DESERTION?--THE
“ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNSELING”
On
July 30, 1973, Bush signed[1]
an acknowledgement that he had been counseled regarding his responsibilities as
an “obligor”—someone who had a statutory obligation (Military Service
Obligation or MSO) to serve in the military for six years in the Ready Reserve. This “Statement of Counseling” is required whenever a Guardsman or
Reservist relocated, and Bush’s statement follows the format found in Air Force Regulations.
The
document is dated on the last day that Bush was paid for any training while a
member of the US military.
This
document provides further evidence that Bush had no intention of fulfilling his
commitment to the US Military, and intended to desert the Armed Forces.
Under Air Force regulations, in
order for Bush to fulfill his “responsibility to locate and be assigned to
another Ready Reserve unit or individual mobilization augmentation position”,
he was required to obtain from his unit a certification that his “participation
in his Reserve Forces assignment had been satisfactory.”
Yet,
despite the fact that Bush acknowledged that he needed to find another
position, he did not get the necessary “certification” until after he had
formally requested his discharge from TXANG on September 5, 1973 (see
below).
Of
course, as a pilot whose flying privileges had been suspended, Bush was
ineligible for transfer to any other “Ready Reserve” unit. Bush had to either pass his flight physical,
or request (and train for) a non-flying AFSC (Air Force Specialty Code). But there is no evidence to suggest that
Bush did anything to meet the responsibility he had acknowledged on July 30,
1973. He simply blew off the obligation
that he was required by the Air Force to acknowledge in writing.
It
is significant to note that, although Bush acknowledges that he is leaving
Texas, he does not submit his resignation until September 5, and requests that
he be discharged effective October 1, 1973, long after the first day of classes
(9/11/73) at Harvard Business School that year.
DISCHARGE OR DESERTION?---THE
REQUEST FOR A DISCHARGE
Under Air Force regulations, if a
Guardsman with an unfulfilled MSO relocated without finding another position,
he was temporarily “assigned” to the Obligated Reserve Section (ORS) which was
administered by the Air Reserve Personnel Center (ARPC) in Denver, Colorado,
and given 60 days to find another unit.
This would have been explained to Bush during his “counseling”
session.
ORS
was part of the “Ready Reserve”, which meant that its members had to be
immediately available for mobilization upon an order of the Commander in Chief in
the event of a national emergency. The
“Standby Reserve” consisted of individuals who, for various reasons, were not
subject to an immediate call up.
When
Bush notified TXANG that he was quitting, he requested to be transferred not to
ARPC (ORS), but to ARPC (NARS). NARS
was part of the “Standby Reserve.” In
essence, Bush was trying to get out of his obligation to train, and to be
available for active duty. (See
Appendix 1—Standby Screening)
Despite
knowing for months that he was moving to Boston, Bush did not officially
request a discharge from TXANG until September 5, 1973. And he wanted his discharge to be effective
on October 1, 1973, and requested that he be placed in the “Standby
Reserves.” This could only be
accomplished if the reason Bush was transferred to ARPC was not that he was
relocating, but specifically for “Standby Screening.”
(And,
according to the Commander of the 147th Fighter Interceptor Group,
Bobby Hodges[2],
this is precisely what happened. See
below.)
APPROVAL OF DISCHARGE
The
day after Bush requested his discharge, family friend and commander of the
Bush’s unit (the 111th Fighter/Interceptor Squadron) Jerry Killian approved Bush’s request.[3]
Twelve
days later, Killian’s superior and commander of the 147th Fighter
Interceptor Group, Bobby Hodges also approved the transfer, providing all the
necessary details regarding how the transfer should be done.
Hodges
does not provide a reason why Bush should be “relieved from the 111th
Ftr Intcp Sq”. He does cite a
“Personnel Transaction Identifier” (“PTI 961”), as part of the
“authority” for the discharge and transfer.
Unfortunately, the meaning of PTI 961 remains a mystery.
Hodges also includes a new “Home of
Record” (HOR)[4] for Bush: “Harvard Business School,
Soldier’s Field, Boston Mass 02263.”
This is the mailing address for Harvard Business School, except that the
zip code is wrong (it should be 02163). Bush, who had been attending classes for over a week by September
18th, had apparently ignored
the regulations concerning changes of address
and not forwarded his new “home of record” address to TXANG.
THE DISCHARGE FORM MYSTERY
Bush’s
discharge form is dated October 1, 1973, and contains the same
language found in the Hodges “indorsement” down to the error in the zip
code.
There
are two notable things about this document.
The first is that no reason is actually given for the discharge in the
appropriate space. Instead, it merely
notes that “Officer is transferred to ARPC (ORS)…” which is not a reason for a
discharge, but a reassignment.
“Relocating” was a legitimate reason for a discharge from TXANG, and the
fact that it does not appear as the reason is odd. (Bush’s discharge request did not specifically state that his
reason for requesting a discharge was because he would be attending Harvard
Business School, and Bush did request a transfer to NARS in that request.)
The
lack of a stated reason for Bush’s discharge, however, does not mean that Bush
was discharged for “Standby Screening”, rather than because he relocated. Discharge papers for “Standby Screening”
needed to include specific language pursuant to a “Standby Screening”
discharge. That language does not
appear on the discharge papers.
Thus,
despite the claims of Bobby Hodges, and Bush’s request for reassignment to ARPC
(NARS) (a Standby Reserve unit), there is no documentary evidence to support
the claim that Bush was discharged for “Standby Screening:”
There
is, however, other evidence that may be connected to a “Standby Screening”
discharge. This includes the use of
“PTI 961”, which could, in fact, be the “Personnel Transaction Identified” for
“Standby Screening.
Additionally,
clear evidence shows that the “Remarks” section of Bush’s discharge form has
been altered, and it is possible that the necessary language was once included
in the “Remarks” section.
DETAIL
1
Detail 1 shows that the margins in
the “Remarks” section are different from the rest of the document, and that the
line positions themselves are inconsistent between the sections (e.g. “Officer”
appears in a position that is 2.5 “typewriter lines” below the characters “SO
ANG-A”). It also shows the presence of
“ghost characters” at the far left of the page. These characters line up with both the margins in the rest of
the document, and the line spacing (the ghost characters are three typewriter
lines below the characters “SO ANG-A”).
DETAIL
2
Detail 2 shows what appear to be the
remnants of other “ghost characters” between the “instruction line” and the
information that was typed on the form.
This line of “ghost characters” is in horizontal alignment with the
lines in the rest of the document.
All
of the copies of this document have the
same characteristics, some stronger and more visible than others. All of these copies also appear to be
carbons of an original document upon which typing errors had been corrected on
the original (the word below “Officer” in Detail 1 is “amended”) but not on the
carbon.
Of
course, based on other documents found in the Bush files, nothing that appears
on the Discharge Form has any official relevance. The Air Force, after examining Bush’s records, retroactively
discharged Bush from the Texas Air National Guard and the Air Reserve Forces
effective September 15, 1973. This had
the effect of nullifying Bush’s “honorable discharge” from TXANG. (see Appendix 2)
HOW BUSH DIDN’T SPEND HIS SUMMER
VACATION…
Another
fact that demonstrates Bush’s intention to blow off his responsibilities as a
member of the Armed Force is found in the “civilian employment” item of Bush’s
discharge papers. His most recent
“civilian employment” is listed as “Campaign Mgmt, Allison & Travelan, PO
Box 4444, Montgomery, Alabama…” Bush
was working on the “Red” Blount Senate Campaign during the summer and fall of
1972, and as of early November of that year, he would have been out of a
job. Based upon Bush’s discharge
papers, it is fair to say that Bush spent almost an entire year without gainful
civilian employment before moving to Boston to attend Harvard Business School.
Bush
was responsible for finding a new unit with which to serve in order to fulfill
his statutory obligations. That
involved finding a unit with an opening that he was qualified to fill. However, this did not mean that Bush had to
find an open F102 pilot position in the Boston area.
The
Air Force went to considerable lengths to help its members take advantage of
educational opportunities. If there were no openings in Bush’s specialty, the
Air Force would have trained Bush in another specialty in which there was an
opening.
According
to Bush’s discharge papers, Bush had no civilian employment that would have
interfered with training for a new position in the Guard or Reserves. Nor is there any evidence elsewhere that
Bush was gainfully employed in the period after the November 1972
election. Various biographies
(including Bush’s autobiography) say that Bush was doing volunteer work with
“Project Pull” during the spring of 1973, but Bush’s commitment to America’s
national security should have taken precedence over “volunteer work”.
Had
Bush been interested in fulfilling his commitments and responsibilities, there
were absolutely no impediments to him doing so. If he couldn’t find another unit in which to serve as an F102
pilot, he had access to retraining in another specialty through the Air Force,
and the time to accomplish that training during the summer of 1973.
WRITTEN ORDERS DISCHARGING BUSH FROM
TXANG
Although
Bush’s discharge orders were dated (and effective) October 1, 1973, it was not
until October 16th that TXANG bothered to even tell ARPC that Bush
had been transferred to them. Somehow,
“exigencies of the service [precluded] issuance of written orders in advance”
for the discharge, even though Bush had (supposedly) told TXANG more than two
months in advance that he was leaving, and had submitted a letter of
resignation more than three weeks before his discharge date.
This
is especially odd when you consider that, when Bush had wanted to transfer to
Alabama (a transfer that would have required Bush to resign from TXANG), it
took all of three days for approval from Hodges office to approval from the
TXANG Adjutant General. The overall
procedures were pretty much the same (i.e. transferring from a National Guard unit
to an Air Force Reserves unit) in both instances. (And the transfer to Alabama should have come as something of a
surprise.)
October
16th 1973 was 18 months to the day that Bush last trained as a
pilot. For an entire year and a half,
he had shirked his duty, worked transfer scams, and fraudulently claimed credit
for duty he could not have performed.
Bush was finished with TXANG, and TXANG was almost finished dealing with
the problems created by Bush.
Eight
days after the written orders were promulgated, the Federal National Guard
Bureau officially de-recognized Bush as an officer of the Air National
Guard.
Now,
Bush was under the direct control of the United States Air Force. TXANG could no longer cover for him. And the documentary evidence that exists
with regard to the actions taken by the Air Force show that the USAF was not
the least bit inclined to ignore Bush’s refusal to honor his commitment to the
US Military.
Eighteen
months of failing to train as a pilot, failing to take mandatory physicals, and
failing to show up for mandatory training was about to catch up with Bush….
(See
Deserter--Bush at ARPC)
CONCLUSION
There
is no question that Bush understood that he was obligated to continue to serve
in the Armed Forces after he quit the Texas Air National Guard. The nature and extent of these
responsibilities were part of the training of every Guardsman and
Reservists. Bush was a commissioned
officer, and pleading ignorance of his obligation would have been (and is)
simply unacceptable. Finally, Bush
acknowledged that obligation on a document he signed on July 30, 1973.
The
Bush documents show that Bush took none of the necessary steps to fulfill those
obligations. This leaves us with only two
possibilities to consider. The first
is that he thought he could get away with ignoring his responsibilities. The second is that he thought he could scam
his way into a “Standby Reserve” position that he was not eligible to be in.
Tens
of thousands of Guardsmen and Reservists have had their lives interrupted over
the last two years on the orders of George W. Bush. These men and women have displayed a level of commitment to their
country that should make George W. Bush ashamed to show his face in public. Bush blew off the obligation that these men
and women are honoring, and he did so deliberately and consciously.
On
July 29th, 2004, the Pentagon announced that over 5600 members of the
Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) were to be involuntarily mobilized for service
in Afghanistan and Iraq. Most of these
men and women are people who signed up with a six or eight year Military
Service Obligation which required that they spend three or four years on
“active duty”, and the remainder of their MSOs as IRRs. There was an implied promise to these men
and women that, as IRRs, they would only be mobilized in the event of an
extreme national security emergency.
Given
the example set by the Commander in Chief, no one could blame any of these men
and women from taking advantage of current provisions of military policy that
allow them to delay, and possibly avoid, mobilization by applying for “Standby
Screening.”, or even simply “blowing off” their commitment.
APPENDIX
1: “STANDBY SCREENING” AS A REASON FOR
BUSH’S DISCHARGE
Bush’s
Ready Reserve Service Agreement made it clear that he would remain a member of
the Ready Reserve until May 26, 1974 unless there was a “substantial
change in [his] status or circumstances” that would prevent him from being
immediately available for active duty.
“Substantial change” however, did not include moving from one state to
another for educational or economic opportunity. The Air Force not only permitted such moves, it went to great
lengths to make it possible for its members to pursue such opportunities while
maintaining their commitment to the Armed Forces.
The
“reason and authority” for Bush’s discharge from TXANG was supposed to entered
in Item 31 on Bush’s discharge
form. And although it does list
the “authority” [ANGR 36-05, (PTI 961) ], it doesn’t actually list a reason why
Bush is being transferred.
Most
people assume that Bush was discharged because he was “relocating”. However, there is some evidence which
suggests that the “reason” for Bush’s discharge was for what is called “standby
screening”. For reasons that are explained below, the “Standby Screening”
theory would be implausible. However,
it cannot be discounted entirely.
Any member of the Air Reserve Forces
could request discharge from his unit for standby-screening by ARPC at any time
if they felt they were qualified. NARS
(Non-Affiliated Reserve Section) was the “Standby Reserve” section of ARPC
that Bush requested a transfer to, and it is to NARS that Bush would have been
assigned if he were found “eligible under criteria established” by the Air
Force for the Standby Reserves.
Bush
had been counseled about the rules concerning relocation (and had some
experience with them when he tried to transfer to an Air Reserve Squadron in
Alabama in 1972). He doubtless knew
that a request for a discharge from TXANG based on his relocating would result
in his being reassigned to ARPC (ORS), not ARPC (NARS). Bush’s request for a transfer to ARPC(NARS)
suggests that Bush had no intention of fulfilling his obligation to find
another unit with which to train, and was looking for a way out of the training
and commitment required by his Military Service Obligation.
There
were a 12 different criteria for getting into NARS, most of which Bush was
clearly ineligible. (These criteria are
enumerated as rules in AFM 35-3, Table 12-1). He was not
an Air Force Reservist on active duty (rules 1 and 2). He had not completed his Ready Reserve
service (rule 3). He was not preparing
for the ministry (rule 4). He was not
an official of the Federal government (rule 5) nor did he hold a critical
Federal or civilian job (rules 9 and 10).
He would not suffer “extreme personal hardship” if called to active duty
during a National Emergency (rule 6), nor would his call to active duty result
in extreme community hardship (rule 7).
Of
the three remaining reasons, Bush could actually only have applied for standby
screening under one rule. Bush could
not, apply for standby screening because he possessed “military skills in
excess of those required to keep a proper balance of such skills in the Ready
Reserve…” as found in Rule 12. Rule 12
was applicable only to members of the Air Force Reserves, not the Air National
Guard (see third column) , and those decisions were not made by the Air
Reserve Personnel Center (ARPC) which
was responsible for standby screening requests, but by Air Force Headquarters
itself.
Nor
could Bush qualify under the “other reasons” in Rule 11—this rule refers to Table 12-5, and of the five reasons listed in that table, there
were none upon which Bush could base a request for standby screening. TXANG could have discharged Bush itself by
citing Rule 1 of Table 12-5 (“member cannot be located”), but its doubtful that
an ANG officer could request standby screening using a criteria that is a
declaration of desertion.
This
leaves rule 8 (“does not possess the required military qualifications for his
grade or specialty, or does not meet the mental, moral, professional, or
physical standards of the Air Force.”)
This was the “unfit for service” rule, and was the only possible “standby
screening” rule for which Bush was qualified.
Now,
it is unquestionably true that Bush did “not possess the required military
qualifications for his…specialty”.
Bush’s “specialty” was “F102 Pilot”, and the qualifications for an F102
pilot included being allowed to fly.
Bush was not permitted to fly, because his flying privileges had been
suspended because he never took the required flight physical. And, as a result of that failure, Bush would
have been placed temporarily in NARS-B.
But
being placed in NARS-B for failure to get a physical was a temporary
assignment. When someone was placed in
NARS-B for failure to get a physical, they were given 15 days to get that
examination. And if they did not get
the examination in 15 days, they were ordered to appear for “special active
duty” to accomplish the medical examination.
Thus,
if the reason for Bush’s discharge was the “unfitness” provision of the Standby
Screening criteria, it must have been based on something other than the lack of
a physical examination.
YOUR BASIC PARANOID CONSPIRACY
THEORY…(a personal note)
The
purpose of this study is to determine the meaning of Bush’s military records
within the context of the laws, regulations, and policies and procedures of
that era. That means that all possible
meanings must be considered.
On
its face, the idea that Bush was discharged for “standby screening” makes
little or no sense if one assumes that the purpose of a “standby screening”
discharge was to get Bush into the Standby Reserve under the criteria
established by the regulations and policies of the Air Force.
If,
however, the purpose of a discharge for Standby Screening was a delaying
tactic, it makes perfect sense.
Ordinarily, if a Guardsman was discharged for “Standby Screening” and
was rejected for the Standby Reserves, he would be reassigned to his original
Guard unit.
Of
course, Bush could not be reassigned to TXANG, because he had already
“officially” moved to Boston. The
regulations and policies of the Air Force contain no provisions for what ARPC
should do in this case (i.e. someone is rejected for the standby reserves, but
has relocated in the interim.) Bush
could have wound up in some kind of “gray area” in the regulations, and
consequently been permitted to ignore his obligations until his Military
Service Obligation ran out.
In
other words, this may explain why Bush may have been discharged
for “Standby Screening.” And it must be
considered as a possibility, because there is evidence that supports the proposition
that Bush was discharged for standby screening.
In
1972, TXANG officers “approved” Bush’s request for a transfer to an Air Reserve
Squadron in Alabama. Bush was
completely, and obviously, unqualified to be transferred to this unit. Bush was unable to get the paperwork from
the commander of the Alabama unit necessary for TXANG to process the transfer
request.[5] Nevertheless, the “transfer request” was
processed through TXANG and sent to ARPC.
Because
of what happened in 1972, it is impossible to dismiss theories that posit that
TXANG completely ignored the meaning and intent of the regulations and
procedures of the United States Air Force as they applied to the Air National
Guard.
And
because this study asserts that Bush deliberately “blew off” his obligation to
the US Armed Forces; (that, in practical terms, Bush deserted the Armed
Forces), it has to show that all possibilities have been
considered.
All
of those possibilities have been considered.
And except for the “possibility” that George W. Bush decided to simply
ignore his legal obligation to be available for an immediate call to active
duty as a fully trained member of an Air National Guard unit, all of those
“possibilities” are eliminated by contrary facts.
APPENDIX
2: AN “HONORABLE DISCHARGE”?
Although
Bush claims that he received an “honorable discharge” from the Texas Air
National Guard on October 1, 1973, and his discharge papers confirm this claim,
Bush’s discharge may not have been “honorable” at all.
This
is because the Air Force retroactively placed Bush on “Inactive Status”
effective September 15, 1973.
And
under Air Force policy where “obligors” like Bush were concerned, the loss of
“active status” can only happen if the member was “discharged for the purpose of
complete severance from military status.”
In
other words, the Air Force retroactively discharged Bush before he was
discharged from TXANG, thereby nullifying Bush’s “honorable discharge” from
Texas.
The
points summary for Bush’s last year of service shows that he is credited with
only 3 months and 19 days of “satisfactory service” for that year.
Bush’s
discharge papers, however, credit Bush with 4 months and 5 days of service
toward his last year. But Bush could
not accumulate service days while on “Inactive Status”.
As
far as the Air Force was concerned, Bush was no longer in the Texas Air
National Guard as of September 15, 1973, because the Air Force only credited
Bush with service up until that date.
Consequently, as far as the Air Force was concerned, Bush was not
“honorably discharged” from TXANG on October 1, 1973 because he was no longer
in TXANG on that date.
For
a understanding of how this happened, read Deserter: Bush After TXANG.