-Caveat Lector- This story doesn't appear to be dying. It's made the rounds in Texas newspapers, and reporters are still asking about it. http://www.austin360.com/statesman/editions/today/news_4.html By Ken Herman American-Statesman Capitol Bureau Chief Tuesday, September 28, 1999 Former Texas House Speaker Ben Barnes put in a well-placed good word to help young George W. Bush get into the Air National Guard when thousands of Bush's contemporaries were shipping out to Vietnam, Barnes' lawyer said Monday. In a statement issued on his behalf, Barnes said he made the phone call to the head of the Texas Air National Guard at the request of the late Sidney Adger, a Houston oilman and longtime Bush family friend. But Barnes said nobody in the Bush family had asked him to intervene. When Bush joined the Guard in 1968, his father was a GOP congressman from Houston. "Neither Congressman Bush nor any other member of the Bush family asked for Barnes' help," the lawyer's statement said. "Barnes has no knowledge that Governor Bush or President Bush knew of Barnes' recommendation." The statement said Barnes "was contacted by Sid Adger and asked to recommend George W. Bush for a pilot position with the Air National Guard." At a Houston campaign stop on Monday, Bush said he did not know whether Barnes had intervened on his behalf in 1968. "I never asked for, (and) I don't believe I received, any special treatment," said Bush, who served in the Guard, based in Houston, from 1968 to 1973. Bush's military record became part of a federal lawsuit when former Texas Lottery Director Lawrence Littwin alleged that Gtech, operator of the state lottery, was behind his 1997 firing after five months on the job. Littwin's lawsuit claims Gtech held sway over the Texas Lottery Commission because Barnes, Gtech's former lobbyist, had knowledge about how Bush got into the Guard. But Gtech had severed its ties with Barnes before Littwin was hired by the Lottery Commission. Gtech and Bush have denied any involvement in Littwin's firing. The governor, the front-running Republican presidential candidate, continued to defend his service as a fighter pilot in the Air National Guard. "I can tell you what happened," he said Monday. "Nothing happened. My Guard unit was looking for pilots, and I flew for the Guard." "I'm proud of my service," Bush added, "and any allegation that my dad asked for special favors is simply not true. . . . I didn't ask anybody to help get me to the Guard, either." A spokeswoman for the elder Bush has said that Adger was a close family friend but that the former president knew nothing about any attempts by Adger to get the younger Bush into the Guard. The statement issued on Barnes' behalf said he called Brig. Gen. James Rose, then the head of the Texas Air National Guard, and recommended Bush for a pilot slot, which was available at the time. Rose is now deceased. Last September, Barnes met with Midland oilman Don Evans, chairman of Bush's re-election campaign and now finance chairman for Bush's presidential bid, and told him about the efforts to get Bush into the Guard. The statement issued Monday on Barnes' behalf said Bush sent Barnes "a note thanking him for his candor in acknowledging that Barnes received no call from any member of the Bush family." Barnes' statement was issued Monday after a deposition that lasted more than five hours. Attorney Charles Burton, representing Barnes, declined to say whether the Guard question came up during the session at Barnes' downtown Austin office. But Littwin's lawyers, in court filings, have said it was among the main lines of questioning they wanted to pursue with Barnes. In motions earlier this month, Barnes claimed "executive privilege" protection against answering questions about whether he helped Bush get into the Guard. Burton said no objections were raised to questions asked Monday by Littwin's lawyers. Burton said the deposition is covered by a judge's confidentiality order and eventually could become public. "However, that order does not prevent (Barnes) from setting the media record straight on events occurring more than 30 years ago," the statement said. You may contact Ken Herman at [EMAIL PROTECTED] or 445-1718. DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. 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