To the editor:

As a former military pilot, I do not understand President Bush’s inability and reluctance to substantiate military service in the National Guard. It is very simple, a no-brainer. All he would need to do is present his pilot’s logbook, or his DD214 (official record of military service), or his unit personnel roster for a given year to substantiate his claims of service. Even the records of the aircraft in his unit would document those days he flew. Flights in the National Guard and Reserves are usually a minimum of two aircraft, so there are other pilots who would remember flying with him.

His current responses of having “received an honorable discharge,” or “reporting to his unit,” are weak, vague and meaningless. Based on President Bush’s record, the public can no longer simply accept his word as truth. If records exist, they should be made public. The president unquestionably has the authority to immediately request his documents from military archives. Certainly, as commander in chief, he has the power to seek them out. What possible motive could the White House have for not making them public and refusing to present them? Unless, of course, they can’t.

Curtis D. Bennett,

Lawrence