Balancing Truth and Loyalty: Portrait of a Grand Jury Witness

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by Philip Curtis
ePluribus Media

Two aides to Karl Rove [Susan B. Ralston and Israel Hernandez] testified last Friday before a federal grand jury… At one point, the aides were asked why Mr. Cooper’s call to Mr. Rove was not entered in Mr. Rove’s office telephone logs.

New York Times, 08/03/05

When two seemingly obscure White House officials were called to appear before the grand jury in the Valerie Plame/CIA leak investigation and asked to recall details of a mundane clerical task, Washington insiders considered it to be a minor footnote in a high-profile case. To the Bush family, however, Assistant Secretary of Commerce Israel Hernandez is far from obscure and, for him, the stakes could not have been any higher. More than a decade of tightly interwoven personal and professional bonds with the President, his family and administration preceded Hernandez’s appearance in Fitzgerald’s courtroom. Because of his long, close relationship to the President and knowledge of the workings of the administration’s inner circle, the stakes were high for the White House as well.
Hernandez began serving the Bush family in the early 1990’s, first as traveling personal secretary of sorts to gubernatorial candidate Bush, next as a live-in aide who often tended to the teenage twin daughters and then as a loyal “foot soldier” who assumed full responsibility for an incomplete jury questionnaire that helped suppress the revelation of then Governor Bush’s 1976 DUI offense.

The Bush confidante was a long time beneficiary of the President’s almost unprecedented adherence to the value of loyalty. At the same time, as Hernandez testified before the grand jury, he was likely well aware of the administration’s frequently repeated vow to restore honesty and integrity to the executive branch.

Becoming Bush’s Altoid Boy

Hernandez’ initial employment with Bush did not result from a chance encounter. As an undergraduate, he closely followed the future president’s early political aspirations and hoped he would be able to secure a role for himself. The Austin American Statesman(1) reported:

Hernandez first nosed around for a job with Bush in 1990 when the rumor mill said he might seek the Texas governor’s office that year. That race never happened, so Hernandez, of Eagle Pass, continued at the University of Texas and picked up a degree in philosophy and government.

In 1993, as Bush prepared for the 1994 gubernatorial race, Hernandez worked his way in for an interview with him in Dallas. The two clicked, as Bush recalled in his book “A Charge to Keep.” Hernandez scored big points by showing up early for the interview that led to his being one of the campaign’s first employees.” By showing up early, Israel Hernandez aced an important test,” Bush wrote, adding that the young man was always “loyal and good- humored and professional and on time.”

The ambitious young man’s calculated perseverance was well-rewarded. The Associated Press reported that Hernandez became Bush’s initial campaign hire:

When George W. Bush got the itch to run for Texas governor, 22-year-old Israel Hernandez was the first guy he hired – to tote his bags, keep his Sharpie pen and dole out a steady supply of Altoid mints.

For years to follow, Hernandez’s name was to become inextricably linked with Altoid mints. The Statesman(2) noted:

Hernandez was, in Bush’s world of nicknames, “Altoid boy,” bearer and dispenser of the curiously strong breath mints so crucial to a hand-to-hand politician like Bush.

Forging a Close Bond

Hernandez was hired by the Bush campaign in the role of personal travel aide. The newly elected governor, clearly pleased with the performance of his young aide, continued to retain Hernandez in a similar capacity. News accounts of this period often referenced the close ties that developed between the two men who frequently spent hours travelling alone together. The Texas Monthly described the pair’s standard campaign trail routine:

Often he travels with only one young aide, Israel Hernandez, who gives him a schedule of the day’s events and hands him breath mints–about a dozen a day. “Hand me a mint there, Israel,” Bush says when he shows up at a campaign stop…

The New York Times reported:

“The two spent long hours alone, driving from stop to stop, schmoozing in Spanglish.”

The Los Angeles Times noted:

Bush is nearly inseparable from 29-year-old press aide Israel Hernandez.

Dana Milbank of the Washington Post stated that Hernandez:

served as Bush’s ‘body’ man in Texas, attending to the governor’s corporeal needs.

Moving in With the ‘Waltons’

An unusual chain of events enabled Hernandez to extend the strong bonds he was developing to his employer’s family. The Austin American Statesman(3) described how a 1994 burglary prompted an immediate invitation to Hernandez to move into the Bush family home:

Israel Hernandez was living in Dallas, of course, as were the Bushes, and his place got burgled, and the next day he had to deal with cops and whatnot. And candidate Bush found Hernandez, told him: “You know, you shouldn’t have to worry about things like that. You’d better come live with us.

The Statesman(3)further related how Hernandez’ experiences in the Bush household reminded him of a classic scene from the 1970’s television drama chronicling Depression era Appalachia:

Hernandez recalls, it was like the Waltons at bedtime:

“Good night, George.”

“Good night, Laura.”

“Good night, Barb.”

“Good night, Jenna.”

“Good night, Izzy.”

When Hernandez repeated the anecdote to the same newspaper(2)nearly two years later, his recollection shifted the ritual from an evening to a morning activity:

“It was like the Waltons,” he recalled. “I’d wake up in the morning, and it was, `Good morning, Laura. Good morning, Jenna, Barbara. Good morning, George.’

The Associated Press reported that Hernandez’ duties at the Bush residence often included babysitting:

He quickly became a family confidant, even helping look after the Bushs’ twin daughters when the parents were away, friends recall.

He informed the Statesman that:

The Bush daughters became like sisters to him.

Hernandez also accompanied the Bush family on official trips. Bill Minutaglio, a correspondent for the Dallas Morning News, reported in an online journal:

Dubya; his wife, Laura; their 13-year-old twin daughters (they’re now 18); Bush’s personal assistant, Israel Hernandez; and a handful of security men–spent the weekend in a Mexican government guest house tucked away in the pristine coastal jungle in Huatulco.

Hernandez, Gonzalez and Bush’s DUI

In 1996, Governor Bush was called for jury service and faced an interview as a potential juror in a drunken-driving case. The jury selection process would have almost certainly revealed the governor’s own 1976 arrest for drinking and driving. The New York Times reported that Alberto Gonzales, the governor’s attorney, facilitated Bush’s dismissal from jury service arguing:

“the governor could be asked someday to pardon the defendant.”

Israel Hernandez filled out the jury questionnaire for his boss, skipping over a key question that would have acknowledged Bush’s involvement in a criminal case. Slate summarized crucial details of Hernandez’s involvement:

…Bush “was asked on at least one other occasion about whether he’d been arrested, when he was sent his 1996 jury questionnaire [in a drunken-driving case]. It contained 38 questions. Eleven were left blank, including one that asked: ‘Have you ever been an accused or a complainant or a witness in a criminal case?’ “According to the New York Times, “There was a space next to the word ‘accused’ that was to be checked if the answer was ‘yes.’ “

… the Bush campaign blamed Bush’s personal assistant, Israel Hernandez, for neglecting to check the space on Bush’s 1996 jury questionnaire where he was supposed to acknowledge having been “accused” in a criminal case. “The governor didn’t focus on this document because he never even went into the courthouse in front of a judge,” campaign spokesman Dan Bartlett told the Los Angeles Times. According to the New York Times, Bartlett said Hernandez “filled out” the questionnaire and “handed the form to the governor shortly before he arrived for jury duty.”

On to the White House

Karl Rove describing Israel Hernandez to the Austin American Statesman.(1)

“He is one of the most able people I’ve ever met. The world is going to be this guy’s playground.”

When the Texas Governor began his run for the White House, Hernandez was assigned to the position of Director for Voter Outreach in the Office of Strategy. The Statesman(2) characterized the job as:

‘tour director’ for the press corps shadowing Bush on the trail.

Following the election, Hernandez was immediately appointed to Deputy Assistant to the President in the Office of the Senior Advisor. The Statesman(2)described his transition to the new $141,000/year White House position:

He later moved into Rove’s political shop to learn the planning process for the events he saw on the road. That education is continuing.

Hernandez proudly boasted of his continued close ties with the Bush family to the Statesman(2):

“I do feel like family because they let me move in with them at their house, and I’ve traveled with them, and I go to the ranch,” Hernandez said in his tiny office (with a tin of Altoids next to his computer) at the White House. “They invite me for dinner. I’ve spent time with their daughters. They’re like my sisters.”

The well-paid Deputy Assistant to the President continued to be called on to chaperone Jenna Bush. The Associated Press described a 2002 European trip:

Israel Hernandez, deputy to senior Bush adviser Karl Rove and a close friend of the Bush family, has been traveling in the official party to keep Jenna Bush company.

Leaving, Coming Back and Coming Out

After more than a decade of service and friendship with George W. Bush, Hernandez decided it was time to try something new. The Statesman(1) reported Hernandez’s thoughts as he prepared to leave the White House in January of this year:

“It’s been amazing to be a part of this, but now it’s time to step out,” Hernandez said. “I’ve been in public service for 11 years. Now I’d like to get a feel for the private sector. I don’t want to be in government all my life.”

He has an idea of what he wants to do but is unsure whom he will do it for.
“I love strategy communication. I love crisis management. I love theme development,” he said, adding that he plans to stay in Washington.

Hernandez’ departure for the private sector was curiously short-lived. A May 26, 2005, White House personnel announcement stated:

The President intends to nominate Israel Hernandez, of Texas, to be Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Director General of the United States and Foreign Commercial Service.

Around the time of his confirmation hearings, the New York Daily News made an unexpected revelation:

One source tells us Hernandez waited until Bush was sworn in for a second term to formally tell him he is gay. By then, says a source, he’d brought his partner to several official events.

Hernandez did not return calls from the New York Daily News seeking comment on the matter. ExpressGayNews.com reported that the new assistant secretary of commerce shares a Falls Church, Virginia, residence with another adult male.

In 2001, Hernandez discussed his “private-sector goals” with the Statesman(2):

“I want to create a life. I would hope one day to be married, to have kids,” he said, noting that his current schedule precludes the social life he knows he needs.

Among the Washington mysteries he is trying to decipher is the silence of passengers on the trains — the unwritten rule that makes the subway a no-chat zone and frustrates the gregarious Hernandez. “There’s a lot of cute girls on the train,” he said.

If allegations regarding Hernandez’ sexual orientation are accurate, they serve to demonstrate the strength of the loyalty that exists between Bush and his long-time aide. Bush’s continued allegiance to Hernandez risks undermining the support he currently enjoys from the powerful social conservative portion of his political base. The Greensboro Times Record(4) reported Bush’s 1999 comments to the conservative Madison Project:

[Senator William] Armstrong asked the governor whether he thought it was OK for an ambassador and department heads to be openly homosexual. Bush told the group he would not “knowingly” appoint a practicing homosexual as an ambassador or department head, but neither would he dismiss anyone who was discovered to be a homosexual after being named to a position. The impression Armstrong received was that as long as someone kept his or her sexual orientation private and did not promote them to influence policy, Bush could live with such an arrangement.

The Advocate further explained:

In his six years as Texas governor he has rarely met an antigay measure he didn’t like…

During the same year that Bush invited Hernandez to move in with his family and help care for his twin daughters, the governor voiced his support for preserving Texas’ harsh sodomy law. The Statesman(5) reported:

Gubernatorial candidate George W. Bush on Friday promised he would veto any attempt by the Texas Legislature to remove from the state penal code a controversial statute outlawing homosexual sodomy…”I think it’s a symbolic gesture of traditional values,” he said.

The Advocate described Bush’s strong support for legislation prohibiting gay adoption:

Bush said in a March 22 news conference, “I believe children ought to be adopted in families with a woman and a man who are married.” But the bill would not simply ban future gay adoption and foster care; it would also strip gay parents of the children who have already been placed in their homes.

Testifying Before the Grand Jury

The New York Times provided only skeletal details of Hernandez’ July 29, 2005, appearance before the federal grand jury. However, one can imagine the pressures weighing down on the assistant secretary of commerce as he swore to tell the whole truth and awaited the questions that the grand jury had prepared for him.

The aides, Susan B. Ralston and Israel Hernandez, were asked about grand jury testimony given on July 13 by Matthew Cooper, a reporter for Time magazine, the person who was briefed said. Mr. Cooper has said that he testified about a July 11, 2003, conversation with Mr. Rove in which the C.I.A. officer was discussed.

The aides’ grand jury appearances were first reported by ABC News and provided the first sign that the prosecutor in the case was interested in following up on Mr. Cooper’s testimony with more questions for the White House about Mr. Rove.

…At one point, the aides were asked why Mr. Cooper’s call to Mr. Rove was not entered in Mr. Rove’s office telephone logs. There was no record of the call, the person who has been briefed said, because Mr. Cooper did not call Mr. Rove directly, but was transferred to his office from a White House switchboard.

The aides have worked closely with Mr. Rove, screening his calls and coordinating his activities with other White House officials.

… In an article in Time last month about his grand jury appearance, Mr. Cooper wrote that he had telephoned the White House and been transferred to Mr. Rove’s office.

“I believe a woman answered the phone and said words to the effect that Rove wasn’t there,” Mr. Cooper wrote, “or was busy before going on vacation. But then I recall she said something like ‘hang on,’ and I was transferred to him.”

Hernandez is only one of many long-time Bush administration officials who have been called to testify. Each has brought with him a unique personal history of loyalty and the rewards that accompany it. For Hernandez, the ties are particularly strong. His entire adult life has been spent in close contact with a single employer who encouraged Hernandez to establish close bonds with his family. Hopefully, he has not been placed in the unenviable position of needing to weigh the value of loyalty with the value of telling the whole truth to a nation.

End Notes:

(1)Herman, Ken, “Longtime Bush aide leaves White House ; Eagle Pass native has worked with president since days as Texas governor.” Austin American Statesman. January 15, 2005: A16

(2)Herman, Ken, “Once the ‘Altoid boy,’ loyal Bush aide now a well-placed insider.” Austin American Statesman. February 19, 2001: A1

(3)Beach, Patrick, The first son // George W. Bush had his rebellions. But he always returned to the family path. Have Andover, the oil patch andnobless oblige produced another president?” Austin American Statesman. June 13, 1999: A1

(4)”Bush passes the “squishy” test a series of private interviews indicates that George W. Bush is rock ribbed enough to suit conservative Christians.” Greensboro News Record, October 7, 1999: A13

(5)Elliot, David, “Bush promises to veto attempts to remove sodomy law.” Austin American Statesman, January 22, 1994: B3

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