BUSH SERVICE RECORD ISSUE
Dems are Grasping at Straws

The Democrats and members of the liberal press are really grasping for straws. They're pushing at a rock that will not move and if it does there will be no cave or hidden passageway behind it. Terry McAuliffe, DNC Chair, and his party really has to come up with more substantive attacks or time-fillers during this election year. A few more empty attacks on Bush's history and things will start to backfire on the Dems. I should have been a poltical consultant for the DNC... and Clark... and Dean... their media strategy sucks... and Kerry might need help soon.

Anyway, a good overview at RealClearPolitics.com:

I didn't really want to get into the nitty-gritty middle of the Bush National Guard story, but I find myself there anyway. After watching the absolutely disgraceful performance by reporters at yesterday's White House press briefing, it looks as if we've now fully entered a vortex of insanity. (more)

And a great editorial by Thomas Lipcomb in the Chicago Sun-Times. Excerpt:

It all started with a report by the Boston Globe during the 2000 presidential election questioning Bush's National Guard service. Walter Robinson cited retired Turnipseed, of the Alabama Air National Guard, as his source.

But in an interview , Turnipseed states that Robinson's reporting of their conversation was either distorted or based upon his misunderstanding of how the military functioned at the time of Bush's service. For Bush to be "AWOL" or "away without leave," he would have had to have been assigned to a unit and under its command.

Turnipseed states Bush was never ordered to report to the Alabama Air National Guard. He points out that Bush never transferred from the Texas Air National Guard to the Alabama Air National Guard. He remained in the Texas Guard during his stay in Alabama. This was confirmed by the Texas Guard. And Turnipseed added that Bush was never under his command or any other officer in the Alabama Guard....

Now, Robinson is beginning to have second thoughts. His latest column states: "President Bush received credit for attending Air National Guard drills in the fall of 1972 and spring of 1973 -- a period when his commanders have said he did not appear for duty at bases in Montgomery, Ala., and Houston -- according to two new documents obtained by the Globe." How could Robinson have gotten it so wrong?