Call of Duty

The AP Reports:
"New documents unearthed in the midst of the presidential campaign fill in some blanks but raise other questions about the sometimes mysterious and spotty story of President Bush (news - web sites)'s military service during Vietnam when he won a coveted spot in the Texas Air National Guard and avoided the war."

It is great that the press is really beginning to dig into the Bush AWOL story. I just hope the Democrats don't get too involved with it. The short term political benefits of this issue are likely to be limited. A story like this is far more usefull against a challenger rather than an incumbent. Furthermore it runs the risk of legitimizing the Swift Boat Smears in the eyes of the public because both are to some degree a manifestation of the "politics of personal destruction", even though there is much more substance to the charges against Bush. For now the Democrats should avoid using Bush's guard service directly and do what Bush's Republican surrogates have been doing by expressing "interest" in the investigation, thereby leaving the question open and keeping the story in the news while reducing the risks of blowback. At a later date the National Gaurd business go be very useful if woven into a broader attack on George W. Bush's personal courage, possibly by connecting it with Bush-Cheney '04 attempt to duck the third presidential debate or any other instances where the President has tried to bodly run away.

Questions Raised About Bush Guard Service