maybe the mainstream media will not ignore the story this time

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/in...ate=2004-01-23

George W. Bush, A.W.O.L

In last night's Democratic Presidential debate in New Hampshire,
broadcast on the Fox News (Nuisance?) Channel and ABC's Nightline, Peter
Jennings went after Wesley Clark -- and me -- because I said I want to
see Clark debate Bush... "The General vs. The Deserter."

Jennings, referring to me as "the controversial filmmaker," asked if
Clark wanted to distance himself from me and my "reckless" remark. Clark
would not back down, stating how "delighted" he was with my support, and
that I was entitled to say what I wanted to say -- AND that I was not
the only one who had made these charges against Bush.

The pundits immediately went berserk after the debate. As well they
should. Because they know that they -- and much of the mainstream media
-- ignored this Bush AWOL story when it was first revealed by an
investigation in the Boston Globe (in 2000). The Globe said it appeared
George W. Bush skipped out in the middle of his Texas Air National Guard
service -- and no charges were ever brought against him. It was a
damning story, and Bush has never provided any documents or evidence to
refute the Globe's charges.

George W. Bush was missing for at least a 12 month period. That is an
undisputed fact. If you or I did that, we would serve time.

Senator Daniel Inouye, Democrat of Hawaii and a World War II veteran,
joined with Vietnam vets Sen. Max Cleland and Sen. Bob Kerrey to
challenge Bush on the gaps in his military record. "The question is,
where were you, Governor Bush? What would you do as commander-in-chief
if someone in the National Guard did the same thing? At the least, I
would have been court-martialed. At the least, I would have been placed
in prison," Inouye said.

The Washington Post, the New Republic, and others also presented the
evidence that Bush had fled from duty.

The most comprehensive piece I've seen was on Tom Paine.com with all the
relevant links and documents.

There are far more important issues to deal with in this election year.
Poor Peter Jennings. What was he doing on Fox? All that seems left of
his Canadianess is the way he pronounced my name ("Michael Moooore").
The question he posed to Clark was typical of a lazy media looking for a
way to distract the viewers from the real issues: the war, the economy,
and the failures of the Bush administration. But if they want to really
get into the issue of Bush and his "service record," then I say, bring
it on! The facts are all there, including the empty flyboy suit.

Yours,

Michael Moore