corrente

It couldn't be that the Edwards/Cheney debate is on tonight, could it? No! They would never do that!

More than a week after a court-imposed deadline to turn over all records of President Bush's military service, the Texas Air National Guard belatedly produced two documents Tuesday that include Bush's orders for his last day of active duty in 1973.

Why is it that when these guys say "all" the documents, it's never, ever true?

The orders show Bush was on "no-fly" status for his last days of duty because he had been grounded almost a year earlier for skipping an annual medical.

The Texas Air National Guard did not explain the delay in releasing the records.

The 1973 orders come from the most controversial period in Bush's years in the Texas Air National Guard. After May 1972, Bush skipped training for six months, failed to appear for the required physical examination, got permission to train at an Alabama unit whose commanders say he never showed up and put in a flurry of training in 1973 in an effort to meet minimum requirements before leaving for Harvard Business School.

Nice summary of the facts. Amazing how the winger circlejerk about the fonts and the superscripts obscured the real events, isn't it?

Bush has insisted he fulfilled all of his Air National Guard duties and says he is proud of his service.

I still don't see why being grounded is something to be proud of.

Democrats have criticized Bush's Guard performance, saying he shirked his duties in his final years in the service.

By July 1973, Bush was finishing a four-month stretch that included 40 days of active-duty service and drills. The orders released Tuesday direct Bush to report for equivalent active-duty training for eight days in July 1973.

The equivalent-training notation means Bush was making up for active-duty training he either had already missed or would be unavailable for in the future. The orders do not say what Bush would be doing since he could not participate in the job code listed on the orders - F-102A fighter pilot.

So, um, how could Bush have fulfilled his obligations to our country?

The last day of the orders is July 30, 1973, Bush' final day in the Texas Air National Guard. Previously released documents include a form Bush signed that day stating he had been counseled on his plans to leave his Texas unit because he was moving out of the area.

Bush started Harvard Business School in September 1973 and the Texas Air National Guard honorably discharged Bush into the Air Force Reserves, effective Oct. 1 of that year. The Air Force discharged Bush in November 1974.
(via AP)

So, again, what on earth does Bush have to be proud of?