What Did You Do in the War, Junior?
The draft issue is back. On July 4, the Los Angeles Times reported that George W. Bush avoided Vietnam by being admitted to the Texas Air National Guard with unusual speed. That same day, the Dallas Morning News presented Bush's side of the story. Did Bush use his connections to dodge the draft? That depends on the standards by which his conduct should be measured, which in turn are the subject of a vigorous spin war.
2. Preference vs. qualification. The Times constantly compares Bush's experience to that of other Guard applicants. "Although getting into the state units was difficult for most others, Bush was soon in the Guard," says the Times. Bush got a "special commission making him an instant second lieutenant" and "was able to jump into the officer ranks without the exceptional credentials many other officer candidates possessed." The News adds that in the pilot aptitude section of the written test for pilot trainees, Bush scored "in the 25th percentile, the lowest allowed for would-be fliers." In short, when Bush's merits and treatment are examined relative to other applicants', his story looks fishy.
3. Treatment vs. string-pulling. Bush's enemies want the story to be about how he was treated. Bush wants the story to be about whether he pulled strings. That's because if your dad is the local congressman, you can get special treatment just by introducing yourself. You don't have to pull strings. The Times says Bush "received favorable treatment," and "doors were opened" for him. Note the passive voice. The Times found "no sign that political influence helped Bush along," and the News adds, "Officers who supervised Mr. Bush and approved his admission to the Guard said they were never contacted by anyone on Mr. Bush's behalf." For the pundits, that ends the discussion. "The favoritism was all on the side of the military reaching out to him rather than anything he or his father did," observed Hume. ABC News' Sam Donaldson agreed: "I am sure he got preferential treatment. But what is he supposed to do? [Say] 'My name is Gonzalez, not Bush?' " No strings, no story.
The question pundits are too coarse to contemplate is whether there's a zone between passive innocence and active manipulation. The Guard official to whom Bush applied for admission told the Times that Bush mentioned his father right away: "He said he wanted to fly just like his daddy." Bush's spokesman pointed out that Bush, "because of his circumstances, made an ideal subject for National Guard publicity." In short, Bush knew the deck was stacked in his favor. All he did was play the cards.
Who's winning the war over the draft? Since the talking heads agree with Bush's competitors that it's a "non-story," Round 1 goes to Bush. But the contest between the pro- and anti-Bush spins is less interesting than the reality that lies between them. A pilot who flew with Bush in Texas told the News that their service was "a non-threatening way to do your military, get paid well for some long shifts, and feel good about your own involvement. … It was a cushy way to be a patriot." Perhaps the story worth telling about Bush's military service is not whether it was cushy or patriotic, but how it was both.