I'm not a national political reporter, so I don't have the time or the access to really advance the Sen. John Kerry vs. the Swift Boat Vets story in any meaningful way. What I can do, however, is take a look at how the media is doing its job (or not doing its job in this case).

I was watching "The O'Reilly Factor" (fast-forwarding past much of it) when I came to the debate between the Media Research Center's Brent Bozell and Gadflyer.com editor Paul Waldman.

Waldman stuck to the Democrat party line throughout the debate and prompted the following e-mail from me.

Paul, saw you last night on “The O’Reilly Factor.” I was struck by your claim that “the idea that they (the national media) have been houn…pounding George W. Bush on the National Guard service is absolutely false.”

I’ll willingly concede that the issue wasn’t a big idea in the 2000 election cycle, but the idea that the National Guard story and the Swift Boat Vets claims have received roughly equivalent treatment in the national press doesn’t hold water.

To give you a point of reference, I’d like to direct your attention to this press conference (http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2004/02/20040210-3.html) and the tough questioning endured by White House press secretary Scott McClellan. I’ve seen no similar tough questioning by the media of Sen. John Kerry’s representatives on the claims of the Swift Boat vets.

If you can point me to some mainstream reporter who has asked these tough questions of the Kerry campaign and gotten some answers, I’d be grateful. But, to date, I haven’t been able to locate it.

I'll let you know if I get a response.