FRANK RICH WRITES: “Though the major newspapers, including this one, did vet and challenge the Swifties’ claims, aggressive reporting on TV was rare.” Hmm. I don’t remember the Times “vetting” the Cambodia claim. I remember them ignoring it, then burying the Kerry campaign’s admission that it was true.

But now there’s some more serious vetting going on:

The Pentagon has ordered an investigation into the awarding of Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry’s five Vietnam War decorations.

The highly unusual inquiry is to be carried out by the Inspector-General’s Office of the US Navy. Senator Kerry served as a Swift boat captain for four months in 1968, serving two tours of duty in Vietnam.

Hmm. No wonder Doug Brinkley seems to be hedging.

UPDATE: Meanwhile, apparently this counts as “vetting” at the Times.

ANOTHER UPDATE: More here. And what happened to the promised Brinkley New Yorker piece?

And more thoughts on Rich’s column here. “Issues matter guys!! That’s what elections are about. . . . It’s not acting or what the stages look like. At the end of the day, it’s issues — and the NY Times hasn’t gotten it for a long time.”