Some of us have a sneaking suspicion that the nation’s print media just might have a little liberal bias, and a real problem with President Bush. That suspicion all too often is confirmed both by what newspapers even determine is “news” as well as how they report it.

See what you make of the May 23 USA TODAY treatment of two stories involving the President. A PDF link can be found here (800 kb file).

A picture of the President driving on his own private property in Crawford, Texas prompted an article about him not having his seat belt fastened — a Page 5, above the fold, four column wide, 5 ½ inch deep article.

A much smaller piece on the same page, in the briefs column, mentions that recently declassified intelligence reports found, “Osama bin Laden ordered a top lieutenant (Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who was in Iraq) in early 2005 to form a terrorist cell that would conduct attacks outside Iraq – and that the United States should be the top target.”

This second story seems far more significant since it not only rather obviously provides evidence that bin Laden and Al-Qaeda were inside Iraq for at least the last two years but also indicates that these radical jihadists resolved to make America their “top target” — something the anti-Bush crowd has decide to ignore or deny.

To use a media cliché, “we report, you decide.” Did USA TODAY appropriate prioritize and report these two stories?