That's a strawman, not the conventional wisdom. I've never seen that claimed anywhere but leftist hit pieces, like this one.
The Moore version: He was informed of the first attack, went into the room anyway, was informed of the second attack, and remained with the students until a staff member suggested that he leave.
That's a twisted version of the story. there were plenty of good reasons for it to be done exactly the way it was done, none of which are quoted here.
"The teacher in that Sarasota classroom happened to tape the whole event," Moore told me. "We'd seen other footage from the networks, but it was all edited. She just left the camera running. She said nobody had ever asked her for the film. Bush didn't instinctively jump up and go into action, but just stayed on autopilot until someone told him what to do."
His advisors and staff were continuing the plan they laid out before he went in. Words like 'dawddled' and 'autopilot' are just deceptive leftist spin.
Please see #50.
Toronto Star: Moore rant wows Cannes Anti-Bush polemic funny, emotional yet very powerful
At one point in the film Bush is seen in the primary school classroom where he first learned of the planes being flown into the World Trade Center towers, and Moore slows the footage down so that Bush is seen to be blinking uncomprehendingly and endlessly, a child's storybook open ridiculously before him, as a counter in the corner of the screen counts out the nine minutes before the President seemed to react.
The man is a manipulator and a propagandist. Picking apart his tricks is not necessary. He's a quack and a fool. Discredit the whole antiwar protest movement by showing their financial ties to international Communism; the links exist. Take out the major players to begin with. Even the leftists in this country are embarassed by Michael Moore.