September 20, 2004
THE $3 BILL IS FAKE, BUT WILL YOU GIVE ME THREE SINGLES FOR IT?:
Dan Rather Statement On Memos (CBS News, Sept. 20, 2004)
Below is the text of CBS News Anchor Dan Rather's statement on the documents purportedly written by President Bush's National Guard commander: [...]Now, after extensive additional interviews, I no longer have the confidence in these documents that would allow us to continue vouching for them journalistically. I find we have been misled on the key question of how our source for the documents came into possession of these papers. That, combined with some of the questions that have been raised in public and in the press, leads me to a point where-if I knew then what I know now-I would not have gone ahead with the story as it was aired, and I certainly would not have used the documents in question.
The interesting thing about Mr. Rather's reaction is that (with no disrespect intended to Colonel Killian) it's sort of like he's saying that he acknowledges the Hitler Diaries to be fake but continues to believe they reflect the Fuhrer's deepest thoughts. Posted by Orrin Judd at September 20, 2004 3:56 PM
This is garbage. The "we were misled" theme is contradicted by them steadfastly saying the documents were real, that their experts told them the docs were probably fake, and that Mapes has been onto this story for 5 years. The MSM started to cover this story - if it buys CBS's line and drops the story Rather and CBS will get away with it. And the main question - where did the docs come from and was the Kerry camp involved? - still needs to be answered.
Posted by: AWW at September 20, 2004 3:59 PMHe sounds more like Captain Queeg in The Caine Mutiny:
"Ahh, but the memos, that's... that's where I had him. The bloggers, they laughed at me and made jokes but I proved beyond the shadow of a doubt and with... geometric logic... that a duplicate key to the wardroom icebox DID exist, and I'd have produced that key if they hadn't of pulled George W. Bush out of action. I, I, I know now they were only trying to protect some fellow officers..."
Posted by: Mike Morley at September 20, 2004 4:34 PMSo basically: "We're willing dupes BUT you can be sure the forged memos accurately reflect one slanted view of the conflicting heresay on the matter. And you can trust us . . . on BOTH counts."
If I was Bush, I would be on this like [ugly on an ape]. Excuse my French.
Posted by: AllenS at September 20, 2004 4:47 PMThis is about 3 feet up a bull's behind.
Posted by: Rick T. at September 20, 2004 4:59 PMI would think that the reaction of any objective news organization in this situation would be "And we plan to dig until we uncover everyone involvd in misleading us and report on them to you." I expect Dan to start hanging out with OJ on all of those golf courses looking for the real killer.
Posted by: bbb at September 20, 2004 5:03 PMUnbelievable! After trying to do a hachet job on President Bush and getting caught, they claim the hachet wasn't an authentic hachet and they are a victim of the guy that gave it to them.
Posted by: jd watson at September 20, 2004 6:28 PMAgree with the above
Total garbage as AWW says. Forget the documents for a moment, Rather and the CBS team had no business dealing with this Burkett character and then trying to palm it off on the public as something valid. They knew it was bogus.
As said above Bush can feel free to comment on this (with appropriate hurt feelings etc).
Posted by: h-man at September 20, 2004 6:35 PMDan thought this story was hotter'n the inside of a hooker's miniskirt on a muggy July night in New Orleans, but it turned out to be colder than a witch's t*t in Jamuary in Alaska.
Why, this story is soooooo fake...
How fake is it, Tom?
It's so fake it makes Dan's blatantly scripted "impromptu" folksy expressions seem real.
Posted by: Tom at September 20, 2004 9:13 PMFollow-up:
Little-known fact: In the Druidic calendar, Jamuary, the 13th month, is the coldest month of the year.
January is also the coldest month of the year in the Gregorian calendar.
Posted by: Michael Herdegen at September 20, 2004 10:43 PMI saw Dan's apology on the air and maybe its churlish of me but it seemed more like he was upset with getting caught than with what he had done. Reminded me of my son when he unequivically got caught lying. I kept expecting Dan to add "And if only those pajama-clad b******s hadn't gotten involved, ..."
Posted by: bbb at September 20, 2004 11:32 PMIf Rather were an honorable man he would resign, but he is not so he won't.
Posted by: Robert Schwartz at September 21, 2004 12:54 AM"pajama-clad b******s" = pajama-clad bloggers, I presume?
Posted by: Uncle Bill at September 21, 2004 9:26 AMTHE $3 BILL IS FAKE, BUT WILL YOU GIVE ME THREE SINGLES FOR IT?
Only if you'll give me two tens for a five.