It appears that reporters looking for answers from Dan Rather or CBS News on the memo fiasco have a lifetime hobby.
Dan and Co. have dug in their heels on the current flap over the Bush National Guard memos at CBS. Under mounting evidence that the documents are phony, CBS clings to its crumbling cliff by interviewing an 86-year-old retired secretary who declares that she didn't type them, but "the information in those is correct."
"It is notable that she confirms the content of the documents, which was the primary focus of our story in the first place," said CBS News spokeswoman Sandra Genelius.
Excuse me? This is a major news organization? It's now defending itself with sentiment and opinion rather than facts and documentation to validate stories. Radio talk show host Hugh Hewitt is calling for Congressional hearings on the grounds that "Memogate" constitutes tampering with a presidential election. In a perfect world, that would indeed happen.
All questions currently being put to Dan Rather or the CBS network are met with stubborn stonewalling. I have never heard so many contorted ways of dancing around questions without answering. Of course, a direct answer would screw him either way. There are only two possible scenarios. Either Rather was duped, or he's lying. Neither alternative is attractive to a "news legend." Hence, all his responses boil down to "These documents are authentic because I say so." Nice try, Dan, but we're not all that stupid.
Can you imagine the CBS suits, including Old Man Dan, actually having to sit down and answer questions if indeed the Congressional hearings come to pass? I would pay admission to watch that show. The news anchorman who brings down presidencies, brought down by his own deviousness and arrogance--it would be quite a trip on the Karma train.
Stay tuned...
