Wednesday, September 15, 2004
60 MINUTES II
My first live blog
Dan Rather describes Killian's secretary as a "credible voice"; confirms that the documents are "not authentic" yet what they say is true.
"I did not type these memos"
"...words in there belonged in the Army not in the Air Guard"
"... however, the information in those are not correct."
Dan: "Did you type ones like this?"
Secretary: "Yes"
She confirms that Bush did not take a physical when ordered to. Calls it "a big no-no."
"I can't remember anyone refusing to ..."
She then notes that physicals were required on the airman's birthday [if memory serves, the alleged memo orders Bush to take a physical months before his birthday].
Bush thought he was above everyone else [paraphrase].
"His parents must have been wonderful to raise someone as nice as that" [the point of this is ...]
"I feel that he did" [get special preference] but so did "a lot of other boys."
8:12 EDT
Others resented that Bush felt he didn't have to go by the rules; "It seemed that way to me." [nice equivocal language]
Does this memo and that memo "sound like what Killian felt" [Dan Rather has officially inaugurated a brand new standard of truth].
8:15
"That's all supposition" [referring to the mysterious forger of the documents].
Dan Rather, "She told us again and again ..."
"He [Killian's son] has no idea whether that was true or not"
Repeats he didn't think he had to go by the rules mantra again and again.
Dan Rather "Are those documents authentic, as experts we have consulted have maintained?" [Name one that still stands by the story]
Critics have failed to criticize the heart of the story.
END OF SEGMENT
Stonewall, stonewall, stonewall. Ignores the fact that CBS's own experts expressed doubts about the documents before the story ran.
Howard Kurtz and Andrew Sullivan are pilling on over on Paula Zahn on CNN.
Kurtz: Rather told me that he will go on the air and take responsibility if the documents are proven to be false. CBS is being "slow and careful."
Kurtz also gives props to blogs.
Sullivan accuses CBS of deeply ingrained bias. "Their minds were clouded with bias."
UPDATE: A couple of things that apparently slipped Dan Rather's mind in his interview with Ms. Knox
According to an article in yesterday's Houston Chronicle:
Killian's son asserts that Knox was a typist in the TANG pool but was not his father's personal typist (thanks to Allahpundit for both observations).
Both issues are matters of debate. Killian's son could be wrong. Knox could have been misquoted in the Houston Chronicle. But Rather and CBS News don't seem to need to be bothered with such trivialities and sifting through evidence and weighing and showing both sides.
Dan Rather describes Killian's secretary as a "credible voice"; confirms that the documents are "not authentic" yet what they say is true.
"I did not type these memos"
"...words in there belonged in the Army not in the Air Guard"
"... however, the information in those are not correct."
Dan: "Did you type ones like this?"
Secretary: "Yes"
She confirms that Bush did not take a physical when ordered to. Calls it "a big no-no."
"I can't remember anyone refusing to ..."
She then notes that physicals were required on the airman's birthday [if memory serves, the alleged memo orders Bush to take a physical months before his birthday].
Bush thought he was above everyone else [paraphrase].
"His parents must have been wonderful to raise someone as nice as that" [the point of this is ...]
"I feel that he did" [get special preference] but so did "a lot of other boys."
8:12 EDT
Others resented that Bush felt he didn't have to go by the rules; "It seemed that way to me." [nice equivocal language]
Does this memo and that memo "sound like what Killian felt" [Dan Rather has officially inaugurated a brand new standard of truth].
8:15
"That's all supposition" [referring to the mysterious forger of the documents].
Dan Rather, "She told us again and again ..."
"He [Killian's son] has no idea whether that was true or not"
Repeats he didn't think he had to go by the rules mantra again and again.
Dan Rather "Are those documents authentic, as experts we have consulted have maintained?" [Name one that still stands by the story]
Critics have failed to criticize the heart of the story.
END OF SEGMENT
Stonewall, stonewall, stonewall. Ignores the fact that CBS's own experts expressed doubts about the documents before the story ran.
Howard Kurtz and Andrew Sullivan are pilling on over on Paula Zahn on CNN.
Kurtz: Rather told me that he will go on the air and take responsibility if the documents are proven to be false. CBS is being "slow and careful."
Kurtz also gives props to blogs.
Sullivan accuses CBS of deeply ingrained bias. "Their minds were clouded with bias."
UPDATE: A couple of things that apparently slipped Dan Rather's mind in his interview with Ms. Knox
According to an article in yesterday's Houston Chronicle:
Last week, Knox said she had no firsthand knowledge of Bush's time with the Texas Air National Guard, although she did recall a culture of special treatment for the sons of prominent people, such as Bush and others. (emphasis added)She sounded awfully first-hand last night. Why the discrepancy?
Killian's son asserts that Knox was a typist in the TANG pool but was not his father's personal typist (thanks to Allahpundit for both observations).
Both issues are matters of debate. Killian's son could be wrong. Knox could have been misquoted in the Houston Chronicle. But Rather and CBS News don't seem to need to be bothered with such trivialities and sifting through evidence and weighing and showing both sides.
