Conason: Jersey Hustler (Tom Kean)

[kskiska]

Why did former Gov. Kean, once a respected statesman, mislead the public and the press about the accuracy of ABC's "Path to 9/11"?

Sep. 15, 2006 | Until very recently, Tom Kean Sr. was one of the most admired figures in American public life, having garnered praise for bipartisan fairness and dedication as co-chairman of the 9/11 Commission. As governor of New Jersey and later as president of Drew University, he enjoyed friendships and support across party lines, building his reputation as a gentleman and statesman who cared more for policy than politics. He seemed to have achieved great popularity for the best of reasons.

But now, in the aftermath of "The Path to 9/11" -- the heavily fictionalized and politically distorted docudrama that he served as a paid advisor for and publicly defended -- it is becoming sadly obvious that his integrity was overrated. For money and a moment of Hollywood glitz, he sold out what should have been the crowning achievement of a career in public service.

By signing up as an "executive producer" of the ABC miniseries -- for a fee he still refuses to disclose -- Kean rented his good name to a right-wing Hollywood cabal seeking to malign Bill Clinton and exonerate George W. Bush, with blatant disregard for the facts uncovered by the commission at taxpayer expense. He still has not explained why he never asked the producers to honor the bipartisan nature of the commission's work, which they might have accomplished by hiring a Democratic commissioner to vet their script. He has not explained why he approved a script and a movie that simply invented (and sometimes improvised) scenes to tar Clinton and to puff up Bush. Nor has he explained why he, as an educator, promoted this confection of historical fraud to high school teachers across the nation.

(snip)

Whatever the reason behind his behavior, whether partisan or pecuniary or both, the ABC controversy revealed certain aspects of his character that had previously been hidden. From now on, Tom Kean will be seen under the same bleak light as any other hustler coming down the Jersey Turnpike. With his son Tom Kean Jr. running for the U.S. Senate against Democratic incumbent Bob Menendez, the harsh scrutiny can be expected to intensify.

more…
http://salon.com/opinion/conason/2006/09/15/kean/

[feistydem]

1. $$$$$$$$$$ $$$$$$$$$$$ $$$$$$$$$$$$$$ $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ $$$$$$$$$$$

'nuf said.

[peacetalksforall]

2. Joe comes through again. Way to go Joe! nt.