The WH, Gannon and the Devils Advocate: The Bonefire of the Vanities

[Nordic65]

Having followed this scandal for the last two weeks I’m left with an ever so tiny bit of sour taste. As with the rest of the human race, I welcome any shit-news that has a snowballs chance in hell to tarnish the holier than Jesus image of the current White House.

True, I cannot imagine what made this sad character believe he would get away with it. But even so, lets for the sake of argument try to look at this from Guckerts perspective (an open mind is required...)

You’re in your forties, have next to nothing going for you, drifting into prostitution and self-destruction. Then suddenly you hit the jackpot - respectability. A WH correspondent no less.

If we are to believe Guckert (not much to go on, I know), he stared writing op-ed pieces for various wingnut net-rags sometime in 2002. And armed with a diploma from a two day long course at a partisan shit-hole he got a chance to cover the WH, on a day by day basis, for new outlet from GOPUSA.COM.

Now, before we continue, remember this; The Bush WH was/is fighting in the trenches, 24/7/365. No matter what. It’s their MO above all thing else. Any wingnut willing to whore them self out would be welcomed with open arms. Background checks be damned. Say hi’ to Mr. Gannon from Talon News.

Imagine, from deadbeat to somebody in five short days. Unless you’ve been there, you cannot even begin to comprehend what that will do to you. A hint - there will be no second thoughts. Simply said, you’re going to be divorced from reality - big time. And to your utter amazement, it actually works. Nobody asks any questions. Sure, they laugh at your silly bi-partisan softballs, but so what. You’re there. And as time goes by, even the President of the United States knows who you are. Think about it; In two short years the WH has become used to your never failing lifelines and they’re starting to use them for what they’re worth. Oh, you have so arrived.

But it was not to be. The truth about the dismal past is unveiled. Stripped of anything resembling that once coveted respectability, you’re left alone. A laughingstock (understatement of the year) of unprecedented proportions. Were do you go? What do you do? Who do you turn to for help?

If you have a God, all the best to you. If you don’t, even I, a bitterly political opponent, would pray for you. And I’m not even religious.

Heck, what I’m saying is; this may simply be nothing more than a personal tragedy. The WH might have suspected (bad for them), but as long as nobody called them on it for two fucking long years, who are we to complain now. We should have done so in 2003.

It’s a merciless game, the stakes are sky high and Guckert, the sorry fool, made all the wrong bets.

Thoughts for a fellow human being...

[DoYouEverWonder]

1. Well there is always the bright side

Gannon will have a lot more time to go to church every day now that he's been outed.

I wonder how much he will sing for?

[Goldmund]

2. Nice post.

But... 1) I don't see how such a simple story can include him getting access to the Plame documents; and 2) Even if Gannon is a relatively innocent collateral victim in this political war -- which has made far greater victims of many, many even more innocent people -- this isn't about Gannon. It's about the way this Administration works. And the questions it raises. If Gannon's reputation has to be sacrificed at the stake -- while, only today, multiple people have _died_ victims of the GOP political agenda -- so be it. And that's all IF your simple story is close to accurate, which as I said, I sense that it is not.

[Nordic65]

4. You're probably right, but what if we are wrong?

I understand what you're saying, and I'm not going to disagree.

What I tried to say is simply; there could be other explanations and we should not be blind to them.

The truth will eventually come out, and if we are wrong, the sooner rather than later I suspect...

[Goldmund]

6. I thought I covered that...

if I'm wrong, and this is indeed a simple story like you say, then Gannon will turn into one of the more kindly treated collateral casualties of this political war. Whether Gannon is a devious insider or a pathetic loser, his story has the potential to shed light on some of their nefarious inner workings. If it doesn't, then that will suck for all of the millions of future casualties of different kinds of the GOP agenda.

[Salviati]

3. I may be cajoled to feel sorry for him a little on the personal level...

but on the professional level, the man never stopped being a whore. He just got different clients, that's all. And in these dark days, he deserves what he gets.

[jdj]

5. well, when I read his crack about Monica and the blue dress stain

from the link on a thread yesterday, I lost sympathy for him.

Too bad, so sad, asshole. (or should that be manhole?)

last sentence:

"How Many Chemical Weapons Have to be Found Before You Can Say There Are WMDs in Iraq?

Posted by Jeff Gannon to McGruff
On News/Activism 07/06/2004 12:26:44 PM PDT · 17 of 35


Still the fact that:

"The rounds were tested and showed positive for Sarin gas. It has been determined that the rounds were left over from the Iran-Iraq war."

means that the are WMDs in Iraq.

DNA testing on Monica's blue dress told a story of what happened, not when."

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/user-posts?name=jeff%20gannon

[Nordic65]

8. Not really arguing for sympathy, and...

..he was a whore, that's for sure. Stupid beyond belief, caught in the act, and, by now, paying for it.

I guess my ounce of thought for him is rooted in his past as a completely nobody. Then by chance (my reasoning) he got to play with the "best" in front of a national audience. Only to make his miserable excuse for an existence to hit even new lows.

It's a sad story. Period.

[w13rd0]

7. I do not feel sorry for him...

...never have, never will. He's a right-wing thug, either a willing participant in propaganda, or all too happy to play a role.

[zann725]

9. Oh I disagree. There is MUCh more here.

If you had a few more posts, I think I might hesitate and consider that there's "nothing here, move on."

But no...no thanks.

Welcome though Newbie to DEMOCRATIC Underground!

[Goldmund]

10. Postcount snobbery is such a turn-off...

[Nordic65]

11. Sorry, I don't understand

What do you mean by "If you had a few more posts"?

[TrustingDog]

12. 'Bonefire' - LOL!

[H2O Man]

13. One would have

to assume that Mr. Gannon is a "sad character," with "next to nothing going for (him)," who was "divorced from reality" and who became a victim of circumstance when the "truth about the dismal past is unveiled."

Luckily for us, there is absolutely no evidence that any of these four quotes is true. Not a bit.

In fact, his poor "dismal past" appears to be a current cover for who he actually is.

Of course, we are all entitled to our opinions. Mine is that when the White House rejects him, they will use excuses that seek to portray him in this type of light. I think the entire "shit to sugar" story is what is commonly known as a legend. As Yuri Nosenko, a former high-ranking KGB agent said, "A legend is a false biography." Or, as JJ Angleton wrote, "In the field of intelligence, a legend is an operational plan for a cover, or a cover itself, depending on the mission."

I'll bet the poor, pitiful Gannon business turns out to be just that.

[DearAbby]

15. Reverse the situation...the GOP would ride this horse to death

the smack the carcass and try to get another few feet out of the corpse. They are playing for keeps, with no nice nice rules, to them there are no rules. They smeared people's reputations, they have lied to the American people to con them out of their sons and daughters to fight their war of profit. They would not sit back and say "Gee, I wonder if this is ethical"

They spend millions of taxpayer monies hounding Clinton and got him on a stained dress. Why do we pull in out teeth and claws at the most critical time? STRIKE IT. HIT THEM, BEAT THAT DEAD HORSE if you have too, they would. GROW A SET!

[H2O Man]

17. We owe it to

our country, to past and future generations, to the US Constitution, and to ourselves to push this case to the full extent possible.

[Nordic65]

16. He is a sad character, true, but then there is Ockham's Razor

From Wikipedia.org:

"In its simplest form, Ockham's Razor states that one should not make more assumptions than needed. When multiple explanations are available for a phenomenon, the simplest version is preferred. A charred tree on the ground could be caused by a landing alien ship or a lightning strike. According to Ockham's Razor, the lightning strike is the preferred explanation as it requires the fewest assumptions."

The question here is: what is the simplest version of this tale, and can it be applied?

FYI (also from www.wikipedia.org):
Ockham's Razor is a principle attributed to the 14th century English logician and Franciscan friar, William of Ockham that forms the basis of methodological reductionism, also called the principle of parsimony.

[H2O Man]

21. "He is a sad character, true"

You have provided no evidence that he is this sad character. There is no evidence he is a sad character. It is not true.

[Nordic65]

24. What more do you need?

WH correspondent one day, male prostitute the next day. If that's not enough to make any person a "sad character" tell me about it.

[H2O Man]

25. The truth.

Just the facts.

[Nordic65]

27. Read the title, as in "The Devils Advocate"

I'm not out to defend Guckert or make excuses for the White House. I sincerely hope they all get their dues worth on Judgment-day (it's gonna be hot).

All I'm implying is that in our quest for the truth, we owe it to our self to differentiate between a useful idiot (Guckert) and the lean, mean press-machine in the White House.

It is, after all, a slight possibility they did not plan for this. One day, hostile press-corps. Next day, hostile press-corps + one idiot you can trust for softballs. And it's not like anybody cared before now either. Guckert has been trowing limp-balls for two long years.

I will admit my explanation stinks (he did show up when they needed him the most - April 2003), but then again any other theory is just as weak. Rove might be good, but he's not stupid. And this story could just as easily been brought to life before the November election. And back then if would had hurt them more than now.

Once again, just playing the devils little advocate...

[H2O Man]

29. Oh, that's fine .....

I think that it is highly unlikely that Rove would be involved in this. He's too honest and patriotic. (Just being a devil's advocate!) I do think it is unlikely that Mr. Gannon is a "useful idiot."

[verdalaven]

14. Don't feel sad for him

he'll suffer a bit of humiliation, then right around the corner a $4 million dollar book deal will magically appear for him. Name of the book? Hm.....Bulldog's White House Diaries?

Consider this: If he was really intent on going legit, why was he still doing the gigolo thing on the side? I think he was playing with fire for fun. Some people do that for kicks, testing the limits.

I've become jaded enough to where I really don't feel sorry for him at all.

[Nordic65]

19. On a political level I agree,...

..but, sorry for being blunt, this has got to be one person I would look out for so he does not hurt himself.

And if he does, nobody ever gonna know shit.

But, why do I care. I'm thousands of miles away from him. Not even a native. Fuck him and the horse he rode in on...

[Wrinkle_In_Time]

18. You make a lot of claims about Guckert's past...

... prior to becoming Talon's WH Correspondent, viz:

... You’re in your forties, have next to nothing going for you, drifting into prostitution and self-destruction. ...Any wingnut willing to whore them self out would be welcomed with open arms. ...Imagine, from deadbeat to somebody in five short days. ...The truth about the dismal past is unveiled.

This has not been reported anywhere. Please provide the evidence to support your claims. Without this, I consider your post to be a work of fiction.

William of Ockham is often abused to make whatever point one wishes to make. I personally find the most likely explanation to be that Guckert was connected to very powerful/influential people and their shared hubris allowed him to take on this sock-puppet role with the expectation that he would always have sufficient political cover. I have as much proof as you.

[Nordic65]

22. Sorry, nothing but assumptions, and yet more assumptions

But, this is what I get from reading blogs to my eyes get sore...

Truth is though:

- He is in his forties
- According to the legend his last job was painting vans (among a lot of other dead-end adventures)
- Thousands of dollars is owed in taxes to the First State (Delaware)
- He is a prostitute (or at the very least pretended to be a few years ago)
- And, that is by all accounts a road to self-destruction
- Show me one wingnut rejected by the WH
- Talon News was established in late Mars 2003. Gannon got his WH pass early April 2003
- Present: The truth about Gannon/Guckert is revealed for the world to see

Not reported anywhere? I think not.

[Wrinkle_In_Time]

26. Nice try at spinning my post...

... you should apply for a position at Talon, I hear there is a position open (and that is not double entendre).

[Nordic65]

28. Not spinning your reply, trust me

And of course my post is a work of fiction. Who do you think I am. The Oracle at Delphi?

[Eloriel]

20. I can see where you're coming from, but...

I'm going to withhold all my sympathy/empathy until this little story further unfolds and I have a better feel for who/what Gannon REALLY is. In the meantime, I'm struggling with it from a larger vantagepoint, as you can see from my post in this thread (and do be sure to read all of H20man's posts to the thread as well):

Subpoena List For Plame Grand Jury
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x3111979


There's more to be known about this, and I'm reserving judgment AND empathy.

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

23. Great post!

:kick:

[mitchum]

30. I have no pity or sympathy for that shit Guckert...

even with the knowledge that he will be "suicided" by Roveco.
Despite his day job, he would never roll over on the thugs in the White House.
Good riddance to the two bit thug

[Disturbed]

31. It's possible that he was lying

about having seen docs regarding V. Plame. He is a known liar. Even yesterday he lied to Wolfie B. about the Web Sites not being his. How stupid is he not to have those deleted? I am now of the view that there is not much more of this story to pursue. It's another blip on the screen. The teflon Bush Junta rolls on to destroy Amerika.