Blumenthal: Jeff Gannon "a HIRELING, a FRAUD and a PROSTITUTE"

[Bluebear]

Bush's agent in the press corps has given spin a new level of meaning

Sidney Blumenthal
Thursday February 17, 2005

The White House press room has often been a cockpit of intrigue, duplicity and truckling. But nothing challenges the most recent scandal there.

The latest incident began with a sequence of questions for President Bush at his January 26 press conference. First, he was asked whether he approved of his administration's payments to conservative commentators. Government contracts had been granted to three pundits, who had tried to keep the funding secret. "There needs to be a nice, independent relationship between the White House and the press," said the president as he called swiftly on his next questioner.

Jeff Gannon, Washington bureau chief of Talon News, rose from his chair to attack Democrats in the Congress. "How are you going to work - you said you're going to reach out to these people - how are you going to work with people who seem to have divorced themselves from reality?"

For almost two years, in the daily White House press briefings Gannon had been called upon by press secretary Scott McClellan to break up difficult questioning from the rest of the press. On Fox News, one host hailed him as "a terrific Washington bureau chief and White House correspondent". Gannon was frequently quoted and highlighted as an expert guest on rightwing radio shows. But who was Gannon? His strange non-question to the president inspired inquiry. Talon News is a wholly-owned subsidiary of a group of Texas Republicans. Gannon's most notable article had asserted that John Kerry "might some day be known as 'the first gay President'" Thus a phony journalist, planted by a Republican organisation, used by the White House press secretary to interrupt questions from the press corps, protected from FBI vetting by the press office, disseminating smears about its critics and opponents, some of them gay-baiting, was unmasked not only as a hireling and fraud but as a gay prostitute, with enormous potential for blackmail.........

http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1416370,00.html

[Bluebear]

1. Getcher morning papers here

[AngryWhiteLiberal]

2. Sadly, this is being run in the UK...we have to contend with H.Kurtz shit

If this were going on during Clinton's watch, there would be a push for Congressional hearing already underway.

This is the primary difference between Repukes and Dems. Repukes go for the jugular when their opponent is "on the ropes." Dems wring their hands about what to do, giving the Repukes time to regroup and reframe the message.

JB

[johnfunk]

8. Methinks it'll show up om the morrow at Salon.com

Now, Sidney, about that US Guardian weekly... ruin Chimpy W. Codpiece XLIII's day! Bring 'em on!

[Bluebear]

9. You got that right!

[MADem]

16. COMPLAIN--everyone reading this thread, COMPLAIN!!!

BITCH ABOUT KURTZ, make them sit up and pay attention--the address is [e-mail] and it will take you twenty seconds to send off a short bitch.

If they get enough mail, they'll alter their perspective. We need to INUNDATE THEM. Take a few moments, and do it, NOW!

[oasis]

3. Tee hee hee, Sidney said "cockpit".

:dunce:

[Zan_of_Texas]

5. Ha, I saw that too! He shoulda said Gannon had been exposed too

[Spazito]

4. Excellent article!

Thanks for the link!

[calimary]

6. Sigh... I LOVE Sidney Blumenthal...

Well, little by little, if this is getting more traction...

Olbermann...

Catherine Crier on Court TV...

Jon Stewart... (YES, Jon Stewart. I know it's a comedy show, but it gets LOTS Of viewers and LOTS of attention, and oddly enough, more credibility by the day)

We shall see...

As the guilty party said in Shakespeare, "out, damned spot..."

[oasis]

7. Blumenthal nails it. Let's hope David Corn reads the article and repents.

[SidDithers]

10. Kick...

this is a fantastic article. It needs to be picked up in the US.

Sid

[Bluebear]

12. again!

[caligirl]

11. "Spin" seems quaint. "In this day and age," said press secretary McClellan

What a dip shit.

Quaint.

Freedom of the press is now "Quaint"

Blumenthal gets it.

[EFerrari]

20. "I don't think that means what you think it means." --Montoya

[Bluebear]

13. :)

Print out the whole article for your co-workers and email from the link to pass it around!

[KoKo]

14. Hey...missed your great lead...deleted mine as dupe..

:D Good Stuff..

[Bluebear]

15. No problem!

Long as this GETS OUT THERE! :toast:

[No Exit]

17. Good article! (If only "Divine" were alive today...)

[KharmaTrain]

18. Sid...Where Ya Been???

If there's anyone who knows how the White House press aparateus works, Sid's the man. He knows, at least prior to 1/20/2001, how the credentialling system worked and how it could be abused.

Also he has had first hand sliming by some of these operatives and has some justice to mete out...(Chris Hitchens hide in your brandy snifter...LOL).

I noticed it was the Guardian he wrote for...speaking of which...ya think Mr. Greg Palast could be of use in helping crack the "Gannon" network?

[Lone_Star_Dem]

19. Excellent!

That was perfectly written. I'm feeling better and better about this Gannon thing. I do believe this one is going fester on the butt of Bush like a nasty boil. :D

[Lorien]

21. Google news has 420 stories linked to "Jeff Gannon"

this isn't disappearing anytime soon!

[Bhaisahab]

22. yeah, but the weird part is...

most of these links are for sites such as Raw Story, Nation, Collective Bellaciao, Editor & Publisher, Scoop.nz etc

such a big story, and missed by Fox, ABC, CNN et al? the liberal media is goin to the dogs i say.