*waving arms* Gannon NOT having a hard pass is the point

[WilliamPitt]

If you read Blumenthal's piece today:

"His real name, it turned out, is James Dale Guckert. He has no journalistic background whatsoever. His application for a press credential to cover the Congress was rejected. But at the White House the press office arranged for him to be given a new pass every single day, a deliberate evasion of the regular credentialing that requires an FBI security check. It was soon revealed. 'Gannon' owned and advertised his services as a gay escort on more than half a dozen websites with names like Militarystud.com, MaleCorps.com, WorkingBoys.net and MeetLocalMen.com, which featured dozens of photographs of "Gannon" in dramatic naked poses. One of the sites was still active this week."

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/021705C.shtml

...you get the important part. They deliberately skipped the background check because they knew who this guy was. He was a mole, planted despite his obvious lack of credentials by friends inside.

If he'd had a hard pass, that means the FBI would have checked him out. Someone made sure he didn't have to go through that.

That's the point.

[BlueEyedSon]

1. Shocking that the day pass holder is vetted any less carefully...nt

[Just Me]

39. "Day pass" is bad BUT bypassing federal scrutiny via a hard pass,...

,...is a helluva lot worse!!!

If this "prostitute" received a HARD PRESS PASS in contradiction of the federal investigation normally required of "journalists",...that is a helluva lot more f_cked UP than a "day pass".

Will,...what is going on that you are minimizing the impact of a HARD PRESS PASS?

Frankly, whether hard or soft doesn't diminish the "lie-manufacturers". Moreover, I still want to know whether this man received taxpayer money to participate in the "lie-manufacturing", government-generated propaganda.

But, I really do not understand the position you are taking.

[Kikosexy2]

2. Not only ...

this should be a issues of lies but make this a security issue as well. Press on that to the network/stations and your Congressman/woman. It's a breach of security. Terra! Terra! Terra!

[H2O Man]

3. Yep.

I believe that I've pointed this out a couple times in the past 48 hours. If it were a left-wing reporter who were attempting to get day-passes for months at a time, the White House would have demanded an investigation into his/her background.

[Clark2008]

4. What do you get when you cross a mole with a prositute who has a

phony name?

Three guesses and the first two don't count.

[loudsue]

32. Ok, let's hear it! n/t

:kick:

[Mabus]

40. I'm with you

:hi: Clark2008

[mike_c]

5. but IF he had a hard pass then someone in the WH press office...

...must have IGNORED the info that such a background check would have revealed, like his pseudonym, his playful secret life, and the fact that the news service he wrote for was a front. That's just as relevant, IMO.

[fob]

9. What if you were the guy that had to issue day passes to this dude

who obviously has already gotten special treatment after making/issuing day pass after day pass maybe they asked if they could just give the guy a frickin' regular pass?

[SpiralHawk]

47. "..playful secret life..." WTF?

Gannon/Guckert was not playing. He was doing "hard work" -- as I am sure Mr. Bush would tell the nation since he himself claims to be an expert at "hard work"

Further, Gannon/Guckert was earning money for whoring out his body for sex, and his mind and soul as a political mole for a despotic regime. That's not play. That's "hard work."

[mike_c]

58. lol....

No doubt.

[LSparkle]

6. Rove plant

Who else could have gotten him that close to * without a check?

[DulceDecorum]

25. Don't misunderestimate

Rumsfeld,
and his Office of Strategic Influence.

The options range from the standard public relations stuff - doing more to explain the Pentagon's role - to more underhand tactics such as e-mailing journalists and community leaders abroad with information that undermines governments hostile to the United States.
These e-mails would come from a .com return address rather than .mil to hide the Pentagon's role.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/1830500.stm

In order to keep the war going,
certain parties need to appear good to
both the domestic and international media
who are focusing on the White House.

[MileHiStealth]

56. Rove's butt buddy, most likely ...

[Karenina]

7. HALLO!

BINGO!! CHECKMATE!!!

:wtf: is dis NASSY SHIT goin on in the "WHITE" House??? Anyone remember the OUTRAGE when so many multi-culti faces were hanging out there?

[murray hill farm]

8. But, in general...

there must be..must be...some somewhat stringent checks and requirements to get even a one day pass..even one time! There must be lots more applications for a day pass than positions are available. This has been just blown off as...well...it was just a day pass, but anyone know what are the requirements to get a day pass...and who issues them?

[WilliamPitt]

14. Not really

You call the White House Media Office, you ask for a pass, you give your SS# and who you work for, and if they don't find anything crazy, you're in. Prostitution isn't going to show up on an SS# check.

[murray hill farm]

23. That is amazing!!

They dont check for criminal records? They dont check for previous check ins to mental hospitals? They dont check for anything other than than SS number and who u work for...seems kind of nutty to me. Still...how do they decide who gets in and who does not if there are more requests than seats, etc?

[stevedeshazer]

37. But Grandma Millie has to take off her shoes at the airport

Some pre-approved White House dingleberry gets within a few meters of the POTUS.

Geeze... :eyes:

[ultraist]

42. It's not just a social security check, it's a secret service check

I even had to get a Secret Service background check for certain volunteer jobs at K-E events. I had to give my name, age, sex, SS#, DL #, & address.

What type of check does the Secret Service run?

I know they run at least a DMV, criminal, and credit check, what else?

edit: Yes, I passed! I was issued one of those little pins with the special number that was valid for only that event.

[rockedthevoteinMA]

45. But why did they revoke Maureen Dowd and tell her it would take

several months?

"I'm still mystified by this story. I was rejected for a White House press pass at the start of the Bush administration, but someone with an alias, a tax evasion problem and Internet pictures where he posed like the "Barberini Faun" is credentialed to cover a White House that won a second term by mining homophobia and preaching family values?

At first when I tried to complain about not getting my pass renewed, even though I'd been covering presidents and first ladies since 1986, no one called me back. Finally, when Mr. McClellan replaced Ari Fleischer, he said he'd renew the pass - after a new Secret Service background check that would last several months."

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/17/opinion/17dowd.html?n=Top%2fOpinion%2fEditorials%20and%20Op%2dEd%2fOp%2dEd%2fColumnists%2fMaureen%20Dowd&oref=login

[RetroLounge]

51. That's easy. Payback...

RL

[BR_Parkway]

52. Prostitution maybe not, but tax evasion? That was public record, should

be on credit report as a judgement - seems like a very simple check from there to wonder why someone has that size judgement on record from a State? And they, unlike us, have the ability to pull his IRS records and find out exactly what his job was and how much he made to owe almost $10,000 in state income taxes - not counting the interest and penalties added since.

[DulceDecorum]

10. Maybe he got a FAKE hard pass

Just like how kids get FAKE licenses so they can drink.
Then all he needs to do is slide up to the back door.

It would not be the first time someone turned up with a fake document that turned out be an authentic one that had been improperly issued.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

11. Has any one else ever been able to access the WH press corp daily

...for two years on a daily pass? I doubt it.

This was a special case with exceptions made. Who allowed it?

[mattclearing]

13. yeah, someone from Indymedia laughed when I suggested we try it.

"We've been trying for years."

[Lone_Star_Dem]

21. It's finally getting some attention.

Now we have to demand answers.

[mattclearing]

12. Ooooohhhh...

And here we thought the day pass thing was bullshit, but it was the key.

Of course.

[MikeG]

15. Makes sense now.

[BuyingThyme]

16. When the hell is a press pass expert gonna show up on DU?

[TEXASYANKEE]

17. When it comes to this particular subject,

I can't say Hard pass with a straight face. ;-)

[greenmutha]

18. But Will, it's beginning to look like he DID have a Hard Pass. Look at

these blown up photos somebody did:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=104&topic_id=3130107&mesg_id=3130107

[ultraist]

43. And that is the other issue. Is it TRUE he didn't have a hard pass?

Either way, someone OVER RODE or bypassed standard security procedures.

FBI background check takes months. A basic Secret Service background check takes less than 24 hours.

[Rose Siding]

19. Milbank told Olberman that he thought he'd seen Gannon's hard pass

snip>
OLBERMANN: Was he—it‘s been reported that he was issued daily passes rather than the proverbial hard pass, the permanent one that admitted him. Is that correct, to your knowledge?

MILBANK: Well, we don‘t know. I‘ve seen him with something that looked an awful lot like a permanent White House pass, with his face, name and organization on it. Others have seen the same thing. We don‘t know for sure. But either way, it‘s clear that Scott Mcclellan knew that it wasn‘t his real name. He had to provide his real name to get into the White House. So, here you have the press secretary to the United States, playing along addressing this guy by his pseudo name. So there was some degree of complicity, even if he was not granted, against White House rules, an actually hard past.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6947877/

The rest of the press corp has been pretty mum on details. Do they really not pay any attention to who else shows up?

[greenmutha]

22. Dana Milbank's comments on DailyKos:

"DK: You've stated that you think you've seen Gannon with a "hard press" pass. What is the visual difference between a hard pass and a daily pass?

DM: A hard pass has your photo and news org and name on it. A daily pass is just a brown and white striped pass that says, "Press," on it and comes on a dog-tag style chain. Note that the one Gannon wears in the footage on TV is a blue lanyard - not the sort of thing a day pass comes on."

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/2/17/10515/0631

[Rose Siding]

24. Wow -that's new. What a great way to commune with the press

The whole thread I mean. Thanks

Dana doesn't back off from his impression, does he?

[DulceDecorum]

27. Possible retraction on the hard pass

UPDATE: Looks like my caveat at the bottom of this post was correct. I've communicated with two sources who have confirmed that the White House hard pass for correspondents is different than the one Gannon was wearing in that photo. The head shot is in the wrong place, the words, etc. This still begs the question of exactly what ID was he wearing, since it's not clear he was working for anyone at the time.
http://www.americablog.org/

Jeff Gannon appears on several articles on the GOPUSA website (now scrubbed.)
There are articles dating back as far as January 2003.
He was writing for GOPUSA.
GOPUSA lent GAnnonGuckert the credentials that got him into the White House.

U.S. to Oppose Libya as U.N. Rights Chair
By Jeff Gannon
GOPUSA News
January 15, 2003
WASHINGTON (GOPUSA News) -- In a briefing to the press, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said that the United States would oppose Libya's candidacy to become head of the United Nations Human Rights Commission. Boucher cited U. N. sanctions against the African nation and its poor human rights record as reasons that its chairmanship would be "not appropriate."
http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:1fNm3FrB6YEJ:gopusa.com/news/2003/january/0115_libya.shtml++site:gopusa.com++%22+GOPUSA+News%22++++++%22jeff+gannon+%22&hl=en

New Senators Get Pentagon Briefing; Clinton Absent
By Jeff Gannon
GOPUSA News
January 17, 2003
WASHINGTON (GOPUSA News) -- Powell Moore, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Legislative Affairs hosted a breakfast Thursday for new members of the Senate Armed Service Committee.
http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:GPub3ZfIoKEJ:www.gopusa.com/news/2003/january/0117_pentagon_breakfast.shtml++site:gopusa.com++%22+GOPUSA+News%22++++++%22jeff+gannon+%22&hl=en

Anti-war Protest Draws Thousands to DC
By Jeff Gannon
GOPUSA News
January 20, 2003
WASHINGTON (GOPUSA News) -- On Saturday, the National Mall was filled with throngs of anti-war protestors. Unofficial estimates put the number between 100,000 and 500,000. In a replay of a smaller October 2002 event, participants endured frigid temperatures to hear two hours of speeches and songs before marching to the Navy Yard.
http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:g3yZlMd5ZgUJ:www.gopusa.com/news/2003/january/0120_protest.shtml++site:gopusa.com++%22+GOPUSA+News%22++++++%22jeff+gannon+%22&hl=en

Roe v. Wade Fans, Foes Mark 30 Years
By Jeff Gannon
GOPUSA News
January 22, 2003
WASHINGTON (GOPUSA News) -- The anniversary of the 1973 Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion nationwide will be observed this week across the country. Marches and rallies are planned for Washington, D. C., by groups who hope to overturn the court's ruling and by others who fear they'll succeed.
http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:kb5YSu_gFcwJ:www.gopusa.com/news/2003/february/0212_estrada.shtml++site:gopusa.com++%22+GOPUSA+News%22++++++%22jeff+gannon+%22&hl=en

Teachers' Union Scandal Rocks Capital; Democrat Party Official, Mayor's Aide Resign Under Pressure
By Jeff Gannon
GOPUSA News
January 24, 2003
WASHINGTON (GOPUSA News) -- The American Federation of Teachers has taken control of the Washington Teachers Union after an audit appeared to suggest misappropriation of funds by several of its officers. About $5 million was stolen over a period of seven years according to the AFT's preliminary report.
http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:KJdGGDpZwD0J:www.gopusa.com/news/2003/january/0124_dc_scandalp.shtml++site:gopusa.com++%22+GOPUSA+News%22++++++%22jeff+gannon+%22&hl=en

Clinton Goes on Offense; Skips Defense
By Jeff Gannon
GOPUSA News
January 31, 2003
(GOPUSA News) -- Recently, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) attacked the Bush administration for creating a "myth" of homeland security. In a speech at John Jay College in Manhattan, the former First Lady questioned the spending priorities and tax cuts in the $390 billion package recently passed by the Senate.
http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:rjY-qu6A4aMJ:www.gopusa.com/news/2003/january/0131_clinton.shtml++site:gopusa.com++%22+GOPUSA+News%22++++++%22jeff+gannon+%22&hl=en

[greenmutha]

28. I agree! It would be great if we could do this sort of thing with more of

them on a regular basis.

[mzmolly]

20. Thanks, recommended.

;)

[bleedingheart]

26. Exactly.....they worked the system to avoid being caught...but now

it makes then even more guilty...

[Beetwasher]

29. But If He DID Have One, It Would Mean One of Two Things

1. The DID do the background check and somehow they let him in anyway (severe protocol breach) OR
2. They didn't do it and that's ALSO a severe breach of protocol.

Either way, someone in the WH stepped in and bent the rules for him.

I think he had hard pass, but either way it was a severe protocol breach.

The pass he is wearing in those pics does NOT appear to be a daily pass, so it begs the question.

[BuyingThyme]

30. Am I the only one seeing two passes in this image?

[goodhue]

31. no doubt

plus he was specifically let in every day

[DU GrovelBot]

33. ## PLEASE DONATE TO DEMOCRATIC UNDERGROUND! ##

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[Cleita]

34. So ya think there's a big gay scandal brewing at the WH?

I mean should we complain to Jerry Falwell that there may be a Tinky Winky or SpongeBob SquarePants in the inner sactum of the WH whose job it is to recruit moles who pose as journalists?

[Just Me]

35. Will,...you are being irrational. Hard pass requires greater scrutiny.

WTF?

Your last sentence contradicts your post: "If he'd had a hard pass, that means the FBI would have checked him out. Someone made sure he didn't have to go through that."

If the man was provided a HARD PASS,...whomever gave it to him, BYPASSED the FBI check.

What the hell is going on with you?

[Kadie]

36. David Schuster just reported the same things on Hardball

Hope I spelled his name right.

They would have had to take his social security number and do a security check on him every day that he got his pass. Either they didn't do it, or they are not very good at doing security checks.

[ultraist]

38. exactly! SOMEONE bypassed the regular security procedures

Gannon didn't get in based on shear luck and perform his *patriotic* duties for free.

But, is that a crime? There may be officials who are vested with that power, to override or bypass security procedures in certain situations. WHO has that power? Or did someone who doesn't have that power break the law?

I've thought all along, Gannon was a paid propaganda operative and the story is worth pursuing. It may or may not lead to uncovering who outted Plame, but it's still worth pursuing.

BTW, I loved MDowd's editorial on this!

[Eric J in MN]

41. Dana Milbank of the Wash. Post said he saw James Guckert wearing what

looked like a hard pass, and so did other journalists.

I believe that Guckert had a hard pass, and Scott McLellan was lying about this.

[ultraist]

46. Either way, SOMEONE bypassed security procedures

There is no way that they let just anyone in the WH. One of the duties of the Secret Service is to protect the President.

They either ran a standard Secret Service background check (takes less than 24 hours) or an FBI background check (takes months). OR someone with some major clout, bypassed this.

Whether it was a SS or FBI check, his fake name was used on the pass. Either security check would have revealed Jeff Gannon was a fake name, it doesn't match his social.

[bpilgrim]

60. zactly... and it wasn't just ANYBODY.

this man was obviously WELL connected and not only that... he a FAKE GOP ACTIVIST, who was also a male PROSTITUE! (the SIZZLE)

never did i DREAM we'd hit the TRIFECTA :evilgrin:

peace

[jayctravis]

44. "...dramatic naked poses."

[Roland99]

48. We don't have positive proof the WH knew of his prostitution.

[Blue_Roses]

54. Someone has positive proof

that he was a prostitute in that WH and he's still there. No way could this have gone on for 2 years and the WH not know about it. It's somebody pretty close to Bush I'm guessing in order for this guy to get such access to the press briefings.

There's so much more to this than meets the eye...

[bpilgrim]

61. lol

who'd a thunk their PICK for HS cheif was a THUG :shrug:



we know...

peace

[drummer55]

49. awesome mr. Pitt! n/t

[suegeo]

50. Plagarism, does it matter anymore?

I've read most of these Gannon posts and stories, and I think the biggest scandals are indeed: Who let this potential security risk into the press room? Why? When did they first plot to get this guy in?

However, there are a few things I've never seen mentioned.

For example, did Gannon plagarize any of his stuff? Isn't copying someone else's work without attribution a MAJOR bad thing? Didn't Delores Kerns Godwin (SP?) copy some crap, and she got major egg on her face? Was she a journalist or was she a historian? Oh well, just asking. Not that I think Guckert was a real journalist to begin with...

Also, do news organizations have any obligation to look into the criminal history of the people they hire? What portion of the blame should GOPUSA and its BoD have for hiring this hooker as a fake reporter?

Hell, if Ollie North can get hired, anyone can.

Has any mainstream reporter contacted anyone on the BoD of GOPUSA about this scandal? At a bare minimum, just to see what kind of contract Guckert had?

Also, has anyone in the CIA been rebuked for allowing agents to pose as journalists? Who (I want a name) came up with the policy in the first place? Have they been tracking the consequences of their poor policy choice?

[Walt Starr]

53. Yup, absolutely

and the real question is, "who made certain he got daily passes each and every day."

I still say Scottie McClellan is in trouble on this one.

[bpilgrim]

62. and ari gets to skate?

pfft... they ALL knew, please.


http://www.motherjones.com/news/update/2004/11/10_402.html

they know EVERYTHING in advance

peace

[geek tragedy]

55. I'd like to get excited about this, BUT were there any rules broken

in handing out the daily pass?

Are there a limited number handed out?
Does he have to work for a news organization to get one?
Could Atrios have walked in and gotten one?

That's what I don't understand. It can't be that every schmoe who wants one gets a daily pass.

[gordianot]

57. Is there a history of James Dale Guckert. in the military?

Given that he seems to like to play Marine, there must be a history? Who exactly is James Dale Guckert.

Of course this is something corporate media will not touch. You would also think the Supermarket tabloids would be having a field day with this. Can you imagine what they would say if Clinton was involved?

[Mabus]

59. Yes.

At least according to http://www.pnionline.com/dnblog/extra/ Look for the February 14, 2005 entry.

Here's an excerpt:

Here's an interesting tibit about the Pseudo-Journalist Formerly Known as Jeff Gannon: Since we now have seen strong evidence linking "Gannon" -- real name: James D. Guckert -- to rent-a-Marine-for-the-weekend gay escort sites, here is what appears to be his military record, courtesy of military.com. Since it's a registration-only site, we'll give you the listing:

James D Guckert
Rank: E-4 Corporal
Service: Marine Corps
Status: Inactive Res/Guard (not drilling)

***
2) At age 47, unmarried and with no children, and quite literally "the picture" of good health, don't you think James D. Guckert of the inactive Marine reserves would be an excellent call-up to serve his country again, in Iraq? He's certainly a better candidate than this guy.

***********

There are some embedded links in the post.

[LibDemAlways]

64. If this had happened under Clinton,

he'd have been under tremendous pressure to resign from the start. Every person in the country would be familiar with every sordid detail, and members of the House and Senate - of both parties - would be grabbing copious tv face-time to denounce the "corrupt and immoral" administration. Hannity and Rush would have become so worked up, they'd have both probably had heart attacks by now. The media frenzy would be unprecedented, and I don't think he could have withstood it.

This illustrates, however, the lengths to which the media will go to protect the chimp, and the complete and utter hypocrisy of the Republican party. This is news. Big news. Real news. And it's either being ignored or spun in a ridiculous "go after the messenger" damage control strategy. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.

[EFerrari]

63. I thought you were just dancing. (You're right, that is the point.) nt

[Goldmund]

65. Why don't you let the story develop as it may?

Regardless what seems more politically convenient in the immediate term... There definitelly is some conflict of perception -- on the one hand the WH/JG claim that he kept getting daily passes, and then Dana Milbank's suspicion and the video zoom on the other. Since it's relevant to the story what kind of a pass he had, we should dig on this issue. Maybe the truth is even more sinister than you think at this moment... or maybe it isn't. Let's find out.

[Goldmund]

69. Yup, you're right

From AmericaBlog:

UPDATE: Looks like my caveat at the bottom of this post was correct. I've communicated with two sources who have confirmed that the White House hard pass for correspondents is different than the one Gannon was wearing in that photo. The head shot is in the wrong place, the words, etc. This still begs the question of exactly what ID was he wearing, since it's not clear he was working for anyone at the time.

[Junkdrawer]

66. He was used BECAUSE of his checkered past...

Like Limbaugh,

Like Scarborough,

Like Drudge...

Easier to keep in line...

[Vinca]

67. Considering the times we live in, it's amazing to me anyone

could get a "day pass" with no investigation. That said, restricting Gannon/Guckert to a day pass only is incriminating, to say the least. Whoever facilitated his entrance must have known he wouldn't pass muster for a "hard" pass. The whole thing stinks to high heaven. Gannon/Guckert was an obvious plant and maybe the first in a long line of press manipulations by the Bush administration.

[CWebster]

68. ...Militarystud.com. huh...

Tweety would like that.

On the occasions I witnessed the exchanges, it was all to obvious that Gannon was singled out. in fact, it was obvious that Bush brightened considerably when interacting with Gannon.

I think they should get that presidential press conference footage, where Bush guffaws over his private sneer with Gannon- at the Dem's expense - and run that loop continuously.

Ha, where would they run it you ask. Well, those Dems bragging that they qualify for Bush's tax cut, and Kerry, the wealthist man in the Senate, can get together and come up with something along with Soros.