Kerry campaign behind fraudulent docs

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-16-2004
Kerry campaign behind fraudulent docs
15
Tue, 09-21-2004 - 10:01am
Just saw Lockhart interviewed live. He was nervous, fidgety, couldn't answer a direct question....kept dancing around the questions, changed the subject numerous times. He even started to perspire during the interview with shifting eyes. Unbelievable! Kerry's campaign is going down in flames!



Title: CBS arranged for meeting with Lockhart

Source: USAToday.com

URL Source: http://www.usatoday.com/news/politicselections/nation/president/2004-09-20-cbs-documents_x.htm

Published: Sep 20, 2004

Author: By Kevin Johnson, Dave Moniz and Jim Dri

Post Date: 2004-09-20 22:43:27 by Jaidyn

30 Comments


WASHINGTON — CBS arranged for a confidential source to talk with Joe Lockhart, a top aide to Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry, after the source provided the network with the now-disputed documents about President Bush's service in the Texas National Guard.

John Kerry aide Joe Lockhart, shown here in 1998, chatted with a former Texas National Guard officer, whose number CBS provided. AP

Lockhart, the former press secretary to President Clinton, said a female producer talked to him about the 60 Minutes program a few days before it aired on Sept. 8. She gave Lockhart a telephone number and asked him to call Bill Burkett, a former Texas National Guard officer who gave CBS the documents. Lockhart couldn't recall the producer's name. But CBS said Monday night that it would examine the role of producer Mary Mapes in passing the name to Lockhart.

Burkett told USA TODAY that he had agreed to turn over the documents to CBS if the network would help arrange a conversation with the Kerry campaign.

The network's effort to place Burkett in contact with a top Democratic official raises ethical questions about CBS' handling of material potentially damaging to the Republican president in the midst of an election. This "poses a real danger to the potential credibility of a news organization," said Aly Colón, a news ethicist at the Poynter Institute for Media Studies.

"At Burkett's request, we gave his (telephone) number to the campaign," said Betsy West, senior CBS News vice president.

CBS would not discuss the propriety of the network serving as a conduit between its partisan source, Burkett, and the Kerry campaign. “It was not part of any deal” with Burkett to obtain the documents, West said, declining to elaborate.

But Burkett said Monday that his contact with Lockhart was indeed part of an "understanding" with CBS. Burkett said his interest in contacting the campaign was to offer advice in responding to Republican criticisms about Kerry's Vietnam service. It had nothing to do with the documents, he said.

"My interest was to get the attention of the national (campaign) to defend against the attacks," Burkett said, adding that he also talked to former Georgia senator Max Cleland and Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean during the past 45 days. "Neither the Democratic Party or the Kerry campaign had anything to do with the documents," he said.

Lockhart said he phoned Burkett at the number provided by CBS. Lockhart also said that subject of the documents never came up in his conversation with Burkett. Lockhart said the conversation lasted just a few minutes. "It's possible that the producer said they had documents," before his conversation with Burkett, he said.

At the end of the conversation, Lockhart said he thanked Burkett for his interest and there was no further contact with him. Asked why he called Burkett, Lockhart said he talks to "a lot of people."

"I called you, didn't I?"

The White House said CBS' contact with Lockhart was inappropriate. "The fact that CBS News would coordinate with the most senior levels of Sen. Kerry's campaign to attack the President is a stunning and deeply troubling revelation," said Dan Bartlett, White House communications director.


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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-31-2003
Tue, 09-21-2004 - 10:08am
I just saw Lockhart interviewed live on MSNBC and he was perfectly calm, in control and not at all worried. No sweating...no shifty eyes...I think you're projecting a bit here.

The smug news guy was asking him smug questions....("do you expect us to believe...." sort of stuff) and Lockhart very cooly and calmly layed out the facts. And yes he changed the subject a few times, because the reporter was asking questions based on incorrect assumptions.

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-05-2004
Tue, 09-21-2004 - 10:13am
I've seen a few interviews of Kerry including last night's Letterman and I never saw him be nervous or anything like that. I don't catch all his interviews though but the ones I've seen he seems pretty comfortable talking. *Shrug* XOXO.
iVillage Member
Registered: 09-16-2004
Tue, 09-21-2004 - 10:16am
I wasn't talking about kerry here....i was talking about lockhart. You may think i'm projecting....and yes, I DO have my own opions, just like you do. It will be VERY interesting to see what comes of this.

We all have to remember, that it's ok to slander the commander in chief, but not an opponent? can you say, they can't take their own medicine?

Avatar for momeebear
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Tue, 09-21-2004 - 11:24am
Wow, the title of this thread would seem to be false, compared to the info posted inside. What I read was that Mr. Burkett asked for the number of the Kerry campaign in exchange for giving the documents to CBS; he spoke to the campaign, but didn't offer them the info, and they didn't bite.......didn't take his advice. I know Republicans were peeing their pants in the hopes that Kerry was behind the whole thing, but it sounds like it's just not true.....
iVillage Member
Registered: 09-16-2004
Tue, 09-21-2004 - 11:26am
Mr. Burkett was basically saying to CBS, I'll give you the info only if you give me the number for kerry's campaign hdqrts. Well, kerry's senior campaign advisor stated this morning on a live interview, that he did take their advice on a couple of points....so your statement is incorrect.

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-12-2004
Tue, 09-21-2004 - 12:31pm
Here's an explanation just as likely as yours, (not saying it's right though)- The three major players in this little drama are all from where? Oh yeah, Texas. Burkett, Rather, and of course Bush. What if there are some double agents here? Texans trying to keep their guy in the top Gov. job reminds me of stories I heard about what Johnson would be a party to with other Texans for the sake of power.
iVillage Member
Registered: 08-05-2004
Tue, 09-21-2004 - 2:05pm
I haven't seen Lockheart. I'll have to go to the site and see if there's any video interviews of him. XOXO.
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2004
Tue, 09-21-2004 - 2:19pm
Doesn't matter about the documents, he's still guilty of not doing his duty in serving in the NG.

 

The last time anyone listened to a Bush, they were lost for 40 years!   Looks like we're doomed to "wander" ano

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-20-2004
Tue, 09-21-2004 - 2:36pm
Kerry/Edwards: When you're as full of crap as these two, you need two Johns!

Flush the Johns!

Edwards/Kerry: Time for a Change!

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-01-2004
Tue, 09-21-2004 - 2:50pm
Liberal idiot, huh? For all we know the idiot part may be correct but I doubt that the liberal part is.

A true liberal thinks that as long as Bush and Dick are in the White House we all are wearing the blue dress.

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