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Executives at ABC and CBS News can be relieved this week that, unlike with Hurricane Katrina, their Rita coverage didn't appear seriously affected by voids at the chief anchor position left by the late Peter Jennings and Dan Rather. It's been more than five months since both men last anchored the evening news. ABC is conducting its search for a successor very privately. CBS has struggled, although it gave itself the bigger challenge. NBC's ratings spiked high in the wake of Katrina and the very visible work of its anchorman, Brian Williams. Even though its anchor decision hasn't been made,...

Howard Dean, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, arrived at CBS' Washington studios Sunday with one unusual talking point for his ''Face the Nation'' interview clearly in mind. He claimed Iraqi women were better off under Saddam Hussein's barbarous regime than they are likely to be under the nascent democracy. In fact, he said it three times. ''That's a terrible thing to say,'' one old-line Democratic loyalist told me. ''But what are we going to do about him? We're stuck with him.'' The answer by this Democrat and many others is to ignore him, which is not easy when he...

Deanocrats exposed: A party of no ideas Tuesday, August 16, 2005 Give CBS's Bob Schieffer credit for asking a simple question to expose Howard Dean as the beefless polemicist he is. The Democratic National Committee chairman sat for Mr. Schieffer's "Face the Nation" on Sunday. The topic: Iraq. The question: What do Democrats propose to do about the public perception that the war has left us more vulnerable to terrorists? "Well, I think first of all, we need a plan," Dean said; President Bush "had no plan when we got there and has no plan to get us out. (The)...

CBS Evening News interim anchor Bob Schieffer gives the network a bonus - the White House likes him, says CBS chairman Les Moonves. "That's not the end-all, be-all, but obviously the White House doesn't hate CBS anymore with Schieffer in the chair," Moonves said in an interview Wednesday at the TV critics' summer meetings here. Did the White House hate CBS with Dan Rather in the chair? "Post-Memogate, I'm sure they did," Moonves says, quickly adding, "I'm very fond of Dan. Dan's terrific. He had a long, illustrious career at CBS, and let's not forget that." Moonves says Schieffer is...

If you thought CBS' talking heads would at least make an effort at a little political balance, you'd be wrong. And if you thought CBS would lighten up on the Bush administration -- and the GOP in general -- you'd be wrong. Dead wrong. Here are a few sounds bites from CBS anchor Bob Schieffer's appearance on the Don Imus show this morning: WMD. Iraq. Things getting worse, not better. Vietnam. Bodybags. That's the gist. Put simply, phrases pitched straight from the Kerry talking points memo distributed in, what, October? Can't someone change Schieffer's teleprompter? Of course, Schieffer neglected any...

Dan Rather's replacement hasn't fallen far from the tree. Seems to me that when he replaced Rather, Schieffer tried to pretend he was more politically even-handed. That mask is off.On Imus this morning, Schieffer was certain that President Bush's plan for personal retirement accounts will never be passed, because it will cause a 9 trillion dollar deficit in social security. But his most liberal remarks were saved for Iraq.Schieffer said Iraq is "exploding in violence." and he directly compared Iraq with Vietnam. He said public support for the Iraq war will plummet as it did for the Vietnam war "as...

CBS Bob Schieffer doesn't have much of a sense of humor anymore, judging by his reaction to a quip from House Majority Leader Tom DeLay.All of the Sunday interview shows devoted segments to DeLays ethical problems, but only Schieffer was appalled by how DeLay had told the NRA convention in Houston on Saturday night that 'when a man is in trouble or is in a good fight, you want to have your friends around, preferably armed.' On Face the Nation, Schieffer read the quote to Republican congressman David Drier and demanded: 'Well, don't you find that rather inflamatory?'Schieffer then pressed...

CBS's Bob Schieffer on Tuesday night noted how "members of Congress deny" their actions on the Schiavo case represented "a political move on their part but," Schieffer charged, "some of their comments caught on tape suggest otherwise." Wyatt Andrews insisted that "there is evidence some Republicans saw a political opening in Schiavo by framing her plight in the context of pro-life or anti-abortion politics." His evidence? One memo with a political point and some comments by Tom DeLay to "a leading Christian group," which Andrews treated as scandalous and characterized as DeLay saying "the Schiavo case was sent by heaven...

Just 48 hours before Dan Rather steps down under a cloud as anchor of the CBS newscast he's helmed for 24 years, the guy he squeezed out said Rather should've been replaced years ago. After nearly a quarter of a century, Walter Cronkite landed the final punch. While Cronkite has always dismissed the speculation that rising star Rather speeded up his departure from the anchor chair, yesterday afternoon he sure did sound like someone trying to take a few whacks at a guy who had KO'd him. Appearing on CNN, Cronkite, who anchored the CBS Evening News from 1962 to...

NEW YORK (AP) - Walter Cronkite, Dan Rather's predecessor at the "CBS Evening News," said Monday that Rather's replacement by Bob Schieffer was overdue. Rather, 73, ends his run as evening news anchor Wednesday, exactly 24 years after replacing Cronkite. Schieffer, the "Face the Nation" host, will be a temporary fill-in until CBS decides on a permanent replacement. Cronkite called Schieffer "one of the great television journalists of our time." "Although Dan did a fine job, I would have liked to have seen (Schieffer) there a long time ago," Cronkite said during an interview on CNN. "He would have given...

NEW YORK (AP) - Walter Cronkite, Dan Rather's predecessor at the "CBS Evening News," said Monday that Rather's replacement by Bob Schieffer was overdue. Rather, 73, ends his run as evening news anchor Wednesday, exactly 24 years after replacing Cronkite. Schieffer, the "Face the Nation" host, will be a temporary fill-in until CBS decides on a permanent replacement. Cronkite called Schieffer "one of the great television journalists of our time." "Although Dan did a fine job, I would have liked to have seen (Schieffer) there a long time ago," Cronkite said during an interview on CNN. "He would have given...

NEW YORK — Thomas Schieffer, the next U.S. ambassador to Japan, may be "the worst" news source for his elder brother, Bob, the incoming interim anchor of "CBS Evening News." Bob Schieffer, the host of the network's popular "Face the Nation" news program, jokingly made the prediction in an interview with the New York Times published Friday. "In the beginning, people said, 'Oh, he's going to be a great source for you,"' Bob said. "I say, 'He's going to be the worst source I ever had! "No. 1, when you're talking to a United States ambassador on an open line,...

CBS is taking the safe, very safe course with Rather replacement. Washington bureau chief Bob Schieffer, often called "the voice of God," is all but certain to be named interim anchor on "The CBS Evening News" when Dan Rather steps down next month. Of course Rather is leaving to they don't have to fire him. Schieffer, 67, will provide a smooth interum transition between Rather and a new, possibly multi-anchor program. Schieffer will anchor from New York, probably until late spring or early summer when the new format could ready. If accepted, the it would be a repeat of the...

Bob Schieffer, who is turning 68 later this month, has been named as the interim replacement for Dan Rather after the 73-year-old steps down on March 9. Schieffer, host of the long-struggling "Face the Nation" Sunday political show, has seen his ratings go up after ABC News appointed the hapless former Clinton Administration spokesman George Stephanopolous to head up "This Week." On the MSNBC's "Hardball" last night, Schieffer was asked about taking over CBS's struggling evening news show by host Chris Matthews: MATTHEWS: Speaking of refighting a war, are you going to be sitting in as "Evening News" anchor when...

Friday, January 21, 2005 · Last updated 3:10 p.m. PT Bush shifts ex-ballclub partner to Japan THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON -- President Bush is naming a former fellow investor in the Texas Rangers, J. Thomas Schieffer, to be the U.S. ambassador to Japan, the White House announced Friday. Schieffer, the U.S. ambassador to Australia and brother of Bob Schieffer of CBS News, was a member of the investment group that bought the Rangers in 1989 and was president of the baseball team while Bush was a part owner. He also was a Dallas attorney with a portfolio centering on oil...

RATHER STAYS HOME; EXECUTIVES SPLIT; MOONVES LOOKS TOWARDS FUTURE *Exclusive** CBSNEWS veteran Don Hewitt called Dan Rather's disappearance from Monday's Evening News "really stupid" during a damage control meeting on Monday, sources tell the DRUDGE REPORT. One top source inside the CBS Broadcast Center claimed Rather was told to stay off the air on Monday, as a form of punishment! Chief Washington Correspondent Bob Schieffer was called in to anchor the damaged ship. CBS staffers were shocked Monday when CBS president Les Moonves suddenly tied Rather's upcoming resignation to the phony document flap, a departure from CBS's official storyline. Moonves...

...But where bin Laden saw America's information economy as shallow and vulnerable, President Bush sees it as deep and resilient. Bush sees American minds as the country's source of economic strength. His policies — outlined during Wednesday's debate — are designed to tap that strength. John Kerry's competing proposals, and his rejoinders to Bush on Wednesday, show that the senator views American workers as congenital victims — and his policies are thus designed to compensate Americans for perceived injustices. When moderator Bob Schieffer asked Bush what he would do to stanch offshore outsourcing of "American" jobs, Bush told him: "The...

OP-ED COLUMNIST SCHIEFFER And our first question goes to Senator Kerry. Sir, your spending plans will cost over a trillion dollars. Your combined tax plans will cost $500 billion. How are you going to balance the budget? KERRY Bob, I'm glad you asked me that question, but before I dodge it I'd like to thank you for moderating this debate, I'd like to thank Arizona State University for being such wonderful hosts and I'd like to thank Dick Cheney's daughter for being a lesbian - in case anybody didn't know. Bob, as you know, this nation is on the brink...

YOU VOICE CAN BE HEARD... BOB SCHIEFFER IS LISTENING... CHRISTIANS, GET OTHER CHRISTIANS TO GET OUT THE VOTE !!!! Dear Mr. Schieffer, (ftn@cbsnews.com) I heard you say you are receiving quite a few emails with suggestions of questions to ask, and that you are "framing" your questions based on some of what people are asking you. Here's my thoughts on what many Americans might like to know about our candidates.... Perhaps this first one might be one that you consider for yourself, or might ask: 1. What is truth?... How do you define truth? How do the candidates define truth?...

Bob Schieffer was easily the worst moderator of the four selected by the Commission on Presidential Debates, the one who most clearly favored John Kerry. This might not be surprising — after all, CBS has emerged this year as the network favoring John Kerry to the point of spreading forged documents across the country to paint Bush as a man who defied orders. The spin was apparent from the first question, when Schieffer asked, "Will our children and grandchildren ever live in a world as safe and secure as the world in which we grew up?" This echoes the...