Rather Uses Casket Video to Denounce Policy Barring Such Viewing

MRC ^ | 6:10am EST, Thursday January 13, 2005 | BrentBaker

[fight_truth_decay]

Dan Rather decided on Wednesday night to turn, the return of the bodies of Louisiana National Guardsmen killed in Iraq, into an opportunity to take a shot at the Bush administration for not allowing pictures of caskets arriving at military bases, a policy, he did not note, which matches that of the Clinton administration.

Rather led the CBS Evening News with how "by Pentagon design, the American people have rarely been allowed to see what was seen today -- a homecoming. Flag-draped caskets of six American soldiers were flown to Louisiana where the National Guard chose to ignore Pentagon policy and salute their sacrifice in a public ceremony."

Rather teased the January 12 CBS Evening News: "Tonight, as U.S. casualties in Iraq mount, a rare sight today: Cameras capture the homecoming of some of America's fallen heroes."

Rather opened his broadcast, over video of flag-draped caskets: "Good evening. In nearly two years of war in Iraq, 1,353 U.S. servicemen and women have given their lives. In all that time, by Pentagon design, the American people have rarely been allowed to see what was seen today -- a homecoming. Flag-draped caskets of six American soldiers were flown to Louisiana where the National Guard chose to ignore Pentagon policy and salute their sacrifice in a public ceremony."

Viewers then saw a full story from CBS's Jim Acosta.

[UPcrawfish]

From the front page of the Baton Rouge, LA MORNING ADVOCATE 01/13/05. Local media is reporting a very respectful event in which the family's of the deceased approved the media presence. It appears from the text and photos that the family wishes were respected.. One of the young men was a nephew of a relative from Pineville, LA...

http://www.2theadvocate.com/stories/011305/new_soldiers001.shtml