Rather Has Chutzpah to Tag FBI Problem as "Major Embarrassment"

MRC ^ | 6:30am EST, Friday January 14, 2005 | BrentBaker

[fight_truth_decay]

Takes an embarrassment to know one? Four days after the CBS panel report documented CBS's embarrassing lack of concern for basic journalistic standards in using forged memos to try to take down President Bush, and how Dan Rather hurled unsubstantiated accusations that those who realized CBS's duplicity were "partisan political operatives," Rather had the chutzpah on Thursday night to lead with what he described as "a major embarrassment for the FBI: An expensive new component of its war on terror doesn't work." CBS reporter Bob Orr soon echoed Rather in calling the failed computer system "another embarrassment for the FBI."

ABC's World News Tonight also led with the abandonment of the FBI's major new computer system, but refrained from using the term "embarrassment."

Rather teased the January 13 CBS Evening News: "Tonight, a major embarrassment for the FBI: An expensive new component of its war on terror, doesn't work."

At least FBI Director Robert Mueller addressed the media on Thursday about the problems. On Monday, Dan Rather avoided his audience and since he showed up Tuesday he has yet to comment, either on the CBS Evening News or 60 Minutes, about the panel's rebuke of his behavior in misleading his viewers.

With "Costly Failure" as the on-screen graphic, Rather set up his lead story: "Good evening. How can this be? More than three years after the 9/11 terror attacks, the FBI is still trying to complete the upgrade of a badly-outmoded computer system. The latest attempt to replace the software has turned out to be a huge bust. And CBS's Bob Orr in Washington reports, it's going to cost you, the taxpayers, a fortune."

Orr concluded from in front of the FBI building: "Even without this high-tech program agents are a bit better off than they were four years ago, but information gaps remain. It's another embarrassment for the FBI and taxpayers are stuck with a big bill."

[fight_truth_decay]

"His person was to be sacred and inviolate, he was to conduct business from a seat of ivory and gold (Tiffany), and he was always to sacrifice in triumphal dress. Every year, on the anniversaries of his great battles, the priests and priestesses in Rome [CBS] were to offer public prayer for him, and immediately on entering office the magistrates were to swear not to oppose Caesar's decisions...Furthermore, they voted many temples (awards) to him as if he were a god......However,"accusing the (right-wing)tribunes of misrepresenting him as a despot and affronting his dignitas. -Appian (on Julius Caesar.)

[mewzilla]

Well, speaking of Rather and the FBI, wonder if the FBI is investigating those FORGED memos? Somebody darn well ought to be.

[BenLurkin]

bttt

[wolfpat]

Gee, a government program that doesn't work. That hardly ever happens. /sarcasm

[brownsfan]

Dear CBS:
It's impossible for your current news reader to make critical comments on news stories given his complete and total lack of credibility.
For confirmation of the truth in the above statement, see your ratings.

[sgtbono2002]

Who cares what Rather says? Even if its true it would need outside verification before it could be believed.

Rather has been burned, shown for what he is. A known fabricator of Untruths.

[Doctor Raoul]

Interesting to note how Rather handles adversity. He either walks off the set or never shows up.

What a little man Dan is...

[Polyxene]

Takes one to know one, Dan! YOU are a major embarrassment! The sooner you are off the airways, the better! Hey, Kenneth, come and get him!!

[fight_truth_decay]

Who cares what Rather says?

When the right-wing tribunes who present him as a despot, and then march off to face other battles..you know Rather is old and tired news on FreeRepublic!

[Cicero]

For once, Rather has it right. Mueller has done a lousy job at the FBI. It is still stuffed full of clintonoids and corrupt time servers at the top levels. The FBI is supposedly charged with protecting our country against computer fraud and enemy hackers that might bring down our communications networks, and they can't even set up a working computer system of their own. If terrorist hackers are defeated, it will be by American computer nerds, not the FBI.

The same is true of the CIA. Not many years ago, it was said that CIA computers couldn't even communicate with each other. I understand the security problems of networking the CIA without compromising secrets, but it can and should be done.

No doubt there are a few good agents in the lower ranks, at least I hope there are. But these sclerotic bureaucracies packed with ideologues, media leakers, and people on the take need to be cleaned out.

Rather has no credibility on issues of embarrassing behavior. But he's right.