One of the many interesting parts of this story was the CBS "independent investigation." I put quotation marks around that because CBS set up the commission, PAID them and told them what to look at. It was CBS's investigation from the start and all the way through--"independence" hardly applies. Independent of any legal power or authority maybe but thats it.
CBS's "investigation was a Dog and Pony show without any legal authority or powers at all like Subpoena or compulsion under oath.....or any penalties.
Although their investigation could not come to any conclusions, Bushco leaped on it and portrayed it as complete vindication of Bush's record. And all conversation stopped on that topic. Other than what you read here.
Boy that worked out good for Bush. Almost as if they planned it that way.
see below
Whats really amazing is why this Dog and Pony Show took place at all. The CBS memos represent federal documents (see yesterday's diary http://www.dailykos.com/... ) and I have no less an authority than Sen Imhofe (R-Stupid) to say that for me. In this speech he calls them what they are: federal documents but pretends there is no penalty for forging them. http://inhofe.senate.gov/...
He's wrong, this was part of their media scam--there's both state and federal laws against them.
here's the federal law against forgery: http://www.law.cornell.edu/...
"Any person subject to this chapter who, with intent to defraud—
(1) falsely makes or alters any signature to, or any part of, any writing which would, if genuine, apparently impose a legal liability on another or change his legal right or liability to his prejudice; or
(2) utters, offers, issues, or transfers such a writing, known by him to be so made or altered;
is guilty of forgery....."
Its the exact same wording in the UCMJ, art 123: http://www.armystudyguide.com/...
here's the Texas State law against it: http://www.bakers-legal-pages.com/...
So forging these documents is both a state, military and federal crime. Is there any other kind of crime?
THE CBS memos purport to be official TXANG papers, with lettterhead of a TXANG unit and full signature of a federal ccomander (se: page 3: http://www.usatoday.com/... ) The TXANG is a federally recognized military unit governed by the UCMJ and the AFM (Air Force Manual,) which has its own Inspector General and Criminal Investigation Division that is dialed in with evey other federal investigative agency. The TXANG is in the chain of command with the National Guard Bureau, the Air Force, and the DoD, all of which have Inspector Generals and criminal investigation divisons and all of which bear responsibility for this.
The TXANG could seek help from the FBI crime lab, for instance their forgery divison. The FBI's forgery lab knows all about fonts and typewriters and their findings provide thousands of convictions a year. Their word is final.
The memos could be proven or disproven very easily by the proper authorities--if they wanted to. theyve never even sent an agent out to ask Burkett where he got them from. They show all the enthusism for finding the forger that OJ does in finding Nicole's real killers. And for the same reason.
So the question for today is: why did CBS 'investigate" the Killian memos to try to determine their authenticity....and the TXANG never did? Nor any other agency of the federal government. Nor, amazingly George Bush nor any of the others mentioned in them (Staudt, Hodges) though if forged these men have been libellled. george W Bush, the man most libelled by these papers if forged, who is in command of all federal investigative agencies, doesn't want this pursued, doesn't even want to know who forged them or if there are any more.
Whats up with that?
The reason CBS came up with their "independent investigation" is that they had to come up with SOMETHING. They were holding federal documents that were alleged to be forged (but NOT alleged by the feds!! only by bloggers--an important difference.)
And Bushco had to come up with something too. Here's their predicament: they CAN't have an official investigation because ANY official investigation will have to go into Bush's service. All the fraud and falsifications Ive beeen writing about for years (just click on my name) will come out---its that obvious once his papers are straightened out. (Thats why they scrambled them up when they released them)
But something HAD to be done about the documents--theyre federal military documents, with TXANG letterhead and full signature of a TXANG commander---they can't be just wished away....can they? Oh yeah? they did it!
Bush did it by sending Mc Clellan out to keep reciting their talking points: the president served honorably, we can't verify the papers, have no opinion on them, others are handling it, how about John Kerry? They played dumb and steered the conversation around to Kerry, pretending that Bush had no way of verifying them.
Oh yeah? Bush and his aides know right now, always have whether the papers are real or not and one of their biggest media scams was pretending he doesn't (see diary on this: http://www.dailykos.com/... )
Don't forget the huge daily emphasis on Swiftboating Kerry at this time and don't forget what else was going on at this time: Karl, Scooter and the lads were dialing daily to their favorite reporters smearing Plame--think they weren't getting their talking points in on this topic too? And the rest of the MSM was in the middle of their years long stenography binge.(still in it)
But there had to be SOME kind of appearance of resolution on this so CBS obligingly came up with their pseudo investigation that the federal government ran away from.
This matter should hav been investigated and prosacuted immediattely and its actually flabbergasting that George Bush himself didn't demand it right away. he pretended the whole time that it didn't concern him although documents show him face to face with Col Killian discussing his suspension on the same day the CBS memo suspension order is dated. http://users.cis.net/... ("...verbal orders...")
Its amazing that the CBS D&P Show never asked Bush to comment--he DID get a suspension order from Col Killian that day and therefore would know for dropdeead certaain if this was the order Killian read to him and gave him a copy of.
(see ref above, page 6)
Or he could have explained his suspension like " Hey! I was there that day and he didn't say that at all. Here's what he said...." But all George ever said was "he didn't remember seeing theem before" and not directly: only through Baartlettt. George W Bush hhas never made a direct coment on these papers, least of all denied they were real, Nor have his aides. he pretends he doesn't know what his own suspension order looked like or what Killiaan said to him on August 1st, 1972. Bush pretends he has no connection to the CBS memos--and CBS played right along with him.
Thats how you know it was a Dog and Pony Show---they never called the one man who absolutely has to know for sure if that was the order Killian read to him on August--and gave him a copy of.
And the same for the Physical order. Bush knows right now whether this is real or not because he knows whether he was ordered to take the physical or not. this is a question he has only ducked (see: http://www.cbsnews.com/... "...The White House did not answer whether Bush disobeyed a direct order to take the exam...."
All CBS had to do is ask him directly and get a direct answer: Were you oreded to take your physical? And is this your suspension order?
The CBS D&P Show was pogued up to provide cover for george Bush and the federal covernment's abdication of their duty to investigate this and prosecute any wrongdoing. George Bush and the feds want you to think theyre forged--but wil not mawe any effort to resolve this, even though its clearly their duty
Rather is right: He's been deprived of due process, given only a poor substitute for a federal investigation.
I look forward to more of his suit with CBS because I want to find out about the inner workings of how CBS took the biggest dive in history
I agree with Imhofe on this much:
"...I look forward to a full criminal investigation of who did forge the documents...."
I'm still looking forward to it, Senator. So's the rest of America