Magical Thinking

Mark Steyn of the Chicago Sun-Times, makes a good point about Rather and CBS's refusal to reveal a source that gave them forged documents:

As the network put it last week, ''In accordance with longstanding journalistic ethics, CBS News is not prepared to reveal its confidential sources or the method by which '60 Minutes' Wednesday received the documents.'' But, once they admit the documents are fake, they can no longer claim ''journalistic ethics'' as an excuse to protect their source. There's no legal or First Amendment protection afforded to a man who peddles a fraud. You'd think CBS would be mad as hell to find whoever it was who stitched them up and made them look idiots.
So why aren't they? The only reasonable conclusion is that the source -- or trail of sources -- is even more incriminating than the fake documents. Why else would Heyward and Rather allow the CBS news division to commit slow, public suicide? (Emphasis mine).

This is what I have thought all along. And, in my more paranoid musings (see, I admit it!), I suspect that the trail leads directly to McAuliffe and the DNC--and possibly to Kerry himself. That is who they are trying to protect.

Mark my words, the truth about this will not be forthcoming until after November 2nd. CBS is hoping they can hang on for a bit and that it will all go away; or that they can hang on until after the election. Rather may even be prepared to resign to make it go away if the pressure gets too tough before November 2nd. What else could be worth destroying a major news network's credibility? They must think it will be only a short-term hit for them. In their fantasy world, if Kerry becomes President, CBS and Rather will believe they have been vindicated and will expect their public status and prestige to magically return.

They are fooling themselves on both counts.

UPDATE: Could this be a Freudian slip by Kerry? Going through my notes I happened to google "John Kerry" and "sugarcoat" and discovered that ONE DAY BEFORE 60 Minutes II did the Rathergate memo story, Kerry apparently used the word "sugarcoat" in his talk at a rally in Greensboro, N.C. This is PRETTY coincidental, folks.

UPDATE II: Maxima, a commenter over at LGF wonders about the SAME CONNECTION! Great Minds do think alike!