Rep. Louise Slaughter: Sign the Petition to Stop the Propaganda.

[paineinthearse]

Received by email from Rep. Louise Slaughter:

For any other White House, the fact that a partisan operative managed to masquerade as a reporter in the White House press corps might be taken as a slip. But this is no ordinary White House, and in fact, this was no ordinary partisan operative. It has now become clear that the reporter for Talon News known as "Jeff Gannon" was actually James D. Guckert, an individual who had no journalistic credentials whatsoever.

Sign the Petition to Stop the Propaganda.

During the February 10 White House briefing, Press Secretary Scott McClellan stated that Jeff Gannon, "...like anyone else, showed that he was representing a news organization that published regularly" in order to receive his day pass to press briefings. It has now been confirmed that Jeff Gannon was in the White House briefing room, actively participating in these briefings, as early as February 28, 2003 a full month before Talon News even existed.

For almost two years Gannon breezed through security and was allowed to lob softball questions to spokesman Scott McClellan and even President Bush himself - culminating in an absurd and factually inaccurate question to the President on national television about how he could deal with Senate Democrats "who seem to have divorced themselves from reality." Wait, there's more.

We've also learned that in December of 2003, Gannon bragged to Talon News that he'd had access to classified documents revealing the identity of former Ambassador Joe Wilson's wife as a covert operative for the CIA. At the time Gannon said, "For something that is supposed to be classified, it seems that this document is easily accessible." He added, "Washington is leaking like a cheap umbrella." Talon News, the "news outlet" that Mr. Guckert worked for was at best a front for a Republican activist website called GOPUSA.com owned by a Texas Republican. Worse yet, Gannon's news "stories" consisted mostly of verbatim Republican press releases and claims that John Kerry "might someday be known as 'the first gay president.'"

Sign the Petition to Stop the Propaganda.

It has been well over a week since I wrote President Bush seeking answers in this matter. I have not yet received a reply. Along with Rep. John Conyers, I have also submitted a Freedom of Information Act request for all DHS records regarding Mr. Guckert's admittance into the White House. With each new revelation it becomes more and more clear that the relationship between the White House and Jeff Gannon was anything but typical.

It is time for this Administration to stop the stonewalling and come clean with the American people.

I have worked on media fairness and reform throughout my stay in the House, and never have I seen such an open assault on the standards of a free press as I have in the past four years. We have seen several right wing pundits who were being paid with tax dollars to promote Administration policies with no disclosure. We have seen fake news reports distributed to media outlets with no indication of their origin; we have seen those fake segments deemed "illegal covert propaganda" by the General Accounting Office; and then we have seen the White House simply continue on with the technique completely unphased. We now know that prior to the war in Iraq, Iraqi exiles with checkered pasts, allied with (and paid by) the White House distributed bogus intelligence on WMD to produce perhaps more than 100 newspaper articles hyping the case for war! Even now President Bush flies around the country at taxpayer expense holding televised "town hall discussions" on Social Security in which nobody who does not support him is allowed in.

This must stop, and it must stop now. This sort of manipulation of the free press - one of most pivotal checks & balances in our Constitution - demonstrates a contempt for democracy, the rule of law, and the great people of this nation, many of whom trust this president with all their hearts.

I ask you to stand with me - and the DCCC - in demanding an end to the propaganda.

Please sign our petition:

http://www.democraticaction.org/propaganda/index.php?source=feb22email

Sincerely,



Rep. Louise M. Slaughter (NY-28)
Ranking Member, Committee on Rules

[CottonBear]

1. Done! eom

[katinmn]

2. Done. She's doing a great job with this!

Persistence will pay off.