The unmasking of "Deep Throat" is like chicken soup for the
soul.
Or is it?
W. Mark Felt's confession to Vanity Fair that
he was indeed the anonymous tipster in the Watergate scandal
that contributed to the demise of President Richard Nixon
was both shocking and settling. The revelation was
shocking because Felt was a high level insider at the F.B.I.
where loyalty and trust is everything and it was settling
because it gave finality to a decades old mystery.
Or did it?
No sooner had the confession been made to V.F. when
reporters began spinning another conspiracy theory: Can it
be proven that he was Deep Throat? Do Woodward and
Bernstein have notes to confirm that it was Felt?
Were there other Deep Throats involved in this puzzle palace
such as mini throats or junior throats? Puleeeeeze.
It's like getting the last chapter in the Jimmy Hoffa
mystery, but no one wants to close the book.
Pat Buchanan is furious. The former Nixon aide claims
that Felt was "bitter" about the FBI because he never got
the top dog leadership post at the Bureau that he so
coveted. Divulging secrets was Felt's means of retaliation.
"He's a snake." said Buchanan. He further claimed that Felt
was probably responsible for the death of thousands of
Americans posted in Vietnam since the turmoil on US soil
ultimately led to the evacuation of our troops. Wow!
As for John Dean, former legal counsel to President
Nixon whose testimony aided Nixon's downfall, even he had
scratched Felt off the list long ago. If Dean couldn't get
it right, who could? After all, Dean was Deep Throats' most
avid hunter.
As for Kissinger, Halderman, Colson,
Buchanan, Ziegler, Gergen and all of the
other potential throats, they're just happy to get off the
yellow brick road that led to Throatsville.
When Dean was asked how he felt about the unveiling of Deep
Throat, he said he was waiting for an epiphany. As for me,
I'm waiting for this story to go away so I can find out what
the Runaway Bride REALLY did in Vegas!
The Rita Show
On the Hudson
The spin doctors at Fox News Channel dispatched a press
release with such rapidity regarding the "imminent"
departure of Rita Cosby you'd think they were in a
NASCAR race bolstered by performance enhancing drugs. The
massive effort to ensure her departure looked like she was
relieved of her duties was ironic since they were
racing to the finish line solo. A statement from the other
folks came much later in the day.
While the FOX press release was factual, it's tone and
wording created an onslaught of cloaked "poor Rita"
condolence messages to my in-box. Having known of her switch
to NBC prior to the FOX announcement, it took me by
surprise. The press jumped in: "Rita Cosby, host of two
weekend shows on Fox News Channel, is departing
immediately." "Daily Variety reports that Cosby and the
cable network were unable to agree on terms for a contract
extension." "Fox has made no announcements yet on a Cosby
replacement or on whether the shows will continue with other
hosts."
Relief for Cosby showed up around 4 PM when MSNBC released
the following: "Three-time Emmy Award winner named MSNBC
anchor and special correspondent." SECAUCUS, NJ - Rita Cosby
will join MSNBC, it was announced today by Rick Kaplan,
President of MSNBC. Cosby will start with the network in
June and will anchor a daily evening program. In addition,
she will serve as a special correspondent. Cosby's program
is in development and will debut in the fourth quarter."
So what does this all mean? Geraldo gets to upgrade,
MSNBC goes blonde, Rita gets her own primetime show, FOX
loses a good reporter and MSNBC gets one. And the winner is?
Ta da.........hey,I report, you decide!
Mr. Thompson Goes to Washington
Fred Dalton Thompson, Tennessee lawyer turned actor
turned Senator turned actor, was the honored guest at The
Motion Picture Association of America's private screening of
"LASTBESTCHANCE".
Billed as a gripping docudrama that illustrates the threat
posed by vulnerable nuclear weapons and materials around the
world, the film is a wake-up call to secure and destroy
nuclear weapons and materials before it's too late.
While the film focused on al Qaeda, many guests were focused
on John Bolton, the nominee for the coveted and
sensitive United Nations post, then and currently still
dangling in Congress.
The Under Secretary, Arms Control and International
Security, is amidst rather contentious hearings due to his
reputation for lacking diplomatic finesse, which of course
is what the post is all about.
When CNN Founder Ted Turner breezed by, it was
appropriate to ask him what he thought of the Bolton
nomination. Turner, as you may recall, created the UN
Foundation in 1998 and pledged a personal donation of a
billion dollars as an "investment in the future of
humanity."
Needless to say, it was somewhat shocking that he responded
that he thought it was a great choice. Say what? After
querying my circle of friends which included Betsy Fisher,
Executive Producer of Tim Russert's show, I decided
to ask again. "I'm a bit hard of hearing," claimed Turner
when asked to verify his comment. He's probably glad that
his original response was not recorded as fact..... and
probably equally as glad his second response is not being
recorded here just in case I'm hard at hearing.
The film was a bit discombobulated going from time zone to
time zone, language to language, skipping around to so many
dark and secretive places you'd think we were watching Deep
Throat. The essence of the film was how easy it would be to
unlock the secret code that would lead to the world's
destruction.
In all fairness to the film, I left early when the guest in
front of me cramped my legs with his chair. Not to worry
though, we each received a copy.
Anxious to see the ending, I went to unwrap the the DVD
which was guarded by a chain and paddle lock and therefore
was unable to open it. I called the MPAA to find out the
code. "That's easy, just dial 0000." Indeed it was, which is
exactly the point.
Well, gotta go now. Don't want to miss Dr. Phil who
is probably in Deep Thought analyzing Deep Throat to death
by now.
So that's all folks!
