Max Cleland's August 25th Texas Road Trip

Max Cleland's schedule on August 25 in Texas needs to be fully examined. Cleland tried to deliver a letter to President Bush around 1pm in Crawford, followed immediately by a short press conference. When did he leave Texas, where did he leave from, and what did he do in the time in between?

Only days prior to Cleland's impromptu visit to Texas, he began discussions with Bill Burkett, who is now known to be CBS's source for the forged documents.

Later the same day of Cleland's Texas trip, Burkett announced in a rant to President Bush on the progressive onlinejournal that, "I know from your files that we have now reassembled, the fact that you did not fulfill your oath, taken when you were commissioned to 'obey the orders of the officers appointed over you'."

What time was this rant posted?
Did Cleland help him write it?
Who is the "we" Burkett is referring to concerning the documents being "reassembled"?
Did Cleland help Burkett forge the documents on that day?

Crawford, Texas, where Cleland was at 1pm on August 25, is only 162 miles from Baird, Bill Burkett's home.

Did Cleland make a visit there that day?

Did someone in the Kerry campaign act as a middleman in passing along the information to CBS that Burkett had these documents?

Did someone in the Kerry campaign lobby CBS to use these documents or vouch for their authenticity?

CBS claimed that these documents came from "unimpeachable sources."
Other than Burkett, who are the other sources?
Why did CBS consider Burkett "unimpeachable"?

CBS must answer the question of how they learned that Burkett now had these memos. Did the discovery of these new documents play a part in Ben Barnes decision that he was now ready to talk to 60 Minutes on air, after Mary Mapes had long been urging him to do so? Is there a connection between this sudden change of heart by Barnes just two days before CBS hit "paydirt" with these forged documents?
Did Ben Barnes see these documents even before CBS did?

1 posted on 09/20/2004 5:31:43 PM PDT by counterpunch

To: counterpunch

2 posted on 09/20/2004 5:32:13 PM PDT by ConservativeMan55 (http://www.osurepublicans.com)

To: counterpunch

Good questions and good work

3 posted on 09/20/2004 5:34:08 PM PDT by MJY1288 (John Kerry Says He Can Do a Better Job of Implementing President Bush's Policies :-))

To: counterpunch

as I said before the DNC's fingerprints are all over this, and also all over Dan Rather's lips...

4 posted on 09/20/2004 5:34:16 PM PDT by FesterUSMC

To: counterpunch

I would bet that Burkett met Cleland near Crawford

5 posted on 09/20/2004 5:35:11 PM PDT by MJY1288 (John Kerry Says He Can Do a Better Job of Implementing President Bush's Policies :-))

To: counterpunch

If I remember correctly, Dan Rather's daughter (a very liberal democrat) ran for Mayor of Austin, just a short drive away......

Dan's almost hyper-knee jerk protection of his source and the Network's insistence that the source was "un-impeachable.....

Could Dan's daughter be involved somehow?

This could explain Dan's trip to Dallas this weekend to convince B.B. to fall on his sword.....

NeverGore :^)

6 posted on 09/20/2004 5:38:56 PM PDT by nevergore (“It could be that the purpose of my life is simply to serve as a warning to others.”)

To: counterpunch; John O

I promise I heard like a Ramon or Raymond name given in what I heard Burkett say to Rather.

MY question is: Could it have been Jim Rassmann, the man who accompanied Cleland to Crawford?

See this thread:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1221763/posts

7 posted on 09/20/2004 5:39:02 PM PDT by andie74 (W stands for Women)

To: counterpunch

Beautifully done. I hope someone is truly advancing that line of questioning and that body of evidence in a way that will have national impact.

8 posted on 09/20/2004 5:41:09 PM PDT by Huck ("Winners don't need to hijack airplanes. Winners have an air force." --P.J. O'Rourke)

To: counterpunch

Max's itinerary for that date would be most enlightening. August 25th.
Excellent post.

9 posted on 09/20/2004 5:41:21 PM PDT by crazyhorse691 (I volunteer to instruct JFK on the meaning of a purple heart!!)

To: counterpunch

Ah,,,,,,,,, $hit, is this gonna be another one of those pajama journalist hit pieces?

I sure hope so.

10 posted on 09/20/2004 5:44:02 PM PDT by umgud (speaking strictly as an infidel,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,)

I think your right on the money. Would Burkett have enough credibility to have CBS and Rather run with the story?

Answer: No.

Would someone directly involved in the Kerry campaign, such as Cleland, give them the confidence to run with story as they did.

I believe the answer is obvious.

Someone fairly high up, with extremely high credibility passed these documents to CBS. That's why they went with story with not so much as a cursory examination of whether the papers were authentic or not.

11 posted on 09/20/2004 5:44:49 PM PDT by mimmson (www.nationalterroralert.com)

To: counterpunch

12 posted on 09/20/2004 5:44:57 PM PDT by Txslady

To: counterpunch

Didn't Cleland show up at the Bush Ranch with a bunch of people with him?

If so! maybe we can find a list of who he was traveling with

13 posted on 09/20/2004 5:46:31 PM PDT by MJY1288 (John Kerry Says He Can Do a Better Job of Implementing President Bush's Policies :-))

I love being a pajama journalist...and I love even more that we make the networks nervous just by adding two and two together!

14 posted on 09/20/2004 5:47:22 PM PDT by andie74 (W stands for Women)

Another thing that raises my interest is the fact that Ben Barnes was a big player in Brownwood politics for years, yet not a word in the Brownwood paper.

For that matter, I have seen very little local reporting in any of the Abilene media. With something this totally huge one would think be all over the papers and electronic media.

Just thankful that the route didnt take him thru Coleman....

15 posted on 09/20/2004 5:47:33 PM PDT by 76834

To: counterpunch

This is explosive.

While on the stump for Kerry, Max has the arm put on him by Burkett. Burkett knows Max is a wheel in the Kerry machine. Max wants to lend a hand but can't. Burkett drops the bomb on Cleland. Max fumbles the explosive information, and it blows up in his face.

This is all too tragic and beyond comprehension.

16 posted on 09/20/2004 5:49:36 PM PDT by get'emall (Kofi Annan: Lawn Jockey on the Arab Street.)

To: mimmson; John O

Of course! Despite the whole being for the little guy schtick, the Rats wouldn't have given someone like Burkett the time of day.

My hypothesis is much like yours: Rather saw this bit and rolled with it because he trusted the source. AND Burkett was added to be the fall guy because after all, he had had a vendetta against Bush from the beginning. Not too educated, not slick...the perfect patsy.

This is SO sick! It would make a great novel plot though.

17 posted on 09/20/2004 5:50:31 PM PDT by andie74 (W stands for Women)

To: counterpunch

Anybody still have news coverage from that day on video. (Wish I did.) Who was there outside the Bush ranch?

18 posted on 09/20/2004 5:51:41 PM PDT by HalleysFifth

To: counterpunch

I wonder who else missed the subtle difference between what Rather said: "unimpeachable sources" and what we thought he said: "unimpeachable source". This infers that Rather knows at least one other person (and perhaps more) besides Burkett who is a "source". He should be called on this - if there is actually a way to do it.

19 posted on 09/20/2004 5:53:35 PM PDT by InterceptPoint

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