[SkyPilot]

When Mr. Felt came to them with second- and third-hand information about a Republican president, they were not so surgical in their approach to the truth. And consider, Bob Woodward added to his own questionable legacy by getting in-depth interviews with a CIA director who was diagnosed to be in a deep coma. Remarkably, Mr. Woodward sleepwalked through eight years of Bill and Hillary Clinton. There he was, sitting on the second biggest story of his career -- the emerging impeachment of Bill Clinton -- and he didn't act. Travelgate, FBI Filegate, missing Rose law firm documents found in Hillary's residence, the conviction of Webb Hubble, Vince Foster's mysterious death, the endless parade of White House bimbos ... all seemed to add up to nothing in the eyes of Mr. Woodward and his colleagues at The Post.

We were discussing the narrow catwalk Woodward is walking in this thread.

Woodward better be careful. This is 2005, not 1973. This is the age of TiVo, e-mail, blogging, Internet scrutiny, search engines, 24-hour cable, and Free Republic (thank you Jim).

Woodward knows he "embellished" and used "literary license" over the years to a large degree. The case of him allegedly interview Director Casey in 1987 from his deathbed while doctors testified that Bill Casey was aphasic is a glaring example. The dramatic "I believed" Woodward quotes of Casey if ridiculous, and we know now, impossible. Doctors came forward after wards to attest that Casey was in a coma at the time.

Bob Woodward is nervous on two counts. First, he is afraid of Mark Felt contradicting him. Woodward has already started the inoculation process by pursuing the track that Felt is 91 years old and possibly senile. Woodward: 'Throat' Not Competent for Book Deal". Moreover, Woodward said this vehemently yesterday on Imus.

Secondly, Woodward wants the windfall of profits from a renewed interest in Watergate to land in his bank account. He does not wish to share them with the ham fisted Felt family. I have no sympathy for the Felt's--the way they are trying to ca$h in is shameful. However, Mark Felt is currently living in his daughter's garage, while Woodward lives in a spectacular mansion in Georgetown, and owns several vacation properties. Woodward never shared his profits from Watergate that made him a millionaire with his sources, and it makes him look petty. I predict Woodward may make a very public contribution to Felt's care to soothe these festering wounds.

In any case, Woodward should sleep lightly. The white hot spotlight may attract more bugs to his little garden party than the adoring attention he so richly craves.

[Enterprise]

I think Woodward is starting to get nervous too.

"Lucy, you got some 'splainin to do."

[leadpenny]

Bob Woodward is nervous on two counts.

The early footage, right after this story broke a few days ago, was of Woodward leading Bernstien into his G'town home. All I could think was they had to spend some time together to get their stories straight.

[syriacus]

The white hot spotlight may attract more bugs to [Woodward's] little garden party than the adoring attention he so richly craves.

Nicely put.

[Grampa Dave]

Excellent sumary with excellent documentation.

[Verginius Rufus]

Woodward claimed to have been told things by Casey on his deathbed--when Casey was no longer around to contradict him.

John Keegan in his book Fields of Battle describes a one-on-one meeting with Casey in the mid-1980s. Afterwards the people escorting Keegan around asked him what Casey had said to him.

"'I'm not altogether sure,' I answered, 'I couldn't really understand.' There was muffled, insider laughter....'We call him Mumbles,' a member of the group commented, 'the only man in Washington who doesn't need a secure telephone.'"

[virgil]

So you think its possible that Felt doesn't really suffer from dementia?

[Doc Savage]

I've know Woodward for 50 years now. I walked to high school with him almost every day down Main Street in Wheaton. He was a dork then, and I mean a dork before the word became slang, and he's an even bigger dork now! I keep waiting to run into him at the Wheaton Old-Timers Meetings, but I guess he's too big a media star for that kind of fun!