ABC, Hastert And A Big Ol’ Gauntlet
A new letter from Dennis Hastert to ABC:
May 24, 2006
David Westin
George Stephanopoulos
Brian Ross
ABC News
7 West 66th St.
New York, NY 10023RE: False Story Regarding Justice Department Investigation
Dear Mr. Westin, Mr. Stephanopoulos, and Mr. Ross:
At 7:25 p.m., the Statement of the Department of Justice confirmed:
“Speaker Hastert is not under investigation by the Justice Department.”
At 10:21 p.m., you wrote:
“Whether they like it or not, members of Congress, including Hastert, are under investigation,” one federal official said tonight.”
This statement is false, and your republication of it after actual knowledge of its falsity constitutes libel and defamation. ABC News’ continued publication of this false information, after having actual knowledge of its falsity, evidences a specific and malicious intent to injure and damage Speaker Hastert’s reputation by continued repetition of a known falsehood.
We will take any and all actions necessary to rectify the harm ABC has caused and to hold those at ABC responsible for their conduct.
Please advise regarding who will accept service of process to remedy this intentional falsehood.
This is getting interesting, isn't it? Now, were they rolled or did they do it on purpose?
By Juggler, Friday, 26 May , 2006 @ 10:28 am
Just because Hastert is demanding a retraction doesn’t mean the story is false. It’s an old PR ploy.
Meanwhile, the NYTimes is reporting:
WASHINGTON, May 25 — A military investigation into the deaths of two dozen Iraqis last November is expected to find that a small number of marines in western Iraq carried out extensive, unprovoked killings of civilians, Congressional, military and Pentagon officials said Thursday.
It looks like John Murtha was speaking truthfully.
Rational people await your apology.
By Gaius, Friday, 26 May , 2006 @ 10:34 am
Rational people would ask that soldiers be afforded the same treatment given to accused criminals in the civilian world.
By Juggler, Friday, 26 May , 2006 @ 10:42 am
Okay, so I’ll expect that you’ll criticize every politiciian and blogger who doesn’t use the word “allegedly” when referring to people who are accused of crimes.