As the elections drew closer, Murtha gained more interviews, but ethics questions were rare. ABC's George Stephanopoulos was the only broadcast-TV interviewer who used the word "Abscam" before the election, on his Sunday show on Oct. 1: "I am starting to hear from Democrats who worry that having you as leader will send the wrong message. They point to your involvement in the Abscam scandal two decades ago." Murtha claimed they showed him the money and he said he didn't want it. That's not exactly what the tape showed, and he knew it, of course.
CBS was especially kind to Murtha late in the game. On the Oct. 29 "Face the Nation," Schieffer was still on the boosters' bandwagon. He offered no question on the Democrat leadership race or Abscam, just antiwar softballs such as: "We keep hearing from people who say the American military is turning against the war. Now, you have a lot of contacts in the military community. Do you think there's anything at all to that?"
Even after the election, with Democrats ascendant, CBS anchor Katie Couric was still syrupy with Murtha, lamenting that he had been called a "defeatocrat" and a "liberal turncoat." She asked, "Did you feel vindicated last Tuesday?"
Then, suddenly, the day after Couric's shoeshine, the front page of The Washington Post raised the Abscam scandal and warned that Murtha was damaged goods, and that Pelosi's backing of Murtha clashed with her vow to make this the most ethical Congress ever. The Post editorial page also endorsed his opponent, Maryland's Steny Hoyer, for majority leader. The next day, Post columnist Ruth Marcus began her anti-Murtha column: "The videotape is grainy, dark and devastating."
NBC's Lisa Myers reported a story with the old videotape, complete with pro- and anti-Murtha soundbites on his ethics. They were alone among the major networks. CBS aired nothing on the race before it was over. ABC only aired two perfunctory morning-show anchor briefs and an evening mention by George Stephanopoulos before Murtha was defeated. On the night of Murtha's loss, both ABC and CBS discussed how it didn't look good for Pelosi, but even then, neither could be prodded to mention Abscam.
In the final analysis, the networks pulled out this historical chestnut only when it became unavoidable, and certainly not while it might help dreaded Republicans in the midterms. The question they've yet to ask, however, is this: What right does Speaker Pelosi have to denounce the GOP "culture of corruption" when she tries to appoint, as the second most powerful leader in the House, and her top lieutenant, a clearly corruptible man?
L. Brent Bozell III is the president of the Media Research Center. To find out more about Brent Bozell III, and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.
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