Friends in High Places

If you look at the latest reports over the past week, it's clear that before his fall from grace, Jeff Gannon/JD Guckert was getting some big-time help from some big-time people. In return for what? That's anybody's guess. But here's what we do know:

- The Raw Story reported that the FOIA request pursued by Reps. Louise Slaughter (D-NY) and John Conyers (D-MI) yielded some strange results. Gannon made more than two dozen White House visits on days where there was NO press briefing scheduled. On 14 occasions, his entry or exit time is missing (that could be due to a different point of entry or exit, but I don't think the Secret Service is or should be that sloppy). 12 times he's listed as checking in but not out; twice he's listed as checking out BUT NOT IN (what, did the guy stay overnight in the Lincolm Bedroom?).

- The dogged pursuers at Kos looked at the data and realized that on four occasions, there is tape of Gannon at White House press briefings without having ever checked into or out of the White House on those days.

- A separate Kos diarist (I'll track down the link shortly) notes that on one of the days when Gannon was at the White House when there was no press briefing, he exited one hour later only to report on a major revelation in the CBS/TANG case. He called Hannity and gave him the scoop, and he wrote about it on Free Republic and on his own website.

- This truly amazing article by Michael Dietz combines all of the pre-Talon News Gannon tales into one handy-dandy resource. The most curious bits here include the fact that" none of his friends ever remember Guckert/Gannon uttering a political opinion in his life before 2003; he was still doing work for his infamous gay escort site even while writing editorials for GOPUSA; his sole professional credential was a $50 course at Morton Blackwell's Leadership Institute.

Now, put this all together and it's mighty fishy. Why is Gannon showing up at the White House on days without a White House press briefing? Why is he able to slip in and out of the White House undetected? Why did he seemingly come from nowhere, completely reinventing himself into a political "journalist" after being an office manager for most of his adult life? Who's pulling the strings here? How did Gannon swing this kind of access (and "swing" may be the operative word)? What did he give up in exchange (and "give up" and "exchange" are the operative words)?

You don't have to be a detective to figure out where this may be headed. The innocent explanation is that the White House decided to buy a bunch of journalists and pay them off in access and exposure. The not-so-innocent one involves rough trade and a ball gag. Either way, this is a string that all of us should continue to pull. It may just unravel in spectacularly unexpected fashion.