FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 23, 2004
Contact: Jeffrey
Mazzella
703.535.5836
CFIF Files
FEC Complaint Against CBS, Kerry Campaign
Punishment for Illegal
Coordination Urged
ALEXANDRIA,
Va. The
Center for Individual Freedom today filed a complaint with the Federal
Election Commission charging that CBS and Kerry-Edwards 2004, Inc.,
illegally coordinated election communications.
The complaint charges
that CBS and the Kerry campaign violated federal campaign finance
laws when they colluded to attack President Bush based on claims
and documents now believed to be fake.
"Its obvious
that CBS and the Kerry campaign acted improperly. That much is clear
to anyone with a pulse," said Jeffrey Mazzella, the Centers
Executive Director. "But whats been lost is that CBS
and its executives blatantly violated federal election laws when
they overtly ignored basic journalistic ethical standards and coordinated
with the Kerry campaign in order to run an attack story in an effort
to affect the outcome of the November presidential election. Our
complaint makes this very clear," said Mazzella.
The complaint centers
on a September 8 segment on the CBS program "60 Minutes II."
In the segment, CBS correspondent Dan Rather attacked President
Bushs record of service in the National Guard. CBSs
charges relied on a number of documents which it later admitted
were not reliable.
As a condition for handing
over the documents, CBSs source, Bill Burkett, required that
CBS arrange for a conversation between him and a senior advisor
of the Kerry campaign. On September 4, just four days before the
segment aired, a CBS producer spoke with Joe Lockhart, a senior
advisor to the Kerry campaign. Lockhart admits that during the conversation
he and the CBS employee discussed the upcoming segment attacking
President Bush. Lockhart also admits that he later called Burkett
at CBSs urging.
"If there had been
no coordination, there would have been no attack story. CBS would
not have been able to use the documents it so desperately needed
for its assault on President Bush if one of its producers hadnt
coordinated with the Kerry campaign," explained Mazzella. "Mr.
Lockharts conversations with CBS and Mr. Burkett raise additional
questions that must also be answered."
Only two days after CBS
aired the segment attacking President Bush, the Democratic National
Committee released a nearly 4 minute video entitled "Fortunate
Son" which makes many of the same arguments as the CBS story,
and even uses footage from the segment. At the same time, the DNC
launched a new communications strategy based on the same faulty
information and carrying the same message as the video.
Under campaign finance
law, media organizations are exempt from provisions barring corporations
from engaging in "electioneering communications" within
60 days of a general election. However, in its complaint, the Center
argues that CBS forfeited its exemption by illegally coordinating
a partisan attack on the President only 55 days before an election.
"Under normal circumstances,
the media exemption is in place because it presumes that the press
is impartial, and that the public relies on impartial reporting
of the ideas and actions of the candidates," Mazzella said.
"However, this is no normal circumstance. CBS threw its impartiality
out the door, ignored basic journalistic standards and coordinated
with the Kerry campaign, all in an effort to run a bogus story in
an attempt to affect the outcome of a federal election.
"Our complaint argues
that CBS forfeited its exemption when it chose to become an arm
of the Kerry campaign," Mazzella concluded.
The
Center for Individual Freedom (www.cfif.org)
is a non-profit, non-partisan constitutional advocacy organization
dedicated to protecting individual freedoms and rights. The Center
was a plaintiff in the McConnell case which challenged the constitutionality
of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002.
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