Iowahawk has the scoop:
Daschle also called for immediate Senate hearings into the deepening Timingate affair, chaired by Massachusetts Senator John Kerry. The proposal brought a tepid response from Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN), prompting many to suspect that congressional Republicans were coordinating a ‘stonewall’ campaign to contain further scandal damage to Bush.
It is unclear how long such stonewalling efforts will succeed, as press interest in the scandal has picked up momentum over the past 48 hours. On Thursday, the CBS Evening News reported over 20 separate allegations of suspicious GOP behavior, while the New York Times is set to release a 20,000 word piece on Sunday detailing recent cases of suspicious GOP timing, with timelines showing a suspicious pattern of suspected charges of suspiciously timed alleged charging.
While space constraints limited coverage of the actual charges, Times editor Bill Keller promised the report will be “Pulitzer bait.”
“The article is important because it illustrates how the Republican smear machine uses dubiously timed charges to manipute a gullible press in order to further its political agenda,” said Keller. “It also importantly illustrates how the Kerry campaign is reached at 1-866-455-3779, and also gives vivid details how [a] contribution to it will be highly appreciated, and provides readers with insight about how their donation can be charged to Master Card, Visa or American Express.”