Speculation Centers .. Does it ever!

It's typical of the Washington Post to play games with facts. Either that, or they really are dumb as dirt. Take the factual inaccuracies in this Elizabeth Williamson article (Sat Oct 7 Page A07). [Corrections to her story are in blue.] UPDATE appears at the bottom.

Likable and popular with female pages, [Conspicuous assertion on Jordan's behalf so that people will know he is NOT gay.] a committed Republican [This is yet to be proven.] who even as a teenager knew how to parlay chance meetings into political friendships, [Translation: he was a user.] Jordan Edmund has emerged as a key figure in the Foley page scandal.

The former House page has been targeted [Correction: identified] by conservative [Meaning that they are untrustworthy and less believable and have an axe to grind.] blogs as the young man on the receiving end [Corresponding for a whole year -- as his lawyer asserts (see below) -- is an indication that the exchanges were voluntary. The question is why?] of former representative Mark Foley's sexually explicit online instant messages, which have engulfed the GOP in a scandal that [We fervently hope.] could affect the outcome of the Nov. 7 congressional elections.

Edmund has hired a lawyer, Stephen Jones, [Formerly counsel to Timothy McVeigh but let's bury that in the depths of this article.] who will not acknowledge whether his client was the one who corresponded extensively with Foley for nearly a year. [This is new information and it suggests a long-term relationship that should be investigated.] Jones said he is going public with his client's name [ Correction: Those "conservative bloggers" actually revealed his name and the fact that the IM in question took place after Jordan Edumnd was no longer a page and when he was age 18.] to help Edmund fend off conservative attacks [An attack is a search for information that ABC conveniently failed to mention, such as Edmund's age at the time of the correspondence?] and a barrage of media inquiries. He said he will represent Edmund when he is interviewed early next week by the FBI.

"I did not discuss the messages with him," Jones said. "I'm not saying they're his. At this time I don't know." [I am representing him but haven't asked any questions.]

Jones declined to discuss his client's involvement in disclosing the instant messages to the news media. [His client might have been involved in disclosing the IMs to the media? Odd. If you even think of this you have to wonder. And new information suggests that Jordan posted info about the IMs a scant 6 minutes after the ABC story was posted, which suggests that Edmund was involved with the release of the IMs.]

Other Washington Post claims.

ASSERTED: Edmund contacted Jones.
ASSERTED: Jones is "a well-known Oklahoma City trial lawyer and Republican Party member." [Needs to be verified.]
FACT: Jones was appointed to represent Timothy McVeigh. [Verified.] link
DISTORTION: The message transcripts show a "humorous, sometimes self-conscious high school student". [Who was baiting an older man?]
ASSERTED: Another former page [Anonymous, of course, so bloggers cannot verify the story.] said Edmund was known for boasting of his friendship with Foley.
FALSE: Uninformed Washington Post staffer writes that "some blogs have published reports that the exchanges were a prank. [It was Drudge who reported that.]
ASSERTED: The lawyer claims "It was not a prank, not a practical joke that pages played on a congressman." [He knows this even though he has not discussed the IMs with this client?]

And why the title of the story? Speculation Centers around... If you conclude that Jordan Edmund released the IMs to ABC was it to persecute Foley or was it a desperate attempt to protect his own reputation?

UPDATE: The Washington Post titled their article "Speculation Centers around.." Newsday retitled it, "Figure emerges in Foley scandal". Meanwhile the Contra Costa Times claims Jordan Edmund was "chased off the internet by conservative bloggers" who are blaming him for Foley's downfall. The Contra Costa Times reporter is clueless about how Edmund's name became public. She asserts that Edmund's name appeared during an ABC news broadcast and was later posted by a conservative blogger. Michele R. Marcucci, writing for the Contra Costa Times, also asserts obliquely that Edumnds is straight with a [Edmunds] "a diverse array of interests -- including women -- but listed politics above them all."

Get real. You don't carry on a one year e-mail and IM conversations littered with gay sex references with an obvious gay like Foley if you're straight.