Five days earlier JD Johannes in his post titled "Johannes to Thomas, Radio Check, Over" surmised the location of the phantom author who had thought he would be able to operate in secrecy while he penned his missives about a soldier's life in Iraq . Beauchamp was wrong in that assumption. Based on the hyperbolic stories he told and the clues he so casually dropped about their suppossed locations it was easy for milbloggers familiar with Iraq to triangulate on his most likely location.
The Editors of TNR write in their online statement officially revealing the identity of their anonymous writer state that, some have questioned details that appeared in the Diarist "Shock Troops," published under the pseudonym Scott Thomas.
(Yes, to say so would be an understatement.)
They go on to mention that a formal military investigation has been launched regarding the incidents described in the series. (I can tell you Scott's not going to like that.)
The Editors then take pains to excuse their bit of sloppy fact-checking before going to publication with these stories.
Although the article was rigorously edited and fact-checked before it was published, we have decided to go back and, to the extent possible, re-report every detail.
They continue in their excuse making by noting, this process takes considerable time, as the primary subjects are on another continent, with intermittent access to phones and email.
Well, how can we expect busy people like the Editors of The New Republic to bother with verifying stories that appear in their publication? It's probably something they could have taken care of before they went to print only now they'll have to occupy their time printing all those retractions for their readers.
Having dispensed with sufficient harumping the Editors take a parting shot at the integrity of our troops.
Thus far we've found nothing to disprove the facts in the article; we will release the full results of our search when it is completed.
Not to be outdone and proving that birds of a feather really do flock together Private Beauchamp claims only the purest of motives and intentions.
My pieces were always intended to provide my discrete view of the war; they were never intended as a reflection of the entire U.S. Military. I wanted Americans to have one soldier's view of events in Iraq.
Of course Private Scott, why how could we miss the discrete tenor of your peices? The story you told of that Bradley Fighting Vehicle driver running over those stray dogs while the rest of the guys in his unit laughed was so touching. And that one about the funny Private who paraded around a dig site with the remains of a child's skull perched on top of his head? Who could forget that? And let's not mention the one about how some of the guys in the unit humiliated that woman in the "chow hall".
Private Beauchamp then fells his critics with the famous chickenhawk defense.
It's been maddening, to say the least, to see the plausibility of events that I witnessed questioned by people who have never served in Iraq. I was initially reluctant to take the time out of my already insane schedule fighting an actual war in order to play some role in an ideological battle that I never wanted to join.
Yes, fighting wars can wreak havoc on one's social calendar that's for sure. Scott's own motivations however in fighting the war appear to be less clear.
Michelle Malkin found an entry in Scott's own Blog that reads, “My goal is to become an incompetent leader that gets fragged by 30 something NCO’s at a forward operating base in Sadr City. Heres to the memories and stardust kid. love, Scott.”
Dean Barnett has more information on Franklin Foer's Man in Baghdad. What emerges from reading Scott Thompson Beauchamp's writings is that feeling that this is someone who wants to be the Jack Kerouac or Hunter S. Thompson of the 9/11 generation. Was TNR trying to publish a "Fear and Loathing in Iraq" series for its readership when it got burned by its wannabe diarist?
Ace of Spades has uncovered more than a passing link between The New Republic and Scott Thomas Beauchamp. It's being reported that Scott Beauchamp is either married or engaged to TNR staffer Elspeth Reeve. Ace concludes, Scott Thomas Beauchamp was not chosen for this job because he had some terrific amount of experience or credentials or integrity. He was picked for Plame-type reasons: He's married or engaged to someone at TNR.
Ace continues in his summation noting his conversation with someone named "Gracie" as his source inside TNR.
As Gracie reported to me, this is openly discussed in the TNR offices. One representative quote: "Frank[lin Foer] doesn't want to call [woman's] husband a liar." That wasn't Gracie saying that, that was someone else in the office, explaining the inter-office politics of this.
Gracie wrote to me, of all the embeds and milbloggers and real journalists they could have picked for the job, they instead chose to go with a very partisan, very inexperienced blogger just out of "laziness." Just because they knew him. Just because it was easy.
I actually think part of the reason was that they knew Beauchamp's politics -- he having put them on display on his goofy blog -- and so, just like with Valerie Plame, they knew the report was going to come back the way they wanted it when they sent him. But Gracie says it's just Occam's razor: Laziness.
Read the whole thing.Libberrocky has more about the relationship of Elspeth Reeve and Scott Beauchamp.
Jeff Emanuel notes that Beauchamp is far from being out of the woods now that his identity has been revealed. For one there's that not-so-little matter of the military investigation into the events that he alleges occured in his articles.
Jeff notes that, if what he says is true, then he not only witnessed some very unfortunate examples of human depravity (not to mention potential war crimes), but participated in them.Had he really witnessed such things, and had he really wanted to make a difference in preventing them, then, as Major Kirk Luedeke (Public Affairs Officer for the 4th IBCT on FOB Falcon) said, the right course of action would have been to report it immediately – thus sparking a military investigation into the events he recounted, rather than – as is now ongoing – into himself and his gross impropriety.
Jeff also offers his services as an investigator to The New Republic.
I will be at FOB Falcon this September, working with the 4th IBCT, under whom Beauchamp’s unit falls. While I am there, I'd be more than happy to do whatever investigative work is necessary to either corroborate or debunk the stories and provided to you by Scott Thomas Beauchamp. Given the Stephen Glass episode of years past – and the speed with which questions were raised about this episode – I would say that your credibility could definitely use the boost of an outside source working to verify this for you.
Hugh Hewitt delivers the coup de grace in this whole sordid affair by observing that The New Republic probably won't take Jeff Emmanuel up on his offer.
He sums it up this way.
1. He's qualified.
2. He can't be guaranteed to deliver the anti-military fictions Beauchamp did.
3. He's not going steady with anyone at TNR.