By: E&P Staff The reporter/blogger formerly known as James D. Guckert, who had pretty much escaped the public eye this month, staged a dramatic comeback on Sunday, re-appearing in Doonesbury and making news as Secret Service documents concerning his White House visits were released.
In the Doonesbury strip, which several weeks ago brought back Roland the reporter as a White House ?stooge,? a colleague asked Roland if he is still ?taking money from the dark side.? Roland challenged him to report that, if true. ?I?d miss you too much,? the other journo replied.
?You guys weren?t so sentimental about Jeff Gannon,? Roland responded. ?Why not me??
?Because he was a Republican gay male escort?? the colleague answered. ?Just guessing.?
Then, in Monday's edition, the White House was clearly fretting about links between the President and embattled GOP leader Tom "The Hammer" DeLay. At a press briefing, Roland, emulating Gannon, asks, "Scott, the President barely knows DeLay, right?"
Press Secretary Scott McClellan answers: "Right again, Roland."
The Secret Service papers had been requested by two Democrats in Congress, Reps. John Conyers and Louise Slaughter. According to the news site Raw Story, they show that Guckert, who wrote for two pro-GOP Web sites under the pen name Jeff Gannon, made more than 200 appearances at the White House during his two-year tenure.
This included attending 155 press briefings and at least two presidential press conferences, all on a ?day pass.? More surprising, according to the documents: Guckert got into the White House three dozen times when there were no scheduled briefings. And on at least 14 occasions, Raw Story reported, ?Secret Service records show either the entry or exit time missing.?
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