Truth Page #9

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MARY:

This is, uh, Mary Mapes with 60

Minutes? I'd like to speak with you

about some old memos I've come across

from the 111th Fighter Interceptor

Squadron. They appear to be from

the personal files of Jerry Killian?

A beat.

GENERAL HODGES (O.S.)

Okay.

54.

MARY:

I'd like to read them to you if that's

all right?

GENERAL HODGES (O.S.)

Okay.

MARY:

Um, the first one is dated June 24,

1973 and the Subject is Bush, George

W, 1st Lieutenant.

(reading)

Sir:
I got a call from your staff

concerning the evaluation of 1st

Lieutenant Bush due this month. His

rater is Lieutenant Colonel Harris.

Neither Lieutenant Colonel Harris or

I feel we can rate 1st Lieutenant

Bush since he was not training with

the 111th FIS since April 1972. His

recent activity is outside the rating

period. Advise me how we are supposed

to handle this.

Hodges says nothing. Just breathes.

Smith and Colonel Charles are both staring, in disbelief

Hodges hasn't hung up. Mary fumbles for a second memo.

MARY (CONT'D)

Okay, this one is August 18, 1973

and titled Subject: CYA, which I

believe means "Cover Your Ass"?

(reading)

Staudt has obviously pressured Hodges

more about Bush. I'm having trouble

running interference and doing my

job.

No response. She continues.

MARY (CONT'D)

Harris gave me a message today from

Group regarding Bush's OETR. And

Staudt is pushing to sugar coat it.

Bush wasn't here during rating period

and I don't have any feedback from

187th in Alabama. I will not rate.

Austin is not happy either.

(MORE)

55.

MARY (CONT'D)

Harris took the call from Group today.

I will backdate but won't rate.

Harris agrees.

Silence. You could hear a pin drop. Mary lowers the paper.

MARY (CONT'D)

Sir, are these memos familiar to

you?

A short exhale of breath from Hodges. Then:

GENERAL HODGES (O.S.)

They are.

Smith pumps his fist in victory!

GENERAL HODGES (O.S.) (CONT'D)

Using someone's personal notes, that's

going overboard. You're trying to

make news, create a story here when

there isn't one.

MARY:

We're not trying to create anything,

General. Colonel Killian was upset

Bush missed his physical?

GENERAL HODGES (O.S.)

He was an overboard hardnose.

He didn't like the weekend guys.

But Bush went to Alabama with

everyone's blessing. Killian thought

he was doing the best job he could.

You're creating a situation here...

INT. DAN'S OFFICE -- NIGHT

Dan looks up to see Mary standing in his doorway, beaming.

MARY:

We have it.

Dan grins.

INT. 60 MINUTES -- CONFERENCE ROOM -- DAY

Close on Dan.

56.

DAN:

Tell me the truth, the whole truth

about what happened with George W.

Bush and the draft and the National

Guard.

Sitting across from him, BEN BARNES heaves a sigh. Mary

looks on, along with JOSH HOWARD and MARY MURPHY.

September 7th - 1 Day To Air

BEN BARNES:

(deep breath)

Sid Adger, a friend of the Bush

family, came to see me and asked me

if I would recommend George W. Bush

for the Air National Guard. And I

did.

INT. JOSH HOWARD'S OFFICE -- AFTERNOON

Mary, Colonel Charles, Smith, Lucy, Mary Murphy, and Josh

are crowded into the office.

MARY:

I'm concerned about the sheer amount

of story we have. Barnes, the

documents, missing the physical,

being AWOL from Alabama-

COLONEL CHARLES:

It's like four different angles on

the same story.

MARY:

Maybe we could split them? Run Barnes

tomorrow and the documents on the

Sunday broadcast?

JOSH:

Sunday show won't give us the real

estate. Where are we with the rest

of it?

Lucy checks her notes.

LUCY:

Got an email from Emily Will, one of

the examiners. She has some concerns

about the superscript thing.

57.

JOSH:

Superscript?

MARY:

The raised "th" that comes after

"111th". She was worried that

function wasn't available on military

typewriters in the 70's.

(to Lucy)

I spoke to Matley - he says they

were available then. Emily told me

she deferred to him.

JOSH:

Good. White House will have someone

for on camera in the morning. I

can't send Dan because of the storm.

MARY:

That f***ing hurricane hates me.

INT. 60 MINUTES -- CONFERENCE ROOM -- DAY

September 8th - Day Of Air. Dark. The whole team sits,

screening a ROUGH CUT of their piece on a drop down screen Mary,

Smith, Colonel Charles, Lucy, Josh, and Mary Murphy.

There are lawyers and executives watching as well.

ON THE SCREEN - Dan speaking with Barnes:

BEN BARNES:

I don't think I had any right to

have the power that I had, to choose

who was going to go to Vietnam and

who was not going to go to Vietnam.

That's power. In some instances,

when I looked at those names, I was

maybe determining life or death.

And that's not a power that I want

to have.

DAN:

Too strong or not to say that you

are ashamed of it now?

BEN BARNES:

Oh, I think that would be somewhat

of an appropriate thing. I'm very,

very sorry.

58.

Cut to the 60 MINUTES STOPWATCH -Tick, tick, tick, tick...

The lights come up. The first person to speak is Betsy West Senior

Vice President, Prime Time.

BETSY:

What's it running?

MARY:

Sixteen minutes, at least three over.

BETSY:

Some of the document stuff is slow,

you can definitely trim there.

JOSH:

How about flipping it - open with

Barnes and then do the documents.

It would keep it chronological.

Betsy's nodding, she likes the idea.

BETSY:

You've got three hours.

Pan to the wall where the clock reads 4:10...

INT. 60 MINUTES -- EDITING -- NIGHT

The clock on the wall here reads 6:52. An EDITOR toggles

the footage back and forth. ONSCREEN:

MARCEL MATLEY:

...Based on our available handwriting

evidence, yes, this is the same

person. Now, this signature on the

June 24th document shows some

conspicuous differences, but it also

shows what I call inconspicuous

similarities...

Josh taps our Mary on the shoulder and motions her out into

the hall. She follows. Hushed:

JOSH:

We need to lose Matley. We're forty

seconds over and he's a sh*t

interview. The meshing graphic's

terrible too.

59.

MARY:

It shows where the new documents

fall in line with the originals-

JOSH:

Poorly. We're out of time. It's

your call. What do you want to do?

On Mary. A long beat...

MARY:

Cut it.

TIMECUT TO:

Clock -7:
44. Everyone tense. The closest they've ever cut

it. Mary stares at the screen. The others stare at Mary.

EDITOR:

We have to start outputting in two

minutes.

MARY:

I know.

EDITOR:

We don't start outputting in two

minutes, we will not have a show.

Sweat on her brow. Stares at the screen. Finally:

MARY:

Lock it. Start outputting.

She pushes back from the controls as the techs swoop in and

start pushing buttons, outputting the report to tape. The

Editor glances at the clock.

EDITOR:

If there's a computer hiccup...

MARY:

Tom, I worship you, but shut the

f*** up.

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