Scott J. Falgoust

[Marco Foster @MarcoFoster_]

Scott Pelley responds to Trump saying he doesn’t care about the country: “I’ve never worn the uniform, but I’ve been in combat for this country. In Afghanistan, and Iraq, Kuwait. Been shot at. Spent nights in foxholes filling up with water in the desert. I’m not aware that the president has ever done any of those things for his country. You become a journalist because you love the First Amendment, you love the country. While all the other descriptions the president used about me might be applicable, not that one”

[Dylan Byers @DylanByers]

New statement from Scott Pelley:

There has never been anything in America like 60 Minutes.

The Sunday tradition is the most successful program of any kind in history. For more than a decade, its innovative growth on every major online platform has extended its reach to countless millions around the world. This spring, at the end of our 58thseason, 60 Minutes grew rapidly with an unheard-of 9% jump in viewers on CBS.

“60” has been the number-one program in America for decades because our beloved audience finds integrity, quality, and humanity in our stories. When stewardship of the program passed to my colleagues and me, our responsibility was to expand energetically into a new age of media technology while preserving the values our audience expects. Now, the new owner of our network is casting this legend aside, apparently to curry a moment of favor with the Trump administration.

The waste is heartbreaking.

Last month, 60 Minutes lost its DNA when our entire senior leadership and two of our best on-air correspondents were cruelly fired without cause. Good people were silenced because they stood up for our audience. They stood for fairness against the forces of political bias; they stood for professionalism against chaos.

For my part, new management has instructed me to inject falsehoods and bias into a politically sensitive story. I’ve been told to include assertions that are unverified. To date, in every case, I have managed to ignore these instructions or refuse them. Recently, politicians have been invited to choose correspondents for interviews on the broadcast. Giving politicians control over 60 Minutes interviews is not how this is done. Finally, incompetence and unprofessionalism in the new management have wreaked havoc. In a case involving one of my stories, the entire program came within 19 minutes of not getting on the air at all.

At 60 Minutes, we have fought harder than anyone knows to save the program that became an American icon. We owed that to our millions of viewers. I am deeply moved by the thousands of wishes we have received to “keep up the good fight.” Most of the men and women of CBS News are still in that fight. But now the collapse of values at the top has become untenable. The leadership of 60 Minutes is no longer recognizable. The principles I hold dear are gone, and so I must leave as well.

I depart after 37 years at CBS with one emotion—a heart brimming with gratitude for the men and women of CBS News who encouraged and enriched my work, very often at the risk of their own lives. I pray for a day when those people and their ideals are honored again—a day when sanity, competence, and courage return.

Scott Pelley

[Tom Dreisbach @TomDreisbach]

As the Trump DOJ mass-deletes government information about the Jan. 6 cases, reminder that you can still access NPR's database covering every single prosecution.

We also provide access to hundreds of videos presented in court.

[Richard A. Webster @RichardAWebster]

La. Gov. Jeff Landry has dismissed experts’ concerns that his policies could swell the prison population and plunge the state into financial disaster. We analyzed how his policies have already begun to impact Louisiana. @veritenewsnola @propublica https://t.co/WiK3xaA4RQ

[Scott MacFarlane @MacFarlaneNews]

Quite a first sentence in the new Congressional inquiry to Treasury Secretary about Trump's $1.7 billion slush fund for convicted crooks:

"The American people and the world just witnessed one of the most brazen acts of public corruption and self-dealing in American history"

Full memo: https://t.co/UIGPJWnxco

[Kaitlan Collins @kaitlancollins]

James Comey: "The Biden Justice Department indicted the president's son. Can you imagine that happening today? Honestly, while you're shaving, MAGA supporter, look in the mirror and say, could that happen today? And the answer is no, which is a really bad thing."

[Senator Mark Kelly @SenMarkKelly]

George Washington believed that vaccinating his troops against smallpox was the key to winning the Revolutionary War and our independence. A founding father from 250 years ago had a better understanding of science and military readiness than Pete Hegseth.

[Bishop Robert Barron @BishopBarron]

The statements made by President Trump on Truth Social regarding the Pope were entirely inappropriate and disrespectful. They don’t contribute at all to a constructive conversation. It is the Pope’s prerogative to articulate Catholic doctrine and the principles that govern the moral life. In regard to the concrete application of those principles, people of good will can and do disagree. I would warmly recommend that serious Catholics within the Trump administration–Secretary Rubio, Vice President Vance, Ambassador Brian Burch, and others–might meet with Vatican officials so that a real dialogue can take place. This is far preferable to the statements on social media.

I am very grateful for the many ways that the Trump administration has reached out to Catholics and other people of faith. It has been a high honor to serve on the Religious Liberty Commission. No President in my lifetime has shown a greater dedication to defending our first liberty. All that said, I think the President owes the Pope an apology.

[Jesse Livermore @Jesse_Livermore]

The sad part is, the founders debated this very problem, and still ended up getting it wrong. Here's George Mason, expressing his objection, on behalf of Virginia, June 18th, 1788:

[Pope Leo XIV @Pontifex]

God does not bless any conflict. Anyone who is a disciple of Christ, the Prince of Peace, is never on the side of those who once wielded the sword and today drop bombs. Military action will not create space for freedom or times of #Peace, which comes only from the patient promotion of coexistence and dialogue among peoples.

[Emmett Voss @Emmett_Voss]

President Obama explains how he solves problems he's not an expert on:

When asked by Destin Sandlin (creator of Smarter Every Day) how he gets up to speed on unfamiliar topics, Obama reveals an approach rooted in the scientific method.

"Over the years you accumulate knowledge and you test hypothesis and propositions. So how I think about it today is different than the first day I walked into the oval office."

He explains that after years in office, he built a baseline of knowledge that changed how he consumed information.

Instead of going deep into every briefing book, he began scanning for what was different, looking for anomalies against patterns he'd already seen.

"I've learned to be pretty good at listening carefully to people who know a lot more than I do about a topic and making sure that any dissenting voices are in the room at the same time."

Obama describes a deliberate structure:

After an initial presentation, he makes sure to hear from everyone present. He asks whether anyone disagrees with the baseline facts.

He asks whether there's any evidence that contradicts what was just said. If there is, he wants that argument made directly in front of him.

"What I'm pretty good at is then asking questions, poking, prodding, testing propositions and seeing if they hold up."

He draws a direct parallel between this approach and the scientific method. Accumulate knowledge, challenge assumptions, pressure-test conclusions.

A powerful reminder that the best decision-makers aren't the ones with all the answers.

They're the ones who know which questions to ask and who to listen to.

[MLB Pipeline @MLBPipeline]

MLB's No. 1 prospect Konnor Griffin is set to make his big league debut for the @Pirates today, so we're giving away a signed jersey!

Follow and repost for your chance to win.

[Scott J. Falgoust @falgoust]

@SSwiber You’re not in the 35% who approve of Donald Trump’s job performance? Careful, “honesty” might get you in trouble with Jeffy (not that you’d ever that anyway).

[Real Reform Louisiana @RealReformLA]

🚨#LaLege Update: Big insurers are trying to weaken bad faith statutes that serve as deterrent for bad actors.

HB577 by Rep. Glorioso negatively impacts storm victims—making it easier to delay, deny, & lowball claims after storms—while padding the profits of big insurers. #LaGov

[Joe Scarborough @ScarboroughNow]

Robert S. Mueller III left his life of privilege at an Ivy League school to be a Marine at the height of Vietnam. Connected families often used contacts to avoid military service. Lieutenant Mueller served with great honor, earning a Bronze Star for valor and a Purple Heart🇺🇸

[CSPAN @cspan]

From 2003, FBI Director Robert Mueller on a Princeton classmate who was killed in Vietnam: "He became an example for me and a number of others as to the type of service one should undertake in order to pay back some of the gifts that have been given to us..."

[George W. Bush Presidential Center @TheBushCenter]

Statement by President George W. Bush on Robert Mueller:

"Laura and I are deeply saddened by the loss of Robert Mueller. Bob dedicated his life to public service. As a Marine in Vietnam, he proved he was ready for tough assignments. He earned a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart before returning home to pursue law. In 2001, only one week into the job as the 6th Director of the F.B.I., Bob transitioned the agency mission to protecting the homeland after September 11. He led the agency effectively, helping prevent another terrorist attack on U.S. soil. Laura and I send our heartfelt sympathy to his wife of nearly 60 years, Ann, and the Mueller family."

[Chris Christie @GovChristie]

I knew and worked with Bob Mueller. I didn’t always agree with him, but he was a Patriot who never said no to his country’s call for service. To speak this way about any veteran is reprehensible; especially so when you are the Commander-in-Chief. Shame on the President.

[Scott J. Falgoust @falgoust]

@samkarlin @ByPiperHutch And the “then-ICE deputy chief of staff Madison Sheahan [who] threatened the job of an ICE employee for suggesting that the agency consider other contractors” was Jeff Landry’s LDWF Secretary immediately prior…