Welcome, ladies, gentleman and trannies, to The Ed Deposition Show.
The Mirror each weekday at 5PM is posting exclusive video from the 2011 deposition of Ed Schultz. In roughly two and one half hours of testimony, the behemoth broadcaster served up more whoppers than Burger King, spewing forth a hodgepodge of dubious claims, clumsy evasions, contradictions, pompous asides and an implausible lack of recollection.
Noted JFK conspiracy theorist Mark Lane, a lawyer for veteran NBC News Washington producer and sound engineer Michael Queen, methodically questioned Schultz at the Washington office of Schultz’s trial lawyer John Hayes.
Wait! An acclaimed lefty represented Queen against a liberal MSNBC host?
Yup.
The whole lawsuit and trial was the biggest bizzare-o world since Seinfeld.
Lane, who has since retired, watches “The Ed Show” but felt Schultz clearly violated his legal obligations to Queen. The working man’s bosom buddy never paid Queen for arranging his MSNBC gig, despite multiple promises that he would.
For “The Ed Deposition Show” debut you can watch Schultz profess no recollection of Michael Queen approaching Fox News on his behalf.
Throughout the deposition Schultz strained to argue that Queen’s laborious efforts to get him a show, including pitching all three networks and distributing a pilot, were mostly unauthorized and didn’t help anyway.
The voluminous paper trail tells another story. On April 22, 2008, Queen wrote a fulsome pitch letter for an Ed show to Roger Ailes. Nearly midnight the same day Schultz told Queen he hoped Fox would do him a solid.
But asked about 20 minutes into the deposition if he ever dispatched Queen to get him a Fox News show Schultz professed no recollection.
Really?
Does Schultz send so many people to get him on Fox News that he forgot about tasking Queen?
Lane: Did you ever have a discussion with Mr. Queen where you approved or asked him to try to find a television show, talk show for you on FOX?
Schultz: I don’t recall that.
Schultz clearly did not follow the adage of a remarkable yet unsung Bronx housewife named Ruth Goldstock: If you are going to lie you need a good memory.
Indeed, towards the end of the deposition Lane presented Schultz with the email he wrote Queen pining for a Fox News gig. It had apparently slipped his mind when first queried by Lane.
Lane: All right. 31. Exhibit 31 appears to be a letter from you.
Schultz: This is correct.
Lane: Did you write that e-mail letter?
Schultz: I did.
Lane: You said, “Hopefully FOX or MSNBC will come through. I appreciate all your help, and faith. We need it.”
Lane: Is that correct?
Schultz: Correct.