Plante versus Gergen: Drunk versus suck-up

I worked for ABC TV's 20/20 & Nightline for a while and after our cavorting during the day, we would often retire to Georgetown for a little 19th-hole action at F. Scott's. This waterhole would invariably have a few other newsies, among them Bill Plante, whom I saw lurching for the exit the few times when I actually left before he did. Other times he must have closed the place down.

Now this lush yells at the President about Karl Rove [see link above] and keeps the "Tiffany Network" mired in last place with his vacuous commentary.

Gergen on the contrary was a health nut & I ran across him on the long Virginia bike path on a couple of occasions. He styles himself as "advisor to three presidents," but truth be told, he was more a PR flack than a substance guy like Rove, who actually had INFLUENCE over policy & election strategies, not an "advisor" except in the sense that he was at some meetings where policy might have been discussed.

In DC, flacks come in all shapes and sizes and alcohol contents. Plante is a short Wild Turkey and Gergen a large Chardonnay.