Friday Night News Dump

Rosie O'Donnell has decided to call it quits three weeks early. She was supposed to leave in June, but has decided to leave the show earlier.

Maybe it has something to do with her spat with co-host Elizabeth Hasselbeck? Who knows. O'Donnell can take her 9/11 conspiracy theorizing nonsensical ravings somewhere else.

And O'Donnell's chief writer took that on-air spat one further by defacing photos in ABC studios.

The Post's Adam Buckman reports ABC confirmed in a statement only that "photographs at 'The View's' offices were defaced. Rosie O'Donnell was not in the building. ABC Legal and Human Resources are investigating the matter." Barber is an old friend of O'Donnell who worked with her years ago on "The Rosie O'Donnell Show."

There were also rumors O'Donnell was so angry after her argument with Hasselbeck that she trashed her dressing room, although ABC denied the tantrum.

Lovely stuff. Petulant children.

There was supposed to be a smackdown between Rosie's 9/11 conspiracy freaks and the fact-minded folks at Popular Mechanics, but it would appear that's gone up in smoke as well.

The Battle For Ground Zero, Part 227

Usually, I use this regular space to refer to developments at Ground Zero and how things are progressing. This includes an update from within Silverstein Properties and how they're planning the construction of the towers that will ring the site.

However, this post will be a little different.

It seems that there is still quite a few folks out there that think that there was some kind of conspiracy relating to the 9/11 attacks and the destruction of 7WTC. Never mind that there's absolutely no evidence of a conspiracy. None. Not a single shred of evidence.

No evidence that Bush or anyone else in the government knew that there was a plot. No evidence that anyone decided to blow up 7WTC using the al Qaeda attacks as cover. Nothing.

Not a single shred of evidence.

Yet, it appears that leading Democrat party bigwigs and current and former Presidential candidates are more than willing to pay lip service to the possibility that there was a conspiracy. Why?

7WTC was heavily damaged by the collapse of the Twin Towers. There wasn't anyone fighting the fires at 7WTC because they were pulled back because of a concern that it would collapse. The 9/11 Commission and the NIST report detail the events leading up to the attacks and the aftermath.

Engineers have pored over the details, and there's absolutely no evidence of anyone setting explosives to take down 7WTC or any of the other structures at the site.

So, who are the latest and greatest Democrats to pander to the conspiracy theorists? John Edwards:


That follows John Kerry doing the same.

What is so troubling about all this is that this particular conspiracy theorizing is not limited to the fringe but is increasingly accepted by the Left.

I am not so willing to give Kerry or Edwards the benefit of the doubt as to whether they knew about specific details from 9/11. Kerry especially knows, or should know, the findings from the report. Edwards, if we're supposed to believe he's a credible candidate for President, should know details relating to 9/11 and what happened. Yet, they're willing to give credence to conspiracy theories that the government was involved?

Sorry, I'm not buying it. Not at all.

And the fact that so many in the crowd applaud his promise to look into the conspiracy theory makes me wonder about the direction of the Democrat party.

The truly depressing thing is that even if Kerry and Edwards don't believe there was a conspiracy, they must pander to these conspiracy freaks because they comprise a large segment of the Democrat party. And the leftist Democrats aren't alone. They've got company among the Hollywood types like Rosie O'Donnell and Sean Penn and Charlie Sheen, among others.

Popular Mechanics can debunk the 9/11 conspiracy theories till the cows come home, but it isn't going to change the minds of anyone who have already committed to believing as an article of faith that this was a government conspiracy. Edwards, Kerry and the rest are only feeding this beast.

Rosie's Riveting Stay at The View Coming to End?

TMZ has now confirmed the buzz that we exclusively reported last night: Rosie O'Donnell will announce on today's show that she is leaving "The View." And TMZ has confirmed that "View" honchos are already searching for her replacement.

So, if she's indeed leaving The View, what are the circumstances? Is it Rosie's choice to leave or is she being forced out. And, if she's being forced out, what is the reason behind it?

Don Surber jumps to the conclusion that she was being forced out. From what little we know thus far, I don't know what to think, though if she is indeed leaving the show, bloggers the world over lose a ripe target for scorn, derision, and good comedic material.

I'd wait to see what Rosie has to say for herself along with what Barbara Walters has to say to know what really went down.

I'm no fan of Rosie, but she does what she needs to do bring attention to the show. She's extremely good at it - from her kerfuffle with Donald Trump to her nonsensical ravings about 9/11 conspiracies.

She's every much a shock-jock style personality as Howard Stern or Don Imus are. Half the folks who turn in are watching her because they're fans, while the other half can't wait to slam her. And that means ratings. Ratings are what keeps shows such as The View on the air.

Yet, if she's being fired because of what she's said, then something is truly wrong with the media business. If it was a personality conflict with others on the show, then that's a valid concern, but if she was fired over what she was said, then her own concerns about the speech police holds valid.

Businesses have the right to determine what is or isn't said on their property - in this case, the programs they air. However, there is a definite concern that businesses like ABC are making poor business choices by limiting speech because of pressure from groups that want to impose their speech codes on others.

UPDATE:
This ABC News piece suggests the split is amicable, though it appears that there were issues over renewal of her contract that couldn't be overcome. Money talks and Rosie walks because they couldn't come to terms.

UPDATE:
That ABC News article claims to be an exclusive, and yet the TMZ piece predated the ABC report. That's some exclusive ABC News got. Sister Toldjah has a good roundup.

An Image Problem

Ashley Harder, Miss New Jersey USA, has resigned because she is pregnant, The Philadelphia Daily News reported in Monday's editions.

Harder, 20, told the newspaper she voluntarily stepped down because it's against pageant rules to compete while pregnant. She could not be reached for comment by The Associated Press.

Both the pageant and the runner-up for 2007 Miss New Jersey USA confirmed Monday that the reins have changed hands. Erin Abrahamson, 23, said pageant officials called her Friday to let her know she would be assuming the title.

This comes on the heels of the Miss Nevada, Katie Rees, who had numerous racy photos taken at some point before her entrance in the competition (NSFW), the Miss USA mess, and the ongoing feud between Donald Trump and Rosie O'Donnell that seems to have a life of its own - just like The Donald's hair.

Of the bunch, it seems that Harder is the only one with her head screwed on straight - stepping down now and not after it hits the tabloids or other such nonsense. She's planning on marrying her live-in boyfriend. She's expecting in late summer according to ABC News. Oh, and it appears that she was once the door girl for a hot bar in the City (Google is your friend).

The Miss New Jersey site has been swamped (go figure - literally).

However, none of this is making Trump's job any easier as the owner of the Miss USA brand.

Jammie has more.