Frumgate
A contribution to a mini- (very mini-) scandal.

By Jay Nordlinger
February 27, 2002, 12:25 p.m.

n the last day or so, you have perhaps noticed Frumgate — a mini-scandal, or non-scandal, really, involving David Frum.

Who is David Frum? Well, to begin with, he is a friend and colleague of mine, for which I couldn't be more grateful. He's a Renaissance man of a writer, responsible for hundreds of essays, a syndicated column, and at least two famous books: Dead Right and How We Got Here: The 70's.

For the past year — since roughly Inauguration Day — he has been serving President Bush as a speechwriter. His departure from the White House has just been announced.

But here's where the -gate comes in: Shortly after the State of the Union address, something lousy happened to David. His wife, the author Danielle Crittenden, sent an e-mail to family and friends saying that she couldn't help taking "wifely pride" in David's authorship of a particular passage. That e-mail was given to the press; embarrassing stories ensued.

Now that David is leaving, a link has been made: The e-mail and the subsequent news stories angered the president — or the White House in general — and David has been forced out as a result. David has protested that, well before the State of the Union address and the ensuing flap, he was planning to leave the White House — to leave it, in fact, about now, late February.

And that, sports fans, is absolutely true. How do I know for sure? Well, aside from the not inconsiderable fact that Frum is an honest man, David told me (and others) about his intended departure before the State of the Union address. If anything, he hesitated to leave when he was planning to, for fear that people would make an erroneous link. That such a link could be imagined is understandable; but it is nevertheless erroneous.

As a reporter or general journalist, it's so rare that you really know something — for sure, for sure. Of course, you can think you know, or trust certain sources, or be virtually sure. But really to know something, beyond a doubt — like your own middle name or favorite singer — is not so common, in this business.

So, we have good news and bad news. The bad news is that George W. Bush has lost David Frum as a speechwriter; the good news is that we have regained him as a public writer.

Look for him everywhere. And David: I know you're a Standardite, chiefly, but can humble ol' NR get some of you too?