Strib Crying Over Spilt Manure

The Star Tribune editorial board is somewhat distraught over the Dan Rather memo fiasco.

You might assume that their angst over this matter would stem from the shoddy journalism and questionable ethics employed by CBS. But while they do a bit of tut-tut ting and mildly rebuke Rather et al for their actions, the real reason for the Strib's displeasure is displayed at the end of the editorial:

Of course it's possible that the details CBS reported about Bush's National Guard service will turn out to be correct; while the memos are suspect, Rather interviewed a contemporaneous source who confirmed the events they describe, and other news organizations are looking into the matter. But now it scarcely matters for CBS. Rather let something delicate and precious slip through his fingers, and the pieces will never quite fit together again.

Now, what is this "delicate and precious" thing that Rather let slip that spawns the Strib's Gollumesque reaction? It's the opportunity to do harm to President Bush. They're not upset with their journalistic brethren for CBS's disgraceful behavior in using forged documents to create a story. They're upset because in doing so, CBS blew their chance to really nail Bush.