BOTCHING IT – AT 9:03 P.M. ET:  It was to be expected that conspiracy theorists and America haters would come out of the woodwork after bin Laden's death, but did we have to help them so much?

It's now been acknowledged that some of the key statements made by administration members describing the killing of bin Laden were wrong.  He did not have a gun, the woman he used as a shield was not his wife, and she was not killed.  The man who misled us was John Brennan, Mr. Obama's chief counterterrorism adviser.  In that position, Brennan should be most sensitive to the impact of inaccurate statements that later have to be withdrawn.  They lead to an explosion of conspiracy theories and accusations.  Brennan has made inaccurate statements before in his job, and should now be eased out of the administration.  He just doesn't cut it.

The administration has botched the aftermath of the brilliantly conducted raid that got bin Laden.  Contradictory statements, and a curious lack of understanding that absolute proof had to be provided have now set off a wave of skepticism.  True, no matter what we did there would be doubt in some quarters, especially in the Mideast, where conspiracy theories are often a substitute for thought.  But again, we made matters worse.

It was not necessary for bin Laden to be dumped into the ocean within 24 hours of death.  There is a limit to how much "sensitivity" we had to show.  It would have been better to keep the body for a few days to provide absolute proof of death.  Identification by family members might have been done.  The body could have been examined by a neutral authority from say, the World Health Organization or the Red Cross.   This part of the planning was not good. 

Now there is controversy over whether the death photos of bin Laden should be released.  I have no answer.  On the one hand, they could provide proof to some.  On the other hand, release of the pictures will immediate provoke cries of "Photoshopped." 

I suspect that some photos will have to be released, and that other evidence will have to be provided.  Apparently, there are very sophisticated DNA tests that can be conducted, with samples we already have, that should settle the matter, but of course people can claim they were faked.

We will never satisfy everyone, but we did very little to satisfy even mild skeptics.  I have no doubt whatever that bin Laden was killed in that raid.  What conspiracy theorists never tell you is that the kind of conspiracies they dream up would normally require a cast of hundreds or thousands, none of whom ever leak a word.  But we simply could have done better in this case.  I hope some hard evidence remains that the president can present to the world.

May 3, 2011