Andrew Gilligan, the BBC reporter who has been the focus of Blair government attacks of BBC political bias, is now threatening to sue Blair MP Alastair Campbell for slander.

Campbell accused the BBC of relying on a single, un-named source before repeatedly broadcasting allegations that the "45-minute threats'' posed by Saddam Hussein had been "sexed up" by the UK government. While an "investigation is under way, allegedly at the behest of Number 10, to hunt down Mr Gilligan's source," the BBC is supposedly going to reveal more information to support their story "in the next 48 hours".

It is a dangerous game in which somebody - the BBC or Blair - is likely to suffer considerable damage.

Meanwhile the BBC is coming under further fire for it's coverage of the Iraqi war (BRITISH Army Colonel has branded US Marines in Iraq as "idiots" and "stupid") and a controversial documentary on Israel's nuclear arsenal.

On the other side of the Atlantic, Democrats are being a bit more hesitant. Presidential hopefuls are holding back from full-on assaults on El Busho, fearing that the sudden discovery of a few WMDs will make them look like a pack of jackasses. On the other hand, many observers would say their mute obsequience over the past year already makes them look worse than that.