[NY Newsday links for this post are broken as of 2008. - eds]

On Dec. 3rd, Ellis a good friend of C&L, NY Newsday columnist and FOX analyst predicted Kerik's demise.

Kerik nomination is a ticking time bomb

Campaign bodyguard to Rudy Giuliani.

Errand boy for the Saudi royal family.

Energetic exploiter of Sept. 11th tragedy.

Tough-talking publicity-hound vowing to bring law and order to Iraq - then hightailing it out of there after a disastrous 14 weeks, leaving the place far less safe than he found it.

Oh, the bullet points on Bernie Kerik's real-life resume just go on and on. But is this really the guy we want standing between us and the terrorists? read on

In his Dec 8th column: No question here, Kerik's their man

"Bernie Kerik is a strong candidate for this important post," says Collins, the woman who is supposed to be vetting the man who would stand between us and the terrorists. "My committee will conduct confirmation hearings on the president's nominee as expeditiously as possible."

Expeditious sounds OK. But what about a few hard questions along the way?

Questions like: What exactly qualifies this man for such a complicated and important job - beyond his blood-brother loyalty to Rudy Giuliani and lots of 9/11 TV time? Given the ga-ga tone of the early reaction in Washington, there's growing reason to wonder: Will any questions be asked at all?

Newest column: I hate to say I told you so . . . but I told you so

I tried to save the president from all this embarrassment. Believe me, I tried.

I got started a full nine days ago, even before George W. Bush had formally nominated Bernie Kerik as head of Homeland Security for the whole United States. I warned the president and his people in no uncertain terms.

Now a new article from Newsday today:

Keriks's secret Wife

Kerik had third wife

Former Homeland Security nominee never revealed 1978 marriage, investigators find, and friends say they too were kept in the dark.

First there was "The Lost Son." Now comes the lost wife.

Investigators conducting a background check of Bernard Kerik last week as part of his confirmation hearing uncovered that the then-Secretary of Homeland Security nominee was married to a woman he has apparently kept a secret for the past 20 years.

So, the question is if Ellis had this guys number, how could the White House not?