Andrew Sullivan has chosen to step away from the "babygate" story until further evidence is revealed.

From the Daily Dish:

I have not written a column on this in the Atlantic or the Sunday Times, because I don't have the facts to back up any substantive alternative theory to Palin's story-line. But on a blog, I take the responsibility seriously not to bullshit my readers, not to adopt a professional persona that obscures my real-time thoughts. I think a blog exists to air things you cannot nail down in a more formal journalistic context. And I think many of my critics do not get or simply disagree with this understanding of the relationship of blogging to journalism.

All I can say is that this is my understanding of the place of blogging - a conversation where nothing is forbidden, a zone of truly free speech, exercized responsibly, but open to any and all views and theories and questions. I don't think I'm partisan on this. Elena Kagan can testify to that.

I don't believe Palin's current story. But since I don't have the facts and sources to construct an alternative, my task is now over. I will stay vigilant for any and all new facts that we may get; and I sure won't let this go if more comes to light. But we're going around in circles now.

It is hard to disagree with his frustration.  I have felt it myself more times that I can tell.

Sullivan is also right that we keep rehashing the same evidence over and over again.

The last new data that we uncovered was the pictures of "ruffled ear baby," and the analysis from the various doctors I interviewed.  But even that only went so far before there was no more I could do with it except hope it was seen by a wider audience, or that somebody close to the family would decide to fess up about why there were two different Trig Palins. So far neither of those things have happened.

I can usually convince almost anybody that I talk to directly that Sarah Palin did not give birth to Trig Palin on April 18, 2008, but what I still cannot do effectively is explain where he DID come from. It all seemed pretty cut and dried back when I was convinced Bristol was the mother, but now the evidence points toward another source.

I wish I could assure everybody that some huge piece of evidence was forthcoming, but I can't.  All I can say for certain is that there are people who KNOW that Sarah did not give birth to Trig.  Whether those people will come forward anytime soon, or at all, I simply cannot say.

I had hoped for a very long time that Levi would ultimately spill the beans, but now I have little hope of that.

Then when Mercede started to speak publicly I thought perhaps she would have the key.  But alas, though what she knows is damaging to Sarah and Bristol personally, it does very little to address Trig's parentage. (I know that people are still under the impression that she must know something, but believe me she doesn't.)

However none of this means that I am giving up, or stepping away from the "babygate" story myself.  I am much too stubborn to let something as completely ridiculous as Sarah Palin's poorly manufactured fable about giving birth to a Down syndrome baby become accepted as fact.  That would be tantamount to simply accepting as fact the idea that unicorns must exist because you cannot prove they do not.

In future posts I am going to divulge some of what I was told this past year.  I assume that there are parts of it which will confuse you just as much as it has confused me.  Be aware however that there are still some things I cannot talk about, because one word written on this blog will alert Sarah Palin's people as to who they have to clamp down on next. That has already happened repeatedly over the last year or so.

My hope is that by continuing to talk about this story, and digging up the facts and rumors pertaining to it, that eventually the people who know the truth will feel safe enough from the Palins, and confident enough that they will be listened to, that they will come forward and finally put this whole sordid thing to rest.  Until I can get somebody who is willing to divulge exactly what happened, and put their name to it, we are left essentially going back over the evidence again and again in the hopes that we have missed something (like the ruffled ear picture), that will finally lead us to the truth.

Obviously this mystery continues to be very compelling as evidenced by the arrival of the newest bloggers to the party LitBrit and Floyd M. Orr.  Welcome my friends.