Vietnam War the United States had used sarin gas against women and children in Laos. This report was later discredited and CNN was vilified by the U.S. Department of Defense and many veteran's groups. Departure of Dobbs Kaplan repeatedly clashed with CNN anchor Lou Dobbs and was presumed responsible for his abrupt departure from the network in 1999. On April 20, 1999, CNN was covering President Clinton's speech in Littleton, Colorado, following the Columbine High School massacre. Dobbs ordered the producer to cut away from the speech and return to broadcast Moneyline. Dobbs was countermanded by Kaplan, who ordered CNN to return to the speech. Kaplan later said, "Tell me what journalistic reason there was not to cover the president at Columbine soon after the shootings? Everyone else was doing it." Dobbs announced on the air that "CNN President Rick Kaplan wants us to return to Littleton." A few days later, Dobbs announced that he was leaving the network to start a website devoted to astronautical news. After Kaplan moved to CNN, U.S. News & World Report found that Kaplan had ordered CNN reporters to "limit the use of the word 'scandal' in reporting on President Clinton's campaign fundraising." Critics claim this as an example of bias, given Kaplan's longtime friendship with him. Return to ABC News Kaplan was senior vice president of ABC News in June 2003. In this position he oversaw the news division's hard news programs, which include World News Tonight, Nightline, This Week with George Stephanopoulos, World News Tonight Saturday and Sunday, World News Now, World News This Morning as well as ABC News’ Political Unit. Kaplan led the team that developed ABC News’ 2004 Campaign Buses. Three extra large buses that were outfitted with three live cameras, a six-person live studio, two edit rooms, radio studio, completely Internet friendly with a transmission room allowing it to feed to satellites from anywhere in the country. He also was responsible for overseeing the team which designed and constructed ABC's new newsroom and primary studio and led the design team which redesigned the networks 2004 election graphics and logo. Kaplan was appointed senior vice president after he was brought back to ABC News to coordinate the network's control room production and news coverage of America's War with Iraq. This coverage began with a three-hour ABC News Special: When Diplomacy Fails produced by Kaplan the evening of President Bush's