Novak Admits Smear Column Is Even Weaker Than It First Appeared

Bob Novak took to the airwaves today to defend his recent controversial column, in which he claimed that Sen. Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign was sitting on a bit of juicy dirt concerning her rival, Sen. Barack Obama.

Why the need to defend? Well, to put it bluntly, Novak's Saturday column has been ridiculed as - among the more noteworthy descriptions --- "shamelessly unethical" and "unconfirmed crap," for naming no names and containing no tangible information. So, to clear up the facts and keep his name in the news cycle, Novak went on Fox News this morning.

Novak disclosed that his source for the story was not anyone close to Clinton but rather, someone who was "told by an agent of the Clinton campaign" about the alleged dirt. Got that? So Novak was not privy to the dirt itself, nor did he talk to Clinton's people. Rather, he heard it from someone who had heard it from someone else. Another secondary source, Novak went on to say, claimed to have heard the same thing. Fact-checking = completed.

For the record, in the original column, Novak suggested he had more personal knowledge of that rumor-mongering. "Agents of Sen. Hillary Clinton," the piece began, "are spreading the word in Democratic circles that she has scandalous information about her principal opponent for the party's presidential nomination..." There was no mention of a source.

Also during his Fox appearance, Novak used his unconfirmed rumor to further smear Clinton, calling her campaign's supposed tactic "very similar to the kind of tricks that Richard Nixon used to pull, where he would say, 'I know some very bad information about the communists supporting George McGovern, but I can't put that out because it wouldn't be right, because I'm too good of a guy.'" Again, Novak is dragging down both Obama and Clinton.

And if it seems that this whole episode was just concocted up by some Republican operative to make Clinton and Obama look bad, rest assured.

"I haven't spoken to a single Republican," Novak told the Fox and Friends hosts. "This is all Democrats. That's the whole method of the Clinton campaign is when anything derogatory comes up, they say the Republicans are spreading it, but there was no Republicans involved in my reporting on this."

Don't worry, a source who is close to a source told the Huffington Post that this episode will all go away soon.

Watch the video:

Comments

[TimeForChange]

This whole thing makes me ask the question - is Karl Rove working behind the scenes to get Hillary Clinton elected? Think about it. Novak did the hit piece on Plame for Bush & everyone knows Rove was hiding behind Libby on that one. Now Novak comes out with a hit piece on Hillary's biggest threat, Obama. No way you can make me believe that Hillary didn't know Novak was going to run this story.

Once the mud's slung, it sticks. Until someone cleans it up, it leaves a negative impression. That was the objective, no matter WHO was behind it. The real question should be: Who profits in this scenerio? Answer: Hillary in Iowa primary.

Hillary's chief campaign strategist is Mark Penn, Burson-Marsteller's top executive & friend of Karl Rove. The CNN "debate" and obvious bias for Clinton also remind me of Fox/Bush election tactics. The whole things screams Rove & company.

Wouldn't surprise me as Hillary is a Bush-Clinton and will continue the Bush legacy if she gets in the White House.

This is a test balloon from the MSM that is trying to clean up the so called mud slinging because both of their favorite, corporate front-runners, Clinton & Guilliani, have so much dirt in their closets that the MSM doesn't want the gloves to come off & those closets opened to expose their agendas for what they really are...elite corporate globalization at the expense of average working Americans.

[Hoelder]

The man whose name degrades journalism does this all the time. Like the conservative right he just claims anything and hopes to get away with it. Not everybody who wears a suit and tie is honest.

[Bamboo]

It's beyond ridiculous. Now is the time to write your local newspaper and tell them to stop publishing Novak's columns.
He needs to retire.

[globalcitizenlinda]

Notice to Clinton supporters out there,

Democrats who support other candidates are tired of your arrogant attitudes which do a dis-service to the candidate you support.

Rudeness tends to relfect the assumptions people have that you feel that your candidate is OWED THE NOMINATION.

Deal with it Democratic Machine, a majority of democrats do not like Hillary and will NOT BE FORCED TO LOVE HER OR VOTE FOR HER.

You cannot force the flawed candidate Hillary as the nominee on the many people who can see this!

We have been there before when we were forced to vote for the lesser-of-two-evils.

With the internet, people can form alliances to bring out the faults and highlight policy differences. People are better informed about other candidates

Tactics used to plant questions, boo other candidates at an official debate, phone calls undermining other campaign will not win over support for your candidate.

In fact other supporters may be annoyed enough to choose to band together and defeat you so do not say that you were not warned.

I would instead try to make people love my candidate and not aleinate them

[LilyMaskew]

There are a lot of trouble-makers in this world, and Novak is at the top of the list. Novak gives Catholics a bad name.

[globalcitizenlinda]

Abdiel,

Stay tuned when I say that Obama won this, more facts will come out.

If you believe that agents of Clinton did not start this then how come when Clinton camp came out they did not attack Novak for using their campaign name to lie? Instead, they choose to attack Obama with the same fake line.

If anything what this election cycle has shown is that each time Obama makes a bold move, the so called experienced Washington politicians come out and make noise about how naive he is and shout it from the mountain top.

A few days later, these same so-called experienced politicians agree with Obama and try to co-opt his positions. Case in point is Pakistan, talking to Iran and other dictators etc. The only problem is that when they agree with Obama, they pretend it is their own idea.

In fact the so-called experienced Hillary is even borrowing exact terms from Obama. Youtube has a video highlighting the dates when slimy experienced politicians have plagiarized Obama’s brilliant ideas only they did it loudly.

The warning from Obama’s camp, is that come ready to rumble because this movement to change the game-playing in Washington will not be stopped by the same tired ideas.

[StillAmused]

Nothing new here... Novakula rises from his crypt, drops a small load of excrement in a column, then rides it all the way to his next smear -- by which time most of the right-wing dullards have already forgotten that the first load was pure bullshit.

This is called "staging".

Imbeciles lap it up.

[cuthbertallgood]

Novak in July on Meet the Press:
" Republicans are very pessimistic about 2008. When you talk to them off the record, they don't see how they can win this thing. And then they think for a minute, and only the Democratic Party, with everything in their favor, would say that, "OK, this is the year either to have a woman or an African-American to break precedent, to do things the country has never done before." And it gives the Republicans hope."
Interesting take. Sort of reduces Obama to just his race and Clinton to just her gender. That's Novak for you. He spread the crap about McGovern being the 'Acid Candidate' years ago. McGovern who is still a United States Ambassador, last time I checked. Novak said some one said McGovern was pro drugs. He wouldn't say who said it then either. It turned out the smear was from Tom Egelton, who McGovern actually picked as a running mate....some know who won the '68 world series, I know this stuff. The Acid Candidate he got called. Ambassador McGovern, former Senator McGovern, the Acid Candidate. That's Novak for you.

[Abycat]

Jesus H. Is Obama that dumb? Novak is a Republican party propagandist and provcacateur.
To react the way Obama did is to give this
subterranian crawler credability. Let's not
forget that Novak is a traitor for outing a
covert agent of the CIA. Yeah. Someone told him.
He didn't have to print it. Someday, he will be (along with Cheney, Rove, Libby et al) for their crimes.

[ConcernAmerican]

Obama was in little league in Chicago, he's now in the big league. What he had done in Chicago will not work nationally. Because of his downright naivete, some poster here call dumb and stupid is his own doing. Obama showed how weak he is, that is something we don't want for a President of United States. A President that easily get rattled is DANGEROUS to the well being of our country.

[Ides]

Kerry let the Swiftboaters go for weeks and lost the election. Obama attacked that very day and people are calling him paranoid? Please.

[Canukistani]

While I respect Obama, I think he made a mistake to wade into this thing. Anyone who's paid any attention ought to know that Novak has been little more than a blowhard for years. Obama shows bad judgement by dignifying anything Novak says with a personal response of any sort.

[Bad actor]

I say embalm Novak and put him where he can be found a thousand years from now. Then, he will get the notice that he craves so much. I would like to be there when they try to figure out what the hell it is.

[Centauri]

Initially I thought Mr Obama was naive. In fact Mr Obama jumped on a Novak smear of Hillary Clinton in order to change the subject after his miserable debate performance. He is quite diabolical.

[pakaal]

Hey everyone, I have it from a good source close to Bob Novak (who must remain anonymous at present) that Novak is a self-proclaimed, unrepentant baby murderer, killing them as sacrifice to his dark lord. Another source (again, sorry, has to remain anonymous) confirms it, and tells me he has killed more than 1,000 infants just last year alone!

I mean, my God, all those poor babies! Will someone stop the horror?!