Clinton Camp Pounces On Vanity Fair Article: "Tawdry," "Attack Piece"

Politico.com:

The Clinton camp responded today to Vanity Fair's long article on Bill with its own 2,244-word memo, which includes attacks on the magazine's "penchant for libel," on editor Graydon Carter, and on writer Todd Purdum and his wife, former Clinton aide Dee Dee Myers.

The memo (after the jump) calls the piece "journalism of personal destruction at its worst" and singles out, among other things, Purdum's suggestion that Clinton's heart surgery changed his personality.

Purdum "is not an MD" the memo points.

The memo, provided by Clinton aide Jay Carson, also singles out Myers for this unexplained criticism:

Purdum's disclosure of [his marriage] in the piece does not, as Vanity Fair apparently concluded, remove the obvious conflict of interest. It's a conflict that would likely not be contemplated at more reputable publications, especially considering that, as a result of this relationship, at least one source's anonymity was revealed to others.

The memo also lists Bill Clinton's post-presidential accomplishments.

"Most revealing is one simple fact: President Clinton has helped save the lives of 1,300,000 people in his post-presidency, and Vanity Fair couldn't find time to talk to even one of them for comment," it says.

Full memo after the jump.

Read the whole story: Politico.com

Comments

[ReggaeFan]

I am no fan of the Clintons (doubt me? check out my profile). However, I have to agree that the piece was "tawdry" and "an attack piece." One-sided. Full of rumor, innuedo and speculation.

[Trueheart]

Completely agree with you. Bill Clinton never was my cuppa tea. Reminded me of the weasley Eddie Haskell on Leave It to Beaver. BUT Todd Purdum's article was so full of innuendo that it got boring--it wasn't even juicy gossip. If the Clintons had a powerful machine like the Kennedy family has, this pissant piece would never have made it to press. The Adventures of the Po' Boy from Hope, Arkansas can't hold a candle to the scandalous escapades of Jack and Bobby Kennedy with their Hollywood, Vegas and underworld cronies, which were kept out of the public realm for a generation. BFD

[disgustedbyitall]

Pot. Kettle. Black.

[verlaine]

Thank God for Todd Purdum and Vanity Fair!!!

Bill and Hillary are the king and queen of toxic sludge politics

Todd Purdum wrote the truth and Bill Clinton can't handle the truth

Nothing is as sweet as Hillary's defeat.

[leftLibertarian]

I bet Bubba oogled that Vanity Fair cover of the big breasted beauty.

[hilts]

God Bless Todd Purdum and God Bless Vanity Fair for printing his brilliant article!!!! Bill and Hillary are the Democratic equivalent of Bush and Cheney and are 2 of the slimest, sleaziest politicians in the country.
Todd Purdum wrote the truth and Bill Clinton can't handle the truth!!!

[hilts]

God Bless Todd Purdum and God Bless Vanity Fair for printing his brilliant article!!!

Bill and Hillary are the Democratic equivalent of Bush and Cheney and are two of the slimiest, sleaziest politicians in America.

Todd Purdum printed the truth and Bill Clinton can't handle the truth!!!

[shela88]

FROM THE CLINTON MEMO: "Most revealing is one simple fact: President Clinton has helped save the lives of 1,300,000 people in his post-presidency" Hmmmm..Those must be the same one million plus people who voted for Hillary down in Florida..and show up voluntarily at her rallies..and gave her the popular vote months ago...We must get their names..

[campgranata]

when these two morons realize no one believes them will they stop: probably not?

[Roose]

All those adjectives describe the Clintons to a T!

[lisakaz2]

That's funny, 'cause I would have thought "tawdy" ably describes the Clintons. ???

[Stella1]

Hmmm. Todd P. does not tell us who these so call sources are? Did the Obama`a campaign had somenthing to do with it?

[rmetz74]

And they're surprised by this?

Yes, the media treats them unfairly. Because the Clintons gave them the biggest, most profitable scandal in recent history. They have only themselves to blame.

And frankly, that's one of the reasons I never supporter Hillary... I don't want to deal with the media nightmare for another 4 years.

[Ahyoka]

It's obvious to me this stupid country that elected BUSH TWICE doesn't deserve great people like the Clintons to help them. I am so disgusted with all this crap...don't you people see that when OBLAHMA steals this nomination with the help of REPUBLICANS and 'PARTY INSIDERS DIRTY TRICKS' (and thats exactly whats going on) the war-loving RW media will pile on him and bring him down (re:Howard Dean?) and ADORE McCain till we LOSE AGAIN? All they have to do is make it close (as we have seen before) and then they can cheat to win. FREAKIN WAKE UP PEOPLE!

[Jaylee07]

Nothing you say is true. We, the people in this country, are not going to let the republicans ruin our country anymore than they have already done. When we are faced with that prospect in November you can believe that we have taken back our country. I can understand your frustration that Hillary has lost. I think she would have been a great President. And you never know what may happen in the future.

[lisakaz2]

I think you ought to take your own advice and rely on some other source for info other than the Clintons themselves. Their record on truth telling ain't so good.

[Roose]

'PARTY INSIDERS DIRTY TRICKS' . The Clintons are the ultimate insider dirty tricksters.

All one has to do is listen to Harold Ickes, Bagdad Bob Terry McAuliffe, Lanny Davis et al to realize that the're the ones trying to steal this nomination for the Clintons.

Honestly, you should do your research.

[OhReallySheSaid]

Why is Vanity Fair writing a scathing article on the Clintons news? Vanity Fair has hated the Clintons for over ten years. This is news?!?

[NicoleAnonymous]

This place gets more lame every day - now their censures won't let ANYTHING here that is critical of HP or they don't like for some reason.

I've noticed MANY people have left HP and after the election there will hardly be anyone left here. Then let's see how much they can seel this for.

[borderorder]

Try laying off the booze until at least after 4.

[NicoleAnonymous]

In other news, C____n is expected to gave speech tomorrow dropping out of race...Aria__a has multiple orgasms upon hearing news...

Or I can try my new morse code - substitute C for B and R for Z.

In other pews, BLinton is expected to gave speech tomorrow dropping out of race...AZianna has multiple ozgasms upon heazing pews...

[liseworks]

What a bunch of silly things to say - you think HP is losing its readership ? Silly.

[NicoleAnonymous]

Many of the people here are either volunteers for the campaigns or being paid to write positive things about the candidates.

And of course during an election there is going to be more people here. But I've noticed much less people recently.

[OhReallySheSaid]

I agree Nicole. I think the party is over here. I know this Blue Dog will be checking out shortly......

[NicoleAnonymous]

I don't know how this place used to be but recently it seems as though it's just a place where marketing people and publicists pay to have pieces because that is the only explanation for having over a thousand articles about the SATC movie in the last week and the constant updates on The View about things that nobody cares about.

And Azianna's shameless self-promotion for her book doesn't help. The pictures of actresses with cellulite aren't exactly investigative journalism. I predict after the election there won't be that many people here.

But then again I'm strange - I actually think blogs and everything else online has peaked or will soon and will start losing people after that.

[Geoffo]

Mr Purdum's interesting article (and it IS well worth reading the whole article) contains one sentence above all which I think sums Bill Clinton up:

"In this end , this is Clinton's most greivous sin, his steady refusal to take grown-up responsibility for the consequences of his own actions..."

Never were truer words written or spoken about Bill Clinton.

[dadw5boys]

The guy who wrote the article was on the Today Show said " There is no proof any of it is true", then "I wrote the story to let the Clintons know what people in Washiington are talking about".

So he wrote LIES !!!!!
Admitted it on T.V.
JOURNALIST ETHICS AT WORK!!!!!!!

[campgranata]

I agree we have a case of arrested development for billy: I believe he is stuck in the terrible twos.