Washington Post again misreports Bill Clinton's Swift Boat comments

[DeepModem Mom]

Source: Media Matters for America

Wash. Post again misreports Bill Clinton's Swift Boat comments

Summary: A Washington Post article reported that "(a)fter the Democratic debate in Philadelphia last month," former President Bill Clinton "insinuated that his wife's Democratic rivals were mounting attacks on her akin to the 'Swift boat' campaign Republicans launched against Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) during the 2004 race." In fact, Clinton did not accuse Democrats of swift-boating his wife; rather, he condemned Republican attacks on Democrats and the role the media play in contributing to such attacks. The article was at least the third in which the Post has reported on Clinton's comments without accurately reporting his statements.

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After two previous Washington Post articles falsely reported that former President Bill Clinton had criticized Democratic presidential candidates for engaging in "swift-boat"-style attacks on Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) during an October 30 debate, a November 29 article by Post staff writers Glenn Kessler and Anne E. Kornblut again failed to accurately report President Clinton's statements, which he made during a November 5 speech. In the article, Kessler and Kornblut wrote:

After the Democratic debate in Philadelphia last month, the former president insinuated that his wife's Democratic rivals were mounting attacks on her akin to the "Swift boat" campaign Republicans launched against Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) during the 2004 race -- an explosive charge that prompted some of Hillary Clinton's rivals to lash out more aggressively than ever.

As Media Matters for America has noted, President Clinton did not criticize Democratic presidential candidates for swift-boating his wife. In his November 5 speech, he warned against allowing elections to be decided by "trivial matters," and then discussed "snide comments" and "dishonest claims" about former Vice President Al Gore, as well as ads attacking former Sen. Max Cleland (D-GA) and the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth campaign that targeted Kerry. Later, President Clinton criticized the format of co-moderator Tim Russert's debate question about New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer's (D) proposal to allow illegal immigrants to obtain driver's licenses, saying it would "let the Republicans run an ad saying, 'All the Democrats are against the rule of law.' " At no point in the speech did Clinton accuse Democrats of swift-boating his wife; rather, he condemned Republican attacks on Democrats and the role the media play in contributing to such attacks....

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Read more: http://www.mediamatters.org/items/200711300004?f=h_latest

[Reno.Muse]

1. with the swiftboating of Obama and now this ...WTF???

[Up2Late]

2. This is how it starts people, this is exactly the type of thing we need to stop NOW...

...before it becomes "the norm."

[robbedvoter]

3. Meanwhile, Rudy's scandal is not fit to print by WaPo

Gee, I wonder why?

[peacetalksforall]

4. And some Democrats will continue to believe that the Wash Post is

the most liberal of the papers. They are a right hand - a very deft right hand of the Repbulican Party.

[Supersedeas]

5. Typical GOP tactics from the Post

[karynnj]

6. The WP is extremely biased - but this was Clinton's fault

Clinton did imply that the others were swiftboating. The sentences are back to back and many people did think that there was an inference. In fact, Wes Clark and Terry McAuliffe both defended Clinton for saying that.

Even if he were referring to the Republicans - it was STILL NOT swiftboating, but at worst trying to create a wedge issue.

[BenDavid]

7. If hrc does not begin attacking obama this man with little

scrutiny will somehow be the nominee and then the right will sure as hell bring out all the bad stuff on obama.

Obama is a con man. The press is treating him just like they did bush in 2000. No investigating of any thing, no matter what it tis, but someone better or we are going to find a huckabee or romney in the white house....

You ever stop and think about all this negative directed at only one person over this past month and that has been HRC.Who started this? I have a good idea.This is how it works, folks. obama's camp puts something "out there" Hillary is fucking her female assistant. John Edwards had an affair. It doesn't have to be true; it doesn't even have to have anything to it other than what's pulled out of obama's staffers ass. All obama operatives have to do is put something "out there"

Obama good. HRC bad. HRC rumors true. OBama Facts false.

Ben David

[karynnj]

8. Do you have proof that the Obama people put out those rumors?

Do you have any substantive backup that Obama is a con man? Saying that you dislike his positions, think he has too little experience or that you worry about his electibility is fine - saying he is a con man is too far.

I could make a case that the Clintons are con men (con people?) It would be equally stupid and wrong.