Contrary to Giuliani release, Fox's Brown claimed campaign "fired" indicted SC campaign chairman Ravenel

On the June 20 edition of Fox News' Special Report with Brit Hume, Fox News correspondent Steve Brown falsely asserted that Republican presidential candidate and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani had "fired his South Carolina state campaign chairman Thomas Ravenel after his indictment on federal drug charges." But according to a June 19 Giuliani campaign press release, the campaign had "no information about the accusations pending against Mr. Ravenel," and he had "stepped down from his volunteer responsibilities with the campaign." No further statements about Ravenel have appeared on Giuliani's website.

From the June 20 edition of Fox News' Special Report with Brit Hume:

BROWN: Future visits aside, one longtime political observer says to date Giuliani has not run a good campaign in Iowa.

DAVID YEPSEN (Des Moines Register reporter): He has not had a good staff operation here. He's -- on some of the little nuts and bolts things, he's been kinda slow out of the blocks.

BROWN: And it's been a tough week already. Giuliani, yesterday, fired his South Carolina state campaign chairman Thomas Ravenel after his indictment on federal drug charges. Giuliani's senior adviser in Iowa, former Congressman Jim Nussle [R-IA], left after being nominated to run President Bush's budget office. The campaign says just this week Giuliani's Iowa team has been in training sessions for the campaign ahead. Apparently, putting them far behind [Former Gov.] Mitt Romney's [R-MA] Iowa operation.

—R.S.K.