Will The Hill report that RNC fundraising letter mischaracterized its article on Clinton eavesdropping allegations?
SUMMARY: In a fundraising solicitation, Republican National Committee chairman Robert M. "Mike" Duncan cited a Hill article to claim: "If you needed further proof that Hillary Clinton will do anything to win, a Capitol Hill newspaper is now reporting that she eavesdropped on Bill's political opponents during his time as Governor of Arkansas." In fact, The Hill reported that "Republicans are focusing on an allegation in a recent book by two Pulitzer Prize-winning reporters, which suggests Clinton listened to a secretly recorded conversation between political opponents." The Hill did not "report that she eavesdropped," but merely reported that a "recent book" -- Her Way, by Jeff Gerth and Don Van Natta Jr. -- makes that allegation.
In an October 18
fundraising solicitation, Republican National Committee (RNC) chairman Robert M.
"Mike" Duncan cited an October 16 article in The Hill to claim: "If you needed further
proof that Hillary Clinton will do anything to win, a Capitol Hill newspaper is
now reporting that she eavesdropped on Bill's political opponents during his
time as Governor of Arkansas." In fact, The
Hill did not "now" report that Hillary Clinton "eavesdropped" on her
husband's political opponents. Rather, in the Hill article, headlined "GOP targeting
Clinton on phone-call snooping," Alexander Bolton
reported that "Republicans are focusing on an allegation in a recent book by two
Pulitzer Prize-winning reporters, which suggests Clinton listened to a secretly recorded
conversation between political opponents." The allegation -- which was sourced
to an "[a]uthor interview with former campaign aide present at the tape playing
in 2006" -- was first made by co-authors Jeff Gerth and Don Van Natta Jr. in
their book Her Way: The Hopes and Ambitions of Hillary Rodham
Clinton (Little, Brown, & Co.), published in
June. Contrary to the RNC's claim, the allegation was not made "now" and it was
not made by The Hill, which
simply reported that Her Way
alleges this and did not provide any independent confirmation that the
eavesdropping allegation is true. As Media Matters for America has noted, Clinton communications director Howard Wolfson said on October 16, "This story is categorically untrue."
Politico reporter Ben Smith noted the RNC fundraising solicitation in an October 18 blog post. Quoting the RNC's claim that "a Capitol Hill newspaper is now reporting that she [Hillary Clinton] eavesdropped on Bill's political opponents during his time as Governor of Arkansas," Smith wrote, "Well, not really." He also wrote, "The allegation was reported in passing, and without a named source, in Jeff Gerth and Don Van Natta's recent Hillary bio. I'm not sure about other reporters; it caught my eye, and I tried and failed to confirm it with veterans of that campaign. Anyway, it's not really sourced in a way that it could stand on its own, and got scant coverage when the book came out this summer."
As Media Matters for America documented, on October 16, the RNC and state Republican organizations highlighted the Hill article, and the Arkansas Republican Party issued a press release that "called on State Attorney General Dustin McDaniel to investigate the fact that New York Senator Hillary Clinton may have eavesdropped and recorded political opponents' telephone conversations while her husband was Governor of Arkansas."
As Media Matters noted, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported (subscription required) on October 17 legal impediments to the Arkansas Republican Party's effort to have McDaniel investigate Clinton's purported eavesdropping. According to the Democrat-Gazette, "There were at least two problems with the complaint, however. The law that [Arkansas] GOP Chairman Dennis Milligan said that now-U.S. Sen. Clinton of New York may have violated [during her husband's 1992 presidential campaign] wasn't on the books until 1993. And the complaint was filed 14 years too late."
The entirety of the RNC fundraising solicitation:
From: "Robert M. (Mike) Duncan" ecampaign@gop.com
To: XXXXXXX
Sent: 10/18/07 1:21 PM
Subject: Hillary Hypocrisy
Dear Republican,
If you needed further proof that Hillary Clinton will do anything to win, a Capitol Hill newspaper is now reporting that she eavesdropped on Bill's political opponents during his time as Governor of Arkansas.
http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/gop-targeting-clinton-on-phone-call-snooping-2007-10-16.html
What is most remarkable about this is that Hillary has spent this year fighting Republican efforts to give our intelligence services the ability to monitor terrorist calls coming into or out of the United States. In other words, the Clinton attack machine is apparently fine with listening in on phone calls if it bolsters her political ambitions -- but Hillary doesn't want to give America's intelligence agencies the ability to conduct surveillance on terrorists plotting to attack our nation.
Republican, we cannot allow Hillary's hypocrisy to stand. Please make a secure online contribution of $1,000, $500, $100, $50 or $25 to the RNC today to help us spread the word about Hillary's double standard.
https://secure.donationreport.com/donate.html?key=TEMXBB6AIAM5
This isn't the first time we've seen Hillary practice such craven political opportunism. She's flip-flopped on virtually every issue having to do with the War on Terror. For example, after claiming that she would 'of course' provide funding for our troops, she turned around and voted against legislation providing them the resources they need to execute their mission in the most safe and effective way possible. She more than once said that she believed it would be a mistake to set a date certain for withdrawing our troops from Iraq, but then voted to establish a timetable for surrender from this vital front in the War on Terror.
America has already seen this program and they decided to change the channel. We cannot afford four more years of the Clintons!
Your secure online contribution of $1,000, $500, $100, $50 or $25 will help lay the foundation for electing a new Republican President and Congress and stopping the Clinton's [sic] drive for power. Thank you.
https://secure.donationreport.com/donate.html?key=TEMXBB6AIAM5
Best Wishes,
Robert M. "Mike" Duncan
Chairman, Republican National Committee
P.S. Republican, we know Hillary Clinton will do, say, and spend whatever it takes to get her and Bill back in the White House. The RNC needs your help to get this message out past the liberal media filter and directly to the voters. Please make a secure online contribution of $1,000, $500, $100, $50 or $25 to help us with this important effort. Thank you.
To Forward This Email To Your Friends And Family, Please Click Here: http://www.gop.com/Net/stf/default.aspx?sid=12861&fn=hillaryhypocrisy
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Hillary is the best fund raising technique the Republicans have.......of course they will pounce on anything negative where she is concerned. Is anybody surprised at the lengths they will go too? This is a letter sent out by the RNC, consider the source and context of that.
Yes, pounce away, but do they have to act like an insecure teenager and twist the truth? Can't they just use the truth and not make themselves look like thugs?
Answer to this thread: Sadly NO. I predict the Hill newspaper will not report or comment that their story was mischaracterized by a neoconservative. It is standard procedure in republican politics to echo allegations as if they were fact. They learn it from their talk radio heroes.
This is typical of the Right Wing Liars Club. Their President apparently started expanding the secret wiretaps BEFORE 9/11, yet they are hyperventilating over an anecdotal story about Hillary listening to a recording twenty years ago.
These aren't the droids you're looking for.
"She ...voted to establish a timetable for surrender from this vital front in the War on Terror."
I disagree with you, Tommy. You can't excuse them for pouncing on negatives just because of the source.I hate Hillary for voting to surrender.Real Americans vote for Victory. <sarcasm>
I am not excusing them at all. I am saying they will do it. Of course it's sneaky, but the point being is what do you expect to come out of these national committees? - purely non-partisan information? The DNC will be doing their best to fund raise too.
The DNC will be doing their best to fund raise too.
And, in fairness, if the DNC lies or misquotes a newspaper article in a fund raising letter, I hope somebody would point it out. Probably not here because reporting liberal mis-information is not the mission here. Surely the resources of the entire Fox news organization, a generous crop of conservative funded "institutes" and foundations, and talk radio would be sufficient.
Democrats aren't liberals.
Sorry, Tommy. My sarcasm was very poorly executed. I was only trying to point out that, aside from the main bit of misinformation in the item. the "vote for surrender" is pretty ridiculous too.
Stark is getting a lot of heat for something he said publicly, and while I don't think "amusement" was the best word to use, at least it's out in the open, maybe deliberately by Stark.
This RNC letter was intended for the Party only, and is relying on some pretty loaded wording.
It shouldn't be that difficult to find more reality-based negatives about HRC, should it?
I got ya.
But I think the RNC better be careful about how they attack Hillary - it's not like people don't know this woman and her husband every which way. The negative stuff they throw at her just doesn't stick, people know it all, it's old news.
The Republicans are going to come off looking nasty and spiteful if they just unload on her....of course their base hates her and she will motivate them to the polls if she is the nominee, but just trashing her right and left is not going to work. Tell us what you're going to do and let Hillary do the same.
I wish she did. We need that sort of aggressiveness, should she be elected.
I wonder if even the Repugnants have the gall to call on the US DOJ to launch an investigation? Oh, actually, I don't wonder - they are just letting the pot simmer until about September, 2008, so that there will be little time even to argue the merits of the "case" - which will be dropped regardless of who takes the WH, once it has served to convey the taint of corruption to the Dem candidate as a counter to the essential and fully proved corruption of the entire Repugnant collective.