On the March 3 edition of MSNBC's Hardball, Politico chief political columnist Roger Simon falsely suggested that “the last thing [Sen. Hillary Clinton] said” on the March 2 edition of CBS' 60 Minutes when asked whether she believed Sen. Barack Obama is a Muslim was: “No, there is nothing to base that on, as far as I know.” But that was not the “last thing” she said on the question. Clinton went on to say, “I have been the target of so many ridiculous rumors. I have a great deal of sympathy for anybody who gets ... smeared with the kind of rumors that go on all the time.” Additionally, during the same Hardball discussion, Bloomberg News columnist Margaret Carlson claimed that Clinton “doesn't have enough sympathy to say: Of course he's [Obama] not a Muslim.” In fact, Clinton's initial response to CBS News correspondent Steve Kroft's first question on 60 Minutes -- “You don't believe that Senator Obama is a Muslim?” -- was: "Of course not. ... [T]here is no basis for that" [emphasis added].

The next day, in his March 4 Politico column, headlined "Clinton plays victim and victimizer," Simon highlighted the phrase, “as far as I know,” from Clinton's 60 Minutes interview and asked: “Doesn't that just continue a smear?” Simon wrote:

“As far as I know”? Doesn't that just continue a smear? (Obama said Sunday: “I pray to Jesus every night. I am a devout Christian.”)

This is not appetizing stuff by Clinton. This is the stuff a candidate who is facing elimination does to hang on.

Simon also selectively quoted Clinton's response to Kroft's questions, failing to mention Clinton's initial response -- "[o]f course not" -- to the question of whether she believes Obama is a Muslim and the comments following her “as far as I know” remark. He wrote simply: “On '60 Minutes' Sunday, when Steve Croft [sic] asked Clinton if she believed Obama was a Muslim, she replied: 'No. No, there is nothing to base that on. As far as I know.' ”

And contrary to Simon's assertion on Hardball about the “last thing [Clinton] said” on the subject, following Clinton's response to Kroft's third query, Kroft started to say, “It's just scurrilous --” before Clinton interjected: “Look, I have been the target of so many ridiculous rumors. I have a great deal of sympathy for anybody who gets, you know, smeared with the kind of rumors that go on all the time.”

Simon made his comments on Hardball after host Chris Matthews aired a truncated clip of the 60 Minutes interview, which ended right after Clinton's “as far as I know” remark. As Media Matters for America noted, Matthews had also aired the truncated clip earlier in the show, and he had repeatedly suggested that Clinton left Obama's religious beliefs in doubt.

Beyond falsely asserting “this was the last thing she said,” Simon said: “I think it was exceptional what she said. I think it was a bad way to put it. You can say things on television that we all regret, as we all know, but this was the last thing she said. She could have made her answer more clear and less divisive, but instead she went the other way. He's not a Muslim, as far as I know. I don't think that was a good thing to say. And maybe she doesn't even believe -- didn't want to make it that way.” He added: “But ”when she was asked [by NBC News chief foreign affairs correspondent Andrea Mitchell] today [March 3] to explain it, she went back to her victimhood thing. 'Oh look, I've been the subject of unfair attacks. Let's talk about me.' I don't think that cleared the air" -- suggesting Clinton's comments on March 3 were different from her remarks on 60 Minutes the previous day.

In fact, the comments Clinton made to Mitchell with respect to dealing with rumors were very similar to what she said to Kroft during her 60 Minutes interview -- only her comments to Kroft did not appear in the clip that aired on Hardball. On March 3, Mitchell asked Clinton whether her comments on 60 Minutes were intended to “raise any doubts about ... him [Obama] being a Christian.” Clinton replied, “No, not at all. ... I've been the subject of scurrilous rumors for years, and, you know, it's hard to get them to go away, and they, you know, they just keep coming back. And, you know, I really sympathize with Senator Obama. It is -- it's -- you know, it's disturbing to turn around and see this all the time. And, you know, obviously, I hope that people get beyond it and ignore it.” In the portion of the 60 Minutes interview that Matthews did not air, Clinton said, “Look, I have been the target of so many ridiculous rumors. I have a great deal of sympathy for anybody who gets, you know, smeared with the kind of rumors that go on all the time.”

From the March 2 edition of CBS' 60 Minutes:

KROFT: You don't believe that Senator Obama is a Muslim?

CLINTON: Of course not. I mean, that's -- you know, there is no basis for that. You know, I take him on the basis of what he says. And, you know, there isn't any reason to doubt that.

KROFT: And you said you'd take Senator Obama at his word that he's not a Muslim.

CLINTON: Right. Right.

KROFT: You don't believe that he's a Muslim --

CLINTON: No. No. Why would I? There's no --

KROFT: -- or implying, right?

CLINTON: No, there is nothing to base that on, as far as I know.

KROFT: It's just scurrilous --

CLINTON: Look, I have been the target of so many ridiculous rumors. I have a great deal of sympathy for anybody who gets, you know, smeared with the kind of rumors that go on all the time.

From the March 3 edition of MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews:

MATTHEWS: Welcome back to Hardball and “The Politics Fix.” The roundtable tonight: Bloomberg's Margaret Carlson and Roger Simon of the Politico. I want you to all look at this -- look at this one more time. This is Senator Clinton last night on Meet the Press. Let's take a look -- on 60 Minutes, rather.

[begin video clip]

KROFT: You don't believe that Senator Obama is a Muslim?

CLINTON: Of course not. I mean, that's -- you know, there is no basis for that. You know, I take him on the basis of what he says. And, you know, there isn't any reason to doubt that.

KROFT: And you said you'd take Senator Obama at his word that he's not a Muslim.

CLINTON: Right. Right.

KROFT: You don't believe that he's a Muslim --

CLINTON: No. No. Why would I? There's no --

KROFT: -- or implying, right?

CLINTON: No, there is nothing to base that on, as far as I know.

[end video clip]

MATTHEWS: So, it's hard to -- you know, when you read that -- I have to be very positive towards Senator Clinton here -- when you read that, it sounds like she's being, you know, somewhat hesitant here, Margaret. But then when you listen to the way she says it with her inflection, it sounds like she's not exploiting this at all. How'd you read it? How'd you read it?

CARLSON: No, when you see it, it doesn't seem that way. “As far as I know” is a qualifier, but the way she said it, she was asked a second time, and so she was making the answer slightly different.

MATTHEWS: But her first answer was abruptly no way.

CARLSON: Was -- no wait. Although she did have a qualifier in there, on the basis of what I know, or what he said -- on the basis of what he says.

MATTHEWS: OK, Roger, you break the tie.

SIMON: I --

MATTHEWS: You're going to have to break the tie because I think after listening to it two or three times, I think it's unexceptional what she said. I don't think she was playing anything here politically. But everybody's got a view of these things.

SIMON: I think it was exceptional what she said. I think it was a bad way to put it. You can say things on television that we all regret, as we all know, but this was the last thing she said. She could have made her answer more clear and less divisive, but instead she went the other way.

He's not a Muslim, as far as I know. I don't think that was a good thing to say. And maybe she doesn't even believe -- didn't want to make it that way. But when she was asked today to explain it, she went back to her victimhood thing. “Oh look, I've been the subject of unfair attacks, too. Let's talk about me.”

I don't think that cleared the air.

MATTHEWS: Well, let's see if we can show her. This was her update interview today with our own Andrea Mitchell. Do we have that ready? We're going to have that in a minute, which is -- shows her. Margaret, your thoughts?

CARLSON: Well, she did say, “I'm the victim of scurrilous rumors, and so, I have sympathy.” But she doesn't have enough sympathy to say: Of course he's not a Muslim. This is rumors.

SIMON: Absolutely.

MATTHEWS: OK.

CARLSON: This is Internet stuff that's been spread.

MATTHEWS: There is somebody out there that's been pushing this baby, and every once in a while, I'll be at an airport, Roger, and some guy will come up to me -- and I'm sure he does it with you, you and Margaret -- “Well, we don't know enough about his background. We don't know who his people are.” Let's take a look now. Here's Andrea Mitchell --

CARLSON: 60 Minutes had one of them on last night.

MATTHEWS: Yeah, I know. Here's Andrea Mitchell talking to Senator Clinton today.

[begin video clip]

MITCHELL: Yes, the question is: Were you trying to raise any doubts about --

CLINTON: No, not at all.

MITCHELL: -- him being a Christian?

CLINTON: No, not at all. I mean, obviously, I've been the subject of scurrilous rumors for years, and, you know, it's hard to get them to go away and they, you know, they just keep coming back. And you know, I really sympathize with Senator Obama. It is -- it's -- you know, it's disturbing to turn around and see this all the time. And, you know, obviously, I hope that people get beyond it and ignore it.

[end video clip]

MATTHEWS: And so, if she had said to Steve Kroft, “Will you shut up about this Muslim nonsense?” would that have been a better answer?

CARLSON: Well, she says, it's hard, but I'm not going to help. That's his problem.

MATTHEWS: Roger, your last thought. We gotta go to break. What's your thought about this? Is this in the can tonight, or is this going to continue to worm around for a while?

SIMON: I think this will continue to worm around where she wants it to worm around, among voters in Texas and Ohio who have doubts about Obama. This came in response to an interview with a voter who said, you know, I like the guy, but I think he's a Muslim and won't take the oath of office on a Bible. You know, it's out there.

MATTHEWS: We'll be right back with Margaret Carlson and Roger Simon.

SIMON: She could have cleared it up and she didn't.