McClellan Backs Down To O’Reilly: ‘I Messed Up,’ ‘You’re The Big Kahuna At Fox News’
McClellan Backs Down To O’Reilly: ‘I Messed Up,’ ‘You’re The Big Kahuna At Fox News’
Interviewed on MSNBC last week, former White House press secretary Scott McClellan said Fox News pundits and commentators “were useful to the White House,” stating that they were given “talking points” to repeat on air:
Q: Did people say call Sean, call Bill, call whoever? Did you do that as a regular thing?
McCLELLAN: Certainly. Certainly. It wasn’t necessarily something I was doing, but it was something that we at the White House, yes, were doing.
On his radio show yesterday, Bill O’Reilly let loose on McClellan, calling him a “liar” and an “idiot” for saying O’Reilly accepted the talking points. Today, McClellan went on O’Reilly’s show and in a tense back and forth, O’Reilly got McClellan to apologize for the “talking points” statement. “Do you owe me an apology?” O’Reilly asked. McClellan responded:
McCLELLAN: The truth is I messed up. I was specifically not trying to single anyone out, including you. But the way a couple of the questions were phrased in that interview along with my response left things open to interpretation and I should not have let that happen. … I understand why you got upset. … You’re the Big Kahuna at Fox News, and some people tried to paint in a black and white term through a preconceived notion.
Despite McClellan’s apology, O’Reilly yelled at McClellan later in the segment, blaming McClellan for getting “played’ by Chris Matthews and accusing him of being a “liar” and “crazy”:
O’REILLY: Matthews played you. … He played you! You should be mad at him!
McCLELLAN: So you don’t owe me an apology for calling me a liar? –
O’REILLY: You are a liar! You said I received talking points and I didn’t!
McCLELLAN: No I didn’t! I was not confirming that. I’m telling you right now —
O’REILLY: Oh you’re parsing the damn thing! Come on, be honest! … He baited you! He baited you! … You’re crazy! You’re partners with [NBC] in selling your book!
McClellan, however, did stand by his original point. “I stand by what I said in terms of the larger things and everything.” Without pointing out specific names or networks, McClellan vaguely claimed: “There were other people that were friendly and sympathetic to us.”
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Scotty did what he did all through his tenure at the White House: he caved to BS.
July 29th, 2008 at 5:37 pmYes, Scottie.
The guy that fielded tough questions from reporters for years AND managed to deflect everything that we now learn was true suddenly can’t do interviews with the press.
I agree with Billo that he’s crazy and an idiot!
July 29th, 2008 at 5:38 pmOne traitor to democracy in America says “Hail” to another traitor to democracy in America. Heck of a treason-partnership, huh, Scottie and Bill?
July 29th, 2008 at 5:44 pmEver hear of Woody Hayes? O’Reilly is an unhinged bully and eventually he’ll explode and we’ll all be rid of him. That day can’t come soon enough.
July 29th, 2008 at 5:45 pmUh, D…? Hate to break it to you, but “the administration” is not the same thing as “America”.
Unless… did Scott out a covert agent during wartime? Is that what you’re saying?
July 29th, 2008 at 5:46 pmWell, at least Bildo has continued his record streak of only inviting guests he knows he can browbeat.
July 29th, 2008 at 5:47 pmDr. Hussein Matt Says:
O’Racist is soooo professional. He calls his guests, “pinheads”, “liars”, “crazy”, “loons”, etc.
No wonder O’Racist has zero credibility.
Hey, Bill-O’s got cred…that murderous cracker in Knoxville was a fan…
July 29th, 2008 at 5:48 pmDaryll Says:
“Scott=Traitor to the administration and America.”
AAAHHHHH the waaahhhhhhpublican mantra- party BEFORE country right, Darryl?
July 29th, 2008 at 5:49 pmOnly a “socialist” would call Scotty a traitor.
July 29th, 2008 at 5:51 pmIf the democrats do anything, please bring back the Fairness Doctrine.
July 29th, 2008 at 5:53 pmBTW. Thanx for answering my question in the other thread, Daryll. Your understanding of political science is as twisted as your understanding of morality. I’m not the least bit surprised.
July 29th, 2008 at 5:59 pmDaryll, will you play a hypothetical game with me?
We all know that any transgressions of law or Constitution that the Bush administration undertook were all perfectly innocent and justifiable because we were threatened by brown people. So we won’t even go there.
Scott was obviously traitorous to very good people and he’s lucky to get away from O’Reilly without getting an atomic wedgie. Agreed.
But suppose… just suppose… that an Obama administration does really bad things behind the scenes. Maybe someone receives oral sex from a person not his wife. Maybe that person is a Russian spy. And that Russian spy steals a crucial piece of microfilm. And then Obama runs for re-election, without America knowing that he has allowed a valuable bit of microfilm to fall into the wrong hands. Maybe even The Axis of Evil!
Do you think that the American people have a right to know about that?
Would a spokesman who has knowledge of this act be disloyal by writing a book and getting his message out there?
I’m just curious.
July 29th, 2008 at 6:03 pmWell, McClellan certainly showed his ability to be intimidated by a bully. Explains his loyalty to Bush for such a long time (most of public career), until he felt betrayed by being fired. McClellan forgot an important truth: talk is cheap (including words in a book) but actions count for everything. People who can’t stand up to a bully show a great lack of insight into human behavior. Bullies are cowards and their pay-off is the ability to scare people and get them to back off. David Addington, Cheney’s legal council and now his Chief of Staff, is also a bully who intimated people so much very few were willing to stand up to him.
July 29th, 2008 at 6:07 pmCongress needs to get him back before a committee, under oath, and pin this down. “Did you personally witness anyone at the White House talk to anyone at Fox News, or is this secondhand? If so, who specifically was called and what where they told in the way of talking points?” Other than that, c’mon people- Tony Snow WORKED at Fox and then WORKED at the White House! How much more obvious does it need to be?
July 29th, 2008 at 6:07 pmBillO wasn’t included in the WH talking points emails because they couldn’t count on the boob to repeat them correctly.
July 29th, 2008 at 6:07 pmMcClellan Backs Down To O’Reilly: ‘I Messed Up,’ ‘You’re The Big Kahuna At Fox News’
And an even bigger Dildo……..
July 29th, 2008 at 6:10 pmralph the wonder llama:
“But suppose… just suppose… that an Obama administration does really bad things behind the scenes. Maybe someone receives oral sex from a person not his wife. Maybe that person is a Russian spy. And that Russian spy steals a crucial piece of microfilm.”
Sorry Ralph but that has to be the most ridiculous hypothetical argument you’ve ever attempted!
If a Russian spy were going to steal a crucial piece of microfilm, she’d be stealing it from McCain, not Obama!
( :D )
July 29th, 2008 at 6:15 pmDr. Hussein Matt Says:
Jesus was the original liberal.
Amen to that brother!
I wonder if Jesus disrespected poor people the way some of our *cough* visitors disrespect poor people. Jesus gave his life for sinners, not a pension.
July 29th, 2008 at 6:16 pmstewarjt Says: BillO wasn’t included in the WH talking points emails because they couldn’t count on the boob to repeat them correctly.
LOL. You mean…: “What is that? What does it mean? I don’t know what it means! F-it!. We’ll do it LIVE!”
cracks me up every time!
July 29th, 2008 at 6:18 pmMe and the boys used to catch us a young white girl and keep her in the basement and we would all four have our way with her till she got too wore out and we would have to get rid of her until the next one.
That is until Scotty decided he was tired of the whole idea and went to the cops. He is a traitor and a snitch. Never should have told the cops, hell he was one of the gang and we trusted him.
Daryll
Same stuff Brother D, Bush and the boys raped America in the ass. We have been used and abused like cheap skanks. But when Scotty decides that he has seen enough of the murdering and stealing and lying and tells the truth, you sycophant pieces of shit call him a traitor.
You miserable right wng fcks that support Bush are the traitors.
And yes, Brother D, I did call you a POS. Because you are.
July 29th, 2008 at 6:18 pmDespite Scotty’s cowardice, I’m quite sure that there have been instances where Scotty laid out a talking point (which is still not clearly defined) which “commentators”, including Bill0, dutifully repeated ad infinitum and word for word.
How many times has Bill0 played clips of administration members passing some, usually hateful, talking point followed by, “and I agree”? How many times has he driven the party bandwagon calling anyone who dares disagree with the Reich’s talking points a “pinhead” or “far-left loon”?
Is Bill0 just upset at the implication that he doesn’t make up the “far-right radical” talking points himself?
July 29th, 2008 at 6:19 pmI don’t think there were daily talking points sent directly from the WH to on air pundits. Rove wasn’t that dumb. They had their seperate email accounts and no doubt used some low level staffer to email or fax talking points to assistant producers, who then gave them to their mouthpieces.
That’s the only way all those air bags could possibly be saying the exact same words at the same time.
July 29th, 2008 at 6:19 pmI hate how this vile sex offender Bill O’Shithead tries to bury this important story about illegal propagandizing of the press. Liberals can’t let him get away with this.
July 29th, 2008 at 6:20 pmWith The Performance Artist Known as Daryll™ in such a slump lately, it’s good to know we can always count on Zed to Bring Teh Funnie.
July 29th, 2008 at 6:31 pmMust be hard to find real work, these sycophants just won’t give it up. How many stupid posts does it take to fill a crack pipe Zed?
July 29th, 2008 at 6:33 pmYes, standing up to the white house press whores was far easier than standing up to B.O.
July 29th, 2008 at 6:36 pmThe bellowing, blustering, belittling Bill-o is just too much for anyone to withstand, is that it? B.O. is able to continue on his course of humiliating people because he can.
pete: Is Bill0 just upset at the implication that he doesn’t make up the “far-right radical” talking points himself?
Just about–though I’d say the more ‘offensive’ implication is he wasn’t/isn’t the “independent thinker” he loves to claim he is.
July 29th, 2008 at 6:39 pmO’Reily: “Help the Paranoids are after me.”
July 29th, 2008 at 6:42 pmScotty hadda cave to Bildo. The zipper tracks on his nose were fading.
July 29th, 2008 at 6:46 pmHey TP,
Have heard anything about that Ted Stevens story on the MSM? Are you awake?
July 29th, 2008 at 7:03 pm“You’re the Big Kahuna at Fox News…”
Shouldn’t that be spelled “cojones?”
July 29th, 2008 at 7:14 pmFor a few weeks there, I thought I could see a bit of a spine developing on ol’ Scotty.
Must have just been an enlarging yellow streak growing just below the surface. Looks like Billo knows how to bring it out – kind of like popping a zit.
Ah, Scotty, we hardly knew ya’.
July 29th, 2008 at 7:25 pmOne thing I can say about McClellan is that he is, for better or worse, way more careful with his words than Bill.
Bill can take any statement and mangle the hell out of it. When someone tries to correct him, he falls back on, “You’re parsing!”
July 29th, 2008 at 7:30 pmTo bad you couldn’t have just let it all hang out, Scotty, your book sales would have gone through the roof.
July 29th, 2008 at 7:40 pmAs it is now, they’ll be going into the dumpster out back.
O’Liely is a friggin CHICKENHAWK COWARD. No wonder he has to have security. So he won’t get his Ass whipped by a person like me that won’t take that kind of crap from NOBODY!
July 29th, 2008 at 7:49 pmSorry TP,
I found the post…
July 29th, 2008 at 7:51 pmThis was one of the most childish 9 min. of conversation in human history.
Apologize
no you apologize
I didn’t say that
yes you did
I didn’t mean it
I don’t mean it either
Apologize
I’m a professional
So am I
Apologize
I think you owe me an apology
I did apologize
Your a liar
You were baited
I’m not on anyone’s side
Apologize
Forget the Fairness Doctrine we need a Competency Doctrine.
On the original Hardball video that after Scott’s claims of WH talking points being given to Fox that Chris should have followed up with some really tough questions like:
Who in the WH contacted FOX?
Who did they contact? Was it Hannity, and Bill O’ directly or was it a producer or both?
How often was it done?
What were some of the talking points that were given out so we can go back and see what was said on Fox?
Were there favor’s handed out like access to the WH, money?
If these as well as some other questions had been asked then there wouldn’t have been any confusion or fake outrage for anyone at Fox to spew. But because Matthews is such a putz and can’t shut his mouth long enough to think properly he let the whole issue go and we can see where it has led. A perfect example of why network and cable news should only have real journalist on air instead of retards like Matthews, Sean (I only have a High School diploma) Hannity, and barf bag blowhard O’Reilly.
Off with their heads!
July 29th, 2008 at 8:07 pmsay what you will about mr. o’reilly, but at least he stands up for himself. he has also done a lot for jessica’s law. if you don’t like him, then change the channel.
July 29th, 2008 at 8:15 pmFaux News is populated with talking heads who are just as competent as Jiminy Glick, only a whole sight meaner.
July 29th, 2008 at 8:19 pmWould someone please slap the sh*t out of this MF already!
July 29th, 2008 at 8:44 pmIs cute how some come here to defend O’Leilly, usually with the old “just change the channel” argument.
How about this… we’ll keep talking about the rotten old SOB, and YOU can can go elsewhere.
Work for you? Does for me!
July 29th, 2008 at 8:52 pmAll that proved is what a bully Billo is and what a wuss McClellan is. So, we already knew that.
July 29th, 2008 at 9:00 pmtumie0809 Says:
say what you will about mr. o’reilly, but at least he stands up for himself. he has also done a lot for jessica’s law. if you don’t like him, then change the channel.
Hey dumbass, if we had a left wing commentator who came on every day and lied, bullied and intimidated guests, would you tell people to just change the channel? I thought not.
July 29th, 2008 at 9:04 pmI hate to see people back down from bullies.
July 29th, 2008 at 9:08 pmNo one has to bother painting O Rielly a White House media hack. BillO has stroked that brush of himself long ago. The paint is died and cracked on that canvass.!!
As Bill continues to do the “Phil Graham Whiine” that he is objective and FOX is fair and balanced.
Bill(himself)can simply review Bill’s prior shows and listen in to his disdain, his biased bigotry of the “LEFT” the evil liberal tree hugging left. His constant disdaining depictions
of who he doesn’t like or gets his GOP memop to attack.
It is not coincidence that all the right’s talking heads are on the same topic, issue agenda to the word on a daily basis.
Case in point, Billo as Seany, Ingrahm, Beck, Savage, Borts et al. Spew voices of divivide, blame and yes, hate. I would be amazed if they did not hold out this latest in the church shooting. The crazed conservative christian that shot the liberal christians for there differences.
Thank God these clowns are paid enough to worry about their money everyday, freak over there image constantly, never taking a good look in the mirror. Moslty thanks for the invention of “GATED COMMUNITIES” and their ablility to live their and not amongst the rest of us.
July 29th, 2008 at 9:19 pmHawkeye Says:
I hate to see people back down from bullies.
July 29th, 2008 at 9:30 pmIt’s a hard slog standing up to them.
I have one at work, he’s nominally my immediate superior, half my age, has no original thoughts of his own, and is painfully immature, insecure, and inexperienced. He believes being a leader implies dominating, undermining, and denigrating his subordinates. His only experience with teamwork and leadership to this point in life has been the military, and he follows that model of picking on the weakest member of the crew.
I am the only one who does not cave into his bullying, and this infuriates him.
I tolerate him, respect his position, and give him plenty of rope. He’ll hang himself soon enough.
Lest We Forget McClellan Is Still A Coward And A Pussy
(Can I say that here?)
Before you anoint this clown a hero remember that McClellan is just a sad pathetic human being. He said NOTHING when he had the chance to put a stop or at least draw attention to the wrong doings of the Bush administration until he had a book to sell. he comes out and admits what all of us with an IQ over 6 already knew and then we gets called on it shits all over himself. Way to fake guts Scotty.
July 29th, 2008 at 9:34 pmAwwww…poor Scotty! His body seems to be rejecting that spine transplant after all.
July 29th, 2008 at 9:51 pmTripleKick 5 Says:
“TP is such a cesspool.”
and you’re the biggest floater here, sweetcheeks.
July 29th, 2008 at 9:52 pmO’Reilly – hysterical, screaming, unimportant bully of the year.
July 29th, 2008 at 10:13 pmCall me crazy, but this doesn’t really sound like “100% wrong” to me:
McCLELLAN: So you don’t owe me an apology for calling me a liar? –
O’REILLY: You are a liar! You said I received talking points and I didn’t!
McCLELLAN: No I didn’t! I was not confirming that.
But then who knows — TK says this place is a “cesspool” and yet he hangs out here getting effluent all over his school clothes.
July 29th, 2008 at 11:00 pmoh dribbledick . . . such an appoologist for the Repugs . . . hope you are paid well to hang around this “cesspool” . . . whatever you are getting, you’re selling your soul too CHEAP.
July 29th, 2008 at 11:40 pmOMG!
July 29th, 2008 at 11:44 pmYou all have WAY too much time on your hands ! Quick gather up some cash and go run for office!
I can’t see any of you not fitting in just fine!
phhhh….
Here’s an idea..
Go to: http://usawakeup.org/
Then have a say…
July 29th, 2008 at 11:48 pmDUH! Propaganda… I don’t think so..
apathy…. now you’re getting it!
What do you want? Anyway!
I don’t know, man… I’ve spent some time conversing with TK. I’ve looked into his soul.
He’s lucky if it’s worth a plugged nickel. Anything he can get for it is gravy.
July 30th, 2008 at 12:36 am… says the troll who bragged about registering 1500 aliases with TP…
July 30th, 2008 at 12:37 amWHO CARES!
WE ALL KNOW THAT FOX NOISE IS AN EXTENSION OF THE RNC.
THEIR NEWS AND POLITICAL SHOWS ARE GARBAGE ANYWAY.
O’LIELLY IS A CREEP AS IS MCCLELLEN. CASE CLOSED!
July 30th, 2008 at 9:16 amThat horror circus was really painful to watch
July 30th, 2008 at 9:59 amO’REILLY is a bully. He succeeded in changing the issue from “accepting talking points” to a personal attack on McClellan. Weren’t you wimpy on MSNBC?
Are Fox News ratings for real. Have they been a scam. Is someone gaming the ratings? If you were an advertiser, would you want to know? Reason I wonder is, how the hell do people who simply shill for the most unpopular president of all time ALSO claim a large viewership? Something stinks.
July 30th, 2008 at 11:32 amBush certainly picked the right guy in McClellan. McClellan can be pushed around and intimidated which I’m sure happened often during McClellan’s tenure at the White house. When he does release scandalous information about Bush he always qualifies it by saying, “Well the other side does it, so that makes it okay.” Well it’s definitely NOT okay. It’s Bush and his cronies that are locked into this Team A and Team B bullcrap that give them the pretext to do major damage and then say, “Well Clinton did it too.”
July 30th, 2008 at 5:07 pm