That phrase raises the hair on the back of my neck.
It also affects my heart, sphincter and trigger finger.
Posted on 09/24/2006 1:37:33 PM PDT by rface
Following today's buzz generating conversation with Bill Clinton, Chris Wallace shared some of his post-interview thoughts with FishbowlDC:
I was delighted to get the chance to interview former President Clinton. This was the first one-on-one sitdown he's ever given "Fox News Sunday" during our 10 years on the air.
The groundrules were simple--15 minutes--to be divided evenly between questions about the Clinton Global Initiative and anything else I wanted to ask.
I intended to keep to the groundrules. In fact--I prepared 10 questions--5 on the CGI and 5 on other issues.
I began the interview with 2 questions about Mr. Clinton's commitment to humanitarian causes. His answers were cogent and good-humored.
Then--I asked him about his Administration's record in fighting terror--fully intending to come back to CGI later (as indeed I did).
I asked what I thought was a non-confrontational question about whether he could have done more to "connect the dots and really go after al Qaeda."
I was utterly surprised by the tidal wave of details--emotion--and political attacks that followed.
The President was clearly stung by any suggestion that he had not done everything he could to get bin Laden. He attacked right-wingers--accused me of a "conservative hit job"--and even spun a theory I still don't understand that somehow Fox was trying to cover up the fact that NewsCorp. chief Rupert Murdoch was supporting his Global Initiative. I still have no idea what set him off. Former President Clinton is a very big man. As he leaned forward--wagging his finger in my face--and then poking the notes I was holding--I felt as if a mountain was coming down in front of me.
The President said I had a smirk. Actually--it was sheer wonder at what I was witnessing.
I tried repeatedly to adhere to the ground rules--to move the President along--and back to the CGI. But he wanted to keep talking about his record fighting terror.
When it became clear he wanted to throw out the ground rules--then I just went with the flow of the interview.
What is stunning about the whole thing is that it was Chris Wallace that defended Clinton and said that The Path to 911 was unfair to him before it was aired.
Clinton never would have granted the interview if it had been Brit. Certainly not O'Reilly -- but Brit would have taken Clinton apart. And Brit would have anticipated the rage. Clinton thought he would get a soft ride out of Chris Wallace and I think he was surprised.
Exactly right. BJ Clinton has gotten by all these years because liiberal reporters never asked him tough questions. BJ thinks that he is above having to answer any straight-forward questions, and now he will intimidate and bully anybody who does ask him about 911. He made an example of Chris Wallace so that nobody will dare do it again. Sort of like how the Islamists now rarely get criticized because people are afraid of the reaction that they will get. Same with Clinton. BJ is a bully and a thug.
Clintons continue to go after freedom of the press.
Very true....Brit even mentioned (on the panel afterwards) that he had witnessed/was the recipient of one of Clinton's 'hot flashes' although it was of shorter duration than Wallaces's.
"I DID NOT HAVE SEX WITH THAT TERRORIST!!"
We've all seen the Clinton dog-and-Pony show before, haven't we?
This kind of bullying is nothing new for him. A very similar incident from BJ's unsuccessful 1974 congressional campaign in Arkansas is described in one of the unauthorized Clinton biographies.
I didn't watch it, so I'll have to rely on others' impressions. Sounds like Chris was surprised that he'd hit such a nerve.
That phrase raises the hair on the back of my neck.
It also affects my heart, sphincter and trigger finger.
I do.
If Clinton can't stand to look at a smirk, there must not be a single mirror in his house.
'Course, then there's Hillary...
Dang, he must have been lying. Yeah, that's the ticket!
"Hey, DU'ers I'm smirking!"
Oh, heads are exploding over at DU. LOL! Here's their take on this story:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x2212154
I think it ironic that the Democrat Party, for whom questioning the war is the heighth of patriotism, is devastated when they are asked a question
I think that needs to be rephrased.
Liberals hate "perceived" smirks. Reality doesn't enter into the picture.
he likes to set the questions before the interveiw so he can practice the answers if he isn/t in total control ofthe game he doesn/t want to play
Boy!,....they have nasty mouths over there...
yeah, Clinton has a pretty big demon in him.
"If Clinton has stuck his bent finger in my face, I would have slapped the bitch!"
It's tough to watch someone being bullied and taking it.
Granted, Wallace had to have been surprised, and was probably just trying to stay cool and professional, but I think he would have come off better if he had simply said "I'd appreciate it if you stopped poking your finger at me and spouting silly accusations about my motives."
It would have been even better if, when Clinton wouldn't let him get BACK to the inane self-serving 15 minutes of questions Clinton demanded, that Wallace would have said: "Okay, you don't want to talk about that? Well, tell me the truth, then, about Juanita Broderick..."
Heh, heh. Makes me smile just to think of it...
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