Obama: Don't 'Swift boat' me By: Mike Allen and Ben Smith Nov 17, 2007 12:54 PM EST
In an unusual preemptive statement, the Democratic presidential candidate reacts to a report that a smear is coming.
Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) took the rare step of issuing a statement in his own name on Saturday to call attention to a report by columnist Robert D. Novak that New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's campaign is sitting on "scandalous" information about Obama.
The information was not described and there is no proof it exists.
Obama accused Clinton of "Swift boat' politics" and vowed he will not be intimidated.
"I am prepared to stand up to that kind of politics, whether it's deployed by candidates in our party, in the other party or by any third party," Obama said. "The cause of change in this country will not be deterred or sidetracked by the old 'Swift boat' politics. The cause of moving America forward demands that we defeat it."
Howard Wolfson, Clinton's campaign communications director, said she has "no idea" what the item is about.
"Once again Sen. Obama is echoing Republican talking points, this time from Bob Novak," he said in an e-mailed statement.
"This is how Republicans work. A Republican-leaning journalist runs a blind item designed to set Democrats against one another. Experienced Democrats see this for what it is. Others get distracted and thrown off their games. Voters should be concerned about the readiness of any Democrat inexperienced enough to fall for this. There is only one campaign in this race that has actually engaged in the very practice that Sen. Obama is decrying, and it's his. We have no idea what Mr. Novak's item is about and reject it totally. Instead of pointing fingers at us, Sen. Obama should get back to the issues and focus on what this election is really about."
The dual objective of the Obama claim is clear.
First, he wants to try to tie the clockwork-like Clinton campaign to something sleazy, evoking memories of past accusations against the Clinton machine.
Secondly, the statement is an attempt to try to inoculate Obama against damaging allegations or information that might emerge, which is always a possibility for any candidate.
In 2004, the presidential campaign of Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) was damaged by television ads trying to undermine his military record, paid for by Swift Boat Veterans for Truth.
Obama may seize on the column item, true or not, in speeches and television ads to accuse Clinton of engaging in what his campaign likes to call old, Washington-style politics.
In the statement, issued at 11:39 a.m. Eastern time, Obama called on Clinton to renounce the report or disclose the information, and twisted the knife by adding: "She of all people, having complained so often about 'the politics of personal destruction,' should move quickly to either stand by or renounce these tactics."
Novak reported in a column published Saturday: "Agents of Sen. Hillary Clinton are spreading the word in Democratic circles that she has scandalous information about her principal opponent for the party's presidential nomination, Sen. Barack Obama, but has decided not to use it. The nature of the alleged scandal was not disclosed."
The column is a notebook-style weekend feature that does not run in The Washington Post, like Novak's weekday column. But it was widely circulated on the Web, including a red-letter link on the Drudge Report.
The column adds: "This word-of-mouth among Democrats makes Obama look vulnerable and Clinton look prudent. … Experienced Democratic political operatives believe Clinton wants to avoid a repetition of 2004, when attacks on each other by presidential candidates Howard Dean and Richard Gephardt were mutually destructive and facilitated John Kerry's nomination."
The Obama statement begins: "During our debate in Las Vegas on Thursday, we heard Sen. Clinton rail against the politics of 'throwing mud.' At the very same time, in Washington, Robert Novak was publishing a column in which he reported the following: 'Agents of Sen. Hillary Clinton are spreading the word in Democratic circles that she has scandalous information about her principal opponent for the party's presidential nomination, Sen. Barack Obama...' "
The statement continues: "The item did not identify these 'agents,' nor did it reveal the nature of the charge. It was devoid of facts, but heavy on innuendo and insinuation of the sort to which we've become all too accustomed in our politics these past two decades. If the purpose of this shameless item was to daunt or discourage me or supporters of our campaign from challenging and changing the politics of Washington, it will fail. In fact, it will only serve to steel our resolve. But in the interest of our party, and her own reputation, Sen. Clinton should either make public any and all information referred to in the item, or concede the truth: that there is none."
Obama's statement is a bit unusual in that it gives Novak such credence. It also seems to return Obama to a high-minded definition of 'the politics of hope' that he's been trying to get away from in recent weeks - though the new strategy hasn't prevented the occasional outlying moment of reportedly pushing for coverage of the Clinton marriage.