-
- White House press
secretary Joe Lockhart was thrown into
a new spin cycle on Wednesday
just hours after the DRUDGE REPORT revealed
that a reporter has been
banned from White House functions for quizzing
the president about
illegal money from China and the campaign-finance scandal
during a
press picnic.
-
- Lockhart confirmed that Paul Sperry, Washington bureau
chief of
INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY, has been taken off the list at the
White
House as punishment for engaging the president in serious questioning
during a picnic.
-
- Lockhart, who has been rocked by DRUDGE REPORT exclusives
on
Kathleen Willey, Monica Lewinsky, Juanita Broaddrick and others --
went on to bash the report during his Wednesday press briefing for daring
to reveal the truth about Sperry's treatment.
-
- "First off, I think I've
lectured on the virtues
or lack thereof of depending on the DRUDGE
REPORT for your news,"
Lockhart told reporters.
-
- "But I'll make
an exception and actually answer
the question, even though that's where
-- how you're basing your question....
-
- "I think and I hope most
of you in this room would
agree with me that when we have social
occasions here at the White House,
there's a minimum standard of
civility that we should all recognize and
practice... it's out of line
when someone doesn't know how to act at a
party," Lockhart
explained.
-
- The press conference continued:
-
- QUESTION: A reporter has
the right to ask a question. The president
doesn't have to answer it.
-
- LOCKHART: Yes, that's
true...
-
- QUESTION: And I don't think
you have
the right to ban anyone from a social engagement here.
-
- LOCKHART: Well, so be it.
-
- Sperry was thrown off the invite list at the White House
after he grilled the president for more than 10 minutes about various
political
scandals.
-
- "It turned into a real shout match on the south
lawn," one eyewitness told the DRUDGE REPORT.
-
- Clinton ranted about Waco,
Republicans, the FBI and gun
control.
-
- At one point during the heated
argument, President Clinton
put his hands up to both sides of his head,
wiggled them, rolled his eyes
and gave Sperry a funny face.
-
- "Make sure that
guy never gets close to me again!"
the president ordered one of
his aides after the showdown.
-
- White House press secretary Joe Lockhart, angry that
Sperry transformed a family picnic into a confrontational press
conference,
told an associate that Sperry is a "Class A
s**thead."
-
- Lockhart personally informed Sperry during a phone conversation
late Monday that he would never be invited back to the White House.
-
- "The only regret
we have is inviting you -- and
we won't make that mistake again,"
Lockhart warned Sperry.
-
-
-
-
- DRUDGE
REPORT XXXXX TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 28,
1999
-
- FIGHT
CLUB: FURIOUS CLINTON ORDERS REPORTER
BANNED AFTER
GRILLING!
-
- **Exclusive**
-
-
- A furious President
Clinton has ordered a Washington
reporter banned from the White House,
the DRUDGE REPORT has learned, after
the reporter quizzed the president
during a press picnic about illegal
money from China and the
campaign-finance scandal!
-
- Paul Sperry, Washington bureau chief of INVESTOR'S
BUSINESS
DAILY, was thrown off the invite list at the White House after
he grilled
the president for more than 10 minutes about various
political scandals.
-
- "It turned into a real shout match on the south
lawn," one eyewitness told the DRUDGE REPORT.
-
- At one point during the
argument, President Clinton put
his hands up to both sides of his head,
wiggled them, rolled his eyes and
gave Sperry a funny face.
-
- "Make sure that
guy never gets close to me again!"
the president ordered one of
his aides after the showdown.
-
- White House press secretary Joe Lockhart, angry that
Sperry transformed a family picnic into a confrontational press
conference,
told an associate that Sperry is a "Class A
s**thead."
-
- Lockhart personally informed Sperry during a phone conversation
late Monday that he would never be invited back to the White House.
-
- "The only regret
we have is inviting you -- and
we won't make that mistake again,"
Lockhart warned Sperry.
-
- It began innocently enough.
-
- "When are you going to
have your next formal press
conference, Mr. President?" Sperry
casually asked Clinton while he
was shaking hands and socializing with
reporter and their families.
-
- Clinton: "I don't know. I'll have
one."
-
- Sperry: "When?"
-
- The president replied,
"Why?"
-
- Sperry: "The American people have a lot of unanswered
questions."
-
- Clinton: "Like what!"
-
- Sperry: "Questions about
illegal money from China
and the campaign-finance
scandal."
-
- It was at that point that Clinton started to become
unglued.
-
- "Who are you with?" Clinton demanded to know.
-
- "I don't like
your accusatory tone. It sounds like
you've already got the story
written."
-
- Sperry gave the president his business card and said
that the
public wanted answers about the allegations of illegal contributions
from China.
-
- Clinton: "I've been all around this country, and
you are
the first person to ask me about it. Not one person has brought
that
up... You want to know the only person who has been linked to money
from China? Haley Barbour and the RNC, that's who!"
-
- A red-faced Clinton
began to rant about Waco, Republicans,
the FBI and gun control.
-
- Pictures taken by a
newspaper photographer show Clinton
wagging his finger in Sperry's
face, Washington's version of THE FIGHT
CLUB.
-
- Sperry says he was stunned and
"woozy" for
hours after.
-
- When asked on Tuesday if he
felt intimidated during his
one-on-one with the most powerful man in
the world, Sperry said: "No,
he's only about a half an inch
taller than I am."
-
- ______________________ Filed by Matt Drudge
-
- Reports are moved
when circumstances warrant
-
- (c)DRUDGE REPORT 1999
-
- Not for reproduction without
permission of the author
|
