by The Editors

Sunday, April 18, 1999 -- NEW YORK/WASHINGTON -- We have decided to move Pundit Pap to Sunday afternoon. Enjoy!

As expected, the Kosovo Crisis and attempts to label the Clinton Administration's Yugoslavia policy a failure were topic one. There was a little discussion of the China espionage flap and Clinton's having been found in civil contempt by Judge Susan Webber wrong -- but not much, and all of it slanted to smear Clinton. And Michael Isikoff turned up too -- only to get his butt firmly kicked by no less a real journalist than the great Bernard Kalb!

Here's our summary of the action.

Fox News Sunday

"Refugees stream out of Kosovo. Who's responsible -- Serb forces or NATO?... and Chinese get American secrets," Tony Snow intoned at the top of FNS.

Huh? Is FNS in reruns? That was the impression we got -- with Tony flogging the same two topics he did last week!

Tony first interviewed Vuk Draskovic, deputy prime minister of Yugoslavia, who spouted the same old Yugoslav line that we have heard from Slobodan Milosevic's other lieutenants. He decried "collective punishment of innocent Serbian people." Tony asked about thousands of ethnic Albanians being killed in Kosovo -- "are they all members of the KLA?" We laughed -- but so did Draskovic, sounding almost like a spy movie villain. "Of course not.... I can tell you right now, over 85% of Serbs left Kosovo."

Right, Draskovic -- the ones who aren't members of the Serb Army and the black-hooded secret police -- and they were no doubt evacuated to pre-arranged areas that they might not be accidentally 'cleansed."

Tony continued to confront Draskovic on a number of issues; Draskovic would respond with "United States of America bombing Serbs, this bloody reality," and similar pap.

Tony asked if Yugoslavia would agree to a trade of a captured Serb for three U.S. soldiers, and Draskovic indirectly said "No," claiming that the Serb officer was captured by "Albanian terrorists."

Tony then welcomed his second guest, NATO chief Javier Solana, and asked whether NATO had put together plans for a May invasion. Solana denied it. Solana was also asked by Tony about the Draskovic assertion that the KLA are terrorists -- and Solana said you cannot believe a word Draskovic says!

As if he had to tell us.

"Is this genocide or civil war?" asked Tony. Solana did not directly answer, but said in so many words that NATO wants to stop genocide in a "multiethnic" Kosovo.

Solana was not forthcoming about specifics of alleged atrocities, but clearly hinted that much would be made of it -- in the form of formal war crimes charges.

Tony then welcomed David Schiffer, war crimes authority, who brought State Department surveillance photographs of mass graves in Kosovo -- "before" and "after" shots showing a trench with well over a hundred bodies lined up. "We are looking at the possibility of tens of thousands of Kosovars [who] may have perished... upwards of about 100,000 men who cannot be accounted for." Schiffer also discussed the definition of and punishment for war crimes, and detailed a number of Serb leaders that may be prosecuted. Noteworthy was Schiffer's dancing around naming Milosevic, clearly to prevent him from suing for peace. But Tony did get Schiffer to say that "military muscle" would be needed to bring war criminals to justice.

Tony then turned to Sen. George Voinovich (R-OH), who opposes military intervention and said that the evidence of atrocities should be motivation to "bring Milosevic back to the table." He then backpedaled and said that we have to look to alternatives to Slobodan. Talk about double-speak! Tony asked if there was a Serb alternative to Milosevic, and Voinovich said no -- then slammed the bombing and claimed that Serbs would vote Milosevic out of office! Right, George -- you went right for Tony's bait and sounded like a fool. You must be out of touch with reality -- if elections were held tomorrow, Milosevic would win by any means necessary. He talked about "destabilization" in the region as if it hadn't already occurred well before NATO air strikes -- and fretted over a "prolonged" military presence (as if that hadn't worked in Bosnia or, for that matter, Berlin).

Voinovich flogged fears about the KLA, calling them "a terrorist organization... running drugs." We wonder what Voinovich might have said, were he a Senator just over a decade ago, about the Contras, a terrorist organization running drugs. Talk about your hawks-gone-doves rhetoric! He made a major gaffe when, while saying that he wanted to see the Russians work toward a diplomatic solution, he called it the "Soviet Union."

Hats off, Tony -- you exposed Voinovich for both the stooge and moron that he is!

The first group of spots started 25 minutes into the show: IBM, Clairol Herbal Essences (huh??), First Union, Fox shows.

The next two guests: Intelligence Committee honchos -- Reps. Chris Cox (R-CA) and Norm Dicks (D-WA) on Chinese espionage. Dicks said that Chinese espionage was "extensive" and security should be tightened -- but the Aldrich Ames case was worse in that valuable assets were killed! Cox said the report remains classified but he can say that there is a pattern that extends back several decades -- that the problem has not been solved.

Well, gee, that should be interesting news for all the people who blame Clinton.

Fred "The Weasel" Barnes asked what was holding up the "sanitized" version of the report, as he called it -- a stupid comment (since for security reasons many portions must be redacted) within a foolish question, as the answer (which Cox gave) was obvious: they were still negotiating with intelligence organizations. Barnes then idiotically followed up by saying that the Clinton Administration was "stalling" -- and Dicks responded that the committee had to protect "assets," intelligence operatives, in the field. Was Berger's testimony truthful? Dicks said he was telling the truth -- and it's time to go beyond the squabbling and reach a bipartisan consensus on security. Barnes asked Cox if Berger didn't "change his testimony completely," essentially asking the same question a second time but with the presumption and insinuation that Berger's a liar -- and Cox said in so many words that Berger didn't!

Barnes looked foolish and petty -- but that's not inconsistent with his pattern of asking loaded questions in the vain hope that he might actually be right. If Roger Ailes and Brit Hume had any common sense, they'd send this shallow "Beltway Boy" packing -- he could always call on his blustery buddy John McLaughlin to "put him up."

Tony asked Cox about whether his committee was looking into Johnny Chung giving money from a Chinese Army officer to Democrats, and Cox hinted that they were looking into a tie to attempts to penetrate defense. But then Dicks broke in and pointed out that Democrats and the Administration had no idea of the link. Tony lied when he said that "Nobody's trying to say that [there's a link]" when that's exactly what he's trying to hint at!

Cox said that he and his select committee were looking into why so many people were left in the dark on the security breaches. We suggest that Cox "grow a pair" and start asking about the political motives of conservative-leaning intelligence operatives and decision makers who may have been out to embarrass the Clinton Administration by holding back information.

More spots: Compaq ("Limits? What limits?"), ADM's novasoy isoflavones, Fox shows, Reader's Digest ("How do you stop your kids from getting a tattoo?" -- no, we're not making that up!)

Oh, no! Panel time -- with Mort Kondracke and Fred the Weasel! And once again, the report card -- Clinton failing, and Milosevic passing -- NOT (on the KLA). Barnes dissed the KLA as a solution -- and continued his career as a disinformation agent for the hard right by implying that the Administration considers them such, which in fact they don't. Kondracke raised an insignificant hypothetical about poll numbers, and Juan Williams claimed that air strikes have not had a great effect on Milosevic's military -- which is not true. Tony compared the Yugoslav situation to "Crips and bloods," and The Weasel did the obvious: compared Kosovo to Vietnam ("escalation").

Oh, please, Weez. There are two big differences: no "domino theory" and no draft.

And Kondracke called Bob Torricelli a McCain-McGovern Democrat! Completely ridiculous!

Barnes claimed that Republicans are "coming together" over the claim that Clinton does not have a strategy for winning. First, that's untrue. Second, they're sniping like crazy.

We wonder -- did Tony Snow slip windowpane acid in the panel's coffee? This was far and away the most absurd panel time we've seen since we started tracking FNS.

Tony had saved a clip of the Draskovic interview for the end of panel time -- asking if Yugoslavia would return to the bargaining table if NATO would not support the KLA. Draskovic said that NATO must declare that the KLA are terrorists and stop all aid to them. And Kondracke called Draskovic a "character out of central casting [for] a vampire movie!" Hilarious, and correct, for the most part -- we'd add that Draskovic has a "dash" of bad Bond film villain.

Final slew of spots: IBM, Clairol (big, revitalized hair for right-wing pundettes), ADM, Fox ("Gretzky's final game"), and a local Toyota spot.

After the break, the panel touched on the Judge Wright ruling.

Kondracke: "Congress didn't say he was a perjurer, but Judge Wright said he did.... I don't trust him."

Hey, Mort -- Judge Wright did NOT find Clinton had committed perjury. You lied. We don't trust you.

This Weak

"It's interesting... after four weeks of bombing, the question is will the bombing work," said Sam Donaldson to Cokie first thing into This Weak.

But what's really interesting is that the bombing actually is working, Sam. Serbian death squads are stuck in Kosovo, Slobo's war machine is devastated -- you just refuse to see it.

Cokie welcomed Madeleine Albright, and asked if the U.S. was unwilling to declare Milosevic a war criminal. Albright decried his "disgusting" cleansing and blamed him for regional instability, murder, rape and provoking the refugee crisis. But deciding if a person is a war criminal, she pointed out, is a legal issue -- for the war crimes tribunal to discuss. George Will said that there are 7,000 more Serbs in Kosovo than when the bombing started (as if the number would not be higher without bombing). Albright used that question to shift attention to the devastation wrought to Slobodan's war machine and the unity of NATO. Will said that there are reports that Serbia is getting oil from Montenegro -- why are we not blockading their ports? Albright said that there are other actions that are tightening the screws on Serbia -- and an act of war against Montenegro (a blockade) was out. She also said, in response to Will's question about the possibility of a coup in Montenegro, that the U.S. supports their freely elected president and that Slobodan had best not contemplate a coup.

But her biggest message: there is no denying that Slobodan is being weakened, and that there are no negotiating terms -- Serbian forces must leave Kosovo.

Sam asked if Hungary was shipping oil to Serbia, and Albright said that the shipments were for humanitarian purposes and Hungary was a full NATO partner.

It seems as if Sam and George were looking for every possible example of other nations "helping" Slobodan to 'prove' that the NATO assault on Kosovo is a failure. It was a lame attempt, in that their focus on a few small details ignored the bigger picture.

Sam asked the money question: is the bombing working? Albright said that she had never said this would be quick, and that the damage has been done -- in other words, it is working. Sam insisted, only half correctly, that bombing will not stop killing on the ground. Albright pointed out that the bombing's goal was to loosen Milosevic's grip on Kosovo -- and the international community wants refugees to go back and "this hand of terror [must be] seriously damaged." She said there would be a shift in the balance of forces on the ground.

"Will there be a ground war?" asked Sam. Albright spoke of putting in ground forces to enforce a peace agreement. "Is training going on?" asked Sam. Albright said training is always going on -- and refused to get so specific as to say that U.S. ground troops are being trained to go in.

Will: "Why is Serbian television still on the air?" Al bright would not go into details, refusing to discuss specific targets. We wish instead that she'd nailed the networks and the cable news channels for playing into Slobodan's hand by rebroadcasting Serb TV propaganda spots without practically zero analysis and no attempt to counter the lies -- essentially acquiescing to and shilling for Milosevic.

Following the break (GE), Senators John McCain and Bob Torricelli were the guests.

McCain said that Milosevic was achieving his goals: ethnic cleansing and grabbing Kosovo. "I was a little disturbed to hear that we could dust off an assessment [from] a year ago." Torricelli said he could not recall a single instance of air attacks achieving military goals in and of itself -- ground troops are likely to be needed.

Cokie brought up comments by Torricelli in which he said that the President had not been well-served by his foreign policy advisors. "Who should be fired?" she asked. Torricelli refused to put the President's team on the spot, saying that the current situation must be assessed and the mission in Kosovo adjusted. He should have verbally slapped Cokie for taking his comments partly out of context. Cokie asked the same obnoxious question to McCain -- who told off Cokie, saying that it was not appropriate for him to respond to such a question. He should have said "such a loaded" question.

Will asked if we were being too "risk averse." McCain instead said that Milosevic dare not second-guess our resolve -- and added that we should take out every "organ of propaganda" of Milosevic.

Including the ones that American networks are using, we hope. maybe they'll start doing their own reporting instead of relying on Serb TV.

And McCain straightened out Sam, saying that he did NOT want to send troops in (Sam tried to put words in his mouth), but that we should start preparing for such a possibility.

More spots (GE has become a BIG sponsor of This Weak).

"This week, Elizabeth Dole came out of her corner fighting." They showed Liddy saying she supported ground troops if NATO said so, and her refugee "photo op" tour which was highlighted by the big networks (we dare Gary Bauer to ask for equal time). In a taped interview with Cokie, Liddy said the Slobodan was committing "genocide." To deal with the refugee situation, "we must have all options on the table, and we must win it... an all-out win. That means driving [Serb forces] out of Kosovo." She admired the "quiet heroism" of the refugees.

There's no doubting that Liddy may be the most adept GOP presidential candidate at using television, and she has done much on behalf of Kosovar refugees in speaking out about their stories and the horrors they have seen. But we find her indirect Presidential campaigning on the back of their suffering distasteful -- as she spoke of her extensive "international" experience with the Red Cross.

Cokie asked Liddy about Gary Bauer's letter to her asking if she would curtail American participation in international organizations that "promote" abortion. She said, in so many words, no -- but should have ripped a new hole for Bauer for his use of the word "promote." Practically nobody likes abortions, let alone "promotes" them -- the real issue is the abridgment of choice, particularly one protected by the Constitution. Bauer is a demagogue, a fascistic Satan in moralist trappings, and the GOP does itself no favors by not slamming Bauer's evangelo-speak which will act to divide their party further.

Another boring roundtable: some talk about appropriations for the NATO air fight; George Stephanopoulos saying (naturally) the Administration will have an uphill battle; Kristol predictably slamming Albright for not being explicit (in a situation where she should not have anyway); Will decrying "immaculate coercion" and not one key Administration figure having military experience.

This new spin point was heard on a few of the other Sunday shows. So what, we say! If they did, they could just as easily make wrong decisions as correct ones based on said military experience.

More comments from the roundtable: Sam claiming "the Administration thought Milosevic would cave, and he didn't" (a half-truth from Sam); Kristol claiming that "Italy and Greece object to ground troops" (but they also object to refugee immigrants, Billy-boy, and are likely to change their tune as a result); Sam saying "the Germans had 900,000 troops in Yugoslavia" (come on, Sam, do you think we're morons? A half-century has passed, and those German troops didn't have cruise missiles or Apache helicopters).

Will made a snide observation with regard to the KLA to the effect that "aggrieved ethnic groups can count on our support" -- good Lord, this fool loves to make broad generalizations. Cokie said that Clinton is Gore's campaign manager, and now Clinton's problems are rubbing off on Gore; George Stephypuss said that it was hurting Gore's campaign -- a ridiculous assertion, in that Gore has hardly even started his campaign.

Another break: America's Pharmaceutical Companies, GE, MCI, and ABC shows.

Finally, Sam welcomed ken Starr (whom he, like the rest of the hard right, deceptively refers to as "Judge Starr" despite the fact he no longer works in such a capacity). Sam asked him about his views on ending the Independent Counsel statute.

Starr claimed that his views had not changed since his Justice Department days -- but if that's the case, why did he accept the job in the first place? He used his argument to indirectly decry the "Attorney General's exercise of her powers."

Cokie asked him a question about his poor poll numbness: should he have done something differently? No, he said. Did he overstep his bounds? "No, I don't think so." Right. He let his lieutenants and elves do the overstepping -- and we predict that they all will pay.

On the operations of the Office of Independent Counsel: "What we have done is inherently divisive." And maliciously so in your case, Ken.

Cokie asked about the McDougal victory -- and the acquittal made partially because the jurors found the prosecutors "arrogant." Starr mentioned that he wants to "interview" the jurors. Right, Ken -- another brilliant public relations coup! This move sounds to us like more intimidation from the OIC. Ken then took a minute to spin a number of phony-sounding allegations against the Clintons. Will he press his case against McDougal? He did not answer, claiming the "part of an ongoing investigation" excuse. He also "no commented" whether he plans to indict Clinton.

And yes, Starr was trying his level best to appear to be fair, a man looking for the truth. A shame the facts don't support his facade.

Reliable Sources

Michael "Uncovering Clinton" Isikoff was the first guest of Bernie Kalb and Howard Kurtz. Kurtz grilled him on his comments in the book in which he admitted to being a "passive" co-conspirator. "Yeah - No - It was a surreal experience.... I wanted to cover this plot, I wanted to cover it from the inside." He said he did not want to become a part of it.

We do not believe it -- he had a huge hand in the sensationalization of the Lewinsky flap. And Kalb applied the thumbscrews, pressing Isikoff on his participation. So Isikoff resorted to self-promotion, saying he was the first to cover the story and "uncovered" the "culture of concealment in the Clinton Administration." Like other administrations haven't done their own share of concealing. We'd like to hear Isikoff's comments on the 'culture of concealment" behind constitutional subversion (Watergate), financial corruption (BCCI deals) and war crimes (selling arms to a terrorist state and diverting the funds to drug dealers) as opposed to getting hummers from an intern.

And Kalb nailed him on this issue -- pointing out that he did not start to use the "culture" comment until recently, and was playing up the sex angle!

Isikoff was literally squirming -- he claimed that he was applying the same standards to Clinton as he did to other politicians -- an outright lie (see above)! The rest of the interview had the slimy "Spikey" on the defense, both of his reputation and the book.

But it's over. DC insiders know that Isikoff's chequered reputation and will never escape the rumors surrounding his ignominious dismissal from the Washington Post. He has cashed in big time on a scandal involving the president's private life and the plot to turn it into a perjury trap, and once his book vanishes from the bestseller list, he will sink back to the bottom of the journalistic pool, forever labeled as a tool of the ultra-right and a journalist more interested in glory and wealth than integrity or honesty.

Good riddance to bad rubbish.

Face the Nation

Boring.

Mostly about ground troops -- again.

Bob Schieffer welcomed British Prime Minister Tony Blair and asked him about the reports and opinions we have been hearing this week that the war in Yugoslavia isn't being effective. Tony Blair said that the campaign needs to go on; he wouldn't underestimate the damage it's doing to the Serb military machine. "We've got to have patience... see it through with utter determination because the cause we are fighting for is a just cause."

Gloria Borger asked him about... ground troops (surprise, surprise)! Tony Blair said their position on ground forces remains as it has been, that ground forces will be necessary to get people back safely into Kosovo, but the difficulties of a land force invasion against organized Serb resistance remain the same. And, in any event, the air campaign is where we would be, and this we need to continue and intensify until we make sure that the objectives of NATO are secured in full.

Schieffer asked if NATO should at least start preparing for ground troops in case they are needed down the line. Blair said additional forces are being sent to the region (planes, weapons) but the dangers of a land force invasion continue the same. But the most important goal is to show that there is an allied will stronger than that of Milosevic, to make sure that every single one of NATO's just demands are met in full.

Gloria asked him about the peace plan that Russian officials are preparing to present to Mr. Yeltsin on Monday. Would NATO consider it? Tony Blair said NATO has no objections to any diplomatic political solution. Indeed, they tried that for months. But there can be no compromise, no dilution of NATO's essential demands, which are entirely reasonable: that the repression stops, that Milosevic's thugs and paramilitary get out of Kosovo, that an international military force goes in, and that the hundreds of thousands of people are allowed back in safety.

Tony Blair then thanked the United States and the U.S. President for standing so firm and so resolute in seeing this matter through because it would be very dangerous to allow this policy of racial genocide to go unchecked.

Commenting on the words Tony Blair used -- genocide, thugs -- with which he does not argue, Schieffer asked him whether it would be wise for the refugees to go back to their homes as long as Milosevic remains in power. Tony Blair seconded President Clinton in saying that for people to return there and be expected to live under Milosevic's rule is now extremely difficult to contemplate. In the longer term, we have to see how we can ensure that this man is not allowed to terrorize this region anymore.

Next were Senators Chris Dodd (D-CT) from the Foreign Relations Committee and Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX).

Schieffer asked Sen. Hutchison to comment on what Tony Blair said (that the air campaign is working) as opposed to what was "all over the newspapers across America this morning" -- that it is not working, that there has been no dent in Milosevic's ability to wage war. Sen. Hutchison believes we should be pressing the diplomacy side as we continue the bombing, and not be talking so much about ground troops or not ground troops.

Gloria asked Sen. Dodd, who just returned from Macedonia, if we can win this from the air. Sen. Dodd said we can certainly almost destroy Milosevic's military capability. It's working fairly well. "We hear some reports that it's not producing the instantaneous results we are used to having in the US," but we should be patient, and he believes the American people have "quite a bit more [patience] than you think." What he saw in one of the camps in Macedonia (one with 45,000 people) was horrific -- in almost every single tent people were looking for family members. "Now we've got 1-1.5 million people that this thug has displaced. If the West cannot respond to this, if we do not have patience and resolve to deal with this, where is there going to be a case where we should?"

Schieffer asked how can we send these people back where Milosevic is still in control? Sen. Dodd said a military force will be needed to guarantee the peace. The countries surrounding Yugoslavia are emerging as democracies, and this gives us an opportunity to stabilize the Balkans, which is a very important feature of all of this. Sen. Hutchison agreed and added that the only chance to succeed is to take the region on as a whole.

Schieffer: "But doesn't Mr. Milosevic have to go?"

Kay said Milosevic is "not an unelected dictator -- he was elected and had opposition until the NATO bombing started. That country has to solve its own problems as long as he isn't doing the things he has been doing to the minority."

Huh?

Gloria asked Sen. Dodd about the 33,000 reservists that will be sent. Sen. Dodd said they are necessary because of the intensification of the operations. He also stressed again that this is genocide. And that the 24-hour coverage has built a level of support for the President and NATO's actions.

Schieffer asked if a vote is needed before ground troops are committed.

Which ground troops? They don't give up, do they?

Kay said yes, and with a "real debate," and she doesn't think that Congress would approve, she would not vote for it.

Dodd would vote for it to give the President the opportunity to do that. He feels strongly that Congress should not take away options from the President to successfully carry on what NATO has agreed to do; and we should not telegraph to Milosevic what we are doing and what we are not doing.

Next was Republican Presidential candidate, Pat Buchanan.

Schieffer asked him if we can now just cut and run. Buchanan said "no" because "we have ignited the very human-rights catastrophe we [wanted] to avoid." But we have to cut the best possible deal to end this: a partition of Kosovo where the Serbs retain their holy places (Buchanan never misses a change to flaunt religion), the Kosovar Albanians are allowed to return home, an international force there that would provide them with protection, and no American troops involved.

And with whom do you propose to cut this deal, pray tell?

Gloria asked him who he was referring to when he called "the people who urged this attack 'idiot adventurers.'"

Buchanan: "I am referring to the people who launched this war without thinking it through."

Gloria: "The President?"

Buchanan: "I am referring to the people who launched this war, that's right" -- those who launched this war in the Balkans where there is no vital American interest involved, he said (incorrectly).

Gloria: "So you are saying the President, the Secretary of State, Prime Minister Tony Blair, NATO?"

Buchanan thinks that the President was given "horrendous" advice and he believes that if he had to do it over again, he wouldn't. And "whoever advised him should resign." He thinks we are further away from all the original objectives and it's affecting our relationship with Russia.

Schieffer: "How can we let genocide go unchecked?"

Buchanan: "We ought to stop it at the earliest possible time."

Okay, Pat -- tell us, then: How?

He goes on to say that the people who are dying right now are inside Kosovo. His objective now would be to pause bombing and enable aid workers to go into Kosovo to help these people; not bomb oil plants or send American ground troops.

In his final word Schieffer said that it is "obvious" that the Administration was wrong in its assumption that Milosevic would back off and that the bombing campaign would severely damage his ability to wage war. He thinks instead that Milosevic is closer than ever to accomplishing his objective to drive the ethnic Albanians out of Kosovo. He agrees with Sen. Pat Roberts (R-KS) who believes that this situation has become very complicated, even if the fighting did stop, by comparing the Kosovar refugees with the victims of the Holocaust who would not have wanted to return to Germany had Hitler remained in power. Schieffer believes that we can't ignore the continuing suffering caused by this dictator, but the question he has is whether what we are doing is doing any good.

Meet the Press

With Tim "Used Up" Russert

Guest one; Zivadin Jovanovic, Foreign Minister of Yugoslavia.

Tim's first question: "When will you stop killing and raping the people of Kosovo?" Jovanovic answered, "There is no killing, raping... or anything else. This is NATO propaganda. There are no paramilitary forces anywhere in Yugoslavia."

Russert then basically called him a liar: he talked of 15 men shot, covered with hay and then burned to death. Jovanovic: "This is a mere fabrication of NATO propaganda to divert attention from the fact that they are destroying Yugoslavia. This is a crime against humanity.

Russert asked how many Serbian troops are in Kosovo. Jovanovic said, "sufficient to counter aggression by NATO and U.S."

Russert showed him aerial photos of mass graves. Jovanovic replied, "You could show anything you want." In short, Yugoslavia's Foreign Minister fought back with lies. Russert asked who arranged for the trains and busses to ship out more than 700,000 Kosovars from Yugoslavia. Jovanovic either did not hear the question or simply dodged it by asking Russert how many troops he has in Texas. "Why are you involved in this bloody crime in Yugoslavia?" he asked.

Russert followed by asking if Serbia is prepared for a ground war. Jovanovic said that they "can resist any kind of attack... the air war is a failure. Failure after failure will not hide U.S. and NATO aggression against Yugoslavia." To Russert's question as to whether Serbia will remove troops from Kosovo, "We are sovereign and we will decide where to have our troops."

Amazing! Thus far, Russert had not attacked President Clinton.

"One more time, Mr. Minister: are you saying today that a Serbian did not kill a Kosovar or force Kosovars to leave Yugoslavia?" Jovanovic dodged the question by saying "it is for me to question you. stop this aggression, stop this killing."

Tim's second guest was Strobe Talbott, Deputy Secretary of State. Talbott said the comments by Jovanovic were stunning but revelatory in that they demonstrate that America and NATO are dealing with a dictatorship, ethnic hatred.

Russert asked if we are losing this war. Strobe said no -- we are going to win this war. It means that the 700,000 refugees will go back to their homes, jobs and normal lives.

The only problem we found with this statement is that when they go back, there won't be any homes nor jobs to go back to -- let alone "normal" lives.

Strobe stuck to the no-ground-troops line. This is good. President Clinton is not willing to risk the lives of our men and women in that theater just to satisfy the GOP and Tim Russert.

Strobe said that this is both a political and strategic decision. The military commanders are confident. But Russert -- who toes the GOP party line -- said "But it's not working. [How the hell would he know] What success can you point to that your attacks have worked? Milosevic is stronger." Strobe corrected Tim and said, "Absolutely not -- he is weakened, he lost half of his air force. It's been tough, this is a tenacious opponent by our strength is overwhelming."

Russert kept pushing, asking if General Clark requested ground troops, would we comply? Strobe said this issue has not arisen. Russert quoted the Russian Foreign Minister as saying that the U.S. IS planning for ground troops. Strobe said, "Well, that's what he said -- but he is wrong." Chernomyrdin of Russia is now central in the discussions between Serbia and NATO.

This is another smart move by Madeleine Albright. She has neutralized Russia by making them the diplomatic heroes.

Talbott also explained that the U.S. has had contact with he KLA - the Kosovar paramilitary force - but is not arming them.

Russert : "The lessons of Vietnam and the Persian Gulf -- why are we ignoring these lessons?" Again, he is trying to demean the Administration by quoting Republican critics, which, by the way, do not include John McCain, the titular military expert of the GOP. Although McCain's own party loyals say things like "he was dropped on his head too often," McCain remains a voice of reason within the Republican Party.

Russert showed his ignorance in his not understanding that just because Yugoslavia is small, does not mean it can be defeated easily. Russert tried to go through the back door, talking about the fact that Hungary has refused to allow NATO ground troops to enter Yugoslavia over its borders.

Talbott put him in his place, replying, "Yes, Tim -- but I just told you that we are not considering the use of ground troops." Now that was funny!

Russert then turned to an old NATO commander and retired General who thinks Milosevic has the initiative. "Could that mean ground troops?" Hilarious! He just won't give up! Russert is desperate! Of course, his hand-picked general said we should have had them on the ground before we started bombing.

Russert, showing his Neo-Nazi colors, then asked, "Should we TAKE OUT Milosevic?" We were rolling on the floor.

Senator Judd Gregg (R-NH), who is never heard from, thinks we don't need ground troops.

Senator John Kerrey (D-MA) thinks we should plan for ground troops. Reverso Impacto! "Let's stand back and recognize that we are doing serious damage and we have had no casualties and we are being careful." He thinks this thing will be settled by diplomatic initiative. He wants something different than Ramboullier. He is now on Milosevic's side! He does not want Kosovar independence.

Oh brother -- what a moron. Telegraph that you don't support the President to Milosevic. Russert said to Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN), "Are we still losing the war, as you wrote a few weeks ago?"

Lugar, appropriately named, thinks that the fact we are not using ground troops is "incredible" and that this week's NATO meeting will be the "funeral of NATO." Ha, ha, ha! Tune in next month to laugh at that one.

"What are our objectives?" Lugar asked. We think the President is very clear on the objectives. Return of the Kosovars with the ability to live and work in peace.

Lugar said if he were President he wouldn't send in ground troops because we aren't ready to do that. He would instead "call the roll" and see what the other NATO nations would do. Lugar would also make a new goal --- the elimination of the Milosevic regime. The second-guessing general, who is bumping up his retirement pay with frequent appearances on cable scandal shows, kept up the criticism, saying that the President should have given our military clear means to achieve their end, and that the military should have put these options on the table for the President to consider.

Russert said this incredible thing: "There are accusations that the President wants to have a safe war, just so he can make sure that Al Gore will be the nominee and win the 2000 elections." Do you believe that? "Accusations?" That the President wants to keep American citizens safe? What a bastard.

Sure, Tim -- otherwise the President would surrender our troops to mass death and casualties, and all to placate the hawks on both sides of the aisle. Senator Gregg insulted Senator Kerrey saying "Do you always just talk, or do you let others talk as well." Senator Lugar claims "our national pride is at stake." Yeah, sure, Dick -- all Americans will be proud to have destroyed another nation. Think again. We will be proud that we saved the Kosovars from extinction, yes -- but this is not a matter of pride, but of honor and commitment to disallowing further Nazi extermination plans that seem to pop up all over the world these days.

Carville and Matalin were next, in what was far and away the most fun we've seen all month on the Sunday morning circuit. Russert showed what Starr said about Carville's war on him: Starr said that Janet Reno should come to his aid. Carville said that Starr is a "whiny little wimp" who is hiding behind Janet Reno's skirt -- and that he lost the war, lost his last two cases and that Starr has "turned into a Pi–ata."

We were roaring with laughter! In honor of Carville, American Politics Journal will manufacture Ken "Doughboy" Starr pi–atas for the 2000 DNC convention, chock full of candies and faux subpoenas for the kids!

Russert asked Matalin what she does to shut Carville up. Matalin -- a goofball GOP puppet -- defends Starr. "He's a jurist -- you, Carville are a dog."

A soon-to-be-disbarred ex-jurist, we wager.

Russert quotes the President as saying that he did not consider the impeachment as a badge of shame -- does he consider Judge Wright's contempt holding a badge of shame. Carville said "Well, you can't shine up a pile of dog poop." He called Bob Barr a pygmy! Carville is not proud that the President did what he did, but he overlooks the bad for the good. He also thinks that Judge Susan Webber Wrong has the respect of the people and her decision is supported by the American people (66%) -- but 74% of the public are tired of the Clinton problems.

"Is it all coming home for the President?" sneered Russert.

Matalin quotes Michael Isikoff -- of all people -- saying their is a "culture of deceit" at the White House. This has resulted in 42 indictments against the Administration. Carville said this is not true and disingenuous accounting. Matalin thinks this is all coming home for Gore.

Russert shows a Gore/Bradley race 54% - 34% and a Bush/Gore race poll at 54% - 38% for Bush. Of course, these are numbers which mean absolutely nothing. Vice Presidents always do poorly in these trumped-up poll races. When the American people find out about Bush's more-than-chequered past, the numbers will reverse.

Matalin claimed that Gore is "related" to the recklessness of the Clinton Administration. She thinks that Bradley's 34% is what should be worrisome for him.

We agree -- Bill Bradley, a quitter, should get out of the race or get IN not as a stealth candidate but as a fighter -- then we will see who triumphs.

Carville promised that this is a tough, hard-fought and "revealing" race. Matalin -- who is working for Bush Baby -- thinks his only liability is that "too much is expected from him." Again, we were on the floor, unable to control our laughter. Give us a break, Mary. The question is whether the American people will put Bush -- an avid boozer and druggie not too long ago -- in the White House after they rid themselves of Bill Clinton.

We think not.

-- The Editors