January 17, 2001

1:13 PM

Stunning news tonight?Sean Hannity at Fox News, Howard Finneman at Newsweek, and a few less reliable sources have caught wind of a New York Post / National Enquirer story to run tonight and tomorrow that they promise is an absolute stunner... media reactions have ranged from "Jesse Jackson's career is over" to "Ashcroft confirmed!" But no one will say what the story is... yet.

Does anyone else have more reliable sources?
posted by mikewas (27 comments total)

Here's a little more detail about the story... apparently, there is DNA evidence involved in this one as well.
posted by mikewas at 1:18 PM on January 17, 2001

Two quotes from FreeRepublic forum: "Maybe JJ is Danny's father and Clinton was just pimping for him."
"I believe Drudge said that Clinton is involved in this story?
maybe clintoon and jackass BOTH did Monica at the same time and maybe there are pictures."

Ahh, gotta love them conservatives. Obsessed with sex. Which reminds me of this.
posted by Doug at 1:29 PM on January 17, 2001

The Freep on Drudge on the Enquirer. It would certainly be surprising to find a less reliable sequence of sources.
posted by harmful at 1:40 PM on January 17, 2001

Harmful: Easy! Insert NewsMax anywhere in the string.

If it's just about sex, as Doug suggests, I would hardly think it would qualify as "stunning" to anyone. Personally, I would find it a pretty big ho-hum, and even the folks at Free Republic, who would find any hint of scandal delicious, are mostly ho-humming at the thought of a sex scandal. (I'm sure I could pick one or two quotes out of any MeFi thread to discredit the whole forum, but I won't, since it proves nothing.)

So, it's either earth-shaking, or it's nothing at all.
posted by mikewas at 2:08 PM on January 17, 2001

Ok, looks like it's nothing but a love child. Sorry for the false alarm.
posted by mikewas at 2:23 PM on January 17, 2001

So if it is true, what does Clinton and the whitehouse have to do with anything? It's like finding a pic of Clinton, Monica, and anyone else and trying to put them together in some sort of conspiracy.

I'm sure Clintion didn't know Jackson was banging the person standing with them when they took the photo.
posted by mathowie at 2:53 PM on January 17, 2001

Damn. I really thought it was going to be the scooter.
posted by daver at 2:55 PM on January 17, 2001

It's the last gasp before Bill leaves office! QUICK WE HAVE TO PINPOINT THE VAST CONSPIRACY OF THOSE GOSH-DURN LIBRULZ BEFORE OUR GOOD OLD BOY TAKES OFFICE!

ick, ick, ick.
posted by maura at 2:57 PM on January 17, 2001

I am not about to speculate. However, if the story does concern something that Jesse J might have done, there is little of a sexual nature that has not been done by members of both parties. I recall that when the heat was on Clinton, there came a rash of stories about GOP sexcapades that indicated that sinning crossed party lines. For me, only the Supreme Court can keep its purity and saintliness.
posted by Postroad at 3:05 PM on January 17, 2001

'cept for old Clarence, that is.
posted by ratbastard at 3:06 PM on January 17, 2001

Apparently, someone in the Free Republic crowd published Drudge's story while he was still working on it (they guessed that the URL would be http://drudgereport.com/jj.htm). Free Rep founder Jim Robinson is threatening to ban anyone who posts this copy of Drudge's story:

JESSE JACKSON TOOK PREGNANT MISTRESS TO WHITE HOUSE AT HEIGHT OF IMPEACHMENT

Spiritual adviser to President Clinton Reverend Jesse Jackson took his pregnant mistress to an Oval Office meeting at the height of the Lewinsky Impeachment saga, a bombshell new report claims.

Washington will soon be jolted and storm clouds will form over Inauguration Weekend after a NATIONAL ENQUIRER expose alleges Jesse Jackson fathered a two-year old daughter conceived out of wedlock by a part-time RAINBOW COALITION staffer who was given $40,000 to relocate to Los Angeles where she now lives in $365,000 multi-bedroom spread and receives a $10,000 a month stipend from Jackson, it is alleged.

The NEW YORK POST is rushing to splash the story in fresh editions, according to newspaper sources.

"JESSE JACKSON'S LOVE CHILD" -- the ENQUIRER is planning to blare in its Page One splash of its January 30 edition.

"A $40,000 moving expense is outragous," one RAINBOW COALITION source tells the ENQUIRER.

The ENQUIRER names the mother, aged 39.

It does not name the young miss.

A photo of the girl is featured with a blue dot over her face shielding her identity.

Clinton administration officials were bracing for yet another photograph, obtained by the ENQUIRER, which pictures Jesse Jackson, the pregnant mistress, President Bill Clinton, and RAINBOW COALITION executives smiling in the Oval Office.

The picture was taken on December 3, 1998 -- at the height of the Clinton sex scandal.

"Here was Rev. Jackson counseling Bill Clinton on his infidelity and Jackson's pregant mistress was smiling along?" asked a publishing source.

Jackson urged Clinton to take a contrite tone in his public explanation of the Lewinsky affair:

"Keep your eyes open and your mouth shut. And don't panic."

"If you respond with a contrite heart," Jackson told Clinton, "that obligates the public to respond with mercy."

The ENQUIRER quotes extensively from RAINBOW COALITION insiders and the mistress. Jesse Jackson's wife is said to be devastated by the alleged long-term affair.

Jackson had been prepared earlier this week to preempt this story with an appearance on BLACK ENTERTAINMENT TELEVISION, the DRUDGE REPORT has learned. Jackson later pulled out of the appearance when it became unclear if the ENQUIRER was going forward.

Which they will.

Which they are.

Which you now know.

Considering that Drudge's scoops are often based on leaked drafts of stories that other people did all the work on, I think this is pretty funny.
posted by rcade at 3:20 PM on January 17, 2001

Doug, thanks for that link-the bit about the black girlfriend/Confederate flag busted me up!
posted by black8 at 3:47 PM on January 17, 2001

Brill’s Content did a feature on Drudge last year (or the year before). His accuracy evaluation came out right ~1/3 of the time, semi-right another third, and just plain wrong for the last bit.

Now he’s running spiked stories from the Enquirer? Talk about bottom feeders.
posted by capt.crackpipe at 7:28 PM on January 17, 2001

Whatever. Consider the sources.Why am I not surprised that Fox "News" Channel broke this story?By the way both Fox and the New York Post are owned by Rupert Murdoch, not exactly the most objective guy out there. . .
posted by Mr. skullhead at 7:41 PM on January 17, 2001

Another jaded American in the midst here, because I honestly don't see what the big deal is with this... so someone else involved in politics got caught cheating/has a love child/fudged on their taxes/broke the law somehow? That's news? I wouldn't call that stunning, I'd call it Washington. The fact that it's Jesse Jackson involved just makes it sadly ironic, but not really surprising.
posted by evixir at 8:28 PM on January 17, 2001

Ouch. I know Democrats get easier treatment for their moral failings than Republicans, because most of them don't play the God card, but I don't think that applies to Democrats who are also reverends. Jackson's fall from grace is a huge disappointment. I can't think of another African-American Democrat who can attract the same kind of attention to lingering concerns over Florida and Bush administration performance on civil rights.
posted by rcade at 10:31 PM on January 17, 2001

I wonder if this just randomly came out, or if someone on the right is paying him back for his completely-over-the-line rantings about Florida. He made a lot of enemies when he started issuing veiled threats of "civil rights explosions" if the Supreme Court didn't side with Gore, and then openly declared Bush an "illegitimate" president.
posted by aaron at 10:51 PM on January 17, 2001

Jackson already had plenty of enemies on the right, though. Wouldn't it have been better to use this against him a few months before the election, to stop his get-out-the-vote efforts which were crucial to Gore?
posted by rcade at 11:30 PM on January 17, 2001

And a little child shall lead him. . . out of the public eye for at least a little while. Hallelujah, praises be.
posted by Dreama at 5:57 AM on January 18, 2001

Does anyone think that having her father issue a press release saying he's sorry he fathered you is gonna give this kid a complex?
posted by kindall at 7:00 AM on January 18, 2001

Ugh. Pronoun trouble.
posted by kindall at 7:01 AM on January 18, 2001

Most fun babies are completely ignored by the non-custodial parent (c.f. Cosby, Bill, and Jackson, Autumn). If Jackson is true to his word and is a part of the child's life, I think that would matter a lot more than his public show of contrition about the circumstances of her birth.
posted by rcade at 7:53 AM on January 18, 2001

NON-ISSUE ALERT.
Am I really supposed to care about this??
posted by rushmc at 9:09 AM on January 18, 2001

"Fun babies"? Is that a term I'm not aware of for children born out of wedlock? I like it! LOL
posted by rushmc at 9:09 AM on January 18, 2001

It's interesting to note that Jackson was a "fun baby" himself.
posted by daveadams at 11:20 AM on January 18, 2001