"Gunny" Bob repeated false media claim that Clark attacked McCain's military service

Summary: Newsradio 850 KOA host "Gunny" Bob Newman misrepresented comments retired Gen. Wesley Clark made about Sen. John McCain during an interview on Face the Nation, claiming that Clark "came out, both barrels blazing, attacking" McCain's "war record, his military service." In fact, the transcript makes clear that Clark praised McCain's service, calling him "a hero."

Commenting on retired Gen. Wesley Clark's appearance on the June 29 broadcast of CBS' Face the Nation, Newsradio 850 KOA host "Gunny" Bob Newman on June 30 claimed that Clark "came out, both barrels blazing, attacking Captain John McCain, United States Navy retired, attacking his war record, his military service." In fact, as Media Matters for America has noted, Clark did not "attack[]" McCain's service; he praised McCain as "a hero."

From the June 30 broadcast of Newsradio 850 KOA's The Gunny Bob Show:

NEWMAN: Man, the blogs, the news Internet sites, the cable news networks, the -- you know, like CNN, MSNBC, CNBC, Fox News -- lots of the newspapers, radio stations from coast to coast, border to border, are all atwitter with a man who has kind of made a career of becoming, of being controversial. General Wesley Clark, yesterday on Face the Nation, came out, both barrels blazing, attacking Captain John McCain, United States Navy retired, attacking his war record, his military service. Wow. Well, of course, now Clark is on the Obama team, so to speak; he wants to be the Secretary of Defense under Barack Obama, or possibly his vice president.

As Media Matters noted in a June 30 press release calling on the media to "set the record straight" on Clark's remarks, in response to Face the Nation host Bob Schieffer's observation that, unlike McCain, Sen. Barack Obama (D) has not "ridden in a fighter plane and gotten shot down," Clark stated, "I don't think riding in a fighter plane and getting shot down is a qualification to be president." Shortly before Schieffer's statement, Clark had praised McCain's service, calling him "a hero to me and to hundreds of thousands of millions of others in the Armed Forces as a prisoner of war":

From Clark's June 29 interview on CBS' Face the Nation:

SCHIEFFER (host): With us now from Little Rock, Arkansas, retired General Wesley Clark. He was for Hillary Clinton during the primaries. Once Hillary was out of it, he announced that he was supporting Barack Obama -- and let's get right to it here, General. You heard what Senator [Joe] Lieberman [I-CT] said. He said that Barack Obama is simply more ready to be president than Barack Obama.

CLARK: Well, I think Barack -- I think Joe has it exactly backwards here. I think being president is about having good judgment. It's about the ability to communicate. As one of the great presidential historians, Richard Neustadt, said, "The greatest power of the presidency is the power to persuade." And what Barack Obama brings is incredible communication skills, proven judgment -- you look at his meteoric rise in politics, and you see a guy who deals with people well, who understands issues, who brings people together, and who has good judgment in moving forward. And I think what we need to do, Bob, is we need to stop talking about the old politics of left and right, and we need to pull together and move the country forward. And I think that's what Barack Obama will do for America.

SCHIEFFER: Well, you -- you went so far as to say that you thought John McCain was, quote -- and these are your words -- "untested and untried." And I must say, I had to read that twice, because you're talking about somebody who was a prisoner of war. He was a squadron commander of the largest squadron in the Navy. He's been on the Senate Armed Services Committee for lo these many years -- how can you say that John McCain is untested and untried, General?

CLARK: Because in the matters of national security policy-making, it's a matter of understanding risk. It's a matter of gauging your opponents, and it's a matter of being held accountable. John McCain's never done any of that in his official positions. I certainly honor his service as a prisoner of war. He was a hero to me and to hundreds of thousands of millions of others in the Armed Forces as a prisoner of war. He has been a voice on the Senate Armed Services Committee, and he has traveled all over the world. But he hasn't held executive responsibility. That large squadron in the Air -- in the Navy that he commanded, it wasn't a wartime squadron. He hasn't been there and ordered the bombs to fall. He hasn't seen what it's like when diplomats come in and say, "I don't know whether we're going to be able to get this point through or not. Do you want to take the risk? What about your reputation? How do we handle it" --

SCHIEFFER: Well --

CLARK: -- "publicly?" He hasn't made those calls, Bob.

SCHIEFFER: Well -- well, General, maybe he --

CLARK: So --

SCHIEFFER: Could I just interrupt you? If --

CLARK: Sure.

SCHIEFFER: I have to say, Barack Obama has not had any of those experiences either, nor has he ridden in a fighter plane and gotten shot down. I mean --

CLARK: Well, I don't think riding in a fighter plane and getting shot down is a qualification to be president.

SCHIEFFER: Really?

CLARK: But Barack is not -- he is not running on the fact that he has made these national security pronouncements. He's running on his other strengths. He's running on the strengths of character, on the strengths of his communication skills, on the strengths of his judgment -- and those are qualities that we seek in our national leadership.

—E.B.