Falwell says Hillary reference a joke
The Rev. Jerry Falwell acknowledged on Sunday saying that if Hillary Rodham Clinton were the Democrats’ presidential nominee in 2008, it would motivate conservative evangelical Christians to oppose her more than if the devil himself were running.
Falwell said in a telephone interview that his comments to several hundred pastors and religious activists at the “Value Voter Summit” conference were “totally tongue-in- cheek.”
“I certainly hope that Hillary is the candidate,” Falwell said at a breakfast session Friday in Washington. “I hope she’s the candidate, because nothing will energize my (constituency) like Hillary Clinton,” he said. “If Lucifer ran, he wouldn’t.”
Clinton press secretary Philippe Reines said Sunday, “Working for someone who believes in the Golden Rule, we’re not going to engage in such vitriolic discourse – but it seems that a new low has been reached in demonizing political opponents.”
Falwell said that he did not intend to demonize the former first lady. “That was totally tongue-in-cheek and everyone in the building knew that and everyone laughed,” Falwell said.
WASHINGTON
Two more fall ill from fresh spinach
Two more cases of illness were blamed Sunday on the outbreak of E. coli linked to fresh spinach, raising the number of people sickened to 173, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported.
So far, 92 people have been hospitalized, including a Wisconsin woman who died. Two other deaths have been reported in suspected cases – a child in Idaho and an elderly woman in Maryland – but those cases are still being investigated.
Since the outbreak was reported two weeks ago, the Food and Drug Administration has recommended people not eat fresh, raw spinach. State and federal investigators since have traced the contaminated spinach to three counties in California’s Salinas Valley.
NEW YORK
Radio Oprah to make debut
Get ready for Radio Oprah.
Talk show queen Oprah Winfrey was set to launch her own channel, Oprah and Friends, this morning on XM Satellite Radio, with shows hosted by her and a collection of popular personalities from her television show, including her best friend, Gayle King, fitness expert Bob Greene and renowned poet Maya Angelou. The station will broadcast 24 hours day, with highlights of the shows replayed every weekend.
Guests set for the first few weeks of programming include actresses Annette Bening and Julia Louis-Dreyfus, rocker Jon Bon Jovi, New York Times columnist Tom Friedman and real estate mogul Donald Trump. Winfrey will co-host a show with King, dubbed “The Oprah and Gayle Show,” on which they discuss the latest news and gossip. The two have known each other for 30 years.