Heinz-Kerry "Shove it" Remark: The Rest of the Story

Colin McNickle did not enter the Democratic Convention as an ordinary reporter. As the editorial page editor for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, a newspaper owned by eccentric rightist billionaire Richard Mellon-Scaife, McNickle came to Boston as an agent provocateur. "What happens when a conservative commentator infiltrates the Democratic National Convention?" the Tribune-Review asked in pre-convention promotion of McNickle's coverage. McNickle answered that question on Sunday, July 25 by provoking a spat with Teresa Heinz-Kerry.

The dustup occurred after Heinz-Kerry gave a speech to the Pennsylvania delegation denouncing "some of the creeping, un-Pennsylvanian and sometimes un-American traits that are coming into some of our politics." McNickle approached her and asked what she meant by "un-American activities," in effect accusing her of McCarthyism. Heinz-Kerry denied using the phrase "un-American activities" and stormed off. Yet when Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell pointed out to her that McNickle was a reporter from the Tribune-Review, Heinz-Kerry returned to him with a rebuke. "You're from the Tribune Review?" she asked McNickle with a face tightened with rage. "That's understandable. You said something I didn't say. Now shove it."

Most of the mainstream press characterized the incident as The New York Times' Jim Rutenberg did: another example of "Teresa being Teresa." For them, the dustup was a resounding confirmation that their hastily scrawled sketch of an incurable free spirit who was filling John Kerry's campaign coffers while draining his political fortunes was an accurate one. However, there is much more to it than that. McNickle's provocation of Heinz-Kerry represents the latest manifestation of a poisonous dirty tricks campaign Scaife has financed to undermine Heinz-Kerry, a fellow Western Pennsylvania philanthropist whom he considers his rival. And now that Heinz-Kerry has been thrust into the national spotlight by her husband's presidential candidacy, Scaife's smears are likely to intensify.

"The dust-up between Teresa Heinz-Kerry and Colin McNickle has a long history behind it that goes back a good 15 years before McNickle even worked there," said Dennis Roddy, a columnist for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, who has covered Pennsylvania politics for over 30 years. "Scaife has had it in for [Heinz Kerry] because she's not sufficiently conservative, she's a moderate voice. She has always felt badly treated by the Tribune-Review and it doesn't surprise me that her grievances finally came out."

The Tribune-Review routinely sniped at Teresa Heinz during her marriage to Pennsylvania's Republican former Senator John Heinz. When the senator died in 1991, and the Massachusetts Junior Senator John Kerry stole Teresa's heart, the paper's attacks grew increasingly slanderous. On December 28, 1997, the paper featured an anonymously penned cover story falsely insinuating that a woman named Sheila Lawrence had had affairs with both Bill Clinton and Kerry. "Far from giving all to Bill, there was still something left over for Sen. John Kerry," who had "a very private tete-a-tete" with "sexy Sheila," the columnist alleged. In another column, the Tribune-Review mocked John Kerry as "Mr. Teresa Heinz."

I don't see a crime... I don't even see a big deal. I see a little deal. I like to run my mouth too... but sometimes it's more appropriate to just shut the hell up. This was obviously one of those times. I also think defending this kind of silliness will only serve to keep the spotlight on it longer.

That's funny. The woman lost her composure, denied saying something she did indeed say....

To me, the only matter of significance in the matter is did she tell someone to "shove it" (no crime in my eyes) and did she deny it (the only "crime", if true).

"some of the creeping, un-Pennsylvanian and sometimes un-American traits that are coming into some of our politics,"

McNickle approached her and asked what she meant by "un-American activities," in effect accusing her of McCarthyism. Heinz-Kerry denied using the phrase "un-American activities" and stormed off. Yet when Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell pointed out to her that McNickle was a reporter from the Tribune-Review, Heinz-Kerry returned to him with a rebuke. "You're from the Tribune Review?" she asked McNickle with a face tightened with rage. "That's understandable. You said something I didn't say. Now shove it."

My question is did she deny saying "shove it?" If so, are any of her supporters defending the lie?

No, I saw it on the first news report. She seemed to be denying saying "unAmerican" anything. But she did use the word.

[..] I understand why she did what she did, believe me. I also saw the entire last half of that altercation on my TV the very next morning.
She said "I did not say 'unAmerican'" a couple of times. He kept insisting that, indeed she did, and she repeated "I did not say unAmerican". She may have meant "unAmerican activities" but that's not what she said to the reporter. She simply claimed that she did not use the word unAmerican, period. I saw it with my own eyes.

Next Teresa took a swing at the wealth question [..] "I find it un-American for people to criticize someone and say they're not deserved for any position whether because they have too much or too little, or because they're black or they're white. That's un-American," she snarled. First, to call someone un-American is the nuclear bomb of U.S. politics: If it's only July and already Teresa Heinz is going nuclear against her critics over a perfectly fair question, this is not an auspicious omen. Second, to pretend that questions about money are like questions about race is wacky.

OCCOM BILL wrote:

That's funny. The woman lost her composure, denied saying something she did indeed say and then couldn't leave well enough alone....

BTW what exactly was funny. What's funny to me is you missed the part that Ms. Heinz-Kerry was indeed misquoted.

Yet when Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell pointed out to her that McNickle was a reporter from the Tribune-Review, Heinz-Kerry returned to him with a rebuke.