Dole Calls McClellan a 'Miserable Creature,' Media Mostly Mum

Former senator and presidential candidate Bob Dole sent an angry e-mail message to Scott McClellan Thursday calling the former White House press secretary a "miserable creature" for publishing his recent tell-all book about the Bush administration.

In his message, Dole claimed McClellan was typical of folks "in every administration who don't have the guts to speak up or quit if there are disagreements with the boss or colleagues. No, your type soaks up the benefits of power, revels in the limelight for years, then quits, and spurred on by greed, cashes in with a scathing critique."

Despite the focus given this book last week, many major news organizations completely ignored Dole's comments which were first revealed by Politico Friday, and widely disseminated hours later by UPI. Yet, from what I can tell, ABC, CBS, NBC, the New York Times, and USA Today have all ignored the matter.

What follows is the entire e-mail message published by Fox News.com Friday (h/t NBer motherbelt, picture courtesy Politico):

Scott,

There are miserable creatures like you in every administration who don't have the guts to speak up or quit if there are disagreements with the boss or colleagues. No, your type soaks up the benefits of power, revels in the limelight for years, then quits, and spurred on by greed, cashes in with a scathing critique.

In my nearly 36 years of public service I've known of a few like you. No doubt you will "clean up" as the liberal anti-Bush press will promote your belated concerns with wild enthusiasm. When the money starts rolling in you should donate it to a worthy cause, something like, "Biting The Hand That Fed Me." Another thought is to weasel your way back into the White House if a Democrat is elected. That would provide a good set up for a second book deal in a few years.

I have no intention of reading your "exposé" because if all these awful things were happening, and perhaps some may have been, you should have spoken up publicly like a man, or quit your cushy, high profile job. That would have taken integrity and courage but then you would have had credibility and your complaints could have been aired objectively. You're a hot ticket now but don't you, deep down, feel like a total ingrate?

BOB DOLE

For the record, CNN did several reports about this on Friday, while MSNBC did two.

The Associated Press has now chimed in days after it was first revealed. It will be interesting to see if others follow now that the largest wire service in the world has reported it.

Stay tuned.