Today on CNN's "The Situation Room," homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve reported:

"This was a threat that appeared on a Web site. It said that dirty bombs would be detonated this Sunday outside NFL games in seven U.S. cities: Miami, New York, Atlanta, Seattle, Houston, Oakland, and Cleveland.

"The Department of Homeland Security is saying there is no credible intelligence to support these claims, no credible information to indicate such attacks will take place. But, out of an abundance of caution, they informed the NFL and other officials, so they can take the actions that they deem to be appropriate."

Despite DHS's statement, CNN political analyst and Clinton boot licker Paul Begala was quick to suggest a conspiracy:

BEGALA: There's a whole lot of people today, they are going to watch the first 15 minutes of our broadcast today, and say, isn't that interesting? We're 19 days before an election, and they raise the threat level -- or -- they didn't actually raise the threat level. That's not true.

But they hyped this potential threat to the NFL, even though...

BLITZER: Well, let me just...

BEGALA: ... the reporting is that it's not...

BLITZER: Let me just press you on this, because...

BEGALA: ... credible. BLITZER: ... because I know that there are people out there who are going to think that the Department of Homeland Security, which is part of the Bush administration....

BEGALA: Right.

BLITZER: ... is...

BEGALA: Which is run by a guy who was a political hatchet guy for Al D'Amato, the Republican senator who ran all that Whitewater stuff, Michael Chertoff.

So there we have it. It must be a Republican conspiracy. Paul Begala thinks so, and we all know how credible he is.