Do you think Robert Novak is sitting somewhere with Karl Rove, polishing edits to their respective columns, and laughing as Obama and Clinton's campaigns go into overdrive to defend themselves against an alleged piece of negative information that may or may not exist?

"NY Post: HILL SHILLS HINT AT 'BAM SLAM
By ROBERT D. NOVAK

November 17, 2007 -- Agents of Sen. Hillary Clinton are spreading the word in Democratic circles that she has scandalous information about her principal opponent for the party's presidential nomination, Sen. Barack Obama, but has decided not to use it. The nature of the alleged scandal was not disclosed.

This word-of-mouth among Democrats makes Obama look vulnerable and Clinton look prudent. It comes during a dip for the front-running Clinton after she refused to take a stand on New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer's now discarded plan to give driver's licenses to illegal aliens."

Experienced Democratic political operatives believe Clinton wants to avoid a repetition of 2004, when attacks on each other by presidential candidates Howard Dean and Richard Gephardt were mutually destructive and facilitated John Kerry's nomination."

Obama made a statement on his website saying "But in the interest of our party, and her own reputation, Senator Clinton should either make public any and all information referred to in the item, or concede the truth: that there is none.

"She of all people, having complained so often about 'the politics of personal destruction,' should move quickly to either stand by or renounce these tactics."

What is all this in aid of? Why does this have to become a story?

In 2004, the Swift Boat veterans emerged from the bowels of the Internet, local media, and the imaginations of Bush loyalists and the world of the blogs to cripple the Kerry campaign. In the 2008 race, we have a Democratic candidate willingly using the term "Swiftboating" to accuse another Democratic candidate of nefarious action. Tomorrow, the media will likely report on the Obama-Hillary-Novak story and elevate its profile. And we will get distracted over yet another story about Beltway name calling...look, I'm doing it now.