Update: Clinton 'Possibly Misspoke' on Bosnia

Earlier this week, Senator Hillary Clinton defended herself against charges from comedian Sinbad that she had gilded the lily regarding a trip to Bosnia as First Lady. On Saturday, the Washington Post ran an article that seems to settle the question in favor of Sinbad:

Hillary Clinton has been regaling supporters on the campaign trail with hair-raising tales of a trip she made to Bosnia in March 1996. In her retelling, she was sent to places that her husband, President Bill Clinton, could not go because they were "too dangerous." When her account was challenged by one of her traveling companions, the comedian Sinbad, she upped the ante and injected even more drama into the story. In a speech earlier this week, she talked about "landing under sniper fire" and running for safety with "our heads down."

There are numerous problems with Clinton's version of events.

The article goes on to list the contradictions, but then there's also this devastating video:

Update: On today's conference call, Clinton chief strategist Howard Wolfson responded to a question specifically about the sniper fire and welcome ceremony, first by copping to a "scaled-back event" upon landing, and when pressed, by saying that Senator Clinton "possibly might have misspoken at an event last week." <

Update: Obama spokesman responds,at the end of the story.

This issue has the kinds of details that stand out in people's minds. Just the absurdity of a war of words with Sinbad makes it indelible. Rather than cop to a possible fuzzy memory, the Clinton campaign, responding t the question at a conference call, responded to the Post story by standing by Hillary's account.

If Hillary is the nominee, expect McCain or some 527 group to run a split screen of McCain limping off the transport that carried him back from the Hanoi Hilton, next to that Bosnian meet-n-greet.

Update: Obama spokesman responds, via email:

"Senator Clinton said that a planned welcoming ceremony was cancelled because they needed to avoid sniper fire, but news footage shows that she was met by a small child who read her a poem. Contrary to the latest spin from the Clinton campaign, when you make a false claim that's in your prepared remarks, it's not misspeaking, it's misleading, and it's part of a troubling pattern of Senator Clinton inflating her foreign policy experience," said Obama spokesman Tommy Vietor.