While the O'Reilly vs Drudge story warms my heart, it really doesn't surprise me. I'm sure a lot of you people have heard the interview O'Reilly did with Terry Gross on Fresh Air. Before listening to that interview I hadn't seen or heard O'Reilly for at least 2 years, and that interview made two things abundantly clear to me:
- Bill O'Reilly hates Al Franken with a vengenace.
- O'Reilly has gone off the rails
(Interview in Real Audio:
http://www.npr.org/display_pages/features/feature_1459090.html)
Now we can debate whether Gross was correct in going after O'Reilly, but one thing that was clear about that interview is that O'Reilly just doesn't see reality any more. Listen to the audio. He seems to think he is on some kind of mission against The Establishment, and that The Establishment will do whatever it takes to discredit him. He also can't stand the idea that Al Franken has repeatedly gotten the better of him.
Thus it is no surprise to find O'Reilly clinging to the belief that Al Franken cannot possibly have sold more books than him -- even when reality dictates otherwise.