Clinton gains unlikely support

BY GLENN THRUSH | WASHINGTON BUREAU

May 9, 2006

Hillary Clinton and Rupert Murdoch (AP Photos)

WASHINGTON - A founding father of the vast right-wing conspiracy is throwing a July fundraiser in New York for Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's re-election campaign.

Rupert Murdoch, the devoutly conservative Australian-born founder of Fox News and owner of the New York Post will fete a Democrat who is the very embodiment of left-wing excess to his viewers and readers, a source in Clinton's camp said.

That person said Murdoch's move doesn't represent a shift in his core beliefs, but signals his recognition that Clinton has done a good job in the Senate. Murdoch held a similar fundraiser several years ago for Sen. Charles Schumer, who also is a Democrat.

The Clintons, who have a penchant for de-fanging their enemies, have been cozying up to Murdoch for several years. The senator chatted him up at a recent Fox News anniversary party. And some media critics have even noted that Fox's talking heads don't pillory Hillary Clinton quite like they used to.

In November, Newsday reported that Murdoch's News Corp. paid the Glover Park Group, whose principals include Clinton advisers Howard Wolfson and Gigi Georges, about $200,000 in an unsuccessful effort to block TV ratings changes.