Opinion: Getting near Robert Novak can be hazardous

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A few days back, by his own admission, columnist Robert Novak apparently got played by John McCain’s presidential campaign. Today, he got cited by police.

It wasn’t a journalistic faux pas that earned him a ticket from Washington’s finest, but something far more serious -- hitting a pedestrian while driving in the city’s crowded downtown. Luckily, the victim suffered only minor injuries. Novak, who as detailed by Politico.com seemed not have realized an accident had occurred, ultimately was cited for failing to yield the right of way.

Novak understandably might have been preoccupied reflecting upon his recent interaction with McCain aides over the timing of a running mate pick by the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, but it was something else that had him distracted.

TMZ.com scored an after-accident interview with Novak, in which he revealed he had been listening to ‘Morning Edition’ on NPR in his Corvette and was unaware until stopped by other pedestrians that he had hit someone.

Our friends at The Swamp also have more on the incident, as does our Countdown to Crawford blog.

-- Don Frederick