Kathleen McFarland's spying charges against Hillary Clinton

Conservatives are apparently rushing to distance themselves from Katherine McFarland's charges that Hillary Clinton has sent people to spy on her. No one likes to be made fun of or ridiculed, and the easy path is for all of us to join the "pile-on" and make fun of McFarland, lest we appear to be crazy also.

But before we do that, remember who we are talking about. There is very little that is beyond the capabilities of the Clintons when it comes to using dirty tricks against opponents. Mark Steyn's January 2, 1999 column is repeated today in Steyn's "Greatest Hits" feature:

Yes, but who's behind `the politics of personal destruction'? Who sent out presidential aides James Carville and Sid Blumenthal to smear Paula Jones as trailerpark trash and Monica as a stalker? The Christian Coalition isn't leaking revelations about gay Democrats. Instead, Larry Flynt, distinguished pornographer and loyal Democrat, is reducing Hustler from a respectable periodical for aficionados of graphic sadism and bestiality - into a pitiful house organ of the Clinton administration: having lowered the boom on Bob Livingston, Larry now says he's got the goods on another 11 congressmen - ten Republicans and one Democrat - but he's only going to out the Republicans.

If you'll forgive a touch of humbug, there's something almost tragic about the corruption of liberal idealism. Bill Clinton's tainted seed has seeped into the party's core and infected its soul. As in the final stage of syphilis, an appalling pustular madness has set in, as gibbering feminists, blacks, artists and intellectuals froth ever more wildly in defence of their leader.

Read the whole thing.

Remember also that people who are capable of this are capable of anything.

Think of this episode in the context of the Schumer staffers who broke federal law to uncover information about a Republican Senate candidate in Maryland.

And finally, remember Terry Lenzner.