WASHINGTON–Sen. Claire McCaskill took a swipe at her Republican colleague, Sen. Christopher “Kit” Bond, Wednesday over his role in the firing of former Kansas City U.S. Attorney Todd Graves.
McCaskill ducked a direct question about a Department of Justice report Monday indicating that Bond’s office pushed for Graves’ ouster. DOJ investigators reported that a former top Bond aide, Jack Bartling, asked the White House at least twice in 2005 to oust Graves because of a political dispute between Bond’s office and Graves’ brother, Rep. Sam Graves, R-Mo.

“The evidence indicates that the friction between Sen. Bond’s staff and the staff of Graves’ brother … precipitated (Todd) Graves’ removal,” investigators concluded.

McCaskill, in a conference call Monday on another subject, said she didn’t want to delve into the details of the dipuste. But she said it was “startling” that Bond declined to be interviewed by DOJ’s investigators.

“I am surprised that any sitting senator would decline to cooperate with an investigation by the Justice Department,” McCaskill said. “That is a startling position to take.”

On another hot topic, McCaskill said she was not the least bit surprised by the high level of interest in tomorrow’s vice presidential showdown between Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and Sen. Joe Biden, Del.

She said the combination of two unpredictable, unscripted candidates could make for great TV entertainment.

Of Palin, McCaskill said the public knows very little “and she is now being thrust on a stage without a script and everyone is curious about how much she knows” and how she will perform. Of Biden, McCaskill said, he “has a tendency to talk forever and sometimes say things that are kind of stupid.”

Asked to elaborate on fears she has about Biden’s penchant for gaffes, McCaskill tried to put the best light on her remarks.

“He a regular guy and … he doesn’t parse his words and he’s not hyper-careful,” she said. “He’s very authentic,” McCaskill added, before seeming to regret her own candor. “I was probably having a Joe Biden moment myself,” she said of her initial remarks.