"Heard on the Hill"

Hillary Strikes Back. Hill insiders were still buzzing Friday about an amazing clash of the titans - The Thrilla in the LBJ Room - between Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) and Russ Feingold (Wis.) at the previous day's Democratic Policy Committee luncheon.

"It was riveting - it was wonderful," one insider said of the slam on Feingold, who is not the most popular member of his Caucus. "It was like a genie out of the bottle - somebody actually told Russ Feingold to go [expletive deleted] himself."

Feingold had a much different take on the matter, telling HOH in a telephone interview, "There are a hard-core group of Senators who want to have their cake and eat it too. They pose for a photo [after supporting campaign reform] and then go behind closed doors and align themselves with the Republican commissioners" on the Federal Election Commission who want to water down the new law.

As the New York Daily News first reported, Clinton exploded at her colleague during a policy discussion about the effects of Feingold's law. When Feingold completely dismissed Clinton's contention that lawmakers could get bogged down in personal legal challenges as well as criminal charges, she barked: "Russ, live in the real world."

"I also live in the real world, Senator, and I function quite well in it," shot back Feingold.

The battle came during a discussion about the effects of the new law, which featured reformer Fred Wertheimer praising it and Democratic attorney Bob Bauer raising pointed questions about its effect.

Clinton (who speaks from experience on this matter) warned that the new law is so unpredictable that politicians could wind up spending money and wasting time defending themselves against lawsuits filed by political opponents.

"Feingold, who can never stop himself, said, 'The allegation you are imagining would not be a rational charge,' " recalled one insider. That's when Clinton started firing back.

"She was incredulous, saying, 'What do you mean by rational?'" said the source. "She blew up at him. She threw her arms in the air and said, 'Russ, live in the real world.' "

Feingold said the characterization of their remarks was reasonably accurate, but he said it would be wrong to suggest that Clinton was the only person he clashed with. He said there were five or six Senators who have supported the bill but threw a fit behind closed doors, though he refused to name names.

"I can't tell you that," he said, noting that he's only commenting on the private luncheon because others inappropriately spoke out about it.

It's worth noting that Clinton has probably been waiting a long time to strike back at Feingold, who was the only Democrat during the Senate impeachment trial in 1999 to vote against a motion to dismiss the charges against President Bill Clinton. Feingold did, however, vote to acquit in the end.

Feingold, however, said that impeachment played no role in the dispute. "Not at all," he said.

Feingold said the duo laughed about the flare-up later in the day. "She apologized on the floor later and I shook her hand," he recalled.

But he said others are still struggling with the new law. "I can tell you that some people can't believe we won," he said. "A colleague who is supportive of our effort came up to me after and said, 'That was a tough meeting, but it was good medicine.' Soft money is a tough addiction to give up."

"She voted for the bill and she supports it," said Clinton spokeswoman Karn Dunn. "Senator Clinton has the greatest respect for Senator Feingold and his leadership and advocacy on the issue."