On Tuesday's CBS Early Show, co-host Maggie Rodriguez previewed an exclusive interview with Levi Johnston on the CBS entertainment show, The Insider: "Levi Johnston says he is winning the war of words between Sarah Palin and him. We'll hear from him." Later, correspondent for The Insider, Chris Jacobs, declared: "Sarah Palin lashing out at Levi and now Levi fires back."
Rodriguez has conducted three exclusive interviews with the estranged father of Palin's grandson in the last six months, the latest on October 29 [1]. In The Insider interview, Johnston is given the opportunity to continue his vicious, personal, and unsubstantiated attacks against the former Alaska governor, claiming: "I think she's going out and talking and she's just digging a bigger hole for herself....I just look at her in disgust. It's almost funny that she's like 46 years old and she's battling a 19-year-old and I'm winning and I'm telling the truth. She's lying and losing."
The preview segment of the interview, in which Johnston reacts to Palin's interview with Oprah Winfrey on her new book, goes on to feature an expletive laden rant by the would-be Playgirl model: "She's really underestimating me right now and that's not a smart thing to do....You know, she's basically calling me a liar, which is total [expletive]. I did for, you know, a few, you know - a couple months and then we split up and that was it. You can totally tell, if you pay attention, that she's the one [expletive]."
Rodriguez concludes the segment by encouraging viewers to watch the rest of the interview on Tuesday's edition of The Insider: "Alright Chris, we'll be tuning in. Thank you so much....Tune into The Insider tonight for more on Levi Johnston's take on Sarah Palin. Be sure to check your local listings."
Here is a full transcript of the segment:
7:00AM TEASE: MAGGIE RODRIGUEZ: Sarah Palin hypes her new book on Oprah and slams the McCain campaign.
SARAH PALIN: I did not want that message sent out that we were giddy happen to become grandparents.
RODRIGUEZ: While the father of her grandchild, Levi Johnston, fires back.
LEVI JOHNSTON: I think she's going out and talking and she's just digging a bigger hole for herself.
RODRIGUEZ: We'll have more of his exclusive reaction.
7:12AM TEASE:
HARRY SMITH: Up next, Sarah Palin hypes her book on Oprah while Levi Johnston watches and claims victory. We'll tell you what both had to say.
7:24AM TEASE:
MAGGIE RODRIGUEZ: Still to come, Levi Johnston says he is winning the war of words between Sarah Palin and him. We'll hear from him when we return.
7:31AM SEGMENT:
MAGGIE RODRIGUEZ: But first, Sarah Palin. She didn't hold back when she talked to Oprah. And Levi Johnston, the father of her grandson, was watching. The Insider's Chris Jacobs is live in L.A. with Johnston's exclusive reaction. Hey Chris, good morning.
[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: Levi vs. Sarah; Grandson's Father Goes Rogue on Palin]
CHRIS JACOBS: Good morning, Maggie. Only The Insider's cameras were rolling as Levi watched Sarah Palin talk tough about his choices to take their spate public and then pose for Playgirl. Levi shared his thoughts with us.
SARAH PALIN: A bit heartbreaking to see the road that is he on right now.
LEVI JOHNSTON: I think she's going out and talking and she's just digging a bigger hole for herself.
PALIN: Kind of this aspiring - aspiring porn, some of the things that he's doing. It's kind of heartbreaking.
OPRAH WINFREY: The Playgirl centerfold?
PALIN: Right. It's - I call that porn, yes.
JOHNSTON: I just look at her in disgust. It's almost funny that she's like 46 years old and she's battling a 19-year-old and I'm winning and I'm telling the truth. She's lying and losing.
JACOBS: Sarah Palin lashing out at Levi and now Levi fires back.
JOHNSTON: If you look at her face, she's got - she's really - you can tell her mind's going 100 miles an hour when Oprah asked her those Levi questions. I got a lot more knowledge and, you know, credibility than she gives me credit for.
PALIN: And by the way, I don't know if we call him Levi. I hear he goes by the name 'Ricky Hollywood' now. So if he - if that's the case, we don't want to mess up this gig he's got going.
JOHNSTON: She's really underestimating me right now and that's not a smart thing to do.
JACOBS: With daughters Willow and Piper in the audience, Sarah implies Levi's a liar.
PALIN: The whole premise of Levi ever having lived with Bristol is false. And from there, though, I mean, you take that foundational untruth and you can kind of measure all the other things that he's saying.
JOHNSTON: You know, she's basically calling me a liar, which is total [expletive]. I did for, you know, a few, you know - a couple months and then we split up and that was it. You can totally tell, if you pay attention, that she's the one [expletive].
JACOBS: But Levi is especially irritated by this moment.
WINFREY: What happens when he comes to see the baby?
PALIN: He's quite busy with his media tours and he hasn't seen the baby for a while.
JOHNSTON: You know, I've been gone a lot on the media. That is - yeah, I haven't seen him a lot, but that's not always why.
JACOBS: Levi's long contended that the Palins are keeping him away from his now 10-month-old son, Tripp, and that he's gearing up for a custody battle.
JOHNSTON: We're going to court. It's - all this is going to be over with and I won't have much else to say about Sarah Palin because I will have my kid.
JACOBS: Palin appears to extend an olive branch to her grandson's father, but Levi says there's no truce yet.
PALIN: An open invitation for Levi to come to Aunt Katie's house for Thanksgiving dinner in Washington, there.
JOHNSTON: That was a real convincing invite. I think if I go there, I'm going to need - I'm going to need an army because it's - it's not going to be good.
JACOBS: And this isn't the last we've seen of Levi Johnston. Tonight we've got a whole lot more. The Insider is inside Levi's Playgirl photo shoot, shirtless and stripped down. Now the answer to the million dollar question is will he take it all off. You're just going to have to wait and see tonight on The Insider.
RODRIGUEZ: Oh, you're going to tell us?
JACOBS: Maybe.
RODRIGUEZ: Alright Chris, we'll be tuning in. Thank you so much.
JACOBS: Thank you very much.
RODRIGUEZ: Tune into The Insider tonight for more on Levi Johnston's take on Sarah Palin. Be sure to check your local listings.
-Kyle Drennen is a news analyst at the Media Research Center.