(CNN) - A key backer of Hillary Clinton's White House bid gave her top strategist Mark Penn a less than ringing endorsement Sunday, following news Penn had met with the Colombian ambassador to promote a free trade agreement the New York senator opposes.
Appearing on NBC's Meet the Press, Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell didn't exactly give the longtime Clinton pollster a vote of confidence.
Asked directly if the campaign should cut ties with Penn, Rendell said, "Well there are a lot of issues in which you can raise that question."
"Yeah, I think you've got to make it very clear for someone who is a consultant, who you are representing and who you are not representing and I would hope that Mr. Penn when he talked to the Colombians made that clear," Rendell also said. "And it doesn't sound to me like he did and that's something the campaign should take into question."
Late last week it was reported by the Wall Street Journal that Penn had met with the Colombian ambassador on Monday to promote a free trade agreement that Hillary Clinton has sharply criticized on the campaign trail. Penn's P.R. firm Burson-Marsteller had a contract with Colombia to promote the agreement, though a spokesman for Colombia's president told the paper he didn't know if Penn was representing Clinton or his P.R. firm in the meeting.
On Friday, Penn said he was acting in his role as CEO of Burson-Marsteller and called the meeting a "error in judgment." Upset with that characterization, the Colombian government cut ties with Penn's firm on Saturday.
From CNN Politics
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I hope to see this get a lot more coverage, especially if she continues to pay him. It will then be painfully obvious that she is lying about opposing NAFTA/CAFTA. Hopefully PA voters are paying attention....
The things people say about Rendell can very easily be said about John Kerry, Bill Richardson, Ted Kennedy, Dick Durbin, etc. THey all want cabinet positions and are also puppets of Obama.
No wonder Hillary is having trouble raising money. How does it feel Clinton donors to know that 2-3 million worth of your money has gone to Mark Penn?
BOO ON RENDELL.
Mark – PA April 6th, 2008 2:37 pm ET
"Ed Rendell is a crook. He is in bed with the Clintons, and appears with them on numerous videos, including the Peter Paul affair – check out the videos on youtube. He has campaigned a few times to be VP on somebody's ticket – it was on KYW here in PA. He is bought and paid for by the Clintons, and is not credible."
I respect your comment but I dont think I beleive a word you said.
These are the TYPES of people that WILL follow the Clintons to the White House... remember " renting out the Lincoln bedroom"?
Obama/Edwards08 Si Se Puede
I really hoped the voters send George Bush AND the Clintons HOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Obama/Edwards08 Si Se Puede
Drop Penn
HERE WE GO AGAIN, ANOTHER NAFTA. VOTERS NEED TO WAKE
UP. HILLARY CLINTON IS LYING EVERYDAY ON THE CAMPAIGN
TRAIL.
Obama has money coming in from lobbiest too. If you believe he doesn't then you are believe the TRUE LIES.
It happens in both campaigns
The difference is Clinton is fighting the media as well as the Obama campaign attachs as well as him out spending her and I must say to have those two against her she is holding her own.
SO with that said he cannot win in Nov. without her. As she can't win without him
CLINTON/OBAMA 09
Maybe Hillary should be fired for wasting our time!
Here's another huge blow to the Democratic Party's chances of winning the Presidency–courtesy again of Hillary and Billary. Their misstatements and lack of control over their advisers are either the result of bold-faced lying, bold-faced incompetence and inexperience, or a combination of both.
May we wean ourselves once and for all of the Bush-Clinton Dynasty!
This Obama Clinton stuff is getting stupid.
Here we go again. First it was the James Bond like action that never took place in Bosnia. Now there are more lies to come from Clinton with no end in sight.
She chaired pushing the NAFTA deal as evidenced through video clips and her tax returns. She preaches she is better but there is nothing better about more of the same and this display of double speak is too loud to ignore.
Now that she is running for president she'll say and do whatever it takes to get elected. I'll never believe her again.
Penn is just calculating like his Boss and call it quit before this ship sink or hit an iceberg, how clever!
This is one of the reasons why Pennsylvania is getting closer to the Obama side.
nsmata – check out FOX news....for all your reasons to bash Obama.
All I can say when your own top people are doing shady deals behind your back its time to step back. All I been hearing from Hillary is Obama is unexperience and can't run the country, well from what I see she can't run or trust anyone in her campaign. To be honest I taught Mark Penn would be gone a long time ago when Hillary saw that after Super Tuesday no plans had been made and started dropping state after state. Hillary is out for Hillary and Penn is out for Penn problem with Penn is he got caught wonder if Hillary will be also.
predicts more twists and turn or more lie
I only hope the people in Pennsylvia are smarter than Clinton and Rendell give them credit for and recognise her distasteful campaign for what it is, totally lacking in integrity.
Penn should be fired and she should return the huge chunks of funding she has received from the health care industries, if she truly intends to bring about much needed reform there.
Has anyone done any research on Mr Pen and his ties to Burson Marsteller? CNN, can you do some digging in on him and his company as I do remember some fishy stuff about them and what they do.
This guy is ever on news after tx and Ohio. I wonder why!
Ed Rendell has been losing credibility in Pa for quite some time. He consistently sends all taxpayers money to Philadelphia and Pittsburgh and to hell with the rest of the state. He is Hillary's puppy dog and is looking for a cushy job in the administration.
How come Hillary can not quit for the sake of the party and the country?
another example of special interests. Why are people voting for her?