Bob Novak just had a breakdown on the air on CNN’s Inside Politics a few hours ago. He said “bullshit” on live TV, and then stormed off the set in the middle of a show. CNN has already suspended him, and more fallout is likely to come. To see the uncensored video of this, go to Media Matters (Quicktime). The transcript of the event is as follows, in the context of a conversation on whether or not Katherine Harris would win a race for a Senate seat:

CARVILLE: … I suspect that the [Democratic Senator Bill] Nelson people are feeling pretty good here today.

NOVAK: A couple points here, first place, don’t be so sure she’s going to lose. A lot .. all the establishment’s against her, and I’ve seen these Republican anti-establishment candidates do pretty well. Ronald Reagan, I guarantee that the establishment wasn’t for him. We just elected a Senator from Oklahoma, Senator Tom Coburn, everybody in the establishment was against him. She may get elected.

[As Carville starts to speak, Novak attempts to cut him off]

NOVAK: Just let me finish what I’m going to say, James, please. I know you hate to hear me.

CARVILLE: He’s gotta show these right-wingers that he’s got backbone, you know. The Wall Street Journal editorial page is watching you. Show ’em you’re tough.

NOVAK: Well, I think that’s bullshit, and I hate that. [to host Ed Henry:] Just let it go.

Then, as the host tried to move on and ask Carville what he thought about the Senate race, Novak, looking stolid but disturbed, stood up, took off his microphone and walked off the set.

What should be interesting here is (a) what this represents, and (b) what the fallout will be. As to what it represents, Novak did this without any provocation he hasn’t been up against countless times before; he and Carville routinely exchange barbs exactly like those all the time. That he reacted in such an unprofessional manner is certainly an indication of the pressure he is under at this time, and may even reflect either a career tailspin or perhaps even more trouble with the law than we’ve been hearing. Pure speculation, but something has got to explain Novak’s actions, and it certainly was not solely Carville’s remark.

As to what the fallout will be, that should be even more interesting. First off, Republicans especially have carped and played politics over on-air decency, and here’s their top-rank TV representative saying “bullshit” on live TV. With how the FCC has been on TV and radio broadcaster with much tamer transgressions since the infamous Janet Jackson incident, if they don’t pursue Novak with equal vigor, they’re going to look bad. [Update: on reflection, since CNN is on cable, that will probably not happen.]

Already CNN has suspended Novak “indefinitely,” saying that what he did was “inexcusable and unacceptable,” and suggested that Novak “take some time off.” Right-wing commenters on the Free Republic web site are cheering this profanity, however (no one ever accused them of consistency) and are praying that Fox News hires him–which frankly would not surprise me very much at all.

At the end of the show, Ed Henry commented that they had intended to ask Novak about the Plame leak, and that Novak knew of this. This was likely mentioned because CNN probably promised said questions to viewers in promos leading up to the show. But it also raises the question of how this may have factored into his decision to leave the set.

CNN has the full transcript of the show online; the Novak segment is near the end. Just do a Find for “bullshit,” it’s written in full in the transcript.