The conservative commentator denied being suspended, offered up a contradictory explanation for his MSNBC absence and said that you can't always believe what you read on Drudge Report during a radio show interview Monday night. The Daily Caller, who got Buchanan to incorrectly predict a Ron Paul victory in Iowa, noted the pundit had appeared on the Hugh Hewitt Radio show (audio below) and talked about his MSNBC absence. "On Drudge Report, somebody said I’ve been suspended ... I don't know anything about that,” said Buchanan who added that his months-long absence from the station (his last MSNBC apperance was in October)  was due to medical reasons. "Well, you know I’ve had some medical issues at the end of the year which were pretty problematic, and so I’ve sort of been out of speaking and things like that."  "Medical issues" are a completely different excuse than a statement given by MSNBC president Phil Griffin when he stated that he didn't feel like Buchanan should appear on the network while promoting his new, controversial book Suicide of a Superpower . "The ideas he put forth aren’t really appropriate for national dialogue, much less the dialogue on MSNBC," Griffin told The New York Times on January 7. That doesn't sound like a boss eager for an employee to return from leave, but he added that Buchanan was still employed, even if there's no firm return date. "Pat and I are going to meet soon and discuss it,"  Griffin said. Buchanan did show signs at  Hewitt show that he appreciated his job. He didn't say who he was voting for, stating he was abiding by The Olbermann Rule.  "I might end up on Current TV!" Buchanan joked. 

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Alexander Abad-Santos