Former Congressman Henry Waxman (D-CA) refused to disavow the Communist Party USA chairman’s endorsement of Hillary Clinton Wednesday.

But Waxman didn’t seem nearly as defensive as campaign chair John Podesta when asked the same question earlier this month, during a similar chance encounter in downtown Washington.

Waxman initially was quite friendly when somebody holding a video camera and a bottle of Diet Pepsi asked if he could interview him about Donald Trump and David Duke for The Daily Caller. He even helped his questioner put his soda down to prepare for the interview. But Waxman, quite the open-minded liberal, changed his tune when he learned TheDC is Tucker Carlson’s website.

“I don’t want to do it.”

As the veteran California rep started to walk away he was given the opportunity to renounce Hillary’s key alt-left supporter.

Unlike Podesta, he knew better than to feign ignorance about the whole matter. Walking at a measured pace, not practically running like Podesta did, Waxman told his questioner to “apologize” — for what exactly is unclear — and make an appointment.

He did not respond when asked to explain the difference between a Democrat and a Communist.

Moral of the story since the column aims to show how people act when they think nobody is watching: Waxman is intolerant but not snooty. He was willing to talk with a reporter from a publication he had never heard of. Lots of public figures here on both sides of the ideological divide won’t do that.

But upon learning he was face to face with a stalking horse for the wicked Tucker Carlson, Waxman just couldn’t stomach talking to somebody with a different perspective.

But, hey, if you are right about everything what is the point anyway?