Tea Party America
Tea Party darling Joe Miller has just about toasted his 2010 Senate hopes. After a bad few weeks during which reporters have sought information regarding his military discharge, his previous employment history and reason for termination of said employment, the truth about his many uses of federal government money for his own family and then the now infamous hand cuffing of a journalist, Joe should be toast.
Why? Let me count the ways.
First Joe took to Fox to lie about why he hired the body guards. He claimed it was part of the contract with the school. It wasn’t and the school made a statement to the press saying just that.
The Alaska Dispatch reports:
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“Miller also told national news outlets that the school had required him to hire private security as part of his agreement to use the facility. But Embley said that’s not correct — there is no requirement for private security guards.â€
Here’s Joe on Fox, paving a path of teaflections:
But it gets worse. Yes, it gets so much worse.
In a desperate attempt to flee the journalist asking him about his previous employment (and remember, Joe lied and said he couldn’t discuss this because the borough said he couldn’t but then the borough sued him to release his own records and clear their name), Joe shoved supporter Lolly Symbol, who happens to be a mother who was there with her young children, one of whom Joe “bowled over†in his dash for cover.
Even Sarah Palin does not run over women and their young children in public.
Then, Joe told a bunch of fibs about Hopfinger (the journalist), claiming he had assaulted Joe. The eyewitness (who was also a Miller supporter) said Hopfinger did not assault anyone and that as Joe fled, these guards descended on the blogger who kept asking questions.
Symbol spoke with the Alaska Dispatch:
“Symbol said Miller became angry with an elderly woman who asked him about his military background. “He ended up getting really huffy with her,” Symbol said.
She said she got about two words into her question when Hopfinger interrupted her, stuck a small camera in Miller’s face and asked him about his work with the Fairbanks North Star Borough. “I would say Tony was aggressive, and I would say he was rude because he interrupted me, but he didn’t do anything wrong and he wasn’t posing a threat to Miller,” Symbol said.
She said Miller tried to get away from the reporter and in doing so put his hand on her arm and pushed her aside. Her 8-year-old son, Vincent Mahoney, was standing right behind her, and Miller bowled him over in his attempt to get away. “I don’t know if [Miller] didn’t see him or didn’t care, but he didn’t say ‘excuse me’ or ‘I’m sorry’. He didn’t even turn his head,” Symbol said. “He simply did not care at all.”â€
Joe’s campaign made things worse by putting out a statement wherein they claimed Joe had been assaulted by Hopfinger and that their body guards did not know he was a journalist or they wouldn’t have restrained them. And yet, we have video showing them also blocking and threatening to detain ADN reporters and even threatening to hand cuff said reporters.
Joe he should be toast Miller’s campaign website:
“Liberal Blogger “Loses It†at Town Hall Meeting; Obsession with Republican Nominee leads to physical assault, publicity stunt. Anchorage, Alaska. October 17, 2010 — Joe Miller released the following statement:
“While I’ve gotten used to the blog Alaska Dispatch’s assault on me and my family, I never thought that it would lead to a physical assault. It’s too bad that this blogger would take advantage of a “Town Hall†meeting to create a publicity stunt just two weeks before the election.†The Miller campaign was required by the facility to provide security at the event………”
He’s got the whole conservative faux-victim thing down pat, but the only people who are going to buy this load of malarkey are Palin voters. We should note here that while the journalist is being smeared as a “liberal blogger” (this is akin to being Devil adjacent now), he was in fact a real live reporter for the ADN. He now owns a blog. Hopfinger is respected in Alaska, no matter what they tell you on Fox News.
You won’t be surprised to hear that Joe will be a no-show at the debate this evening.
Oh, and Joe finally admitted that he was asked to leave his previous employment after being found guilty of ethics violations. Ring, ring, ring that Palin ethics violator bell.
I’m sorry, Joe, but it should be over. Alaska can do better than you.
Symbol tried to give the police her eyewitness account, but no one would take her information. She says she was a big supporter of Joe’s, but not anymore.
“The whole thing just made me sick,†Symbol said. We agree, Lolly. We agree. Running over an 8 year old child to hide from the press is not very senatorial.
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