Posted on 09/30/2008 1:04:59 PM PDT by Charles Henrickson
A local television station's coverage of a Missouri campaign "truth squad" working on behalf of Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama has touched off a national Internet frenzy.
< snip >
What has prompted all the furor is that several members of Obama's "truth squad" in Missouri are prosecutors or members of law enforcement. They include St. Louis Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce, Jefferson County Sheriff Glenn Boyer and St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Bob McCulloch. All are Democrats.
Joyce and McCulloch are featured in a KMOV report by John Mills, in which both say their aim was to refute any false information spread about Obama.
But when KMOV anchor Russell Kinsaul introduced the report, he said: "The Barack Obama campaign is asking Missouri law enforcement to target anyone who lies or runs a misleading TV ad during the presidential campaign."
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Joyce said in a statement over the weekend that "my sole purpose in participating in this initiative is about getting truthful information to the voters. This has never been or never will be about prosecuting people."
Missouri Obama communications director Debbie Mesloh says the accusations are "the height of absurdity" and reflect a Republican effort "to deceive voters about the role of respected Missourians across the state who want to see this election be about the truth."
McCulloch, who could not be reached for comment Monday, told a local television station that critics have "very sinister motives."
KMOV executive news director Sean McLaughlin defended his station's report and emphasized that "nothing in the story said anything about prosecution."
< snip >
The furor prompted Mills, the KMOV reporter, to post a follow-up on the station's website in which he discounted the Republican critics' claims and noted that McCain has truth squads, too.
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(Excerpt) Read more at stltoday.com ...
I will say this for Jennifer Joyce's office though: In another story (not reported by the Post-Dispatch), Joyce's spokeswoman Susan Ryan DOES ADMIT that the initial announcement came across as suggesting legal action against free speech. She said, "Unfortunately it did suggest that. . . ."
But the rest of these people, both on the Obama Truth Squad and at KMOV, seem to remain clueless or arrogant or both.
Another Obama Goon Squad ping from St. Louis, Missouri!
Obama’s ‘Truth Squads’ of today are the ‘Death Squads’ of the administration he hopes to establish.
There is not the slightest doubt that they meant the threat and only backed off when they got their knuckles rapped.
Kinda like Obama has a soldiers bracelet too....
if you got something good - we got it too; if we do something bad, you do it too...nah,nah,nah..nah!
Ironic...the Obama “Truth Squad” lying through their collective teeth.
TV stations are notorious for being terrible.
I often go to an interview for a newspaper assignment, and the morons follow you around like lemmings and can’t seem to think for themselves.
If this was a mistake, the TV station needs to apologize.
Regardless, the fact officials are involved is a little creepy even if it is not intended to literally go after people like first reported.
There should NOT be any let off of pressure, matter of fact and increased pressure for their resignations/punishments is in order.
Also the “truth squad” members as well and all officers who took any part in this OFFICIAL OPPRESSION violation. Law suit time, county prosecutors, sheriff’s, Chiefs of police are political animals, they need to feel the heat. Anyone that stupid needs to at the most, go to jail, at the very least, to lose their position/job.
The "truthful information" that only fits OZERO.
I haven’t seen any frenzy. There should be marches in the streets over the illegal use of law enforcement to control opinion and force adherence to a leftist doctrine.
They should be prosecuted for abuse of power.
One thing for sure forever in the US is that the citizenry is WELL ARMED and NO ONE will ever take our guns away
Furthermore, the leftists are COWARDS and CONSERVATIVES are NOT, since we have REAL THINGS TO DEFEND
Finally, leftists cant shoot and conservatives are good shots
thus, we will NEVER have real jack boot thugs here or a leftist revolution in this great nation
NEVER
Now we DO have to catch up in our use of our WORDS and the LAW to fight back and to take offense on the leftist scum
The truth according to Obama. This Obama guy is one scary dude! Oops, maybe they will come looking for me now that I said that? Let them come!
In his TV report, Mills said the prosecutors “also say that they plan to respond immediately to any ads and statements that might violate violate Missouri ethics laws.”
Let's see. Prosecutors who respond to violations of ethics laws. Could any reasonable person think that they are going to prosecute people who they deem are lying about Obama and use ethics laws to do so?
It wasn't are reporters misinterpretation. A video made the rounds showing these fascists making their threats under color of authority to deprive folks of 1st ammendment rights.
There was no question about it, and these clowns [sheriffs and prosecutors] are backing down to mitigate the damages from the Nifong suit that would follow.
Charles, when is McCollough up for re-election? I think we just might have to bounce him out on is @ss.
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