Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Ya-ta Boy]

Oh no!

"James O'Keefe, the young conservative filmmaker who was behind the undercover operations that led to the ACORN scandal last year, was arrested with three others for allegedly trying to bug the New Orleans office of Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) yesterday.

The FBI announced today the foursome have been charged with entering federal property under false pretenses for the purpose of committing a felony."

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/01/filmmaker_who_broke_acorn_story_arrested_for_attem.php?ref=fpa

One of the four is the son of an acting US Attorney. I for one would love to have heard the conversation: "Ummm, Dad, I'm calling from the pokey. They nabbed me on a felony charge for trying to bug a US senator's office. Do you have $10,000 to bail me out? Send lawyers, guns and money, please."

[Ya-ta Boy]

I missed this detail:

"O'Keefe was apparently in town as early as last Thursday to give a speech at the Pelican Institute, a libertarian think tank in New Orleans."

Does anyone know: Do you need to be a scofflaw to be invited to that particular think tank? Inquiring minds want to know.

"Witness 1 further state that when Flanagan and Basel entered the office, O'Keefe positioned his cellular phone in his hand so as to record Flanagan and Basel."

It's not every felon who records his friends in the commission of a crime. Perhaps he can claim artistic license as his defense. In light of last week's Supreme Court decision, I hope the feds investigate corporate funding for this movie-in-the-making, although of course it wouldn't be illegal.

[Fox]

Not really all that surprising. This guy is pretty trivial. The only real problem ever was that the GOP used him to inflame more ACORN hysterics in another attempt at disenfranchising poor voters and minorities by trying to hinder and persecute a group that worked to get them involved.

[kabrams]

[Ya-ta Boy]

Now, I admit I'm a sucker for the cheap thrills of a stupid criminal story, and am thilled almost beyond words when it comes to the stupid criminal story with a political angle. This one could make me go orgasmic.

Did you know that James (aka The Pimp) O'Keefe, Chris Wallace's Power Player of the Week last September, is a paid contributor to Andrew Breitbart's Big Government site? Wouldn't it be interesting if Mr. Breitbart knew about the felony crime before it was committed--I ask this because said Mr. Breitbart was pretty quick off the mark to deny any prior knowledge.

"Fox News aired a report about the arrests shortly after the news broke. However, reporter Tim Vaughn tried to downplay the news:

VAUGHN: [It's a] very weird story that probably needs a lot of context and a lot of looking into, which is what we�re going to do here. I just wanted to get it on the record with it right now.

SHEP SMITH: So, they�re saying basically, they�re in there � It sounds as if what they�re saying is, they�re looking for some ACORN hanky panky and they try to tap into Mary Landrieu�s telephone to get it.

VAUGHN: That could be one way of looking at it, yes."

Having been through one petty burglary that turned into a big deal, I've been nostalgic for another one. What if Fox News knew something beforehand?

It's worth investigating, although with corporations now allowed unlimited funding of political action, this may be permissable under the new law. Still...calling Woodward & Bernstein.

Someone mentioned a good name for this: TEAgate. I like it--a little bit of old with a little bit of the new.

[Ya-ta Boy]

Follow the money. Follow the money.

According to inside sources, the charges carry a 10 year sentence with a $250,000 fine, unless they are raised to a 20 year sentence.

Hmmm, let's see, you're a 24 year old dolt with a daddy who's an acting US attorney. Guess who is getting major pressure to cop a deal to maybe scavenge an actual future for yourself (without a roomie named Bubba) before you turn 34 or possibly even 44?

Once upon a time I had a student who ended up in Leavenworth with a roomie named Bubba (for bank robbery with a water gun). Ex-student walked funny for quite a while when he got out.

[Hater Depot]

[Ya-ta Boy]

No, it isn't hilarious or even amusing and there is nothing in my post to indicate I was making light of it.

[Fox]

The best thing about this is how Republicans are insisting we reserve judgment and trying to downplay it.

[Ya-ta Boy]

Current reports say the Teagaters weren't in the senator's office to bug it. OK. So why were these dudes dressed up in phone repairman duds there?

Lawyer: Phone scheme meant to embarrass senator

NEW ORLEANS � Four men charged with trying to tamper with a senator's phones � including a conservative activist known for targeting ACORN � hoped to record embarrassing hidden camera footage to document allegations her staff was ignoring calls critical of her stance on health care reform, an attorney for one of the four said Thursday.

Attorney J. Garrison Jordan denied the four men were trying to disable or wiretap the phones in Sen. Mary Landrieu's office at a federal building in New Orleans...

Instead, Jordan said, they hoped to get embarrassing video footage of her staff handling constituent calls...

Jordan said his client, Robert Flanagan, the 24-year-old son of a federal prosecutor in Louisiana, did not intend to break the law when he entered the office posing as a telephone worker Monday.

No matter their intentions, the four face the serious charge of entering federal property under false pretenses for the purpose of committing a felony, which carries up to 10 years in prison. They are free on $10,000 bail.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100128/ap_on_re_us/us_senator_s_office_arrests

Umm, I think few would dispute that the probable intent was to embarrass Senator Landrieu in more or less the same way the ACORN scam went down. But the alibi Flanagan's lawyer is floating in this report doesn't sound plausible, given the known details of the escapade so far. O'Keefe was just going to stand around in one office (while his two co-conspirators to commit a felony were upstairs in the phone closet) and tape the senator's staff handling constituent calls and hope for a gaffe?

I say: DA, keep diggin'--there's some rotten jambalaya in the state of Louisiana and you haven't found it yet.