... by Vice President Biden!
More liberal civility (H/T:
Cold Fury):
The Orlando Sentinel assigned longtime reporter Scott Powers to cover the event. But when he arrived, Biden staffers decided they didn’t want him mingling with the 150 guests who had forked over $500 to meet Biden, so they locked him in a closet! A member of the Biden advance team even stood guard outside the door to prevent Powers from escaping.
Powers has all the details, even pictures of the inside of the closet where he was held; but it appears the Sentinel editors have refused to let him report on all the details of what some are calling a kidnapping! There was a very brief, and very “vanilla” mention of the incident in Thursday’s paper. One attendee later emailed the Sentinel to say “I was in attendance at the Fundraiser and enjoyed a nice lunch. If I had known there was a reporter stuffed in the closet, I would have been compelled to stand up and demand answers. I would also like to know if this is actually legal to treat people like caged animals. I’m disgusted by these actions.”
Despite this outrage, Sentinel editors have dropped the story.
The arrogance continues. Perhaps the
Orlando Sentinel will apologize for having endorsed these clowns for office. But I'm not holding my breath.
8 comments:
And they wondered why we canceled our subscription when we lived in the area.
Think the reporter can get away with suing over his treatment?
You know, considering some of the reporters out there, I can’t decide whether to be outraged or applaud Biden’s advance people. I can imagine that some reporters get pretty obnoxious when left to their own devices, and should not be allowed to roam in polite company. However, being held against his will and basically GUARDED? Kind of beyond the pale… I wonder if the reporter would be as outraged if he had been “held” in a lavish study at the developer’s house, complete with beverage service and snacks, big screen TV, etc. So maybe he’s just complaining about the accommodations.
"[The following arrived unsolicited in The Tatler mailbox. We have no way of substantiating it immediately, but apparently something did go on at the Bill Nelson fundraiser in Florida.]" (original source)
First, something about this story just doesn't seem right. If the reporter even has photographic evidence of being unlawfully detained, surely he could press charges? Why hasn't he?
Second, wasn't this fundraiser held in a private home? Does the press have a right to public access to a private home if it is a political fundraiser? Most are in private settings (left and right). Don't get me wrong, I'm all for disclosure of contributions, but does a political fundraiser convert private residence into a public setting?
Why hasn't he? Because neither he nor his paper want to jeopardize their relationship with the Obama administration. Obvious.
Should he have been there? Valid question. But if press was to be excluded, he should be thrown out, not held prisoner by aides.
The VP has Secret Service, if this guy needed to be detained for any reason, they'd be the ones to do it, and they wouldn't use a closet.
The original source says the story is completely unsubstantiated. From what has been given, it is unclear whether this was truly a nefarious plot to kidnap a unsuspecting reporter during a high-priced fundraiser, or if they had asked the reporter if he wanted to stay for interview afterwards, and had him wait in a room (that happen to be a luxury walk-in closet) with crustless cucumber sandwiches and a pitcher of fresh squeezed lemonade.
If it was the former, I'd be the first one to call for police action and hold responsible whomever kidnapped the reporter (and gave the order). However, if that was the case, I would expect the reporter wouldn't give a fig about his job or the administration, press charges, and then make double his salary by selling his story and pictures exclusively to Sean Hannity. I'd also like to hear a motive for locking him up rather than just simply escorting him off the private property. I'm just saying, it doesn't add up for me.
I think it is likely something far more boring and less criminal happened here.
Yeah, I just confirmed. Far more boring and not at all criminal.
The room was not a closet. It was small with a window, and had a lot of crap and boxes. He was in their for an hour before Biden showed up, standard holding room protocol apparently. He was offered food, but declined. He was offered water and accepted. The door was not lock, but their was a person outside to tell him when Biden arrived and he could leave the holding room. (I am guessing he could of left the premises, just not join the fundraiser until Biden arrived.)
http://newsfeed.time.com/2011/03/28/did-vice-president-joe-biden-really-lock-a-reporter-in-a-closet/
Aha. So the editor of the paper wrote on his blog that it was closet, and the story was reported from there.
Given Biden's evident arrogance with people, it seemed completely credible to me.
Yeah, I guess that is the difference between Republicans and Independents. I think Biden is too incompetent to be a mastermind. When in doubt about Biden's affairs my money will always be on gaffe.
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