Appears to have been an aide to Mitch McConnell, according to the Communists at ThinkProgress:
ThinkProgress has obtained an email that congressional sources tell us was sent to reporters by Sen. McConnell’s communications director Don Stewart.
On Monday morning, Don Stewart sent an email with the following text to reporters:
Seen the latest blogswarm? Apparently, there’s more to the story on the kid (Graeme Frost) that did the Dems’ radio response on SCHIP. Bloggers have done a little digging and turned up that the Dad owns his own business (and the building it’s in), seems to have some commercial rental income and Graeme and a sister go to a private school that, according to its website, costs about $20k a year ‹for each kid‹ despite the news profiles reporting a family income of only $45k for the Frosts. Could the Dems really have done that bad of a job vetting this family?
In the email, Stewart attacks Democrats for allegedly doing a bad job “vetting this family.” That effort to blame Democrats for the smear campaign seems to have swayed some reporters, as CNN this morning claimed that the real story is that “the Democrats didn’t do as much of a vetting as they could have done.”
What is so surprising about all of this is not that all of the stuff in the leaked email has turned out to be completely false- that is just amusing. What is surprising is THE SPEED with which the “citizen journalists” ran with this, and echoed everything the leaked email did- just like good little soldiers. It was viral in no time.
I would not be surprised if Malkin, Limbaugh, and some folks at the NRO were not in the coterie of ‘reporters’ this was emailed to, nor would I be surprised if they got it from a friend of a friend (despite pretending to be different from the beltway crowd, all of the above are insiders to the Washington game, despite their protests otherwise). I’d like to know a little more about the freeper who ran with this in the first place, giving Michelle and others their “in” to run with the story without having to be the ones to take the blame for doing it. Who is icuwhatudo? What is her/his real identity? How is this person connected to the McConnell aide or the reporters who received this list. Or was it just a coincidence? If I prided myself in being a citizen journalist, those are the questions I would be asking.
And does anyone have any pictures of his living room?
Ugh
Oh Noes! Senator McConnells would nebber do dat!
Peter Johnson
Saying the family wasn’t vetted well isn’t exactly a smear. I bet it’s true that if the Dems had known the parents worked only intermittently and that they came from wealthy stock, they wouldn’t have chosen them.
Not that there’s anything wrong with the family. They seem like good, decent people and I wish them nothing but the best.
jnfr
The family were eligible for SCHIP insurance and neither they nor the Dems made any false statements. No other vetting was needed. As John as pointed out more than once, they were the perfect poster family for the program. (Whether you like the program or not is separate from that fact.)
John Cole
But… But.. their grandparents are rich! And they own their house! And they go to private school!
/rightwingnutjob
rawshark
I haven’t heard a phrase like that since I was writing the first draft of the Magna Carta.
Pb
No, but I saw on the blogs that his kitchen counter is made out of whale bone and inlaid with ivory.
ThymeZone
I am not sure why we are talking about the distinction necessary to call someone a “citizen journalist.”
Are we suggesting that professional journalists are any better this stuff? Because I don’t see that they are.
I can’t find any evidence that any of these powdered heads on tv have ever taken a journalism class.
Chris Andersen
Actually, I don’t think this proves that McConnell’s office was the genesis for this. The email cites an existing blog swarm, so it came out after this started to heat up.
Still, the fact that they didn’t immediately recognize how obnoxious this was and run away shows that political calculation took precedence over humanity. Once the thing started to blow up in their faces they quickly turned and ran. But again, only for political expediency.
jnfr
Well, you know, there is a legitimate debate we could have about whether or not working or middle class families should be helped by the larger society when they get into trouble. I’m personally all for that kind of help, but lots of people are not.
But a debate on that issue isn’t what was wanted or offered. Just a ranting, raving bowl of anger and insults. And that’s why Malkin won’t have a discussion with Ezra. It doesn’t serve her purposes to discuss the actual issue at the base of the problem.
jcricket
This will turn out just like the falsehoods about Martinez’ office when he was accused of penning a memo trying to use Terri Schiavo as a political tool.
Oh wait, those weren’t falsehoods? Republicans were trying to capitalize on that tragedy and then wanted to run away when they realized the American public had turned against them?
My bad.
Of course there are no parallels here. Right?
John Cole
In my case, I am merely mocking the tendency of certain individuals to print scurrilous and mendacious lies, all the while knowing full well they are nonsense, and calling it reporting.
And no, I am not talking about Judith Miller.
ThymeZone
That question has been answered in the affirmative by just about every society on the planet that has the luxury of making the choice … except ours.
I wouldn’t call that a “legitimate debate” any more. I’d call it a sign that the USA is in trouble if it can’t govern itself any better than this. See my post yesterday to the “Cloth” thread. If people like me can be financially ruined by one bad — but fairly ordinary — medical day, then this country isn’t working properly for its citizens. When healthcare policy is driven by huge money from Pharma and HMO interests, this country is not working properly for its citizens.
Don’t try to spin that into a “legitimate debate.” It’s a broken model of self government at this point.
Pug
I wish my stock had been wealthier.
jcricket
That’s all you communistic tin-foil hat wearing leftards have these days isn’t it. Sarcasm and mockery.
The American public will never agree with your ideas because you’re so far out of the mainstream and have nothing positive to say, like we do. As my hero Michelle Malkin recently said:
“The unreality-based community really does live in a different galaxy.”
/wing-nut
ThymeZone
Understood, but how does this differ from the Bill O’Reillys and the Faux Newses and the Glen Becks?
Or for that matter, the not-so-bright Wolf Blitzers?
rawshark
It could turn out to be Senator McConnell and it still wouldn’t matter to the right.
jnfr
Oh, I agree with you completely, TZ, don’t mistake me for a Darwinist. All I’m saying is that those who really do espouse that sort of social Darwinism aren’t willing to state their beliefs honestly. Probably because they know they’re on the losing end of that argument.
babyinthecorner
Icwhatudo’s Freeper home page says “Jesus rocks!” Does he mean “Jesus rocks” as in Jesus is rockin’? Or is he talking about rocks with pictures of Jesus on them… that you can use for stoning people.
http://www.freerepublic.com/~icwhatudo/
LITBMueller
Hey, I just drove by Don Stewart’s house! You should see the thing! It’s huge! Must cost a million bucks, with granite countertops and all!
whipporwill
Johnson, you and your side just does not get it. This is not about the Frost parents, or the grandparents for that matter. Nor should it be about ideology of any kind. IT’S ABOUT THE KIDS MORON. The Frost’s appear in every way to be good responsible parents, in spite of the right wing attacks, but even if they weren’t the kids shouldn’t suffer a lack of health insurance. Not in the society I want to live in.
Adults are different and we can have a straight up ideological debate about them and health care. And we can pick nits with means testing and the like, just so long as no child suffers because of idiotic adult behaviour from either side.
Face
Pete, it doesn’t matter.
If this family made $30K instead of $45K, they’d call that “wealthy enough”, and question why their $100K house/shack wasn’t sold to buy a $70K doublewide.
If both parents worked full time, they would have questioned why they’re wasting money on childcare. If the mom instead stays home, they’d question why she wasnt working to help support the family
If the grandparents are wealthy, they’ll question why the family isn’t demanding the grandparents fork over all their retirement money. Despite how ludicrous that is. If the grandparents were poor, they’d blame poor work ethic on those folk and blame the family for not working hard enough.
If they have more than one car, they’ll demand the family sell one to buy insurance. If they have no car and the kids must walk 5 miles to school, they’ll claim this is border-line child abuse for the kids to walk alone this far. If they have one car worth $15K, they’d insist the family sell it and buy one worth $5K, and buy insurance.
If the family has 6 kids, Malkin et al will wonder why they didn’t stop at 5. If they had 5, they’d rail about wantonly having more than 4. If they only have 4, wingers will bitch about the perfect number is 3; more than that is irresponsible. If she had an abortion in the past to avoid more kids, god knows what they’d say then. If she’s on birth control to avoid more kids, they’ll rip her for that.
Get the point? If doesn’t fucking matter who the Dems “vetted”, Malkin and her crew will trash anyone for anything.
Not the Senator
“Actually, I don’t think this proves that McConnell’s office was the genesis for this. The email cites an existing blog swarm, so it came out after this started to heat up.”
Except that on Monday morning I don’t think there was yet a blogswarm. In fact, this email may have caused there to be one.
Dennis-SGMM
It’s more than a bit odd that the wingers, including their president, keep howling about “socialized medicine” at the same time that the Big Three U.S. automobile companies are cutting contracts with the UAW to relieve themselves of health care costs.
If the Republicans are really interested in changing their brand then it would seem that the interests of global competitiveness alone would cause them to champion universal, single-payer health care. Of course, that would necessitate their rethinking their position rather than baying reflexively like Pavlov’s dogs.
Pooh
Wasn’t McConnell’s office the one that came out and said “boy, we’re glad we didn’t get out front on this one” or something along those lines?
Alan
I love these GOP congressional aids. They really know how to help the party. The Martinez aid’s memo regarding Shiavo also did a bang up job.
Fe E
PoAT. (Post of ALL TIME.)
I knew it would occur on BJ, I just didn’t know when.
Rick Taylor
From the NY Times:
The one difference between what’s happened now and the Schaivo affair is unlike then, Republican congressman haven’t dived into the fray; it’s been a right wing blog phenomenon; so perhaps it won’t cost the party as much. It looks like it was a close call.
zmulls
That’s not exactly it. “Not vetted” by itself is not a smear. But the rest of that e-mail provides and/or passes a long a number of choice tidbits, all incorrect, that were intended for use by smear-ers. They make over $45K, they own commercial property, expensive house, private school, etc. — all the talking points we’ve heard from Rush Limbaugh on down (or up).
At the end of the e-mail you have the “vetted” comment, which lo and behold starts showing up in blog posts, troll comments and even CNN commentators (“Gosh, it sure looks like the Democrats didn’t do enough vetting…”)
The “vetting” comment is what nails it as disseminated information that has found its way into the blogswarm. It’s the “giveaway” that seems to point to official GOP participation in feeding information and talking points to the rest of the world, without McConnell voicing anything himself.
ICWUTHEDOOO
Er, maybe this link would be better:
http://www.comedycentral.com/motherload/index.jhtml?ml_video=76280
ThymeZone
Probably worth noting that the main driver behind this whole episode is the fact that Bush and the GOP are losing the PR battle on this veto.
If that weren’t the case, nobody would care about the Frosts.
J.A.F. Rusty Shackleford
I like to picture Jesus as a figure skater. He wears like a white outfit, and He does interpretive ice dances of my life’s journey.
lysias
icwhatudo’s original posting on Free Republic was Saturday Oct. 6 at 10:42:57 PM PDT, i.e., early Sunday morning Eastern time.
Stewart’s e-mail followed on Monday morning.
Alan
Again, the thread of idiocy and smear originates from a social conservative.
ThymeZone
The GOP established its vetting bona fides with Brownie and Harriet Miers and Bill Frist’s video diagnosis of Terri Schiavo and Bernard Kerik.
These credentials are impeccable, we cannot question these people.
RSA
I’ll just add that it’s a perfect concern troll line: Tell a bunch of lies and half-truths, and then say, “The Democrats certainly should have done better than this.”
NickM
“Icwhatudo’s Freeper home page says “Jesus rocks!” Does he mean “Jesus rocks” as in Jesus is rockin’? Or is he talking about rocks with pictures of Jesus on them… that you can use for stoning people.”
I think it means he smokes something called “Jesus rocks.”
Kevin Hayden
Since CNN repeated the claim today about ‘Democrats vetting’ it sounds like it lifted that verbatim from the email in question.
It’s obvious. And it’s not just an attack on the vetoed bill, it’s an attempt to roll back the SCHIP eligibility requirements, because 47 million uninsured Americans isn’t enough for McConnell and his minions. They want to add several million more Tiny Tims to their Christmas Misery List.
Kevin Hayden
McConnell’s office would have gone easier on the Frosts if they’d all smoked Marlboros.
Wilfred
First this happened:
Preemptive cya? Sounds like it. Same aide?
Punchy
I would LOVE to see the breakdown of the following:
1)What Congressman voted “NO”, and their state.
2)What state bennies the most from SCHIP
If I hadda hazard a guess, I’d guess Kentucky, Missy, Bama, Tenny, etc. are loaded with lower middies, and therefore use this quite extensively. If I had to hazard another guess, I’d wager their Reps and Sens voted against it.
But they’ll be re-elected, cuz, ya know, fags still cant marry.
Billy K
Give the bastards credit – they’re not just playing defense, they’re going for turnovers.
Mary
Can we kill and eat ICWUTHEDOOO for that mile-long link?
Jon H
Pb wrote: “No, but I saw on the blogs that his kitchen counter is made out of whale bone and inlaid with ivory.”
Only when he isn’t eating ham sammiches off the naked prostrate body of a young Thai boy.
jcricket
I completely agree and am reminded of the words of Pastor Neimoeller back in the 40s:
The inevitable result of the Republican smear machine is that there will be “no one left” that they won’t attempt to take down. I seem to remember some line about ” how all that’s required for evil to flourish is for good men to do nothing”. Not standing up to these bullies is what allows them to flourish.
Mary
Oh, well. There will be only tea for tea, kiddies. ICWUTHEDOOO has been spared.
The Other Steve
That really got me. Here we’ve been talking about this for two days, and CNN comes out today to report the Monday version of the news?
As Krista pointed out, Time has something up on their website today noting the real story. CNN and Time are part of the same company. How can they be that far out of touch!?
The Other Steve
The Rush Limbaugh era of Republicanism has been to ratchet up the partisanship, so that people get tired of politics…. so that they stop bothering to vote.
Then the wingers can come in, declare themselves with winner with 51% of the vote.
That’s what it was all about… Limbaugh, the nastiness and so on… it was all about driving down voter turnout.
I’ll take a swipe at the democrats… they do something similar which pisses me off. Any right-winger comes to town and they have to go out and protest so that they can shout them down and halt the debate.
This came up recently when Columbia invited Mahwhatchamacallit. The wingers pointed out that last year the head of the Minuteman tried to speak at Columbia and was shouted down and had to be escorted out by security.
Let people speak! By their own words they condemn themselves.
If you feel a need to protest, take a pill and sleep it off.
jcricket
I like to picture Jesus as a mischievous badger.
Punchy
Nah. Jesus was a mob boss. Dude had a ton of followers, who did whatever he asked them. When he declared, “you’re healed!”, mofos looked up in shock and said, “uh…yeah…sure”. He shook down bakeries for bread and fresh markets for fish (when in the Bible was he ever without either? Not possible,unless he’s in the bread and fish racket). He was offed on a bullshit technicality by those that feared his power.
Don Christ, I’m telling ya.
ThymeZone
I think of Jesus as a business agent. He will make you a deal with the Divine Authorities in return for putting his name on the rear window of your car, or sending cash to some guy with big hair in Tulsa, OK.
Bubblegum Tate
I think of Jesus as a Rodney Dangerfield character. He sorta coasts through life shooting zingers at everybody, then saying, “Hey, you’re a good sport, you’re alright with me” and curing their leprosy.
Urbaniak
“…maybe Dad should drop his woodworking hobby and get a real job that offers health insurance rather than making people like me (also with 4 kids in a 600sf smaller house and tuition $16,000 less per kid and no commercial property ownership) pay for it in my taxes” – icwhatudo on Graeme Frost’s father
http://good-times.webshots.com/photo/1078223783040384252HWniQW
As the above linked photo of icwhatudo “freeping” Hillary Clinton’s 2003 book tour clearly shows, the self-proclaimed working family man has the free time and disposable income to travel around playing “protest rally” at the drop of a hat. His lily-white sneakers indicate a man who hires others to do his yard work and his well-fed physique suggests someone who eats well. Too well.
The meticulously hand-lettered sign is indicative of the kind of graphic arts training only available at expensive metropolitan art schools. (Would it have killed icwhatudo to allow one of his four children to hand-letter the sign? Maybe Dad should drop his selfish hobbies and involve the family once in a while.) And what’s that enormous bulge in his left pocket? A cash-filled wallet? An elaborate hand-held device? Both? The working fathers I know spend their weekends at home and lavish their extra income on their children. icwhatudo’s only concession to fiscal restraint appears to be forgoing socks, a choice that puts him at risk for catching cold. But selfishness and irresponsibility are par for the course for this preening, play-acting man of privilege.
Zifnab
Jesus was a 9th level cleric. He wanted to do a Nazarith run, and spent years putting together a twelve man raid. But hours before the run, he got totally ganked by Judas and aggro’d a mob of Pharisees and it was all down hill from there. In the end, he got totally crucified. He’s been powerleveling for the last 2000 years, and one day he promises to return to run the most epic raid of all times, right before he totally crashes the server.
lysias
Urbaniak’s photo of icwhatudo was taken at the Costco in Alexandria VA in 2003. Just the sort of place where a congressional staffer might live.
Evilbeard
Zifnab, you are now my hero. Will you run me through heroic Galilee? I am revered!