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OKPNS has been aware for some time now that anti-Randy Terrill forces were peddling some negative spin regarding a personal bankruptcy filing in 2005. The story broke on a Democrat bulletin board, and that was good enough for drive-by bloggers and print reporters to immediately began the super-heated pursuit.
As any regular reader of this blog knows, we are often critical of the Oklahoma press, specifically the capitol press, for their zealous prosecution of a case when the targets are conservatives, and their indolent and lazy attitude toward stories when it appears the offending parties are “progressives.” Ed Kelley probably didn’t sleep last night, quivering with excitement about those anti-Terrill editorials he gets to write. We’re thinking that this story may trump that sensational follow-up story about Dirty Harry Coates insinuating a phony computer hack job to cover-up his losing those documents last session, but we digress.
Rep. Terrill has cultivated many enemies in his HB 1804 effort. The drive-by Oklahoma City media, the same bunch that has looked past worst transgressions by the likes of Mike Turpen and Coates, is reporting the bankruptcy story with manifest glee. The Associated Press is jacked up enough to actually file two stories. Major television stations are reading the AP wire copy, but Terrill quotes are few and far between.
Here’s what we know thus far: the bumbling anti-1804 cartel that Terrill thwarted this past legislative session is NOT responsible for this last-minute bankruptcy ‘revelation.’ Multiple sources tell OKPNS that a group of immigration lawyers have been hustling the information like cheap porn in a plain brown wrapper, complete with ’spin’ regarding some so-called ‘irregularities’ in the filing. Terrill has denied any wrongdoing, but reports are the trustee in the bankruptcy case felt pressure, and now he’s logging more press time than Brent Rinehart.
Bankruptcy filings are not hard to discover, but the capitol press corps and the anti-1804 cartel headed by the incompetent Coates couldn’t and didn’t do it. The Terrill story has been prepared by a group of immigration lawyers, hell bent on overturning the law. They believe a last minute smear of Terrill will further that goal, and they’ve done the dirty work for the press and even prepared for them a story line, all without going on the record, and with incredibly suspicious timing. You know, just like they teach you in journalism school!
The bankruptcy is a legitimate item for public discussion, but the timing and the pre-fabricated story line smells like a last-minute campaign hatchet job. That hasn’t stopped the Oklahoma City press from swallowing the stink bait hook, line and sinker. We readily agree that the story about a high-profile public official deserves to be heard, but the hustlers of this information purposefully waited until the last minute to bring this to the attention of the public in a manner befitting an old Soviet Union spy, but the Oklahoma City press was ready to buy anything that harms Terrill. Caution, be damned!
Because of the suspicious-to-all-but-the-press timing, some restraint and care should have been exercised, but that wouldn’t fit into the press agenda, now would it? Somewhere Edward R. Murrow is rolling over in his grave!
We’ll be watching for the next set of stories the immigration lawyers, er, rather the press writes in the next few days.
DEVELOPING……
4 Comments
1. Colt Kreeger replies at 22nd July 2008, 2:47 pm :
I know of Turpin’s transgressions, but what “transgressions” are you referring to about Sen. Coates? The fact that he disagrees with 1804, and tried to get it repealed is not a “transgression.” Just the facts, OKPNS. Don’t lump Coates and Turpin together just because you don’t like the man’s views or perfectly legal attempts to repeal 1804.
2. F. Krueger replies at 22nd July 2008, 7:05 pm :
Ed Kelley thought he had a pubic hair, until he peed out of it. Hey, Mr. Kelley, Donald Trump called. He wants his hair back.
3. Editor replies at 22nd July 2008, 7:25 pm :
I know of Turpin’s transgressions, but what “transgressions” are you referring to about Sen. Coates?
How about filing a false police report for one!!!!!!
4. The_real_powerbroker replies at 24th July 2008, 10:42 am :
Randy may be leading a good cause, but you don’t get into politics if you don’t want your dirty laundry exposed. Additionally, don’t get all mad when it’s exposed.
Of course it’s bad timing. It’s done that way on purpose. Repubs are just a guilty as Dems for playing this game. No is above it.
The onus should not be on the people who found it and exposed it, the onus should be on Randy to not do the stupid thing of filing for Bankruptcy and not reports a loan to the campaign.
If Randy meant it to be a reimbursement, then he should have done it that way. But he reported it as a loan. And he should have reported it to his Trustee. It’s that simple.
Second, the first rule in campaigning is to identify all of your weaknesses, and anything that can potenetially used against you. A proper opp research would have identified this and Randy could have innoculated himself by exposing the problem himself or at least fixing it.
Randy has a history of doing whatever, and using whatever to accomplish his goals with no regard to his own party, let alone his colleagues. Now he may have changed his ways, but fate has a way of getting its revenge on one’s past behaviors.
Campaigns are a dirty business. I know everyone says it shouldn’t, but it is for one reason and one reason only: Negative campaigning works. I promise you if it wasn’t effective, no one would do it.
I’ll leave you with a quote from the famous philosopher, Ice T…
“Don’t hate the Playa, hate the Game!”
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