Ever since the Star Tribune was caught flat-footed by the "surprise" "upset" in Minnesota's First Congressional District--after months of reporting the Gutknecht line from Washington DC--we've been waiting for the paper to cover issues that the residents of the district care about.
Those fiery Iraq War forums this fall? Silence.
The economic summit in Austin this summer? Nada.
Concern about Walz's FISA votes? Nope.
No. Intrepid Strib reporter Mark Brunswick has discovered that the 4-pak is concerned about immigration (see posts going back to mid-September) two months after the Austin Daily Herald and the Rochester Post Bulletin reported about Dick Day's appearance at a Minuteman Forum--and nine days after we posted a picture of Day on the border.
In Illegal immigration emerges as key issue in First District race we read:
Day said his journey to the border was inspired after he attended a series of town meetings on immigration issues in Austin. About a month afterward, he got a call from the head of the Minuteman Project inviting him to the border. The weekend before Thanksgiving, Day flew to Tucson and drove a rented car to what is known as the Sasabe Corridor in Arizona, a roughly 10-mile-wide stretch of land between the San Luis and Baboquivari mountain
A curious news narrative, indeed, that the Star Tribune is developing here.
Does no one at the Star Tribune conduct the most rudimentary fact checking these days? Surely, a stroll with Mr. Google would turn up that Day was already talking about going to the Minuteman's operation at those town hall meetings back in September.
In September, the Austin Daily Herald reported:
Late in the two-hour meeting, state Sen. Dick Day, R-Owatonna, spoke to the reformists and was interrupted by cheers and applause.
Day, a candidate for the 1st Congressional District seat held by Democrat Rep. Tim Walz, has called for immigration reform and a physical border barrier in high-density population areas such as urban California.
Day also said he is going to the same Arizona ranch area where Branstner served to observe a Minuteman Project first-hand.
So which is it: the evidence in papers and online since September, or the new fairy tale in Brunswick's article?
Other than from the Day campaign itself, where does Brunswick get this stuff? He writes:
Immigration is a leading theme for other announced Republican candidates running to defeat Walz.
Land O' Goshen! Could it be that all of the 4-pak has attended candidate school in Washington DC, and is on the same press release list? Let's take a look at two boilerplate press releases we found that the NRCC put out after a couple of those gotcha amendments and motions to recommit (an example from another issue here at IDHA). We located two of them on the NRCC's site.
The NRCC attacked Pennsylvania Democrat Joe Sestak in a recent blast, while throwing in a note that the same press release went out to other districts:
FYI, a version of the release below went out to the following districts: Michael Arcuri (NY-24); Bruce Braley (IA-01); Joe Courtney (CT-02); Chet Edwards (TX-17); Darlene Hooley (OR-05); Steve Kagen (WI-08); Dave Loebsack (IA-02); Brad Miller (NC-13); Alan Mollohan (WV-01); Chris Murphy (CT-05); Earl Pomeroy (ND-al); Ciro Rodriguez (TX-23); Joe Sestak (PA-07); Carol Shea-Porter (NH-01); Bart Stupak (MI-01); Tim Walz (MN-01) and John Yarmuth (KY-03).
Joe Sestak Voted AGAIN to Allow Housing Assistance for Illegal ImmigrantsWashington- Joe Sestak seems to have a problem remembering who he represents in Washington.
Yep, the press in all those districts got the same cookie cutter press release from Washington DC, written by Beltway political operatives talking about how out of touch Sestak/Walz/ whomever is out of touch with the district. Did the person who wrote that ever set foot in Austin or Worthington or Kiester?
Here's another template:
FYI, a version of the release below went out to the following districts today: Jason Altmire (PA-04); Michael Arcuri (NY-24); Brian Baird (WA-03); John Barrow (GA-12); Melissa Bean (IL-08); Timothy Bishop (NY-01); Leonard Boswell (IA-03); Allen Boyd (FL-02); Nancy Boyda (KS-02); Bruce Braley (IA-01); Chris Carney (PA-10); Lincoln Davis (TN-04); Chet Edwards (TX-17); Gabrielle Giffords (AZ-08); Kirsten Gillibrand (NY-20); Bart Gordon (TN-06); John Hall (NY-19); Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (SD-AL); Paul Hodes (NH-02); Tim Holden (PA-17); Darlene Hooley (OR-05); Steve Kagen (WI-08); Ron Klein (FL-22); Nick Lampson (TX-22); Rick Larsen (WA-02); Dave Loebsack (IA-02); Tim Mahoney (FL-16); Jim Matheson (UT-02); Jerry McNerney (CA-11); Charlie Melancon (LA-03); Harry Mitchell (AZ-05); Dennis Moore (KS-03); Patrick Murphy (PA-08); Earl Pomeroy (ND-AL); Joe Sestak (PA-07); Carol Shea-Porter (NH-01); Zack Space (OH-18); Bart Stupak (MI-01); John Tanner (TN-08); Tim Walz (MN-01); Peter Welch (VT-AL); Charlie Wilson (OH-06) and John Yarmuth (KY-03).
Jerry McNerney Goes the Extra Mile for Illegal Immigrants
Washington- Casting aside the views and values of his district, Jerry McNerney is setting a dangerous pattern of voting for legislation that encourages illegal immigration, putting the needs of illegal immigrants and the Democrat leadership in the House over the American citizens he was elected to represent....
From the dateline "Washington," the NRCC tells its candidates which issues are important, after House Republicans force "gotcha" votes.
Then the four pack of candidates repeats the issue. Finally, the Star Tribune reports their choice as the important issue emerging in the district. (Well, maybe not Nick Coleman back in 2005).
Pretty tidy, and probably a lot cheaper than having someone read the district papers regularly or (gasp) go down and talk to people in the First. Work is a lot easier when there are press releases outlining the way the NRCC wants the story framed.
Did Dick Day send out a press release about his trip south? We'll be watching the district press to see how similar the stories are if this gets picked up in the district, and which editors are practicing press release journalism as lazily as the political editors at the Star Tribune.
BSP may run press releases, but we clearly identify them as such, rather than pretend we're reporting news. And, unlike Brunswick and his editors, we don't get paid here to imitate journalists coming with an angle, while actually uncritically adopting a talking point fed us by a committee in Washington.
Really, is this pathetic or not? Hope you forward this to the Star & Tribune.
Posted by: MN-01 Voter | November 30, 2007 at 10:01 AM