Those who follow Minnesota politics know that a video camera can be a dangerous weapon when placed in the hands of New Ulm Journal reporter Josh Moniz.
Unfortunately, radical Islamophobe Brigitte Gabriel seemed to have taken the metaphor literally last night when she asked Moniz, 2013 Minnesota Newspaper Association "New Journalist of the Year," not to tape her presentation in Mankato, sponsored by the Southern Minnesota Tea Party.
Unlike her Monday night speech at the Little Falls public high school, the Mankato event drew no objection from the Council on American-Islamic Relations, Minnesota (CAIR-MN), since the tea party organizers booked the event at a private location.
Indeed, Moniz tweeted that "Tea Party organizers said CAIR reps had a good conversation w/ them at event, watched until Gabriel started accusing the org[anization]"
The journalist wasn't allowed to capture the event on videotape, however pleasant it might have been. Moniz tweeted:
Gabriel told me I cant shoot video. Said not cuz speech, but cuz she is @ risk somebody hiding gun in camera & "shoot me w/ laser" #stribpol
— Josh Moniz (@Josh_Moniz) July 31, 2013
The twittersphere reacted accordingly:
.@Josh_Moniz Anyone who thinks lasers are hidden in cameras is batshit crazy. Spade = spade
— Jeff Kolb (@jpkolb) July 31, 2013
Moniz maintained his professionalism:
@jpkolb In fairness, it may have been a joke. But is unclear and gun in camera worry seems....odd
— Josh Moniz (@Josh_Moniz) July 31, 2013
But the "gun" in the camera wasn't the only odd thing coming out of Gabriel's mouth:
Gabriel: We need one language, one border, one nation. ...Should have English as official language. #stribpol
— Josh Moniz (@Josh_Moniz) July 31, 2013
Note: her statement came right after declaring cant call her racist/islamophobe unless you can debate her in her native tongue #stribpol
— Josh Moniz (@Josh_Moniz) July 31, 2013
And there were these peculiar claims:
Gavriel: ACLU being used as useful idiot by radical Islamists #stribpol
— Josh Moniz (@Josh_Moniz) July 31, 2013
Gabriel/Act claim they are responsible for TiZa being investigated and charged #stribpol
— Josh Moniz (@Josh_Moniz) July 31, 2013
Given the fact that the ACLU sued TiZA, a charter school that was criticized for using public education dollars for religion instruction, Gabriel seems to want to have it both ways.
Bluestem looked in Nexis and online to see if ACT! or Gabriel had any significant role in the TiZA controversy. Doesn't look like it. Concerns about the charter school were first raised by conservative Star Tribune columnist Katherine Kersten; her concerns prompted an investigation and subsequent lawsuit on the part of the American Civil Liberties Union in Minnesota. Perhaps the most thorough examination of the lawsuit is found in the Powerline-praised City Pages article by Gregory Pratt, The Truth About TiZA. ACT! doesn't rate a mention, and given Pratt's characteristic doggedness as a reporter, it's unlikely that ACT! had any part in the lawsuit if it's not in his story.
Rather than an "expert" about anything, Gabriel seems like an opportunist, seizing on snippets of news to rile those who want to be riled.
The irony of Gabriel not wanting to be videotaped by a respected member of Minnesota's rural press corps is fairly entertaining. Bluestem looks forward to Moniz's coverage, because the enterprising young reporter tweeted that he may have gotten access to video of the event:
I might have a line on getting video of the Gabriel event despite being told I had to shut my video off. #stribpol
— Josh Moniz (@Josh_Moniz) July 31, 2013
Like Pratt, Moniz tends to fact-check claims made by those he's covering. We look forward to reading his report when it appears in the New Ulm Journal.
UPDATE (h/t The Blotter)
Josh has tweeted a photo of his suspicious flip cam (of jihadist doom!)
For the record from last night, this was the Flip camera I was asked to shut off over gun concerns #stribpol pic.twitter.com/dX82b3UZ30
— Josh Moniz (@Josh_Moniz) July 31, 2013
He also gave a friendly nod to the free speech impulses of last night's hosts:
Also, the Tea Party organizers were very nice & willing to answer question. They thought I would be allowed to shoot and apologized about it
— Josh Moniz (@Josh_Moniz) July 31, 2013
Photo: Brigitte Gabriel, Islamophobe and free speech warrior, except when it comes to that gun New Ulm Journal reporter Josh Moniz might have concealed in his video camera.
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