BY TAYLOR MARSH
Updated (and bumped), includes Stein’s *slipped in* appended text
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| We have a no profanity on the front page rule around here, but this one is so outrageous that it inspires me to break my own rules. My apologies to the faint-hearted. |
I in no way have anything whatsoever to do with the narrative being pushed
in Sam
Stein’s post over at Huffington Post. Stop.
Whatever my readers are doing is their
business. I am in no way involved. Stop.
Ms Marsh, I believe I may have been the SD emailer who got your name envolved (sic). I emailed last night using addresses on the blog. I wrote my email myself and receieved many snotty replies that stunned me. I stopped emailing but received a second email from Sam Stein (Huffington). He asked if I was working WITH the Clinton campaign to contact SD’s. I was worried that if I did not answer it would reflect bad on Hillary so I told him I was among lots of bloggers on Taylor Marsh and that we were doing the emails out of enthusiasm for Hillary. I can send you all this by email if you want it. At any rate I am sorry if this effected your credibility, I didn’t mean that, I just didn’t want to hurt Hillary. I thought I should tell you this so you can decide if you think I was the cause of this mess and so you could handle it as you think best. … Sincerely, Shirley Luther via email
Mr. Stein would have found this out if he’d bothered
to contact me for comment, which he did not. Obviously, his agenda was more
important than reporting the full story, the facts and the truth. Quite frankly,
I had more respect for Arianna than this and am saddened the Huffington Post
has stooped to this level of nonsense.
That Mr. Stein contacted the Clinton campaign for comment, but no one bothered to contact
me is typical these days. It’s further proof that many do not care what happens
after the nominee is selected. Never mind that Sam’s narrative and the Huffington
Post blasting it, without the full story, will make everyone’s job even harder
and the possibility of coming together in any meaningful manner more difficult. It also infers quite a different role for me,
which is in no way connected to my readers’ goal.
But to be clear, as I’ve said in my latest posts on the subject, here and here, I’m not involved in any campaign to write or “threaten” superdelegates,
or in pushing a vote for John McCain. Sam Stein seems not to care, which has
brought an onslaught of angry emails to my inbox, which I’m used to, and never mind that Same Stein and Huffington
Post totally misrepresent my part in it all by giving a false impression
that I’m involved. Again, I am not.
If Sam or the Huffington Post cared about the truth, or about trying to bring
Democrats together eventually, as well as Clinton supporters in to fight against
a McCain presidency, someone over there would have given me the courtesy of
an email. Instead, they offered this drivel, without any comment
from me:
The Clinton campaign did not return a request for comment as to whether it
was behind the email campaign. One author said that she was responding not
to the senator’s staff, but to commenters on the blog of Taylor Marsh, a committed
supporter of the New York Democrat whose readers had gotten a hold of a list
of email addresses.It was a ‘spur of the moment’ idea brought about by a blog (Taylor Marsh),”
explained Shirley Luther, a Texas Democrat who threatened to vote for McCain
should Obama be the nominee. “Tonight several of our bloggers came up
with the idea of writing the super delegates. Someone on the blog found a
list of emails and posted it…. Everything I wrote is the truth about my
political background. The exit polls show I am not alone in refusing to vote
for Obama and opting to McCain. This probably would not be possible if there
was any other Republican running. But there are a lot of moderate Democrats
who do respect his service.” … ..Clinton
Supporters Send Last-Ditch Obama Attack Emails To Supers
When someone states that a campaign to target superdelegates was a “‘spur
of the moment’ idea brought about by a blog (Taylor Marsh),” I don’t
think it’s too much to ask if Sam Stein, the author of the post where this is
quoted, actually reach out to get my take on what some Texas Democrat is saying.
“Brought about by a blog (Taylor Marsh)” implies my blog is involved.
It may be, but only to the extent that it’s commenters who are engaging in this
action, which is their right, by the way. However, again, I am not.
Sam
Stein and the Huffington Post should amend this post immediately
to include my denial on the subject. We’ll see if that happens.
Again, I am in no way involved in this “last-ditch obama attack emails
to supers” campaign.
I do, however, remain a proud supporter of Hillary Clinton. Harry Truman would never
desert his friends. Hillary Clinton is still in this race and until she gets
out or Obama gets the requisite number to capture the nomination, which he hasn’t
done yet, I’ve got her back. I come from the tenacity wing of the Democratic
party. If we had more members we wouldn’t lose so many national elections.
Sam Stein’s post further illustrates the ignorance in alienating Clinton supporters to the point that Obama can never bring them in. We already know that blue-collar workers are not important to them and that they think they can win the general without them, or I should say us. But alienating the biggest sole proprietor blogger supporting Hillary Clinton on the web is not a good way to try to bridge the divide Democrats are currently experiencing. It’s a huge mistake. To say that Sam and the Huffington Post just made my job to do so more difficult is an understatement.
So one more time with feeling and for the dense, singling out Sam Stein over
at the Huffington Post in particular, as well as the people in charge who allowed his irresponsible
nonsense to be posted without a comment from me, or at least the evidence of
some effort on his part to get a comment. If Obama is the nominee, which is
quite possible at this point, I simply cannot go from making the case against
him, which is very strong, to making the case for him. His supporters and fans
will have to do that. But I want no part of enabling another foreign policy,
military or national security disaster, which is where I base my vote. So, I
will do everything in my power to make the case against John McCain.
To repeat, I’m an American first, a Democrat second. Clinton is the only candidate
I believe in. But this country cannot withstand a McCain presidency. That’s
the bottom line. All against McCain it will be.
UPDATE II: “[Added Later]:” has now been added before the appended text, which you can find below.
UPDATE: I have called Colin, my contact at Huffington Post, someone who has always been gracious and helpful to me, to express my complete and utter dissatisfaction with Sam’s post. Soon after I got a request for my phone number, then a call from Sam Stein. Frankly, he was a little at a loss for words, except to make excuses. He did, however, take a moment to express his appreciation for the graphic above. I informed him that he would never have behaved this way to any of the male bloggers in his pack, which I believe is absolutely true. He continued to offer excuses, that it was a commenter, that he did try to reach the Clinton camp, etc. But you invoked my blog in a way to infer I might be involved, plus quoted one of my commenters, but didn’t contact me? I asked. He admitted he maybe should have and then said they would append the post. He said he called to see if I wanted to say anything else or to blast him. I told him that since he didn’t have the respect for me to contact me in the first place, I had no intention of talking further to him. He interrupted me several times saying we can have a conversation on this. I said we could have if he’d had the courtesy to contact me at the start, then said the conversation was over. I was curt. I wasn’t in the mood to hear some excuse why he didn’t do his job in the first place, especially since he was not owning up to his mistake like a professional.
BUT GET THIS… Sam did indeed append his post. BUT, he slipped in the appended text WITHOUT NOTATION, like it was present from the start. Hacktacular in the extreme. Here’s the appended text, which Sam slid in so that no one would know it wasn’t there from the start, including that there was ever a dispute to begin with. Unbelievable. No, strike that. Very believable at this point.
Taylor Marsh denied any involvement in the affair, saying her readers and commenters were responsible for their own actions.
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