Sunday, May 30, 2010

Standard-Examiner: Criminal Investigation of Independent Political Consultant Expands in Davis County

Mr. Minson's mouthpiece claims to be taking the high road in defense of his client... after smearing those investigating his client first

By Curmudgeon

My my my. While I always enjoy watching Utah Republicans roil around in the slingable mud that seems to be their natural environment, beyond that, this story raises some interesting questions. Can it really be illegal in Utah.... the home of Karl Rove!... for campaign workers to knowingly circulate false rumors about their candidates' opponents? Lying illegal in campaigns? A criminal offense? In Utah?
Criminal investigation of independent political consultant expands in Davis County
And is this a First Amendment matter, as Mr. Minson's mouthpiece, Attorney Jay T. Jorgensen, claims, trying to shield his client by draping him in the Bill of Rights? Does the First Amendment protect a consultant's right to knowingly circulate false rumors to benefit his candidate? Can campaigners lie with impunity in the pursuit of office, safe from criminal prosecution for so doing? And if the First Amendment does not protect dishonest statements in campaigns, what exactly would be the mechanism for determining what was a false rumor, what was a lie? Would passing on rumors labeled as rumors, not established fact, be enough to shield the consultant from prosecution? Who would decide and by what standard?

And if the First Amendment does protect a campaign consultant who circulates false rumors, is there no way the public can protect the integrity [such as it is] of the electoral process?

This could be a very interesting case to watch.

And forgive me if I am a little leery of Mr. Minson's mouthpiece's claim to be taking the high road in defense of his client. He states that "neither he nor his client will comment further at this point." Uh huh. But he said that only after making sure he smeared those investigating his client first: "We wonder if it's a political vendetta, " he told the Standard Examiner. Then he clammed up. Imagine that....

4 comments:

RudiZink said...

Thanks, for the submission Curm. And after a little googling, we find that this Jay T. Jorgensen mouthpiece guy is quite an interesting piece of work:

Jay Jorgensen - radical Conservative in spin overdrive

Gotta admit I loved this paragraph:

Besides the influence of Lee, Jorgensen's desire to "have some spiritual grounding in the law" helped him choose BYU's Law School. "My own personal experience shows me that law school tends by its very nature to invite people to rely on their own reasoning and not on what I would call the Spirit," he says. "I thought I would get that at the J. Reuben Clark Law School - and, indeed, I did."

"Taliban Republicans?"

Don't rule it out.

Wow! said...

A masterpiece by Schwebke. Very watergate!

Dan Schroeder said...

I thought it was odd that they printed such a long article with so few facts. The big question is this: What exactly are the criminal charges that could potentially be brought against Mr. Minson? The article made no attempt to answer that question, instead presenting endless paragraphs of vague speculation and insinuation. I understand how the prosecutors aren't talking, but the reporters still could have interviewed an expert on Utah election law.

ozboy said...

The notion that Sheriff Cox was caught having sex in a patrol car is an absolute hoot! I mean the guy can barely get in a patrol car and when he does there would not be any room for anyone else. He weighs at least 400 pounds!

Also like rumors about Sheriff candidate Solomon are also beyond the bend, the guy is about as straight a shooter as you would ever likely find in these parts.

There is actually a lot of sleazy stuff going on in the Davis County GOP and has been for a long time. It is mostly a result of the incredible void existing between the ears of most county delegates who let the so called leadership lead them around by the nose. Just look at the people who have been elected from Davis County in recent years. Garn ain't the only bozo in these parts. By the way, Sherril Allen, our new Demo Lt. Gov candidate, has been one of the very few bright and honorable people in the Davis GOP in a very long time.

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