With James O'Keefe's recent "punking" of National Public Radio, and the Republicans' determination to use the since discredited tape to defund the news organization, it bears repeating that this O'Keefe character is the same con artist who concocted the since discredited ACORN video, the since discredited Planned Parenthood video, and who works for the conniving fraudster who concocted the since discredited Shirley Sherrod video.
In spite of the fact that each of those "videos" was exposed as a lie, what do they have in common? They each accomplished their goal, that's what. Thanks to gullible, stenographic journalism by the mainstream media, which publicized the videos far and wide but only mumbled the retraction, ACORN is no more, Planned Parenthood has lost its federal funding, Shirley Sherrod was fired (and treated so poorly that when chastened officials offered her her job back she said "no thanks"). What a disaster the whole thing was.
Now, I know what you're saying...How is it this James O'Keefe character isn't in jail, let alone free to ply his deceitful trade at the expense of so-called liberal institutions from sea to shining sea? Why is this peach-fuzzed piece of garbage still taken seriously by anyone, particularly media outlets who've been played for suckers a few too many times now.
Let's do a little comparative treatment analysis. Recall the railroading of legendary newsman Dan Rather? After it was revealed that he'd been duped into using a forged document to support the generally accepted idea that George W. Bush went AWOL when he was in the National Guard, Rather's goose was cooked. Now, few people with an open mind would argue that the basic facts of the story were not true: George W. Bush was absent without leave and short on explanations. But that one fake piece of paper, a mere scrap in a heap of evidence, ended up discrediting the whole story and bringing Dan Rather's career to a quick and ignominious end. He's still the subject of scorn and ridicule to this very day.
Contrast that with this James O'Keefe character, who's barely old enough to buy a beer but has brought down ACORN, choked off one of Planned Parenthood's key funding sources and helped push Shirley Sherrod into the private sector. And lest we let O'Keefe off the hook there, let's review two of his failed attempts at ridiculous, offensive and most likely illegal schemes.
Recall that it was O'Keefe and a couple of his fraternity brothers partners-in-crime who dressed up like telephone repairmen and tried to bug the offices of a United States senator. They got busted for that little stunt, and why they're not all in jail we'll never know. Additionally, and in perhaps the most narcissistic and nauseating put-on ever, O'Keefe plotted to "seduce" a young, up-and-coming CNN reporter by tricking her into joining him on a boat, whereupon he planned to have his way with her. The correspondent, Abbie Boudreau, sussed out that something wasn't right about the arrangement and high-tailed it out of there, posting this Youtube video from her car as she left.
For my money, the Abbie Broudreau plot is the most sickening of all, because what it lacks in class and dignity it more than makes up for in boorishness and misogyny. Depending on how far he planned to take his "seductive" ruse, he could easily have been treading into kidnapping and sexual assault territory. Happily, Abbie Boudreau is fine, although she is no longer on CNN, and if his track record is any indication, that was probably James O'Keefe's objective all along.
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