What Politico’s Shira Toeplitz DIDN’T Write About Louisiana’s Senate Race
Long time readers of Lincoln Parish News Online (LPNO) know of our time-tested theorem of how more information often can be gleaned by things that ARE NOT revealed, rather than by what IS revealed. Who WASN’T at the meeting; what WASN’T said in the interview; who DIDN’T run for office; what the news article DIDN’T say – and so forth.
We have as the tagline of our newsblog: “What isn’t in the newspapers is often more newsworthy that what is.”
That theorem was again proved yesterday when Shira Toeplitz of Politico.com posted her hit piece on Sen. David Vitter.
What WASN’T in Toeplitz’s Article
This past Tuesday afternoon we received a call from Ms. Toeplitz wanting to interview us about the Louisiana Senate Race. Sure, we said. We’re in the news and opinion business and would be happy to oblige.
Her first question involved the so-called birther movement and the fact that Vitter mentioned the issue at a recent campaign event. We told Toplitz that we didn’t have any particular problem with Vitter’s comments and that many people felt that there was a “there” there on whether or not the President was a natural-born citizen.
She asked were we supporters of Vitter. We said, sure he had one of the most conservative voting records in the Senate and that he very much reflected our view on smaller government and less taxes.
Next, our conversation touched on the primary challenge of Vitter by former State Supreme Court Justice Chet Traylor. We told her that in our opinion Traylor was not known outside the relatively sparsely populated area of Northeast Louisiana and that he had little chance of success.
We noted that Traylor’s campaign manager is Lev Dawson, a close political ally of notorious State Sen. Francis Thompson. And that’s a lot of political baggage to tote, we said.
We also mentioned that if Traylor tried to make an issue of Vitter’s alleged marital problems of a decade ago, then Traylor would open himself up to the same charges.
Toeplitz told us she had an on-the-record interview with State Rep. Noble Ellington earlier, where Ellington went into detail about that very issue.
Toeplitz chose not to write about that in her article.
Toeplitz also failed to include in her article any mention of her interview with Bibb Franklin of Rayville, a long-time conservative activist. Franklin told Toeplitz much the same thing we did – in his opinion, Traylor wouldn’t get much support and that Vitter had his base pretty much sewed up.
We called Toeplitz and Poltico’s Executive Editor Jim VandeHei to see if they wanted to comment on this news story. Neither had returned our phone call by post time.
Who Gets to Say What is News
Used to, when big-city newspaper or the TV networks did a story and told only part of the story, we conservatives just had to sit and stew. We had no way to correct the record.
That’s all changed with this new interweb thingy.
Appropriate here is this quote from New York Times columnist David Carr from a couple of years ago:
“I was taught when I was a young reporter that it’s news when we say it is. I think that’s still true — it’s news when ‘we’ say it is. It’s just who ‘we’ is has changed.”
According to the Politico hit piece, Chet’s motivation for challenging David is based largely on the scandals. Seriously???
According to the Politico hit piece, Chet’s motivation for challenging David is based largely on the scandals. Seriously???
[...] with Walter, though, was never mentioned in her piece. He’s got an article at his site and reprinted here which more or less explains why – namely, that while Vitter’s Republican challenger [...]
I never saw Chet Traylor forced to hold a press conference to try and explain how his phone number showed up on a prostitution ring phone list.
I never saw Chet Traylor forced to hold a press conference to try and explain how his phone number showed up on a prostitution ring phone list.
Chet Traylor is by NO means an angel, just ask State Rep. Noble Ellington Jr and his son, Noble Ellington III. Growing up in Quachita, my family has had business dealings with the Traylors and the Ellingtons, all good and profitable, but the way Chet "backdoored" the Ellington's family life (Noble's wife and Noble III's ex-wife) is atrocious. Everyone in Northeast Louisiana knows that Chet is a self-serving snake backed by a crooked sweet potato farmer and corrupt politicians intent on making a mockery of the Republican Party in Louisiana.
Chet Traylor is by NO means an angel, just ask State Rep. Noble Ellington Jr and his son, Noble Ellington III. Growing up in Quachita, my family has had business dealings with the Traylors and the Ellingtons, all good and profitable, but the way Chet "backdoored" the Ellington's family life (Noble's wife and Noble III's ex-wife) is atrocious. Everyone in Northeast Louisiana knows that Chet is a self-serving snake backed by a crooked sweet potato farmer and corrupt politicians intent on making a mockery of the Republican Party in Louisiana.
Big difference is the Chet Traylor stories are nothing more than intenet gossip, while David "Family Values" Vitter was forced to publicly apologize for being mixed up in the DC Madame affair.
When someone has something more than "I heard Chet Traylor [file in the blank" nonsense, their respective pasts will continue to be night and day.
Big difference is the Chet Traylor stories are nothing more than intenet gossip, while David "Family Values" Vitter was forced to publicly apologize for being mixed up in the DC Madame affair.
When someone has something more than "I heard Chet Traylor [file in the blank" nonsense, their respective pasts will continue to be night and day.
Let's be perfectly clear. A vote for ANYONE besides Vitter in either the primary, or the general election, is a vote for Melancon, Obama, Harry Reid, and Nancy Pelosi. It is time you red necks stopped cutting off your nose to spit your face. Who cares who Vitter slept with or what war hero he kept around too long. He voted my way (conservative) 100% of the time. That, and only that is what I voted for him to do.
Let's be perfectly clear. A vote for ANYONE besides Vitter in either the primary, or the general election, is a vote for Melancon, Obama, Harry Reid, and Nancy Pelosi. It is time you red necks stopped cutting off your nose to spit your face. Who cares who Vitter slept with or what war hero he kept around too long. He voted my way (conservative) 100% of the time. That, and only that is what I voted for him to do.
I agree with SouthLA: He voted my way 100% of the time. He didn't make any closed door meetings, make any backdoor deals, didn't lie to me about where he wanted the country to go. I will take someone like him (with his scars) over Landrieu, Melancon, or Traylor any day of the week. At least he is honest about hHIS transgressions….and I figure his failing is between he and his wife. The others screwed ALL of us.
I agree with SouthLA: He voted my way 100% of the time. He didn't make any closed door meetings, make any backdoor deals, didn't lie to me about where he wanted the country to go. I will take someone like him (with his scars) over Landrieu, Melancon, or Traylor any day of the week. At least he is honest about hHIS transgressions….and I figure his failing is between he and his wife. The others screwed ALL of us.
Wow, so logic here is that a vote for even another Republican in a closed GOP Primary is a vote for Obama and Melancon? How does that work?
In this climate where pretty much any Republican could beat an Obama-supporting Democrat in a Louisiana Senate race, the best the GOP can come up with is still running the GOP incumbent who has a hooker scandal?
Wow, so logic here is that a vote for even another Republican in a closed GOP Primary is a vote for Obama and Melancon? How does that work?
In this climate where pretty much any Republican could beat an Obama-supporting Democrat in a Louisiana Senate race, the best the GOP can come up with is still running the GOP incumbent who has a hooker scandal?
So Vitter can do anything, betray anyone, lie, cheat and steal, so long as he has a conservative voting record, he's our guy?
Sorry, I am not a mindless follower. All of you Jonestowners do not speak for me.
Vitter is a fraud, plane and simple.
So Vitter can do anything, betray anyone, lie, cheat and steal, so long as he has a conservative voting record, he's our guy?
Sorry, I am not a mindless follower. All of you Jonestowners do not speak for me.
Vitter is a fraud, plane and simple.
[...] would cast him as the good-guy alternative to Vitter’s black hat. It largely corroborates the words of our Walter Abbott, who first stated Traylor’s issues with marital infidelity last week, and fleshes out in [...]
[...] there was no discussion of Traylor’s having broken up two marriages with adulterous behavior, or his chummy relationships with the personal injury attorneys and liberal Democrats who [...]