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Midterms Jump Shark: Handcuffed Reporter, Canadian Terrorists, East Germany as Role Model

1 year ago
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Jill Lawrence
Jill Lawrence
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All election seasons get pretty strange toward the end, but this one will be hard to top.

I just can't quite believe this video of a journalist handcuffed by security forces for Alaska Senate candidate Joe Miller. The man, Alaska Dispatch editor Tony Hopfinger, had tried to ask Miller an unpleasant question after a campaign event -- a publicly advertised town meeting -- in a middle school. The video was shot by another journalist, Richard Mauer of the Anchorage Daily News, whom the security forces were trying to kick out for trespassing.

Almost overlooked: Miller had told the town meeting, held in Anchorage on Sunday, that East Germany should be a model for the United States when it comes to enforcing border security.

On Monday, Miller told CNN that he had been disciplined for violating ethics policy when he was a part-time lawyer for Fairbanks North Star Borough. (He used his government computer for politics). That was the issue Hopfinger had been asking Miller about when security guards handcuffed him and called the cops. (I've covered presidential and congressional politics for decades, and I've never seen anything like that.)

Meanwhile, in Washington, Canadian Ambassador Gary Doer was asking Nevada Senate candidate Sharron Angle to "set the record straight" after saying that terrorists come into the United States from Canada. The request in a letter he sent Monday came 10 days after the mayor of Dearborn, Mich., took Angle to task for saying Sharia (Muslim religious law) was in force in his city. He called her remark "shameful" and "totally irresponsible."

The northern terrorists comment came during a meeting Angle held last week with Hispanic high school students upset about an Angle TV ad. Since pulled for copyright reasons, it featured a photo of Mexicans and made largely debunked claims that Democrat Harry Reid supported tax breaks and Social Security benefits for "illegal aliens."

According to video posted by commentator Jon Ralston, Angle told the teens that "I don't know that all of you are Latino. Some of you look a little more Asian to me." She also said, puzzlingly, that "I've been called the first Asian legislator in our Nevada State Assembly." Ralston got the explanation: A reporter once said she looks Asian.

The part of the conversation that irked Doer, the Canadian ambassador, was first disclosed by AP. It was when Angle told the teens: "I'm not sure that those are Latinos in that commercial. What it is, is a fence and there are people coming across that fence. What we know is that our northern border is where the terrorists came through. That's the most porous border that we have. We cannot allow terrorists, we cannot allow anyone to come across our border if we don't know why they're coming. So, we have to secure all of our borders and that's what that was about, is border security."

Okay, I haven't yet said the two words, but here they are: Tea Party (which put Angle and Miller where they are). And two more words: "Prime time." As in, not ready for. Which is not to be confused with "can't win." Just another reason this election year is, um, different.
Tagged: 2010 Elections, 2010 Senate Elections, 2010 Senate Races, Alaska Elections, Alaska Senate Race, Alaska Senate Races, Joe Miller, Nevada Elections, Nevada Senate Race, Sharron Angle
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6 Comments

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AlanfL

Lets see eight years of Bush and Rove, lies, smears, two wars, debt out of sight Big oil, Big Business, Wall Street out of control. This is what we end up with, Tea Party people knowing nothing they are running for saying do it my way or else and using force to get their way. This is real progress Demcorats get out and vote

October 19 2010 at 5:23 PM Report abuse +1 rate up rate down Reply
rohlemeyer

Hey, how about Hinchey in New York grabbing a reporter? Or doesn't that count because he's a Democrat and therefore must be justified in doing so?

October 19 2010 at 12:06 PM Report abuse -3 rate up rate down Reply
truthforfreedom

I'm so over reading every tiny little detailed account of what Republicans are doing, or saying. It is falling by the boards. The constant attempt at smearing all of them. It borderlines insanity. Talk of fear mongering and hate mongering. This is it.

October 19 2010 at 11:35 AM Report abuse -2 rate up rate down Reply
2 replies to truthforfreedom's comment
Diane

Well, then tell the republicans to stop acting crazy.

October 19 2010 at 1:24 PM Report abuse +6 rate up rate down Reply
Tom

Well, now isnt' that the pot calling the kettle black after 8 years of "fear this, fear that and fear them and those"????

October 19 2010 at 1:41 PM Report abuse +1 rate up rate down Reply
T

You fail to state the fact, admitted by Hopfinger, that he pushed (read: assaulted) one of Miller's security guards before being detained.

October 19 2010 at 9:58 AM Report abuse -2 rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to T's comment
Tom

Correctly stated your comment should read "pushed back after being pushed"!!!

October 19 2010 at 1:39 PM Report abuse +3 rate up rate down Reply

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