[cross posted at
Political Dogfight]
This was a Senator Kerry called Press/Blogger Teleconference for the endorsement of Patrick Murphy (PA-08) that quickly got very weird. Read on.
Senator Kerry made strong and vigorous statements supporting the former military professional Patrick Murphy. Patrick Murphy had served for 10 years in the military, was active duty after 9-11 while also teaching at West Point after turning stateside.
Both men called for a measured, cautious method of disengagement from Iraq. Mr. Murphy told of a captain in the Army that had been one of his students who recently gave him a private opinion.
It was this Iraq veterans opinion that the Iraqi troops would not begin to acept that they must fight until they know the US soldier will not be there to do it for them. As long as they can rely on 130,000 troops to do the same job...why should they, was that soldiers opinion?
[stick with me...it's going to get weird....]
Senator Kerry pointed out that his proferred solution, brought to the Senate a few weeks ago, had provisions for continued training of Iraq forces and an over the horizon attack capabiltiy if necessary. It was decidely not a method of simply immediately pulling out.
With the floor opened for questions, the national press asked a lot of questions which are too detailed to repeat. It's important to note however that The Washington Post was there along with The Hill , CongressDaily, a local paper from PA-8...then it actually got really weird.
The Chief of Staff for the incumbent opponent of Patrict Murphy, Congressman Fitzpatrick, had 'hacked' the call and used the call to challenge Patrict Murphy repeatedly to debates that Murphy, apparently had already accepted. This person,[I've removed his name] apparently wanted them in a different format and topics. He also accused Candidate Murphy of having 5 different Iraq positions.
(This is a political first, people, in my experience. A private press teleconference hijacked for partisan purposes!)
Senator Kerry tried to remind him that this call was for Press only but this was ignored.
(A very very junior Congressman's Chief of Staff ignoring the request of one of the most powerful Senators in Washington? That's just dumb!)
When the 'gentleman' quieted down for a moment, Santor Kerry took a couple of other calls, including one from me, and signed off along with Patrick Murphy...who just had to be really steamed.
I signed off. Yet after just a couple minutes my political antenna began to twitch and I logged back into the call. It was still going on only now Mr. C., Chief of Staff of Congressman Fitzpatrick, was the center of attention. He was being questioned very closely. And his answers created so many questions:
Was he a member of the campaign staff? No, he answered.
Q:Yet, people, he was apparently empowered to schedule debates and debate topics and formats? How can you not be part of a campaign staff and get that kind of power?
Was he on federal payroll time as the Hill Chief of Staff for Congressman Fitzpatrick as he made this call? No, he said. He was calling from home and had taken a sick day.
Q: A sick day is a paid day. A federal payroll paid day! Does this cross the line between Congressional and Campaign activities? If so...by how much since he also admitted to be an advisor to the reelection campaign?
Was this an authorized activity by Congressman Fitzpatrick? No, he said. I am doing this on my own.
Q: In other words, the Congressional Chief of Staff of a Republican Congressman who is standing for reelection took a sick day when he wasn't sick and went rogue?
Q: He took a questionable day off and attacked his boss's opponent by breaking into a private press only teleconference of Senator Kerry, a very senior Senator, on his own in front of nationwide Press?
Q: Is this someone that Congressman Fitzpatrick wants to have as his Chief of Staff?
Q: Or did Congressman Fitzpatrick know of Mr. C's plan in advance, however informally, and turn a blind eye to it?
While this was a political first, it should backfire into Congressman Fitzpatrick's face like a cannon with a blocked barrel!
This senior staffer, who had been a chief before for Curt Weldon, crossed a political line this morning and my guess is that if half of my questions have merit he will be off The Hill very quickly!
He should be. He embarassed Senator Kerry, Patrick Murphy, his boss, Congressman Fitzpatrick, and himself. There are unwritten rules in politics...and he broke a bunch.
When you break this many rules...there is, or should be, a price.
And the GOP, in the form of a Chief of Staff of a freshman Congressman who used to work for Curt Weldon, a very wacky and questionable character, shows how little regard they have for civility, rules or privacy. The teleconference in question was explicity for press only. As if he cared. He should have.
The Democratic Daily was there as well and there is a story on the Stakeholder by Jesseelee.
Let's see if we can help this guy find a new job.
At the very least his boss, who ranks 35th out of 37 Republicans on the Financial Services committee and 16th of 18 Republicans on the Small Business Committee probably doesn't want "The Call" from a very senior Senator to the ranking Democrat on each committee and owes Senator Kerry and his opponent, Patrick Murphy an apology.
Maybe Mr. C. can find a job somewhere else.