Sometimes it’s hard to generate enthusiasm for another round of the same old, same old. Yet, when you get a few minutes to reflect on the goings-on on the state and national stages, the outrage, the frustration, the same overwhelming need to shout out or strangle someone, takes over and there you are – back at it again.
Ok – here’s my thing. One evening early this month there was some kind of 9-1-1 call from the governor’s mansion that required several police and sheriff personnel to respond. The governor was scheduled to be interviewed on CNBC very early the next morning. The interview was summarily cancelled for “personal reasons.” Helena, like virtually every “government town” in the country is a hotbed of gossip and speculation. This situation was prime fodder for the grist mill. Reporters supposedly tried to follow the story and ran into a virtual wall of silence at the police department, although there is some evidence that the Sheriff, herself, was somewhat more forthcoming.
But the media has chosen to remain totally mum about the whole thing.
So what? I mean, doesn’t the governor and his family have a right to some privacy? The obvious answer is, “Sure”. But what about the public’s right to know? It seems like the media considers it absolutely necessary to publish anything they can about a Republican politician’s private family life – Governor Martz’s husband’s set-to, Secretary of State Bob Brown’s father’s death, for example – but a domestic violence call at the Democratic governor’s mansion gets nary a word of coverage.
Guess we don’t need to know about that.
But what if there’s something we do need to know about the character, behavior, or actions of one of our elected officials? And the media doesn’t want to touch the story because of political persuasion?
Domestic violence is one of the most egregious crimes in our society. Mostly because it happens below the radar – and nobody knows it’s happening right next door. It doesn’t just happen to the “trailer trash”. There are plenty of “good” families that are victims of this scourge too.
Usually, this is the kind of story the press salivates over.
Ironic, isn’t it? Nah – ssdd.
“One evening early this month there was some kind of 9-1-1 call from the governor’s mansion that required several police and sheriff personnel to respond.”
“but a domestic violence call at the Democratic governor’s mansion gets nary a word of coverage.”
Some kind = domestic violence? If one is to take this post at all seriously, it would be helpful for you to at least clarify how you know that that’s what the call was. Otherwise, you’re simply contributing to the rumor mill, and walking a very line between ‘speculation’ and ‘libel’. And blaming the media for not following up on a story that you seem to have the facts of makes you vastly more suspect then they.
Maybe it was a fatal accident involving a drunk driver and the governor is covering it up….wait, wrong administration.
@Wulfgar – you’re missing the point. 2HHB could have said it was a call about a thermonuclear warhead bouncing down the stairs, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that THE PRESS DIDN’T FOLLOW UP. So we don’t know. No one does. It’s called a “COVER UP”.
And of course it’s the rumor mill that caught this one, it was covered up (see, there it is AGAIN) by the official channels, and no, there isn’t any libel here, or slander, or even bad faith. There is an event, another event, a hidden event, a series of statements by those in the know, and the grist for the rumor mill. If 2HHB is wrong, you’d have to show the report from the night. Without any redaction.
And the point of the post wasn’t to defame the governor (he’ll do that on his own if he continues doing these things) it was to point out that the press isn’t covering all sides and being fair and balanced.
Although the press did cover the State of the State Address given by the governor… I just want to know why his sons weren’t there. Any ideas, Wulfy?
Maybe the MSM will go to court and file a ‘Freedom of Information’ request,…. nah.
This is their governor and they will control what is said. You can see it from the glowing reports both locally and nationally.
Excuse me, Mr. Hamm, but she said, quite directly, that it was a domestic disturbance call. Was it? Whether the press followed up or not has absolutely no bearing on whether or not 2HH just (possibly) wrongly accused someone of a crime. That could indeed be libel. You may not think so, but that pesky law-thing disagrees.
I’ve missed no point, because none was made. I don’t necessarily care what point 2HH thought she was making. She made none, other than the press didn’t report on a story that no one is willing to even show was there. I’m certain that there was a UFO sighting in Montana last night. Should I revile the press for not reporting it? After all, I heard a rumor …
That’s all we have, here, a rumor. I can’t even verify that such a 911 call took place. The rational person would say that there’s nothing here. The conspiracy theorist would posit that the governor did something bad and the press is covering it up. Have you ever heard of Occam’s razor? I guess not.
My friends call me Wulfy. You aren’t one of those. So be polite, or I won’t have any reason to be. And 2HH will be under scrutiny for deleting impolite comments from the opposition while letting the favored impolite comments stand. You wouldn’t want to put another in a position of hypocracy, would you?
Billy Bob;
If that accident was a cover up how come you know about it?
If this is not a cover up then you will be able to enlighten us with the facts.
Please share with us all of the facts about this non-cover up.
wulfgar;
Libel,… is that like calling someone a racist?
Polite,… is that like NOT posting anonymously, flamming people, calling a web site and the people on it a bunch of fools?
Just wondering.
I was wondering why you haven’t posted my comments.
Ok – I’m over my tantrum about this, but my initial frustration with the irresponsibility of the press has been reinforced.
Whatever the reason, when law enforcement responds to a 9-1-1 call from the governor’s mansion, that’s news. It was news when some nut job accosted Montana’s First Lady shortly after the Schweitzer’s moved in. The fact that nary a line of THIS call was reported by the media suggests that someone has decided that “the public” doesn’t need to know something.
I don’t know who that someone is, although I do have a word of advice for whoever is in charge – if I may quote Clinton advisor Lanny Davis – “Tell the Truth, Tell It Early, Tell It Yourself”. Police reports are public records. You may have to jump through some hoops, but the information is eventually available. So the “something” will eventually become public knowledge.
Like Iran Contra, Watergate, Monica Lewinski, and all the others – politicians from both parties seem to have a propensity for learning this lesson the hard way. But learn it they do – “It’s the cover-up, stupid!”
BCManager;
Might I suggest the freedom of information act. You must know the ultra liberal IR is not going to look into this. Heck, they hardly leave the office anymore. They just call up the Police and ask if anything happened.
The IR bias was really showing recently when they posted an OP-Ed piece defending Hillary’s stance in 2002 on her vote from liberals who were upset with her.
To expect them to look into anything about their hero the governor is fantasy.
Well,I’m a newbie to this website and politics really but I hear the folks who are putting it together are very savy folks poltically, so I’m going to weigh in and try my hand at this stuff. About the situation at the Gov. mansion, I hear the Gov. and his kid were not seeing eye to eye that evening (boys will be boys you know) but has it struck anyone that if Big Bri has anger management issues (hey don’t we all when it comes to kids from time to time) and the police had to be called in to break it up that maybe someone ought to look into the public police report and find out the skinny, or is the press going to give him a pass on this one like they did the previous administration when the clothes were washed. HHHmmmm, just a thought!