Blogger Arrested For Sneaking In Nursing Home To Photograph GOP Senator's Wife

[DonViejo]

DYLAN SCOTT – MAY 17, 2014, 11:29 AM EDT

A Mississippi political blogger has been arrested for allegedly sneaking into the nursing home where Sen. Thad Cochran's (R-MS) wife resides and taking her picture for an online video, the Clarion-Ledger reported Saturday.

The blogger, Clayton Thomas Kelly, 28, was charged with exploitation of a vulnerable adult. The video, described as a "hit piece" to the newspaper by its sources, was allegedly critical of Cochran and supportive of his GOP primary challenger, State Sen. Chris McDaniel.

It was posted on April 26 and included a picture of Rose Cochran, who suffers from dementia and moved into the nursing home in 2000. It has since been taken down, according to the Clarion-Ledger.

The Mississippi Senate Republican primary has been one of the fiercest establishment versus tea party battles of the 2014 cycle. The Clarion-Ledger reported that Kelly ran the Constitutional Clayton blog, which includes multiple posts critical of Cochran and fawning toward McDaniel -- wondering at one point if he is "the next Rand Paul."

###

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/thad-cochrun-wife-blogger-break-in

[elehhhhna]

1. If reeps do this to each other, what will they do to us???

truly disgusting activity

[malaise]

2. I agree

but I have to ask if Wingers are more vulnerable to dementia?

[bettyellen]

11. they are just idiots. I had heard ignorant things like the belief dementia happens to evil people...

in fact a coworker told me exactly that --when I was struggling with my (very compassionate and generous) mother's Alzheimer's.
It was an ignorant and cruel thing to say, and I ripped them a new asshole, to match the one between their ears.
A lot of us are going to be struggling with this with our aging population, and some compassion is definitely in order.

[LeftishBrit]

14. There is no evidence for that (and I know people who do research on dementia)

[malaise]

19. I should have put a sarcasm thingy

and Reagan and Thatcher photos.

My surviving aunt is in her nineties and has Alzheimers - she and her husband were as left wing as they come.
Now she doesn't recognize her own children. It is hard to watch this once vibrant lady in this condition.

[elehhhhna]

21. I've heard stats that say a good measure of dementia in people

is attributable to alcoholism. Have you heard anything about this?

[LeftishBrit]

22. Alcoholism can cause dementia..

In particular, there is a form of dementia called Korsakoff's syndrome which is usually due to alchoholism.

However, most cases of dementia are not attributable to alchoholism. Risk factors include family history - especially in early-onset Alzheimers; cardiovascular disease; and history of head injury. But many people with dementia have no known risk factors, other than (frequently, but not always) age.

[stevenleser]

8. You don't have to ask...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_O'Keefe#Senator_Mary_Landrieu_.282010.29

O'Keefe and colleagues were arrested in New Orleans in January 2010 during an attempt to make recordings at the office of United States Senator Mary Landrieu, a Democrat. His three fellow activists, who were dressed as telephone repairmen when apprehended, included Robert Flanagan, the son of William Flanagan, acting U.S. Attorney of the Eastern District of Louisiana.

The four men were charged with malicious intent to damage the phone system. O'Keefe said he entered Landrieu's office to investigate complaints that she was ignoring phone calls from constituents during the debate over President Barack Obama's health care bill. The charges in the case were reduced from a felony to a single misdemeanor count of entering a federal building under false pretenses. O'Keefe and the others pleaded guilty on May 26. O'Keefe was sentenced to three years' probation, 100 hours of community service and a $1,500 fine. The other three men received lesser sentences.

In August 2013, O'Keefe revisited the incident by releasing a video entitled: a confrontation with former U.S. Attorney Jim Letten on the Tulane University campus. Jim Letten was a Republican US Attorney General in 2010 who recused himself from the Landrieu incident because he knew the father of one of the men involved. The video shows an agitated Letten accusing O'Keefe of "terrorizing" Letten's wife at their home, of harassing him and trespassing on the Tulane campus. He called O'Keefe a "coward" and a "spud" and referred to O'Keefe and his companions as "hobbits" and "scum."

[Auntie Bush]

3. I worried a Dem did that. Glad to see it was a fellow ReThug. They are are so vicious!

[Cooley Hurd]

4. McDaniel's a Tea Partier:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_McDaniel#Political_career

Political career

On April 15, 2009, McDaniel spoke at Laurel's Tax Day Tea Party. He spoke before the Central Mississippi tax day tea party.

On April 9, 2010, McDaniel filed a federal class action lawsuit on behalf of Lt. Gov. Phil Bryant and 11 other Mississippians for declaratory and injunctive relief seeking a determination that provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (H.R. 3590) violate the United States Constitution by mandating American citizens to purchase health insurance. He was named 2010 Citizen of the Year by the Laurel Leader Call newspaper.

He was named a "Rising Star" in 2012 in the Republican Party.

In 2012, McDaniel led a delegation to the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas, which dedicated a monument for the eight Mississippians who died when the fort was overrun in 1836.

McDaniel was named 2012 "Legislator of the Year" by the Mississippi Law Enforcement Officers Association and the 2013 "Legislator of the Year" by the Mississippi Highway Patrol. He has been considered as a possible candidate for U.S. Representative for Mississippi's 4th Congressional District.

[Thinkingabout]

5. I would hope this was a young inexperienced decision who does not understand much about dementia.

I get the feeling at times there is an over abundance of spying occurring. In this situation it is never excusable and I would hope this person would beg for forgiveness.

[DonViejo]

6. I don't think there's any acceptable rationale for sneaking into a nursing home...

to take a picture of anyone's spouse and/or family members

[theHandpuppet]

16. + a zillion

You have to crawl pretty low to think that's acceptable under any circumstance.

[jwirr]

7. Definitely over the line. I do not care about the politician but his wife is not a proper target

when she cannot defend herself.

[etherealtruth]

9. I don't give a shit about the senator's politics in this case

Clayton Thomas crossed all lines of human decency and broke laws in doing this.

I hope he is prosecuted and convicted ... this is disgusting

[hlthe2b]

10. Unbelievably despicable....

I wish I could be surprised that someone--anyone--would do that. In this case a hard core teabagger, it seems, so even less surprising.

[Eleanors38]

12. The punk. He stunk.

[msanthrope]

13. Hard core teabagger...unsurprising. nt

[LeftishBrit]

15. Unbelievably horrible and vile

[Are_grits_groceries]

17. This is a major misstep by McDaniel.

Nobody is gonna believe he wasn't behind it.
Except for the true crazies, the entire state just recoiled. You don't mess with family, especially somebody's mama.

Even if she was in tiptop health it just isn't done. The fact that she could not 'defend' herself makes it over every line of decency.
They gone find out about messin' with family.

[okaawhatever]

20. It's his wife, but the same logic applies. nt

[Liberal_in_LA]

18. how is a sick wife suppose to lose votes for a candidate?