Bernie Sanders challenged over VT endorsement

[cali]

Ugh. This Toensing creep again. Victoria's brother, works with her in D.C. if you don't know who she is:

Victoria Toensing (born c. 1940) is a lawyer, and partner with her husband, Joseph DiGenova, in the Washington law firm DiGenova and Toensing.[1] Her practice specializes in white-collar criminal defense, regulatory inquiries, and legislative advocacy. She has appeared as a legal commentator on several networks including CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC.


Contents
1 Background
2 Involvement in Monica Lewinsky scandal
3 Involvement in Valerie Plame scandal
4 Electoral politics

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victoria_Toensing

A Republican attorney is asking for an investigation into Sen. Bernie Sanders' endorsement of a Vermont state senate candidate in the recent Democratic primary elections.

Brady Toensing of Charlotte complains that on May 24, Sanders sent an email asking supporters to donate to Christopher Pearson, whom Sanders had endorsed.

The use of this email list, Toensing contends, was an in-kind campaign contribution to Pearson's campaign that exceeded legal limits. He also suggested Pearson would be beholden to Sanders as a result of the endorsement.

Toensing, an attorney who works in Washington, D.C., and serves as vice chairman of the Vermont Republican Party, addressed the letter to the Attorney General's Office and shared it with news reporters Tuesday. State buildings were closed for Bennington Battle Day, and Attorney General William Sorrell said his staff would respond to the lawsuit after returning to the office.

Michael Briggs, a spokesman for Sanders, dismissed the allegations as part of a "string of wild and discredited political attacks by Brady Toensing."

"The senator is obviously well within his rights to endorse candidates and recommend to his supporters that they contribute to other candidates," Briggs wrote in an email. "This is common fundraising approach which is done by Democrats and Republicans every day all over the country."

<snip>

http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/story/news/politics/2016/08/16/bernie-sanders-challenged-over-vt-endorsement/88836680/

[think]

1. "Who Are The Right-Wing Media's Benghazi Lawyers Victoria Toensing And Joseph diGenova?"

Who Are The Right-Wing Media's Benghazi Lawyers Victoria Toensing And Joseph diGenova?

April 30, 2013 5:31 PM EDT ››› MEDIA MATTERS STAFF

Victoria Toensing and her husband and legal partner Joseph diGenova are pushing claims that anonymous State Department and CIA "whistleblowers" have been blocked and threatened by the Obama administration to prevent their testifying on the September 2012 attack on the U.S. diplomatic facility in Benghazi, Libya. Toensing and diGenova are longtime Republican activists, and Toensing has a history of pushing dubious claims and falsehoods into the media.

Toensing And diGenova Are Pushing Claims That Obama Administration Is Threatening Benghazi Witnesses In Cover-Up

Toensing And diGenova Are Pushing Claims In The Media That Obama Administration Is Issuing Threats To Witnesses About Benghazi. According to Fox News, Toensing is now representing one of the supposed whistleblowers in her role with diGenova & Toensing, where she and her husband are partners. [Media Matters, 4/30/13; Fox News, 4/29/13; Breitbart.com, 4/29/13]


~Snip~

Toensing Pushed Media Falsehood That Plame's CIA Status Was Widely Known On D.C. "Cocktail Circuit." Toensing and co-author Bruce Sanford promoted the false claim -- popular in right-wing media circles -- that Valerie Plame's CIA status was known "on the Washington cocktail circuit" prior to its disclosure by columnist Robert Novak. Toensing and Sanford wrote in a January 12, 2005, op-ed:...


Read more:
http://mediamatters.org/research/2013/04/30/who-are-the-right-wing-medias-benghazi-lawyers/193842

[cali]

3. They're shameful. And shameless.

But this creep, is taking it to the limit. Vermont ain't D.C. I can't believe that Toensing has filed a complaint over this.

[think]

4. Perhaps she has an unnamed client with deep pockets who finds Sanders efforts too successful

And even if the lawsuit is extremely ridiculous it requires Sanders to take time and money to defend himself.

It also gives these right wing tools a platform to use in the media to discredit and smear Sanders as well those he works to help get elected regardless of how baseless the claims may be.

[cali]

5. It's not a lawsuit. It's a formal complaint to the AG

And Bill Sorrell, VT's AG, a liberal dem, leaving office in January after 20 years, will tell him to fuck off.

<snip>

Pearson said he saw Toensing’s letter as another example of the Republican lawyer’s attempt to discredit Sanders and his family. In January, Toensing called for a federal probe into alleged fraud by Jane Sanders in her time as president of Burlington College.

“This guy has a history of harassing Sen. Sanders,” Pearson said. “He is now using me to continue that. These allegations are ludicrous.”

Pearson said that Toensing’s charge that he would be “beholden” to Sanders if elected was ridiculous, and he defended the fundraising email as a grassroots, transparent way to bring in cash.

“In a way, I think of it as Bernie hosted a digital house party for me, and several thousand of his supporters came to support me,” Pearson said.

http://vtdigger.org/2016/08/16/republican-lawyer-alleges-pearson-sanders-broke-campaign-finance-laws/

[bluedye33139]

2. Imagine going through life as a Benghazi lawyer