Tuesday, December 22, 2015

Joe Scarborough lectures Donald Trump on a free press, but "Morning Joe" has supported thugs in Alabama who are almost as bad as Vladimir Putin



MSNBC talking head Joe Scarborough made headlines the other day by pretending to stand up for a free press while taking offense at Donald Trump's positive statements about Russian president Vladimir Putin.

Did most viewers know that Scarborough was pulling a con during the interview, which can be seen in the video above? It seems unlikely, so we are here to help shine light on the subject.

Scarborough, a University of Alabama graduate, took exception during an interview to Trump's chummy assessment of Putin. Putting on his best schoolmarm face, Scarborough tried to set Trump straight about ugliness in Putin's past. "He kills journalists who don't agree with him," "Morning Joe" said.

But here's what Scarborough did not say: From 2002-10, he consistently trumpeted Alabama Republican Governor Bob Riley and his son, Birmingham lawyer Rob Riley. Scarborough and Rob Riley are BFFs from their days together on the UA campus in Tuscaloosa. Never mind that during his father's tenure, Rob Riley essentially was to Alabama what Uday Hussein was to Iraq--except Uday probably had more respect for the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

I'm not aware of "Riley Inc." killing any journalists in Alabama. But they've caused journalists "who don't agree" with them to be cheated out of their jobs--and they've even had journalists unlawfully arrested and incarcerated for up to five months. How do I know? I'm one of the journalists to incur their wrath--and I've lost my job (my wife also has lost her job), and I've been thrown in jail because of it.

Does Joe Scarborough care when journalists are treated this way in Alabama? Heck, no. When Bob Riley visited the Morning Joe show in early 2011, Scarborough openly touted him as a possible presidential candidate. (Gag . . . cough . . . gag . . . ) In fact, Scarborough gushed so much over the corrupt former governor--with Uday, I mean Rob, waiting in the wings--it almost seemed the host was going to perform a sex act on Bob Riley at any moment.

Should the public take it seriously when Joe Scarborough tries to portray himself as a champion of a free press? Absolutely not. His ties to the Riley family are proof that he has little or no respect for the First Amendment.

For his part, Donald Trump (never at a loss for words) fired back that there is no proof Putin has killed journalists. We have a feeling "the Donald" is a bit off track about that, but there definitely is proof that the Riley family has caused journalists to be imprisoned--and they did it contrary to 230 years of First Amendment law.

As for "Morning Joe," he probably would be wise to keep his mouth shut about those who might murder someone who causes them alarm. After all, many questions remain unanswered about the 2001 death of 28-year-old Lori Klausutis, who was an aide to Scarborough when he served as a U.S. Congressman from north Florida.

Klausutis' body was found in Scarborough's Fort Walton Beach Office, and the Congressman decided to scuttle his political career not long after her death. The autopsy and death investigation were filled with holes, and the death never has been adequately explained.

The whole disturbing story has been so cloaked that one seemingly cannot find a photo of Lori Klausutis on the Web.

The bottom line? Joe Scarborough has no business attempting to lecture Donald Trump, or anyone else, about a free press. And Scarborough's hypocrisy is grotesque when he points to Vladimir Putin as a powerful individual who has people killed.

Maybe if Scarborough held a press conference to answer any and all questions about the death of Lori Klausutis, he might regain some standing on such subjects. Maybe if Scarborough denounced the hideous actions of Bob and Rob Riley in Alabama, he would regain some stature regarding a free press.

For now, Scarborough should keep his yap shut on topics where his own hands appear to be anything but clean.

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

Great post, Schnauzer. Joe Scarborough is a huge fraud.

Anonymous said...

Watched this segment and my thoughts went immediately to you and your wife's situation. I'd also like to repair relations with Russia if possible.

I also see where the Trumps treatment and yours share many similarities.

I was hoping for more coverage of your deal. It was so sneaky and diabolical how it took place. Well Roger got a court date so everything must be on the up and up not like Russia or anything.

America has been naive for along time. Cops have been murdeing people for years. The media has just started reporting on it. That's more shocking to me than anythings what the cops did.

James Greek said...

So I guess you're not the only journalist that got imprisoned and arrested.

legalschnauzer said...

Thanks for your comment, @11:49. A big challenge that cops have now is that smart phones are everywhere and can take video in a snap. I wonder if dash cams were invented to help cops prove cases, and instead, they have blown up in their faces. Also, Facebook, blogs, forums, etc., have become huge problems for dirty cops.

Anonymous said...

There's other ways to marginalize someone without killing them and works well the dynamics of this society.

Slab Dog said...

I don't know if "Morning Joe" takes questions, but wouldn't it be great if someone called in and asked Joe Scarborough if he was familiar with the incarceration of Legal Schnauzer? And what if someone asked if Joe knew that his friend Rob Riley was responsible for it?

What would "Morning Joe" say? I'm bet he would go to a commercial break real fast.

Anonymous said...

No way, Morning Joe will allow questions. Someone might ask the host about Lori Klausutis. Gulp!

Anonymous said...

This story helps explain why Morning Joe will never allow viewer questions on his show. He's even paranoid about guests bringing up the Lori Klausutis story:


http://www.tomflocco.com/fs/911WidowQuestions.htm

Anonymous said...

Scarborough has even gone so far as to call for Google and other search engines to ban "crap" results. Is there any doubt that was a reference to searches that call up stories about Lori Klausutis?

Anonymous said...

I have long heard Joe had a dark secret

e.a.f. said...

That certainly was an interesting read!

Living in Canada, never heard of Scarborough. Glad he is part of the American media and not Canadian, not that our media is all that great either these days. Canada's largest media corporation, PostMedia, is not doing so well and as many of us have concluded they don't know the Conservatives lost the election and Canadians voted for Trudeau. In Canada the Postmedia bias is very obvious. As with the American press, its not a good thing for democracy. (Post Media in Canada owns almost every major English speaking newspaper)

When media is controlled by corporate elites and hedge funds, democracy isn't the first thing on an editor's mind. Advertising and revenue are.

Now trump doesn't seem to understand how Putin works. Think before his ass hits the oval office, he needs to have a read of some history on Russia, how Putin came to power and where his enemies are. Lots of his opposition/enemies are in the ground or in a jar. If trump thinks that type of guy is o.k. to lead a country, America is really in trouble.

Anonymous said...

Reads like chappaquiddick

Anonymous said...

Joe is both highly narcissistic and a power sycophant. He and trump share a lot of those narcissists characteristics. But his sychophancy (kochs, Christie, Huckabee, and yes trump) is wearing holes in the knees of his golf pants.

Murph said...

Frickin' Morning Joe! That guy, his BFF, and his BFF's daddy are due for a comeuppance! Go get 'em Schnauzer!