Posted on 03/26/2011 2:52:57 PM PDT by Las Vegas Dave
*** REPORTER CONFINED IN CLOSET DURING VEEP'S FUNDRAISER ***
Sat March 26 2011 17:04:37 EDT
Staffers with Vice President Joe Biden confined an Orlando Sentinel reporter in a closet this week to keep him from mingling with high-powered guests gathered for a Democratic fundraiser.
Reporter Scott Powers was the designated "pool reporter" for the vice president's Wednesday visit to the massive Winter Park, Fla., home of developer and philanthropist Alan Ginsburg. The veep hadn't arrived yet but most of the 150 guests (minimum $500 donation) had. They were busy noshing on caprese crostini with oven-dried mozzarella and basil, rosemary flatbread with grapes honey and gorgonzola cheese and bacon deviled eggs, before a lunch of grilled chicken Caesar and garden vegetable wraps.
Not so for Powers. A "low-level staffer" put Powers in a storage closet and then stood guard outside the door, he told the DRUDGE REPORT. "When I'd stick my head out, they'd say, 'Not yet. We'll let you know when you can come out.'"
And no crustini for Powers, either. He made do with a bottle of water to sip as he sat at a tiny makeshift desk, right next to a bag marked "consignment." Powers was closeted at about 11:30 a.m., held for about an hour and 15 minutes, came out for 35 minutes of remarks by Biden and Sen. Bill Nelson, Florida Democrat, and then returned to his jail for the remainder of the event.
Powers' phone didn't work in the closet, but his Blackberry did, so he fired out a picture of his impromptu prison to his editors, who posted a short blog item on the lack of freedom of the press under the veep's control.
Powers didn't mention his confinement in either of his pool reports that day, saying only that "press coverage was limited to a single pool reporter, filing on behalf of all local media, who was allowed to listen to the remarks but not given an opportunity to talk with anyone at the event."
On Friday, Powers said, the home's owner called him. "He said he had no idea they'd put me in a closet and was very sorry. He said he was just following their lead and was extremely embarrassed by the whole thing."
Picked up by Drudge
I would probably rather be locked in a closet that hang out with Rat supporters and Plugs. The reporter should consider himself lucky.
“Powers didn’t mention his confinement in either of his pool reports that day”
If it was Cheney, it would have been mentioned and put on the front page of the NYTimes.
Yeah, that’ll work! /s
The future of journalism in the 0b0z0 age...
Can you imagine the reaction among the liberals and the MSM if Republicans had stuck a reporter in a closet? I wonder if this story will get wide coverage in the MSM. Didn’t think so.............
Is everyone who surrounds Biden, in the closet?
I did a search and did not see the previous posting...
I read the article on Drudge, and I don’t get it...Why did they put him in the closet? They let him out for the speech? What?
Rhetorical question: why did the Orlando Sentinel spike the story?
******************************
Not bad for $500.
Republicans unlawfully confining a Journolist would get media attention?
Pfffh
Should have kicked the bloody door down and scared the crap of the “low-level staffer.”
Correct me if I wrong - but isn’t unlawful imprisonment a serious felony crime?
Technically that’s kidnapping. Any “ordinary” American would be looking at serious criminal charges. Biden and his staff are, of course, immune since Holder controls the FBI.
Good. I suspect Drudge got this from MindBender’s report here earlier today.
It needed confirmation, and Drudge got it from the reporter himself.
I notice that Drudge doesn’t get into the fact that the reporter’s newspaper refused to say anything about this or to defend their reporter. I guess he didn’t want to get him into trouble for talking to him.
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