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Joseph Steffen made his long-awaited appearance before a legislative investigative committee today, outlining the role he played in the firing of state employees by the Ehrlich administration and giving testimony that at times seemed to conflict with testimony given earlier by other administration witnesses. "We've got some conflicting testimony here. If witnesses testify under oath and are not telling the truth, it's perjury," said Sen. Thomas "Mac" Middleton, D-Charles, co-chairman of the special legislative committee. --Snip-- Steffen, the self-described "Prince of Darkness" and the key figure in a bitter political dispute over the firing of state employees after Ehrlich was...

Former Republican aide Joseph F. Steffen Jr., the so-called "Prince of Darkness" who gained notoriety for his role in the firing of state employees perceived as disloyal to the governor, filed a motion in Harford County Circuit Court Monday to quash a subpoena calling him to testify about his work for Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. Steffen was scheduled to appear at 10 a.m. Wednesday in Annapolis before the special committee investigating whether state workers were fired for being Democrats, according to court documents filed by his attorney. But the attorney, George S. Robinson IV, contended in his filing that...

Joseph Steffen, a former aide to Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., was rebuffed today in his bid to avoid testifying before lawmakers about firing practices. Steffen, who called himself the "Prince of Darkness," is a key witness for Democratic lawmakers who want to know if Ehrlich used Steffen to improperly fire Democrats working for the state. Steffen no longer works for Ehrlich, and he argued that the legislative panel should have no power to subpoena witnesses. Harford County Circuit Court Judge Maurice Baldwin rejected Steffen's motion today. The former aide was subpoenaed to address the panel on Wednesday. A lawyer...

A former police commissioner suing the city says he can implicate an associate of Mayor Martin O'Malley in a 2004 plot that entrapped Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s administration in a rumor-mongering scandal. Kevin P. Clark, who is suing over being fired in November 2004, says he lost his job, in part because a police probe of a city-owned laptop stolen from Baltimore Labor Commissioner Sean R. Malone threatened to expose Mr. Malone's link to the scandal. "We received information ... that there was information on the computer regarding a group called MD4Bush," said Neal M. Janey Sr., a lawyer...

He was supposed to be the star witness before a committee of lawmakers examining the firing practices of the Ehrlich administration, the so-called Prince of Darkness accused of clearing out state agencies to make room for GOP loyalists. Then Joseph F. Steffen Jr. disappeared. His cell phone went dead. A subpoena drafted earlier this year was never delivered, and the select committee that wanted to hear from him put its work on hold. Steffen has returned to the Baltimore area and is ready to talk - to lawmakers and the news media. He never intentionally vanished, he said, but had...

He wore a black trench coat, called himself the "Prince of Darkness," and proudly mounted a Grim Reaper figurine on his desk. Then he went from state agency to state agency marking Democrats for firing. He's Joseph F. Steffen Jr., who spawned a year-long, $1 million investigation of what he was doing in state government. He came into Maryland politics with a bang, and has exited like a dark shadowy figure of old mystery radio shows. Now, just about every political junkie in Annapolis is asking the same question: "Where in the world is Joe Steffen?" A special committee that...

O'Malley shakes up campaign staff Baltimore Business Journal - 3:46 PM EDT Monday by Heather Harlan StaffBaltimore City Mayor Martin O'Malley has replaced his campaign manager and appointed three political strategists, including his brother, in his quest to become Maryland's next governor. O'Malley, a Democrat, named Josh White as campaign manager, sending Jonathan Epstein packing. White, who joined the O'Malley campaign as deputy campaign manager for political outreach in March, is the former head of the Maryland Democratic Party. The campaign also announced the additions of Lucie Snodgrass, former director of governmental and community relations for Harford County, and Peter...

Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.’s chief appointments officer vigorously denied allegations yesterday that the administration booted Democrats out of state positions so they could be replaced with Republicans and Ehrlich loyalists. “Not a single person can ever say, ‘I was fired because I’m a Democrat,”’ said Lawrence J. Hogan, who heads the governor’s appointments office. Mr. Hogan also denied that Joseph Steffen, the self-described “Prince of Darkness” and a central figure in the probe of the administration’s hiring and firing practices, was sent into state agencies to ferret out employees who could be fired. He said Mr. Steffen’s role was...

For the Maryland lawmakers who have spent eight months investigating why so many state employees were fired by Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s administration, yesterday was supposed to be the big day. After more than 20 witnesses subpoenaed, sworn and grilled, it was time for the main event. Time to get back to where it all started. Time to hear from Joe Steffen. "I half expected him to burst in the hearing room in dramatic fashion, wearing a cape or something," said Ward B. Coe III, the special counsel hired last year to conduct the probe. But the man who...

The Maryland legislative committee investigating the administration's termination of dozens of longtime state workers plans to hear from key witnesses today, including Public Service Commission Chairman Kenneth D. Schisler. Lawmakers had hoped the star witness of the day would be Joseph Steffen, the former Ehrlich political aide who called himself "the Prince of Darkness" and, according to testimony thus far, had compiled lists of people to fire. After months of staying in touch with Steffen, and a series of interviews, the legislature's chief investigator, Ward Coe, now says he can't locate Steffen. Last week, Coe hired a process server to...

The 12-member legislative committee investigating Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.’s personnel practices voted Friday to extend its work until mid June as its special counsel vowed to issue more subpoenas. The Special Committee on Employee Rights and Protections — after months of dormancy — met Friday morning to decide its next steps in probing the hiring and firing decisions made by the Ehrlich administration. The panel met in closed session where its legal counsel, Ward B. Coe III, discussed his on-going efforts in obtaining personnel documents from the Ehrlich administration via speaker phone. Democratic members said that the administration has...

Call him Prince of Darkness. Darth Vader. Or, if you want to get on his good side, the Angel Moroni. Just don't call him candidate for governor. Joe Steffen's not running. "I really have decided not to run," Steffen told me yesterday. "The main reason is, most people thought I was doing it just to be vindictive - to be a jerk or be vindictive. I have no personal animosity toward anybody. I didn't want it to come across looking like I did." Is this the same Joe Steffen who cultivated a foreboding image as an Ehrlich administration aide, one...

--Snip-- Nitkin: These questions most frequently come from within the Republican Party of Maryland. The state Republican Party is offering the theory that the former executive director of the Maryland Democratic Party, Josh White, left his post because of some connection to MD4Bush, the Internet identity of a person or persons who engaged former gubernatorial aide Joseph F. Steffen Jr. into talking about how rumors about Martin O'Malley's personal life had been spread. There's no evidence to back this up. White may have landed a new position, but he has not yet confirmed for us his new employer. Ryan O'Doherty...

A special legislative committee heard testimony Monday from three more workers who lost their jobs after Gov. Robert Ehrlich took office in 2003, including one woman who was fired from two jobs, the second time while recovering from eye surgery. Susan Fernandez testified that as a high-level employee in the Department of Human Resources, she was not surprised when told she would be replaced as assistant secretary by the new administration and quickly lined up a new state job at the Department of Juvenile Justice. Just a month after starting the new job, she said she was told by a...

Frustrated by the Ehrlich administration's refusal to turn over key personnel information, a legislative committee investigating the governor's hiring and firing practices authorized its special counsel yesterday to subpoena documents and to take the administration to court if it refuses to give them up. The administration has handed over thousands of pages of documents, but missing are e-mails and other papers that might show the extent to which Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. considered politics in his personnel decisions, said House Speaker Pro Tem Adrienne A. Jones (D-Baltimore County), the special committee's co-chairman. "We would be finished with this if they...

A legislative inquiry into the firing practices of Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. likely will be delayed again. A panel of lawmakers probing whether the Republican governor unfairly fired Democratic state employees was supposed to conclude its work before this week. But members of the special committee announced yesterday that at least five more workers would be called to testify and that a second extension likely would be sought. "I don't see how we can finish by January 31," said Sen. Thomas M. Middleton, Charles Democrat and co-chairman of the committee. He said lawmakers need to hear from more former...

Joseph F. Steffen Jr. was the Ehrlich administration's Katrina. The case for awarding him such year-end eminence rests on the impact he made as Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s designated prince of patronage, the headline-making endurance of his work and its devastating potential for the Republican Party in Maryland on the eve of an election year. Joe Steffen has more name recognition than many of the candidates who think they can break through at some level in the political scrum looming this year. He is destined to become a negative bumper sticker for Mr. Ehrlich's administration. In the early years,...

Josh White, who took over daily operations of a dispirited Maryland Democratic Party after the Republican gubernatorial victory in 2002, is leaving the organization nine months before next year's primary. A widely respected political professional, White, 38, was hired in 2003 as executive director, but lost the title after Terry Lierman replaced Isiah Leggett as party chairman last year. --Snip-- White declined yesterday to give a reason for his departure but said he was leaving at the end of the year. Party offices in Annapolis are closed next week, meaning White's duties have effectively ended. "I'm just looking forward to...

A Cabinet secretary for Maryland Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. testified yesterday that he was forced to invite into his agency the man who called himself "The Prince of Darkness" and quickly became troubled by the aide's efforts to target employees for termination. Secretary of Human Resources Christopher J. McCabe said he twice raised objections in late 2003 about Joseph Steffen's mission -- including once in a letter he had the department's top lawyer write to Ehrlich's chief counsel, in which he complained that Steffen was rifling through an employee's payroll records. Steffen "made me uncomfortable and others uncomfortable," McCabe...

ONE THING is certain about dirty politics -- it's a malady afflicting both parties. A conservative Web site is alleging that a former Democratic Party worker baited an aide to Gov. Robert Ehrlich Jr. into discoursing on the Internet about the personal life of Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley. This rumor-mongering got the aide, Joseph Steffen, immediately fired. But it was a black eye for the governor, even if he wasn't personally involved. Now, the conservative Web site freerepublic.com says one of several addresses used in the e-mail exchange with Mr. Steffen is rodoherty@mddems.org. Democratic Party officials confirm that is the...

Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. criticized yesterday Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley, a rival in the governor's race, for praising a surreptitious Internet user who lured an Ehrlich aide into circulating rumors about the mayor's personal life. Speaking on his bimonthly WBAL radio show, Ehrlich said MD4Bush, the screen name of an anonymous visitor to a conservative Web site, discussed rumors about O'Malley and insulted Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski, and should not be applauded. On Friday, O'Malley, a Democrat, said he wanted to thank MD4Bush for helping expose the role of an Ehrlich aide in talking about the mayor's personal life....

The Internet posting saga that led to the firing of an aide to Gov. Robert Ehrlich has turned 180 degrees with the revelation of a possible Democratic tie, the Republican governor said Saturday. Ehrlich, appearing Saturday morning on Baltimore radio station WBAL, said "there appears now to be a sophisticated, or was a sophisticated operation, put together by a number of folks connected with the Maryland Democratic Party, and maybe a candidate or campaigns, and their purpose was to go on the Internet and trash major Democrats, which is fascinating. "I don't know who thought this grand scheme up, but...

As Republicans and conservatives zero in on the identity of the mysterious Internet visitor who coaxed an aide to Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. into spreading rumors about Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley, a question is blossoming in political circles. Does the identity of MD4Bush, the surreptitious user of a conservative Web site, matter? If revealed, will the knowledge change the public's perception of O'Malley or Ehrlich? Some political experts say that the answer to both questions is yes and that it's worth following the plot turns in the increasingly convoluted saga. If MD4Bush turns out to be a Democratic Party...

Maryland Democratic Party officials acknowledged yesterday that they have replaced their executive director but said the move is little more than a change in job titles. The party has replaced Joshua M. White with acting Executive Director Derek Walker, who had served as the party's communications director. Mr. White was reassigned some time last month to the job of political director. The reorganization comes as more evidence shows a state Democratic Party operative was involved in a "dirty tricks" campaign to smear the administration of Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., a Republican. However, party officials said yesterday that the job...

Following the discovery of e-mail addresses connected to the MD4Bush mystery, the WBAL-TV 11 News I-Team has uncovered the electronic trail of Internet activity. Also Friday, Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley responded to the latest twist in the MD4Bush mystery. Last October, MD4Bush used private e-mails on the Free Republic's Web site to coax a former aide to Gov. Bob Ehrlich, Joe Steffen, into discussing the personal life of Baltimore's mayor. The 11 News I-Team has learned that MD4Bush routinely logged on to the Internet from a computer in the Pasadena area. On Feb. 8 -- the night the story broke...

An e-mail address of a former state Democratic Party worker was used in a discussion about Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley's marriage on a conservative Web site, a spokesman for the site said yesterday. Kristinn Taylor, a spokesman for free republic.com, said Ryan O'Doherty's Democratic Party address was one of at least three used to operate the identity of MD4BUSH, the mysterious Internet poster who appears to have coaxed an aide to Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. into talking about the mayor's personal life. MD4BUSH sought out another freerepublic visitor known as ncpac, who was later revealed to be longtime Ehrlich...

The operators of a conservative Web site yesterday released three e-mail addresses they said were connected to the anonymous site user who drew a former aide to Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. (R) into discussions of a smear campaign against a political rival -- and one of the addresses matched that of a former state Democratic Party official. A spokesman for the Free Republic Web site said the account MD4BUSH was originally created by someone with access to the e-mail address ryanrock2004@yahoo.com . The address of record was changed twice, first to rodoherty@mddems.org and later to brianwaverly@yahoo.com , said Web...

The operator of FreeRepublic.com has had little to say of the MD4Bush mystery -- until now. WBAL-TV 11 News I-Team lead investigative reporter Jayne Miller reported the operator of FreeRepublic.com holds the biggest clues to the identity of the Internet user MD4Bush. They include e-mail accounts and electronic log-in information. The operator of the conservative Web site has not yet spilled all the beans, but he has made it clear that he believes he owes nothing to MD4Bush in terms of protecting privacy. In a lengthy posting early Thursday morning, Jim Robinson, the operator of the California-based FreeRepublic.com, explained why...

The WBAL-TV 11 News I-Team has uncovered new information surrounding the mysterious Web user known as MD4Bush. In private e-mail exchanges, MD4Bush coaxed Joe Steffen, a former aide to Gov. Bob Ehrlich, into discussing rumors about Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley's personal life on the conservative Web site, FreeRepublic.com. The 11 News I-Team has uncovered e-mail addresses used to register the MD4Bush account on the Free Republic Web site. The 11 News I-Team does not know who opened the MD4Bush account. According to a source familiar with the MD4Bush postings, the e-mail address used in October 2004 to open the MD4Bush...

Top officials in Maryland Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s administration ordered the dismissal of a succession of mid-level state workers, plucked from a sheet of paper that an aide called the "death list," a former state personnel official told top lawmakers yesterday. The targeted employees were fired, in some instances, solely because they were Democrats, and in each case to make room for Republican political appointees, said Tom Burgess, who yesterday became the first former state employee to testify under oath before the panel investigating Ehrlich's personnel practices. The panel was convened this fall to examine complaints that Ehrlich (R)...

Lawmakers heard colorful testimony Tuesday describing the hiring and firing practices of the Ehrlich administration, saying the governor's staff employed a hit list among state workers. WBAL-TV 11 News reporter David Collins reported that a former state worker testified for three hours before a special legislative committee. Thomas Burgess, a Republican who worked 15 years in state government, characterized Gov. Bob Ehrlich's administration as highly partisan and paranoid to the point of spying on their own people. Collins said the underlying theme to Burgess' three hours of testimony was that the Ehrlich administration wanted to weed out Democrats and bypass...

A former personnel manager for the Department of Human Resources told a legislative committee today that the Ehrlich administration ordered that some employees in his agency be fired "so supportive Republicans could be put into office." Thomas Burgess, a Republican who stayed on for about a year after Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. took office, said he was also fired and was told his name was put on a "hit list" because "I had the nerve to recommend that a Democrat be promoted" to a high-ranking position in the department. The workers who lost their jobs were at-will employees who...

Long before Joseph Steffen surfaced at the center of political intrigue in Annapolis, Gerry Brewster suspected he was the political operative who wiped out his fundraising list and plastered his windshield with bumper stickers for his opponent. Connie DeJulius believed Steffen was behind a nasty leaflet pinned to every telephone pole in her neighborhood, tarring her as a "home wrecker." Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., left, and former aide Joseph Steffen, who helped Ehrlich win congressional races in the '90s. Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., left, and former aide Joseph Steffen, who helped Ehrlich win congressional races in the '90s....

<p>In response to questions about the MD4BUSH affair, in which a democrat operative got an aide to the governor to comment online about infidelity rumours of Baltimore Mayor Martin Omally, the Governor became angry over the double standard. "When this thing broke I had cameras and mics stuck in my face, now that it seems MD4BUSH is a democrat operative working in conjunction with a major media outlet...its a set-up...where are the cameras now?"</p>

Maryland Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s chief legal counsel yesterday called on Democratic leaders to investigate newly exposed ties between the state Democratic Party and an Internet chat room visitor who apparently orchestrated a "dirty tricks" campaign to smear the administration. Chief Counsel Jervis S. Finney said Democrats appear to have been players in a "scam" to discredit Mr. Ehrlich, a Republican. The involvement of a Democratic operative "certainly takes it a step further and it would seem the so-called Special Committee [on Employee Rights and Protections] and the Maryland Democratic Party should seek at last to find the final...

BALTIMORE -- Inside the MD4BUSH mystery are questions of timing, motive, and who knew what when.[snip]..... ......[snip]MD4BUSH signed on to Free Republic in early October and immediately added new dirt to the rumor -- writing on Oct 8: "Yeah, he cheats on his wife. I heard he is not allowed in the house and is living in some new high-rise near City Hall." MD4BUSH then wrote to Steffen directly by commenting on Maryland politics, using language to depict an Internet user who was a true conservative, and suggesting there was a need to play dirty in 2006. In mid-October, Steffen...

In yesterday’s (Saturday) Washington Post is a brief article in its Metro section, responding to well-attended press conference the previous day in front of the newspaper’s offices. The press conference accused the Post of violating the privacy rights of certain individuals on the website FreeRepublic.com This exchange, printed by the Post, explains the charge, and the newspaper’s response to it, so far: "How in good faith could The Washington Post access a private Internet account without the express permission of the account holder?" Kristinn Taylor, a spokesman for the conservative FreeRepublic.com, asked in a morning news conference in front of...

The man who has called himself Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s "political hit man" said he would sit down yesterday for an interview with the lawyer heading up the legislative probe into the governor's hiring and firing practices. The former aide to Ehrlich, Joseph Steffen, told Baltimore radio listeners yesterday that he had volunteered to meet with attorney Ward Coe to share his insider account of how the Republican governor set about to remake the state workforce after taking office in 2003. --Snip-- At the same time, Steffen has refuted one major contention made by several employees who lost their...

The conservative Web site at the center of a rumor investigation is calling on The Washington Post to conduct an internal investigation into one of their reports. --Snip-- WBAL-TV 11 News I-Team reporter David Collins reported that The Washington Post recently revealed that Post reporter Matt Mosk -- with a help of an "intermediary" -- logged on as MD4Bush at least three times to verify private e-mails that were then used to break the story. The Washington, D.C., chapter of the conservative Web site, FreeRepublic.com, said on Friday that the newspaper has a lot of explaining to do in connection...

Baltimore Maryland (FR)-- Tonight at 6pm est on WBAL TV 11 a story will be aired about the latest developments in the MD4BUSH affair, a story detailing how the Washington Post is coming under pressure to conduct a "NY Times" styled self investigation after the paper admitted that one of its reporters used a FreeRepublic.com member's personal password to view confidential email. The emails are at the center of a scandal that has cost the job of an adviser to MD's (R) Governor Robert Ehrlich. One matter that will continue to be left out of the story, on direction of...

As many of you know, Kristinn will be holding a press conference outside the Washington Post building about Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley (D) and the Washington Post's role in the MD4Bush saga at 9:30AM. At a minimum, local Baltimore news media are expected to attend. Please post any news about the press conference here.

Who is MD4Bush?MD4Bush was an infrequent poster on Free Republic from 10/07/04 to 02/08/05, usually discussing Maryland politics. All of MD4Bush's public posts are available here. In an apparent attempt to bait FReeper NCPAC (now known as former Republican Maryland Governor Ehrlich staffer Joe Steffen) into incriminating conversations, MD4Bush spread rumors of Democrat Baltimore Mayor Martin O’Malley's infidelity, called Democratic Maryland Senator Barbara Mikulski a "lezbo", and discussed the alleged tactics of Karl Rove. The February 2005 Old vs. New Media Wars A battle was brewing between the Old and New Media in February 2005. Bloggers pressured CNN to fire...

The Democrat-controlled panel investigating Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.’s hiring and firing practices cannot legally issue subpoenas to identify the mysterious Internet figure known as MD4BUSH, a key request made by Republicans. Assistant Attorney General Robert A. Zarnoch, counsel to the General Assembly, said Thursday that the Special Committee on Employee Rights and Protections does not have the legal authority to subpoena records from a Web site where former Ehrlich aide Joseph F. Steffen Jr. made comments about Baltimore Mayor Martin O’Malley’s marriage. Steffen, an Ehrlich aide, was fired earlier this year after discussing O’Malley (D), who is running for...

Ehrlich Aide Ousted Over O'Malley Rumors Web Postings, E-Mail Spread Affair Gossip By Matthew Mosk Washington Post Staff Writer Wednesday, February 9, 2005; Page A01 Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley yesterday accused agents of Maryland Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s administration of spreading false rumors that he had an extramarital affair, and Ehrlich responded hours later by dismissing a longtime employee. The mayor, a Democrat considering a bid for governor in 2006, said he believes that the widespread and persistent rumors were part of a "concerted and orchestrated and sustained" effort and called on the Republican governor to apologize to his...

[snip.........] Overnight Steffen became the fall guy for dirty politics after a Washington Post article last February named him as "NCPAC", the person spreading the O'Malley infidelity rumors on Freerepublic.com. But Steffen says he was lured into the discussion by someone logged in as "MD4Bush." The identity of "MD 4 Bush" is now the source of intense speculation and investigation. Governor Ehrlich's chief council Jervis Finney released copies of e-mails that allegedly imply "MD4Bush" is a former member of the Maryland Democratic Party. "It's been quite a roller-coaster ride and when I try to pull myself away from it and...

Free Republic.com to Speak About MD4BUSH and the Washington Post at Press Conference Nov. 4 11/3/2005 9:56:00 AM -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- To: City and Assignment desks, Daybook Editor, Political Correspondent Contact: Kristinn Taylor, 202-309-1589 or kristinn@verizon.net ; Web: http://www.FreeRepublic.com News Advisory: WHAT: Press Conference Free Republic to Speak About MD4BUSH and the Washington Post Newspaper Involved in Scandal that Goes Beyond Governors Race and Maryland Politics WHEN: Friday, Nov. 4, 9:30 A.M. WHERE: 1150 15TH ST., N.W., Washington, D.C., The Sidewalk in front of The Washington Post Bldg. DETAILS: FreeRepublic.com, an independent conservative news and activism Web site, will hold a press...

After months of sluggish progress, a legislative committee investigating Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich's hiring and firing practices yesterday directed its outside counsel to begin interviewing state employees who say they were fired to make room for the governor's political allies. Baltimore attorney Ward B. Coe III's marching orders came amid a growing partisan divide over the direction of the investigation and as a former aide to the Republican governor has begun talking about his role in the firings --Snip-- [MD Senate Minority Leader (R)] Stoltzfus yesterday said he may ask the committee to subpoena records of the Web site where...

A self-described political hit man told his side to the WBAL-TV 11 News I-Team Wednesday. Earlier in the year, the work of Joe Steffen sparked an investigation into Gov. Bob Ehrlich's hiring and firing practices. He could also become a key witness in that probe. Steffen admitted to the 11 News I-Team that he weeded out state workers, but only based on job performance, not party affiliation. --Snip-- Steffen Held No Ill Feelings Toward MD4Bush Steffen claimed he initially held no ill feelings toward being outed by MD4Bush. "I fell on the sword for the governor for the simple reason...

Court Hears Internet Anonymity Case ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- The publisher of a financial newsletter told Maryland's second highest court Wednesday that he should not be forced to disclose his subscriber list and other information sought by an Arizona company seeking those it says made defamatory online comments. The publisher, Timothy M. Mulligan, told the judges "almost everything we publish could potentially be subpoenaed," putting him in the position of constantly appearing for depositions if his request to quash a subpoena by the Arizona drug company, Matrixx Initiatives, is denied. The judges, however, appeared to side with Matrixx, repeatedly asking why...

Free Republic is a longtime hangout for me and sometimes things get pretty interesting. The current big story has all the complexity and treachery of a Russian novel.In October of 2004, a Freeper who goes by the handle of MD4BUSH began making posts on Free Republic urging Republicans to "play dirty" in the 2004 election. MD4BUSH represented himself as a staunch Republican. He lured another poster named NCPAC into his confidence and then posted alleged private "freep-mails" between the two. MD4BUSH baited  NCPAC into discussing sexual rumors about Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley. When MD4BUSH brought the exchanges to the attention of the...