Deputy AG loses job after tweet drama (confirmed)

[tpsbmam]

Source: WLFI.com

The Indiana Attorney General’s office announced Wednesday afternoon its deputy attorney general is no longer employed by the agency, after reviewing political website Mother Jones' published allegations that he advocated the use of force against protesters in Wisconsin.

According to the online article , Jeff Cox tweeted “Use Live Ammunition” in response to a Mother Jones tweet reporting riot police had been called into the state capital to remove protesters.

Mother Jones later learned Jeff Cox held a post as an Indiana official.

In a statement released Wednesday afternoon, the Attorney General office said, "Civility and courtesy toward all members of the public are very important to the Indiana Attorney General’s Office. We respect individuals’ First Amendment right to express their personal views on private online forums, but as public servants we are held by the public to a higher standard, and we should strive for civility."

Read more: http://www.wlfi.com/dpps/news/indiana/tweet-lands-deputy-ag-in-hot-water_3727263

---

will confirm/.

Confirmed.

Harsh words: Deputy AG fired over tweets

Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller has dismissed a deputy, Jeff Cox, for posting inappropriate comments online critical of the labor union protesters in Wisconsin.

Cox sent out a message on his Twitter account saying that police should "use live ammunition" against the protesters.

A staffer for the political news site Mother Jones sent a message back to the person, who was then only known by his online account name. Cox messaged back that the demonstrators were "political enemies" and "thugs."

"Civility and courtesy toward all members of the public are very important to the Indiana Attorney General's office. We respect individual's First Amendment right to express their personal views on private online forums, but as public servants we are held by the public to a higher standard, and we should strive for civility," the office said in a statement.

http://www.indystar.com/article/20110223/NEWS05/102230406/Harsh-words-Deputy-AG-fired-over-tweets

[sinkingfeeling]

1. Now he can learn what it's like to be unemployed.

[Newsjock]

8. ... for the 36 hours until he is employed by:

(a) Fox News
(b) Americans for Prosperity
(c) the NRA

His buddies won't let him twist in the wind for long.

[atreides1]

21. That's a big assumption

The man was only a Deputy AG, not exactly a big fish...

[SpiralHawk]

33. Koch Brothers Billionaires, Inc. (R - Black Ops) could always use another lawyer

I am sure the dude will either sign on with them, or make Fast Tracks to collect the 'socialist' unemployment money he -- like everyone else -- has been paying into through his working life.

But then again, doesn't unemployment rule you out if you were FIRED for scumbaggery?

[savannah43]

49. They probably want one with a brain.

Or at least half a brain.

[PSzymeczek]

56. Pretty much. n/t

[2banon]

36. NRA no doubt! or the Chamber of Commerce! n/t

:rolf:

[lonestarnot]

47. So those three going to take in all unemployed pug blackwater types now?

[Dappleganger]

43. Haha, good one!

He caught the short end of the stick this time.

[Initech]

68. Until he gets a cushy job as a Fox News commentator.

[SpartanDem]

2. That was quick

[maddezmom]

3. good riddance

I'm sure there is more where he came from but good to see he's gone.

[AsahinaKimi]

42. agree! +100

Now this is how you separate the wheat from the chaff.

[NightHawk63]

4. Good!!! Serves him right! nt

[wryter2000]

5. K&R

Quick work! :bounce:

[aquamarina]

6. Good. This guy is a POS and the taxpayers of Indiana should

not have their taxes paying for his salary. Let him get a job with the Koch's.

[liberalhistorian]

62. If I were Koch, I'm not sure I'd want his

dipshit ass if he's an attorney who isn't even smart enough to realize that someone in his position shouldn't even publicly make such statements. You can't stop him from thinking it privately, but to make it PUBLICLY is truly an exercise in unbridled dipshittery. The only thing I can think of is that he's truly a dipshit or he's arrogant enough to think that regular laws don't apply to him and, even if they do, he'll get away with it.

He's also a total dipshit asshat for not recognizing that HE is also a public employee paid for with public dollars and that the bill that the "public enemies", as he calls them, are fighting against would apply to his arrogant dipshit ass as well. Fucking dipshit dumbass hypocrite.

[jpak]

7. Take that dumbass - kill your own citizens?

Fuck you - enjoy your new career.

dipshit

[CLANG]

26. What business would want to associate themselves with those comments.

He may be out of work for a very long time! :rofl:

[jpak]

34. One that sells live ammo?

:shrug:

[CLANG]

79. That's fine with me - they can have him.

[prolesunited]

41. No, he is from Indiana

He wanted to kill the people in Wisconsin. :crazy:

[truebrit71]

9. Hahahahahahahaha!!! Oh Karma you sweet, sweet bitch!!!

:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:

[Thunderstruck]

10. Good.Buh-bye asshole.

[Skip_In_Boulder]

11. Good deal, That's how we need to start handling these pricks n/t

[cbdo2007]

12. I'm surprised Govt offices are still letting some of these people "tweet"

They could put stuff in their contracts to keep these idiots from spouting off. There is really no need for these officials to be tweeting, all communication should come from the public relations department.

Don't worry, I'm glad the idiot is gone, but I'm sure in the future more companies and high up govt. officials are going to be restricted from tweeting about current events.

[muriel_volestrangler]

25. It was a private account and email, done over the weekend

Difficult to tell govt employees to never tweet, blog or speak in public about anything - that really would be a First Amendment problem. But what they do say in public should be compatible with their job to uphold the law - and this clearly wasn't.

[cbdo2007]

32. Not really a first amendment issue. They would accept that as part of the job.

I'm sure it will be coming soon though. It is perfectly legal for a company to limit what they're employees say or do not say about official business, even on their own private time, or risk termination. I would think a govt. could do the same thing and we'll see more repurcussions to this effect in the future.

[muriel_volestrangler]

39. 'about official business' is the key point

You had talked about just forbidding them to tweet, without saying the restriction would be on official business.

As it was, he wasn't actually talking about his job; but what he did say could have been incitement to law breaking in another state.

[No Elephants]

73. Yep, murder is lawbreaking.

[Athena66]

45. Government employees

have been banned for awhile from looking at Wikileaks. Even on their own computers, on their own time

[No Elephants]

74. Don't know if advocating shooting of peaiceful demonstrators is ever speech

that the First Amendment protects, esp. in a highly-charged atmosphere like this one, involving many people.

Danged close to yelling "Fire" in a crowded theater--and I tend to be picky about both analogies and the First Amendment.

[Guilded Lilly]

13. total IDIOT...just how many brain cells

does it take to post on a traceable public forum that you would like to see protesters shot at with live ammo???

I mean really. And THESE types of mental giants are in positions of public trust???

Apparently they are all over the Untied States :(

[Lone_Star_Dem]

14. Guess he wasn't as powerful as he thought he was.

I only wish I could have seen his face when he found that fact out.

[CLANG]

28. Yeah - he was going on and on about how fucking important he was!

WAS!!!!

[IllinoisBirdWatcher]

15. Now ARREST him for domestic terrorism

Losing his job isn't enough.

Cox should be arrested and prosecuted for acts of domestic terrorism. If Zoeller doesn't have the guts to do it, then Homeland Security should.

This nutjob is a loose cannon ready to explode.

[Tansy_Gold]

20. I totally agree. n/t

[FailureToCommunicate]

60. I totally totally agree!

If Tansy agrees, I agree.

[callous taoboy]

30. + 1

[BrightKnight]

50. Terroristic Threat is a crime in Indiana. - n/t

[Shaman Omaha]

67. Excellent suggestion

If he had threatened the President he'd have been tasered, cuffed, Mirandized, and if he'd been Muslim, he'd have been sent to Guantanamo for life. Oh, they might have also renditioned him to Kyrgyzstan for water-boarding.

[Plucketeer]

16. Wow!

IF ONLY..... justice was meted out like this more often. Think of Rushbo forced to wear a hefty muzzle for the rest of his life! :rofl:

[FailureToCommunicate]

61. "HEFTY muzzle" !!

:rofl:

[Turbineguy]

17. Qaddafi could still use him.

[Cirque du So-What]

18. Well, that's one down...

...untold thousands to go.

[Scottybeamer70]

19. Leave them to their idiocy........

and they will soon destroy themselves............:rofl:

[xchrom]

22. Excellent. Nt

[RussBLib]

23. An all-too-rare dispensing of justice!

What do you want to bet FOX offers Cox a job?

[No Elephants]

76. I'll take that bet.

[CLANG]

24. There are still some sane people left...

[montanto]

27. Good!!

[Kali]

29. asshole - maybe Kaddafi can hire him

[BenzoDia]

31. They're on damage control, hoping to get this behind them quickly and quietly. But, we should

pass this info along to everyone we know. America deserves to know who our public servants are.

[Kingofalldems]

35. K and R for the idiot freepers

[callous taoboy]

37. BWAAAA HAAA HA HA HA. Now arrest the jihadist.

[think4yourself]

38. Sweet!

:rofl:

[lsewpershad]

40. See it can be done

So dems should never, never again say it can't be done. Not acceptable. There is always a way to do the right thing.

[Zambero]

44. Face-to-face with public employees at the unemployment office?

Cue up, buddy boy!

[boppers]

53. "So, why did you lose your employment?"

"Uhm...."

[bloomington-lib]

46. Indiana's already bringing the deficit down by firing this redneck jackass

[JeffersonChick]

48. Zoeller, Walker, et al. should move to Libya

Their government sounds much more up their alley.

[Efilroft Sul]

51. Ready, aim, fired! n/t

[No Elephants]

75. Good one! Kudos.

[TxVietVet]

52. When he texted his message, he spoke his true beliefs.

I'll bet that he's a card-carrying, true-blue conservanazi wingnut. Without a doubt. Because what he said, is exactly what they all profess and believe.

People, that's what we are up against.

[rasputin1952]

54. Wow...that was fast!...

and a boon to the people who are good people of IN...:woohoo:

[struggle4progress]

55. Statement from Attorney General's Office on employee's online postings

For immediate release: Feb 23, 2011
Posted by:
Contact:
Phone: [phone]
Email: [email protected]
Statement from Attorney General's Office on employee's online postings

INDIANAPOLIS - Today the Indiana Attorney General's Office announced that Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey Cox is no longer employed by this agency.

The Indiana Attorney General's Office conducted a thorough and expeditious review after "Mother Jones" magazine today published an article attributing private Twitter postings and private blog postings to Cox.

Civility and courtesy toward all members of the public are very important to the Indiana Attorney General's Office. We respect individuals' First Amendment right to express their personal views on private online forums, but as public servants we are held by the public to a higher standard, and we should strive for civility.

- 30 -

http://www.in.gov/attorneygeneral/2369.htm

[No Elephants]

77. Inciting to murder, main or otherwise injure is mere incivility under a higher standard? Seriesly?

[AlbertCat]

57. B-b-b-b-but what about his "FREEDOM OF SPEECH"?????????

I'm joking.... I'M JOKING!

good riddance, you little twerp.

[CLANG]

80. I'm sure that's the freeper mantra on this! LOL

[burrowowl]

58. Sometimes

something just happens!

:rofl:

[RoccoR5955]

59. GOOD RIDDANCE TO BAD RUBBISH! n/t

[WillyT]

63. Woo Hoo !!! - K & R !!!

:bounce:

:rofl:

:kick:

[Hubert Flottz]

64. The Army could use him in Afghanistan.

[LiberalFighter]

65. They will probably sneak him in to a different Indiana agency

[donheld]

66. Makes me wonder if guys like this aren't "Tim McVeighs" in the making. n/t

[defendandprotect]

69. Great news on that one!!

[AllyCat]

70. Consequences for inciting violence? Are we turning over a new leaf in this country?

[Blacksheep214]

71. No unemployment $ for you!

Not when you get fired!

Now go tell Congresswoman Giffords what you have done! Take your wife and family with you!

I'll bet this douche is a church going judgemental son of a bitch too. How's that Thou shalt not kill thing working out for you?

Asshole!

[47of74]

72. Question. Did Mr. Cox violate any bar rules with his antics?

I was looking at Indiana's http://www.in.gov/judiciary/rules/prof_conduct/index.html">rules of professional conduct for lawyers. The only thing I saw was this section about misconduct. So I'm wondering if his antics would rise to the level of misconduct as far as bar rules are concerned?

The Indiana Law Blow had this to say about Mr. Cox.

ILB Thoughts: IMHO, perhaps the AG might have gone further than simply citing "civility and courtesy." Mr. Cox is, after all, a member of the Indiana bar who, as a Deputy AG, represented the State of Indiana...

[No Elephants]

78. I think he should be disbarred, if not also arrested.

[Kweli4Real]

81. And the really sick thing about this ...

He will, in true conservative fashion, frame himself as the victim.

I suspect he will, as if he already wasn't, spend the majority of his day watching/listening to beck, limbaugh and fox"news," when he is not posting to freerepublic.

And the scary thing is that these "victims" are the ones that get guns and shoot up places.

[Uncle Joe]

82. It's wasn't just a question of civility and courtesy, apparently Cox;

never respected the protesters' First Amendment Rights advocating for extreme violence to be used against them, that betrays any sense of true justice especially for someone who's occupation consists of upholding the law.

Thanks for the thread, tpsbmam.

[nyc 4 Biden]

83. hahahahahahaha

n/t

[somone]

84. The Koch Bros will give him a job

He's proved his street cred as a RW thug

[sarcasmo]

85. Kick.