"Crash-Pad"...The Fifth Beatle of the Landrieu phone-tampering case.

[kpete]

Before Caper, O'Keefe And Co. Crashed At House Of Activist 'Mentor'
Justin Elliott | February 1, 2010, 11:12AM

A 28-year-old Loyola law school student and conservative activist named Ben Wetmore has emerged as the Fifth Beatle of the Landrieu phone-tampering case.

Wetmore, who hired alleged phone tamperer James O'Keefe at the Leadership Institute http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/01/the_leadership_institute_the_group_that_helped_lau.php
a few years back to help launch conservative media outlets on college campuses, this month offered up his New Orleans house as a crash pad for O'Keefe and co-defendants Joseph Basel and Stan Dai, the New York Times reports.

On its website, the nonprofit boasts that it "prepares conservatives for success in politics, government and the news media." It's trained more than 79,000 students over the years, and employs 58 people. The group is led by longtime Republican player Morton Blackwell, who was elected to the RNC's executive committee in 2004.

The Leadership Institute says it "actively supports the entire conservative community" and makes its list of 25,000+ "LI-trained conservative activists and students" available to other conservative groups.
http://www.leadershipinstitute.org/aboutus/Morton.cfm
http://www.leadershipinstitute.org/aboutus/support.cfm

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/31/us/politics/31landrieu.html?pagewanted=all
http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/02/ben_wetmore_put_up_okeefe_and_friends_before_landr.php
http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/news/2010/02/landrieu_caper_prep_whole_lotta_typin_goin_on.php

[Solly Mack]

1. K&R

[Kingofalldems]

2. Kick and rec for the sneaky freepers

Looks like it will go higher. I wonder if this guy will be charged?

[thunder rising]

3. sneaky in thought, but not quite sneaky enough in action. Even the SCOTUS legislation was overt.

(BTW: I agree with your post)

[Matariki]

10. Damn straight it's going to go higher

That was obvious when Limbaugh was immediately out providing them with a cover story for their motives.

[Warpy]

4. These guys are looking more like the flip side of the 60s radicals

As the liberal rule of the country had wound down, radicals arose not only to continue it but to expand it. Unfortunately, you can't stop the swing of that big pendulum in the sky and all they (we) did was piss a lot of people off.

Now conservatism has run its course and is dying and radicals who not only want to continue it but expand it have arisen.

The good news is that they are every bit as hamfisted as we were. Undoubtedly, they and their youthful brethren will alarm enough of their stodgy fellow citizens to mount a backlash against radical conservatism just like the one mounted against the radical left in the 70s and 80s.

Expect a lot of antics at any trial that happens.

[PassingFair]

5. It's not illegal wire-tapping when they do it.

Just some "boys" making some bad choices.

:eyes:

[Hannah Bell]

17. "radicals" like bill ayers, son of the chair & ceo of commonwealth edison.

who somehow escaped any jail time despite being the leader of the most high-profile "radical" org going. who landed a cushy job when he "came in from the cold."

"strategy of tension"

[Warpy]

19. He's a shining example

but don't forget he worked his ass off to get his cushy jobs.

Trust me, his daddy's name wouldn't have deodorized his own.

[Hannah Bell]

21. "worked his ass off" - how? how more than any other middle-aged person who

didn't lead weatherman?

his family connections went a long way in getting him -- & his wife bernadine dohrn -- their cushy jobs, imo.

while their supposed "comrades" without connections still rot in jail.

[KansDem]

6. Check out this comment from the website!

What? The Leadership group is distancing itself from it's leaders?
:rofl:

[formercia]

9. The cockroaches scatter when the light comes on.

Shine Baby, shine.

[MilesColtrane]

7. *cough* *co-conspirator* *cough*

[hayu_lol]

8. Don't know why they focused on Landrieu...

she has been a DINO most of her career in politics. Or a Blue Dog: take yer choice.

Makes me really wonder about security though. The costume of a phone service crew was enough to get them passed into what should have been a secure building. They had no credentials on them...just relied on their clothing and gear to get passed in.

[BurtWorm]

11. Ben Wetmore?

This is a joke, right? They crashed at the pad of Ben Wetmore?

[lpbk2713]

16. Sounds like an old knock-knock joke.

But then, aren't these assclowns ALL old jokes?

[BurtWorm]

18. Sounds like a Bart Simpson phone prank.

I can hear Moe shouting, "Ben Wetmore? Who's Ben Wetmore?"

[Neurotica]

12. Extended family-Morton's wife Elizabeth is head of Eagle Forum in VA

The list of connections goes on and on...

[Kingofalldems]

13. Let's keep this on the first page --wow!

[Emit]

14. More on Wetmore

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=7607035&mesg_id=7610023

[blogslut]

15. As I posted via comment on TPM

Mr. Wetmore's Twitter is interesting: http://twitter.com/benwetmore

Two Tweets:

is close to getting a robodialer all to himself, and is now getting greedy for more mass communication tech. items - 11:38 PM Feb 4th, 2009 from web

well, after an hour discussing the use of big checks for activism, I'm working on some salacious yellow journalism - how do I explain my job? - 11:38 PM Jan 25th, 2009 from web

Snag those interesting Wetmore tweets while they last, kids.

[spanone]

20. lee atwater would be proud of these criminals

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee_Atwater

[Blue Owl]

22. Another distinguished alumni of the Dear Leadership Institute?

Well well well, look what we have here.

[underpants]

23. the Fifth Beatle LMFAO

I read this at lunch today and was going to post it

too funny

[pepperbear]

24. Wasn't the 5th Beatle named Leppo? n/t