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Neocon Nuttery
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Title: The Genesis of the Smears (JOHN COLE ASKS ABOUT FREEPER ICUWHATUDO)
Source: John Cole's Balloon Juice
URL Source: http://www.balloon-juice.com/?p=8849
Published: Oct 11, 2007
Author: John Cole
Post Date: 2007-10-11 14:47:37 by aristeides
Keywords: None
Views: 2156
Comments: 176

The Genesis of the Smears

By: John Cole October 11, 2007 at 12:53 pm

Appears to have been an aide to Mitch McConnell, according to the Communists at ThinkProgress:

ThinkProgress has obtained an email that congressional sources tell us was sent to reporters by Sen. McConnell’s communications director Don Stewart.

On Monday morning, Don Stewart sent an email with the following text to reporters:

Seen the latest blogswarm? Apparently, there’s more to the story on the kid (Graeme Frost) that did the Dems’ radio response on SCHIP. Bloggers have done a little digging and turned up that the Dad owns his own business (and the building it’s in), seems to have some commercial rental income and Graeme and a sister go to a private school that, according to its website, costs about $20k a year ‹for each kid‹ despite the news profiles reporting a family income of only $45k for the Frosts. Could the Dems really have done that bad of a job vetting this family?

In the email, Stewart attacks Democrats for allegedly doing a bad job “vetting this family.” That effort to blame Democrats for the smear campaign seems to have swayed some reporters, as CNN this morning claimed that the real story is that “the Democrats didn’t do as much of a vetting as they could have done.”

What is so surprising about all of this is not that all of the stuff in the leaked email has turned out to be completely false- that is just amusing. What is surprising is THE SPEED with which the “citizen journalists” ran with this, and echoed everything the leaked email did- just like good little soldiers. It was viral in no time.

I would not be surprised if Malkin, Limbaugh, and some folks at the NRO were not in the coterie of ‘reporters’ this was emailed to, nor would I be surprised if they got it from a friend of a friend (despite pretending to be different from the beltway crowd, all of the above are insiders to the Washington game, despite their protests otherwise). I’d like to know a little more about the freeper who ran with this in the first place, giving Michelle and others their “in” to run with the story without having to be the ones to take the blame for doing it. Who is icuwhatudo? What is her/his real identity? How is this person connected to the McConnell aide or the reporters who received this list. Or was it just a coincidence? If I prided myself in being a citizen journalist, those are the questions I would be asking.

And does anyone have any pictures of his living room?

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Begin Trace Mode for Comment # 29.

#2. To: All (#0)

from USAToday

Bloggers said the house was worth more than $400,000. It turns out it was bought for $55,000 in 1991 in a Baltimore neighborhood where "there were drug dealers and prostitutes on our street," Bonnie Frost said. Halsey Frost, a woodworker, did most of the renovations, which are "still not done," Bonnie said.

Bloggers said Graeme and Gemma go to private Park School, where tuition costs about $20,000. Graeme gets a scholarship, while Gemma's brain injuries were so severe that the city pays to educate her at a school for children with disabilities, the couple say.

From Daily Kos: They web published the home address of SCHIP family - what you can do

robin  posted on  2007-10-11   14:59:17 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  

So let me get this straight:

a. Are the Frosts not owners of a greatly appreciated home ( let's set aside Bonnie's desire to have more renovations done and the fact that she has concrete counters that are as expensive as granite) on which they could have taken out a second mortgage for $20,0000 to fund a tax deductible Health Savings Account and to buy a high deductible health insurance policy for the past 4 years?

b. Are the Frosts not owners of commercial property worth $160,000 which brings in rental income, which also has enough cash equity in it to allow the Frosts to sell and make a profit to supplement their "meager" middle class life style?

c. If the Frosts had lived in a state that has a means test for folks that qualify for tapping SCHIP funds, do you believe the Frosts would have passed?

d. If you were running a private school in Baltimore with its well documented poverty and crime and visible minority children living in dire circumstances, would you give the Frosts' not 1 but 2 children access to the small number of free ride scholarships at your school? Are the Frosts' children living in "special challenging" circumstances that they are needy for a "leg up?"

e. Did Mr. and Mrs. Frost decide to thrust themselves and theiir family into the public stage or did the big bad reich wing evil bloggers seek the anonymous Frosts family and drag them out to front and center stage?

scrapper2  posted on  2007-10-11   15:18:29 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  

second mortgage for $20,0000 to fund a tax deductible Health Savings Account

Second mortgages come with a monthly payment, and you are assuming they could find private insurance. With such serious preexisting conditions it is very doubtful the Frosts would find a private health care provider for any price. And if they did, the insurance company probably wouldn't pay for all the necessary therapy. This happened to a middle-class family I know with one autistic child.

Scholarships are awarded for a variety of reasons. It sounds like the Frosts were grateful and willing to share how the SCHIP program helped them, but they are no longer giving interviews because of the GOP hate machine.

robin  posted on  2007-10-11   16:15:45 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  

a. Second mortgages come with a monthly payment, and you are assuming they could find private insurance. With such serious preexisting conditions it is very doubtful the Frosts would find a private health care provider for any price. And if they did, the insurance company probably wouldn't pay for all the necessary therapy. This happened to a middle-class family I know with one autistic child.

b. Scholarships are awarded for a variety of reasons. It sounds like the Frosts were grateful and willing to share how the SCHIP program helped them, but they are no longer giving interviews because of the GOP hate machine.

a. I'm not sure what you are talking about. What "pre-existing" condition did any of the Frost Family members have prior to their auto accident that prevented Mr. and Mrs. Frost from buying a health insurance policy for the family? Once you have a health insurance policy in place, they can't refuse to cover medical issues that come as a result of a car accident. That's why responsible people buy health insurance policies especially when they head a family with minor dependents - to protevct against catastrophic health eventualities that would drain a family's assets otherwise.

Your friend's austic child is not relevant to the discussion about why I believe that the Frosts were irresponsible in the way they did not prepare their family in 2003 against an out-of-the-blue health emergency, which unfortunately subsequently happened.

Monthly payments for second mortgages that amount to $20,000 are peanuts - I've been there so I know of what I speak - in 2003, the Frosts would have been given an excellent rate because of the equity in their highly appreciated residence as well as the equity they had in their commercial property.

b. Scholarships in private schools are generally given to minority children living in dire straights who deserve a leg up - basically scholarships represent a way for a private school to "give back" to their community to help disadvantaged children in their midst whose financial circumstances are very different from their full pay student parent body. The Frosts should have better scruples than to apply for this type of scholarship because it deprived 2 children who were truly needy.

As for why the Frosts will no longer give interviews - they thrust themselves into the kitchen but they did not like the fires. Maybe they should have thought about the risks of grabbing a microphone and taking center stage before they did what they did. Hindset is 20/20 vision.

With regards to the "GOP hate machine" - oh yes, righhhht, for sure, most definitely - the "problem" is the GOP not the Dems who used a child to promote their agenda and it's not the Frosts who scammed a system meant for impoverished children because they consciously took risks with their children's future and lost when Fate stepped in.

Lalalalalala...

scrapper2  posted on  2007-10-11   20:13:19 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  

responsible people buy health insurance policies especially when they head a family with minor dependents - to protevct against catastrophic health eventualities that would drain a family's assets otherwise.

I think that's a tough decision for many families. if you're reasonably healthy, it seems like a waste of money when you have to do without a lot of other things to pay premiums for insurance that never kicks in cause you never go past your deductible. we currently pay a whole lot more for our daughter's health insurance than we would pay for doctor's visits or medications if we didn't have insurance for her. I'm not sure it's smart. it would be if she was in a horrible accident, but thankfully, year after year she hasn't been; but the other side of the coin is we've spent a lot of money for absolutely no return. hypothetical: someday your child pursues a college scolarship but is turned down because of a lack of extracurricular activities that you couldn't afford because you made health insurance a priority, even though you never got a benefit from it. did you save? when you say "responsible people" I think you need to add "that can afford it"

kiki  posted on  2007-10-11   22:53:43 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  

I think that's a tough decision for many families. if you're reasonably healthy, it seems like a waste of money when you have to do without a lot of other things to pay premiums for insurance that never kicks in cause you never go past your deductible. we currently pay a whole lot more for our daughter's health insurance than we would pay for doctor's visits or medications if we didn't have insurance for her. I'm not sure it's smart. it would be if she was in a horrible accident, but thankfully, year after year she hasn't been; but the other side of the coin is we've spent a lot of money for absolutely no return. hypothetical: someday your child pursues a college scolarship but is turned down because of a lack of extracurricular activities that you couldn't afford because you made health insurance a priority, even though you never got a benefit from it. did you save? when you say "responsible people" I think you need to add "that can afford it"

Well it's your kind of thinking that evidently the Frost Family shared. And for them - because they had other "priorities" - they took risks with their kids furture and Fate intervened and delivered a catastrophic blow.

Sorry but I don't feel my taxpayer dollars through SCHIP -should cover your risk taking decisions or those of the Frost Family. My tax dollars in SCHIP were intended to help the truly impoverished children, not middle class families who are intent on feathering up a desirable college application for their child.

I have always paid my own freight and planned for health and financial emergencies. I have little sympathy for those who can afford to plan accordingly but don't because of what they judge to be "other priorities" at the time but turn around and expect me a hard working self-sufficient worker bee - to bail out their grass hopper selves on the rainy day that comes.

Everyone thinks their "other priorities" take precedence over providing a health and financial cushion for unexpected eventualities - I'd like to use my health premiums this year to remodel my master bathroom but I don't because I know that protecting myself against catastrophes is more important.

I'm a very traditional conservative. I have never been a care free grasshopper except for my college years. I can't relate to adults who think they are so special that others should look after them and their children when they can well afford and should assume that responsibility. It's a concept that is very foreign to me. But that's just me I guess - a good little worker bee through and through.

scrapper2  posted on  2007-10-11   23:32:26 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  

well, I certainly did not say I expect to be bailed out by you or anyone else in the event of a "rainy day" - I do not expect that. I understand that I could be destroyed in such an event. lately I'm understanding that, being middle class, I could be destroyed regardless, so it's actually becoming less of a worry, or at least less of something I would pour my limited resources into. I'm not a wealthy person - I do have to pick and choose where my income goes. I have to prioritize. and I do look back and think of what I could have done with my income in years where I spent it on risks like insurance that I didn't end up needing. it's a gamble. I'm happy for you that it's so clear and that you feel it's money well spent. I've never reached that level of self assurance, probably because I've never reached that level of income that I can't help but worry about and regret money spent 'just in case"

kiki  posted on  2007-10-11   23:54:44 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  

#32. To: All (#29)

I'd like to use my health premiums this year to remodel my master bathroom but I don't because I know that protecting myself against catastrophes is more important.

gee, I'd like to have a master bathroom to remodel. but I don't. everything's relative, some can afford choices that others cannot even consider.

kiki  posted on  2007-10-12 00:21:22 ET  Reply   Untrace   Trace   Private Reply  

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