Blogger Ed Morrissey Finds Dem Donor Hosting Fake Fred Thompson Site

Blogger Ed Morrissey Finds Dem Donor Hosting Fake Fred Thompson Site

By Ken Shepherd (Bio | Archive)
August 9, 2007 - 17:33 ET

This is still developing apparently, but Ed Morrissey of Captain's Quarters is all over what appears to be a hare-brained smear of presumptive GOP presidential candidate and former Tennessee senator Fred Thompson. Here's an excerpt:

It doesn't take long for provocateurs to crawl out of the woodwork to attack candidates, especially in stealth attacks. With Fred Thompson, they've apparently started before he officially enters the race -- and in one case, race is the operative word. Apparently hoping to confuse web surfers looking for Fred's website at www.imwithfred.com, a new site has appeared at www.imwithfred2008.com -- only this site welcomes people to the Ku Klux Klan, "Bringing a Message of Hope and Deliverance to White Christian America!" It includes links to a variety of disgusting racist sites.

Who would post something like this as a smear on Fred Thompson? Someone a little too stupid to cover his tracks, possibly? A DNS search gives us an answer. The domain name, registered through GoDaddy (no great shock there), belongs to:

Henry Reynolds
500 California Ave. #5
Santa Monica, California 90403
United States

The phone number listed on the domain record, which I won't post here, goes to an answering machine for the "law offices of Henry Reynolds". I left a message asking for comment on this website, and then decided to take a look through OpenSecrets and the FEC to see if Mr. Reynolds has a history of supporting Fred Thompson, or even the KKK. Actually, it turns out that a Mr. Henry Reynolds in the same zip code working as an attorney has a small record of political donations -- but in another direction:

4/6/2005 - $500, MoveOn.org

9/22/2004 - $500, DNC Services

4/5/2004 - $250, John Kerry

FEC receipts for these donations can be found here, here, and here. They have the same address as the domain registration.

End excerpt.

Ace and Allah also have coverage.

—Ken Shepherd is Managing Editor of NewsBusters

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Looks like it got taken down

August 9, 2007 - 17:40 ET by ArcherB

The site now copies the Wiki page for Fredric Jameson.

If you hamper the war effort of one side, you automatically help out that of the other. --George Orwell

He mentioned that in an

August 9, 2007 - 17:44 ET by Ken Shepherd

He mentioned that in an update on his blog.

BDS is a serious affliction.

August 9, 2007 - 18:03 ET by dabal

BDS is a serious affliction.

My Wish

August 9, 2007 - 18:06 ET by stratman

The link to OpenSecrets.org also errors out.

How special that a Social Security Disability attorney would be pro-Democrat, specifically pro-Edwards, and spread repulsive rumors wantonly. What a schmuck.

I hope this is actionable and Fred goes after him.

Killing them with kindness isn't working. Time to get scrappy with the Donkeys.

No surprise. I bet he owes

August 9, 2007 - 18:08 ET by rbosque

No surprise. I bet he owes the DNC a favor.

Or two.

Somebody suggested open a

August 9, 2007 - 18:28 ET by Right2thePoint

Somebody suggested open a new tab, put the site on auto refresh each ten seconds and chew up the bandwidth limit and hit this sucker for a big overage bill for total gigs consumed.

Not that I would recommend doing that of course.

Ok Ken...

August 9, 2007 - 18:32 ET by MightyMouth

"The domain name, registered through GoDaddy (no great shock there), belongs to..."

So what's wrong with GoDaddy? huh?

"There are two types of people in this country; those who provide freedom and those who enjoy it." MM says...

They'll sink to any depth.

August 9, 2007 - 19:23 ET by fitzfong

They'll sink to any depth. Just goes to show how afraid they are that he might win.

What's really a laugh and a

August 9, 2007 - 19:29 ET by Del Dolemonte

What's really a laugh and a half is going over to Captain Ed's and seeing the squirrels coming out of the woodwork trying to defend this guy...

Saved for posterity. A

August 9, 2007 - 19:34 ET by Bender

Saved for posterity.

A snapshot of the offending website:

http://i10.tinypic.c...

Interesting he linked to

August 9, 2007 - 19:48 ET by danbo

Interesting he linked to the KKK. Though it now goes to Wiki.

Interesting in that I understand a famous Klansman did these kinds of things before the net. He would write things under an assumed name. As a black power advocate. Then use the book to complain about blacks. I recall an article on this in the Daily Revelle when he was still in school.

Could this guy be more like the klan than he realizes.

"There is a clear attempt to establish truth not by scientific methods but by perpetual repetition."
- Richard S. Lindzen, Ph.D. Professor of Meteorology, MIT

Here is the original whois

August 9, 2007 - 19:54 ET by Bender

Here is the original whois information prior to being changed to "domainsbyproxy".

Screenshot of domain registrant details:

http://i18.tinypic.c...

Data source: http://whois.domaint...

sheesh

August 9, 2007 - 20:14 ET by DontFeedTheTrolls

So this is what you do if you can't beat someone intellectually.

Keep the ILLEGALS out, join NumbersUSA to send free faxes to your reps.

To win a war in the court

August 9, 2007 - 21:02 ET by Tom1969ca

To win a war in the court of ideas, you first need to have one...

~~~

"We can stand here like the French, or we can do something about it."
-- Marge Simpson

Is there any legal recourse for the Thompson campaign?

August 9, 2007 - 21:18 ET by Dave R

Ken,

Is there any legal recourse for the Thompson campaign? Personally, I'd like to see this Reynolds guy lose is ass, along with every thing else he has ever bought, borrowed, or stolen.

If I were Fred, I would

August 9, 2007 - 21:58 ET by USA4freedom

If I were Fred, I would wrap this up in a nice big campaign
add just to show who the DNC, Move-on and all the rest are all about.

I do think they are shaking in their boots..

These are the boys of Pointe du Hoc.
Ronald Reagan- 40th Anniversary of D-Day

Is it me or does that girl

August 9, 2007 - 21:59 ET by USA4freedom

Is it me or does that girl selling the t-shirt on the right
of the page look really hot..

Sorry its getting late..

These are the boys of Pointe du Hoc.
Ronald Reagan- 40th Anniversary of D-Day

yes, i have found myself

August 9, 2007 - 23:52 ET by rob6677

yes, i have found myself spending a bit more time ah.. "reading" the posts next to that pic!

"I hired you to get some track laid, not jump around like a bunch a kansas city faggots" Slim Pickens

USA4,

August 9, 2007 - 22:56 ET by Dave R

You know, that would be better than any legal action they could take.

And yes, the T-shirt babe is a hottie.

Nice, firm tummy she has going there. :-)

Not sure. Not a lawyer, but

August 9, 2007 - 23:31 ET by Ken Shepherd

Not sure. Not a lawyer, but I think the case would be hard to win.

Starting spoof sites against candidates is nothing new. I think what was so compelling with this case is directing the URL towards the KKK. My guess is that it was filler until actual anti-Fred content was written for the site.

Ken,

August 10, 2007 - 00:25 ET by Dave R

As a libertarian, I'd be the last person to support a law that would interefere with true satire, but there are many innocent people who have been severely damaged by things like this.

Obviously, Fred is a public figure and such, but what about those who aren't well known, and who lack the resources people like Fred have to deal with this sort of thing?

Not trying to sound like BOR here, who has a real problem with the www in general, but sometimes I have to wonder if something couldn't be done, as this guy's attempt to damage Fred Thompson may have gone a little beyond just satire.

Of course, if the guy wanted a real klan connection, he should have shifted the URL to Sen. Robert Byrd's site.

At least that would have been "fair."

Help Fred defeat everybody.

I think the solution to

August 10, 2007 - 11:33 ET by Bruzilla

I think the solution to this problem has been found in this string. The real problem is that some people feel free to pull stunts like this because of the anonymous nature of the internet. A guy like Reynolds would never think of holding a press conference and accusing Thompson of being with the KKK, but he thinks he can pull this stunt off because he thinks no one will know he did it.

By outing this pinhead, he's exposed for the pinhead he is. Also, creating a public website, on a public internet, makes you a public figure. So I think outing these guys falls under the "what goes around, comes around rule" and he should suffer the same ridicule, as a public figure, that he's tossing on another public figure.

IANAL either, but since

August 10, 2007 - 02:16 ET by sarcasmo

IANAL either, but since this perp is, and that's presumably his income, it might also be where to go after him. Lawyers are "officers of the court" and they're aware that if they do something which reflects badly on the legal profession (I know, I'm laughing too...) they can, at least in theory, be sanctioned, even when it's tough to charge them with anything. Ask Bill Clinton.

IMO any really effective anti-Fred ad would include the CFR, not the KKK, but what could the truth possibly matter to a Democrat lawyer??
JMR

Rally online with fans of Dr. Ron Paul.

}}---> This is silly

August 10, 2007 - 03:22 ET by Cool Arrow

The only "proof" of anything you have here is that MoveON, the DNC, and Henry Reynolds are closely related to the KKK.

Mr. Reynolds and Terry McCauliffe were unavailable for comment.

DNC should be asked why they are taking money from a hate group.

It's all spin. We just don't know how to pull it off as easily as these hatemongers do.

I drive past this address

August 10, 2007 - 03:34 ET by Khyris

I drive past this address on my commute to and from work... maybe I'll drop by and ask a few of his office staff if they know they're working for a KKK promoter.

I don't suppose anyone has a screenshot of the website as it was in full size? That'd be nice to take with me to pass around.

Khyris

August 10, 2007 - 03:34 ET by Cool Arrow

That would be most appreciated. You might also mention some of the other smut he puts on his site. Perhaps one or two of them have had an awkward moment with him they would like to pursue with the offices of Bob Loblaw, sexual harrassment lawyewr.

Some of his previous

August 10, 2007 - 03:39 ET by sarcasmo

Some of his previous opponents might have motivation to go after his law ticket for this. Not sure if it would work or not, but since it's his livelihood it's likely to get his attention.
JMR

Rally online with fans of Dr. Ron Paul.

}}---> Call Jesse and Al

August 10, 2007 - 04:17 ET by Cool Arrow

Wonder how happy they'll be that the Democrat masters are making jokes of Black America on the net.

If this isn't "stirring up the folk" as Klansman Robert Byrd would say, I don't know what is.

}}---> Not only jokes

August 10, 2007 - 04:26 ET by Cool Arrow

Not only is this guy making jokes about African Americans, I think there's a case to be made he really harbors the feelings of the Klan. I mean, who in their right mind actively seeks Klan sites to link to.

Way to go Democrats. Reinforcing what we've known about you since the 60's.