Alan Greenblatt is a GOVERNING correspondent.
E-mail: mailbox@governing.comTwitter: @governing
Extreme Propaganda
Here's a legislative example of the phenomenon I described the other day with the anti-Hillary YouTube video.
Two videos have been posted on YouTube deriding legislators for their role in the debate over a piece of pro-union legislation.
One, shot from the balcony of the House chamber, shows Representative Dolores Mertz leaving the floor on a day she took ill. The person narrating the video accuses House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, described as "a complete jerk," of having made Mertz sick by pressuring her regarding her vote on the bill.
"This is what's going on with these Democrats," says the video narrator. "They're sick, they're extremely mean-spirited, they're trying to hurt people.
Both McCarthy and Mertz have denied this account. "It's extreme propaganda from people who apparently don't mind lying," McCarthy told the Des Moines Register.
Yet another anonymous electronic medium lowers the level of discourse -- not surprising, but troubling and something to watch.
UPDATE: By the way, the maker of the anti-Hillary video, a consultant with ties to the Obama campaign, has been outed and has resigned.
Written and compiled by staff writers and editors, GOVERNING View is an on-the-ground, and sometimes behind-the-scenes, look at the topics we're covering in print and online. From notes on what's up in statehouses, county courthouses and city halls, to encounters with people, places and things, GOVERNING View is a window into the side of state and local government you don't always see.
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