Well, At Least It Had Wi-Fi: Clinton Campaign Sticks Press Corps In The Men's Room

Huffington Post   |  Rachel Sklar   |   March 4, 2008 11:07 AM


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Is the Hillary Clinton campaign staffed with morons or do they just not care anymore? It is unbelievable that on the night before the Texas and Ohio (and Vermont and Rhode Island) primaries they would set up an impromptu press room in a freaking men's bathroom, complete with urinals. Yes. It's true. The WSJ's Jackie Calmes posted an account of the scene last night, including the tidbit that former New Yorker and Talk editor, Diana-tome authoress and journalistic grande dame Tina Brown was stuck "gamely typing away close to a toilet" — and not just any toilet: ETP was able to confirm from someone present that Brown was "literally inches from a urinal." According to the LAT's Andrew Malcolm, many of the press corps had begun their day with Clinton at 5 a.m. in Toledo, Ohio before crossing the country with her to cover her in Austin, Texas. No doubt they were thrilled — especially since they also got to enjoy dinner in the men's room, too. Tamales. Yes, tamales.

Not surprisingly, this juicy (eek, bad choice of word) story has been picked up all over the place, including on CNN's "American Morning" this a.m. (John Roberts seemed to be having fun riffing on possible chyrons for the footage — "leak" from the Clinton campaign etc.) and has been written up by Reuters, the LA Times, the Boston Globe, the Baltimore Sun, and was snapped up by Gawker's early-morning man Ryan Tate at 5:00 am (though the Tina Brown aspect of this item would have been catnip for old-school Gawker audiences, it's interesting to note that it's only gotten a meager 985 pageviews — watch it, Tate, that's a fireable offense!).

Clinton spokesman Doug Hattaway denied that any message was being sent, saying, "These accommodations should in no way be taken as a comment on the quality of our media coverage." Perhaps, but it sent a different message: That whoever was responsible for organizing this particular press filing center was an idiot.

Whatever the message was meant to be, whoever on the campaign knew about this and let it happen had to have known this would get negative attention and make the campaign seem churlish and vengeful. The bathroom in question was located in the Tony Burger Activity Center in Austin, Texas and is described as hosting "basketball, volleyball, drill team, musical events and graduations." Do y'think on the night before a hugely important primary they might've been able to do a little better?



Update: Here's a video of the proceedings, for extra fun:










Reporting from the Men's Room
[WSJ]

Hillary Clinton puts the media in its place -- the men's room
[LAT]
Scenes from the trail: A creative filing center [CNN Political Ticker]



 
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THEY SHOULD FEEL RIGHT AT HOME.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 02:14 AM on 03/06/2008

Those Clinton's are a class act. You can take the girl out of the trailer park but you can't take the trailer park out of the girl. These are probaly first class accomodations in Arkansas. Heat, lights AND running water.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 07:04 PM on 03/05/2008
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I cannot think of a more appropriate place for these idiots.

I find it hard to believe that they found a bathroom with no wide stanced republiCONs lurking around.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 04:16 PM on 03/05/2008

Considering how the press has been writing her campaign's obituary the last week. I thought it was wholly appropriate to put that bunch of dick heads in a place they belong.

You go girl!

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 09:47 AM on 03/05/2008
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Appropriate, given what they produce.

Je pense, donc je suis populiste.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 09:03 AM on 03/05/2008

This is just further evidence that she is running a campaign right out of the toilet. Good job demonstrating how well supported you are, you guys go set up over there in crapper. Hillaryous! Oh the elitist have really come a long way, so I guess when you're as good as them you're sense of entitlement warrants a seat on the ovel office, the porcelain seat of empowerment.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 06:44 AM on 03/05/2008

They get to smell their own shit for once, instead of serving it up to the masses with a grin and a wink

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 03:17 AM on 03/05/2008

Hillary has obviously figured out that the Corporate Media is very popular, and Billary can put them wherever the hell it wants.

If she doesn't get the coverage desired, HillBilly will make them fish their tomales out of the toilet. Then Hillary will put on her high collar and tell them to kiss her ring, or she'll have them sent to the place where the "Pimp-boy" spent his his "timeout."

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 02:17 AM on 03/05/2008
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Did you know that you sound drunk? I'm just saying...

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:22 PM on 03/05/2008

Many of us can come up wih reasons about why they deserved this.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 11:52 PM on 03/04/2008

Wow, Hillary is a psychotic, vindictive witch isn't she?

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 09:54 PM on 03/04/2008

oh big deal...so she set them up in the bathroom...sounds appropriate considering the coverage this year...besides, it gives them an opportunity to practice their "exit polling"...

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 08:54 AM on 03/05/2008

Now the Clinton campaign is officially full of shit.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 09:19 PM on 03/04/2008

When I first saw the picture I thought it was the press corps for Larry Craig.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 07:00 PM on 03/04/2008
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I wonder if they'll be there until the wee hours?

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 06:41 PM on 03/04/2008

Pretty funny.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 07:02 PM on 03/05/2008

:

Hillary's Just Flush With Victory.

:

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 05:31 PM on 03/04/2008

This is the latest Clinton tactic of doing something outrageous and then apologizing or claiming it was an oversight or mistake. These folks are political professionals and any event planner, advance person or press person with the least bit of common sense would know better than to put the press in a bathroom. I hear the Obama press people roll out the red carpet for the press. Folks in the media are supposed to be impartial but press coverage of a subject is based on how they treat the press, with Bob Knight, Barry Bonds and Richard Nixon being examples. Great athletes who are assholes often have an harder time getting elected to the hall of fame than less accomplished players who were very friendly with the press, since hall of fame awards are voted by the media. McCain often gets a pass from the media because of the Straight Talk Express and he's indicated that if elected President, he'll continue to hold regular engagements with the media. Back in the days of the Boys on the Bus, the bathroom thing woudn't be an issue because of an unwritten understanding between reporters and campaign staffs not report behind the scene aspects of the campaign, and because photographers and camera crews had limited film they couldn't waste on shots of reporters typing in the bathroom. If the story did make it back to the newsroom, an editor would probably spike it but today with instant journalism and the internet, a story that's reported by one outlet or blog will be quickly picked up and profiled on Google News, and its all over the world in five minutes. Reporters on the campaign trail should question both Clinton and Obama on how accessible they will be to the media if elected president. Given how the press has been treated by Hillary, it seems the relationship with a Hillary press corps wouldn't be too different from the tense interaction the Bush administration has maintained with the White House press.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 04:06 PM on 03/04/2008
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Hillary is just treating the press the same way they have been treating her lately. If the only thing a politician has to do for good press coverage is kiss their ass, then the press isn"t doing their job. Besides, this location gives them a bird"s eye view of their usual product.

"a Hillary press corps wouldn't be too different from the tense interaction the Bush administration has maintained with the White House press."

Are you referring to the same white house press that slept through the first 5 years of the bush regime? Waking up only very rarely to ask some pertinent question before going back into hibernation. They have functioned more like "catapulters of propaganda" for king george jr. than true members of a curious and investigative press. They belong in the bathroom too.

    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 04:47 PM on 03/05/2008
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