"He Was Frightened" -- Details in Rove's IT Guru Connell's Death Emerge

Mike Connell, the GOP's go-to computer guy who died in a solo plane crash late Friday night had had allegedly been threatened with federal prosecution by Karl Rove.

In email to Attorney General Mukasey posted on BRAD Blog attorney Cliff Arnebeck, who brought the Ohio vote-tampering suit, wrote:

We have been confidentially informed by a source we believe to be credible that Karl Rove has threatened Michael Connell, a principal witness we have identified in our King Lincoln case in federal court in Columbus, Ohio, that if he does not agree to "take the fall" for election fraud in Ohio, his wife Heather will be prosecuted for supposed lobby law violations.

Connell was deposed on November 3 of this year in the 2006 case which alleges that voter fraud helped steal Ohio votes and swing the 2004 election for President George W. Bush. Computer servers for Ohio on Election Night were run by one of Mr. Connell's companies. Connell had designed Blackwell's election websites along with the 2004 Election Night site for the Secretary of State which showed votes in real time, along with numerous sites for the GOP.

Ohio.com explains that the lawsuit King Lincoln Bronzwville v. Blackwell

alleges that by 9 p.m. on Election Night 2004, the results were switched from the state server to one set up by Connell's, in the former Pioneer Bank Building in Chattanooga, Tenn. It is alleged the same server was used to bundle and remove White House e-mails regarding the 2005 federal prosecutor firing scandal.

Investigative reporter Larisa Alexandrovna writes:

Mike Connell set-up the alternate email and communications system for the White House...When asked by Congress to provide these emails, the White House said that they were destroyed. But in reality, what Connell is alleged to have done is move these files to other servers after having allegedly scrubbed the files from all "known" Karl Rove accounts...Mike was getting ready to talk. He was frightened.

Meanwhile, initial investigation seems to indicate that Friday night's "cloud cover and misty, cold conditions" were at cause for the crash.

Former Navy pilot and director of safety for a Cleveland-area private jet company Charles Starkey told Ohio.com that in such conditions, pilots typically are forced to rely on the plane's instruments rather than their own vision, which can contribute to crashes.

It's easy to get disoriented, especially if you're not very experienced at it. You've got to ignore the various things your body can be telling you and rely on your instruments. It's very challenging.

Related:

Lisa Derrick: Mike Connell -- Key Figure in OH Voter Fraud and WH Email Scandals, Dies in Plane Crash

Lisa Derrick's blog La Figa is part of Firedoglake

Follow Lisa Derrick on Twitter: www.twitter.com/lalisa93

Comments

[ProgressiveVoice]

Given the frequency with which our government lies to We the People, it amazes me how easily we buy into the lie. Sure, most Americans oppose remaining in Iraq NOW but we invaded with ~90% of the population in support. The intel was just as false, the reasons given just as spurious, MSM not powerful enough to cheerlead that much support OR to oppose popular opinion - we bought the lies.

We all need to pay more attention, as we did during the debate before the bailout. Not only did that provoke an unprecedented involvement of citizens, it showed us which politicians REALLY listen to their constituents and which ones need to be booted from office.

[addicted2purchase]

It took almost 20 years for OJ to meet justice. It may take that long to see justice dealt out to the Bush Crime organization. The crash may have been accidental or not. Either way I'm sure Rove has a renewed faith in the power of prayer. Maybe was Christian enough to put "feet" to his prayer. Time will tell! It always does...... eventually!

[wndrwrthg]

It is amazing how someone crucial to an event relating to little georgie dies at the most opportune time. Aren't coinsidences funny?

[zakon]

Remember DC Madam's 'suicide' (she was about to go to jail, but suggested she could name Cheney as a client in the 90's to a radio talk show host. She said she may be 'suicided'):

www.huffingtonpost.com/linda-milazzo/the-convenient-suicide-of_b_99717.html

Remember David Kelly 'suicide' (BBC outed their Deep Throat under pressure. He was British intelligence insider who leaked to BBC reporters that the British Intelligence dossier report, that was referred by Bush in the State of the Union Address, was 'sexed up'.

www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/05/05/deborah-jeane-palfreys-su_n_100201.html

This guy likely crashed his plane rather than see bad things happen to his family. DC Madame and Kelly likely wrote their own suicide notes, but only because not to do so meant their families would get hurt. Wouldn't you do the same?

[sean6886]

I'm certainly not a conspiracy theorist, but I really thought and still think something was not right with the DC Madam's "suicide". How convienent that she comes out saying she's going to name names and then she's dead. The press barely covered it and they certainly never questioned it. All that power with her little (or probably large) black book. Why would she k i l l herself? This is one I don't believe the official report on.

[jonahbasset]

Keep it alive Lisa. Some of us are listening and reading all we can about this. Thanks!

[pir anha]

occam's razor says "pilot error". single engine plane, nightfall, icy mist -- it really doesn't need a conspiracy to take out a pilot who has "get-home-itis" instead of being smart and not flying into crap weather.

though yeah, the last 8 years have ruined me too; my first thought was "oh, isn't that convenient". but i think i'll wait for the NTSB report before spinning my wheels.

[Oahspe]

Mike Connell
From SourceWatch

.

Michael (Mike) L. Connell was President, Chief Political Strategist and CEO of New Media Communications, Inc., a Republican website development and internet services firm based in Richfield, OH. He died December 19, 2008 when the small airplane he was piloting crashed upon approach at the Akron-Canton Airport.[1] He is survived by his wife, Heather and their four children.

New Media's GOP clients are a "'Who's Who' of Republican politics", having provided campaign web services and Internet strategy for Bush-Cheney 2000/2004. In April 2001, Connell spun-off GovTech Solutions from New Media to handle its growing list of federal government clients, such as MajorityWhip.gov for Tom DeLay and Johnny Isakson. Business filings in the state of Ohio show that Govtech's founding members were Connell's wife Heather, and the well-known GOP operative and Chairman of the DCI Group, Thomas J. Synhorst. By 2004, Govtech's clients would grow to include more than 20 members of the U.S. House of Representatives, GOP.gov, the web site of the House Republican Conference, and the House Intelligence, Judiciary, Financial Services, Way and Means, and Administration committees. The latter was acquired while House Administration was chaired by former-U.S. Rep. Bob Ney of Ohio, who was convicted in 2006 of conspiracy to defraud the United States(Sou­rcewatch)-­----------­-------DCI­,as in FLS-DCI...remember them? Maybe Al Franken and Norm Coleman need to stay off planes,too.

[Carolab]

On Democracy Now today (also on Peter B. Collins show on Air America tonight--go to his website)

http://www.democracynow.org/2008/12/22/republican_it_specialist_dies_in_plane

And a decent write-up in the Telegraph UK

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/3885913/George-Bush-aide-dies-in-plane-crash.html

And Cliff Arnebeck is to be on Lou Dobb's show tomorrow.

Word is getting out.

[Vinca]

I OFTEN WATCH LOU DOBBS, I'M GLAD ARNEBECK, IS COMING ON, THE WORD NEEDS TO GET OUT

[DontSpin]

You guys should read this: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sam-sedaei/on-abortion-pro-choice-is_b_152744.html

[pir anha]

you should stop spamming.

[Lisa Derrick - Huffpost Blogger]

Air America has started talking about this...

[PierreLeClerke]

And where is the great and powerful Patrick Fitzgerald in this case. Tracking a petty thief gov. on the other side of the political spectrum.
Did he not say a cloud hung over the V.P.

Yet the fog of cover over this wholesale fraud and theft of our most fundamental right upon which we base our FREEDOM, PLEASE!

[Chicagowill]

Patrick Fitzgerald is the US Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois. Prior to that, he was special prosecutor for the case of the outing of Valerie Plame Wilson. Unless you can show that he has jurisdiction under one of those two jobs, prosecution has to be left to the local US Attorney.

I'd love to get to the bottom of this, too, but we have to follow the legal process.

[Carolab]

Peter B. Collins show tonight had Cliff Arnebeck, Brad Friedman and Larisa Alexandrovna

[bethinCary]

Connell had abandoned 2 flights previously before this flight-for suspecting his plane was tampered with..

With Connell alive, his wife Heather could not be deposed--now she can though..
Spoohour who brought the Ohio charges forward about Connell says that Connell and he were both IT and Connell had asked him how to go about getting rid of the emails (both men were in 2 differing areas of expertise)--but S. walked away fromt he conversation..

He ahs very good evidence showing the various fluctuations in vote tallys the night of the Ohio vote in 04..
Blackwells' investigation was a sham of the vote..In the report filed-Connells' company was mysteriously left-off and generically lumped together to keep anyone looking at at least 3 diff. GOP companies that vote info had been diverted to (Smartech-­Chatanooga Tenn) ..
Other things emerging show Rove at heart of all of it--and diverting US Chamber of Commerce $ directly to GOP front orgs like Swiftboat Vets for Truth...(and to many "IT" companies..)
All of the GOP companies that employed Connells company (software (yeah right))won thier elections..

Not CT..
Connell had already made 1 deposition-going to be called again soon-about Rove..

So no THIS IS HUGE..
Invalidates a Bush Presidency-if Rove is shown to have masterminded a vote-fraud/stealing org through the RNC software cos. they'd employed.

[Vinca]

THIS STORY IS H-U-G-E, BUT I HAVEN'T HEARD ON TV, EVEN THAT MIKE CONNELL DIED IN A PLANE CRASH, SOMEONE SAID THAT THE CIA CONTROLLED ALL THE MAJOR NEWS , I BELIEVE THAT

[Sloane7]

We need this generation's Watergate reporters on this. Not sad for Connell, but many more need to be caught, plus, there is a really interesting story here. Looks like Bush was never really elected, it was all smoke, mirrors and lawsuits.

[drkazmd65]

I'm tired of all the conspiracy theories,.... problem is,... some of them are likely to have basis in reality.

Remind me again,... why is it that Karl Rove is not under arrest or awaiting trial somewhere? Why is it that he can apparently ignore Congressional subpoenas with impunity? Why is it that Bush & Cheney are still in charge of our Executive Branch in the face of so much, at least circimstancial, evidence that they have openly broken or bent the law and our Constitution?

Wait,... that's right,... I remember,... 'cause the Democrats in Congress don't have but about a dozen backbone pieces and gonads among them. 'Cause the Democrats in Congress are all complicit (my apologies to Wexler, Kuninich, Ron Paul, Senator Feingold and a scant few others) in the problem.

It is sad when democracy is run by the few, for the few, in a cloak of darkness.

[Tituba]

You're so right Dr. The republicans and democrats are nothing more than the same side of the same coin. For those who are still delussional about we having a "democracy", wake up and smell the scam. When you have a system where the voters elect one candidate and then there's a very small group of not even 200 people electing who is really going to become the president; that's not democracy!

Democrats are just as bad the republicans are. They don't care about the people of this country, they just follow party line regardless of how much damage that line can do. And they are not going to do anything, so they can control the chance of this happening to them in the future. There's a federal crime called "aiding and abeting in the commission of a crime". What are we waiting for?

I WANT EMPEACHMENT, AND I WANT IT NOW!!!

[John Wellington Ennis - Huffpost Blogger]

More on the Connell situation in this piece I just posted here:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-wellington-ennis/o-blackwell-where-art-tho_b_152633.html

Full-length version of the piece (with more links) can be found at:

http://www.freeforall.tv/blog

[Sloane7]

Thanks for posting this, I just saw the other link, I'll watch the whole thing. I think there was a movie made on Ohio too, hopefully I'll be able to find it.

[WasteNJ]

I guess that one's tied up neatly with a little bow.

We always laughed at the notion that the Bush admin's emails were "deleted", nothing is ever deleted. Especially when you have redundant servers, it's just not something that happens in any but the most amateur IT environments. Archiving is the law in government E-communications. It's not just one guy watching the store either, who can quietly hit the del key when nobody's looking.

Looks like Connel had the backups, or had a parallel server set up off-site, maybe mirrored the data there. Any IT director worth his salary does that just to make his job easier. Obviously Connell had top level clearance just to be able to move the data around. No way he's the only one that knows about this.