Vice President Joe Biden kicked off a national fundraising fundraisers tour in Portland today and if our fair city’s campaign stop for Representative Kurt Schrader is any indication of how the VP’s trip is going to go, reporters have one thing to look forward to: a locked door.
Biden spoke this morning at the swank Tiffany Center in Goose Hollow to a crowd including former Governor Barbara Roberts and other notables, all of whom shelled out for a $200 ticket (or more) to the sold-out private event. Rep Schrader is in a race against Republican Scott Bruun and Republicans took the chance to tell their angle on the event to media, sending out a press release this morning describing Schrader as Obama’s “loyal lapdog.”
I called campaign spokesperson James Atkin last week and again on Tuesday to make sure the Mercury was on their media list for the event, but Atkin informed me Tuesday that the White House was handling media and they wouldn’t know the details till Wednesday, just 24 hours before the speech.
Not hearing any word back on Wednesday, I headed over to the event, snapped some photos of the couple protesters and headed for the door. No dice. “This is a closed event,” Atkin informed me. “Sorry.”
Uh, what? A speech by the vice president on the behalf of your candidate and you don’t want any reporters there? Well, they allowed one reporter in. “The White House is handling media and they picked just one reporter to cover the event,” said Atkin. Who’s the one? Atkin said he didn’t know.
I was seriously dumbstruck. I just uttered, “Uh… I guess I’ll leave then?” Where’s the articulate free press, open media rant when you need it? But seriously, even Sarah Palin’s camp lets reporters into her events, and keeping them out only generated bad publicity and now the White House is allowing only one reporter to cover Joe Biden? What are they afraid of?
- Lone protestor against Biden: Probably as lonely as the one reporter allowed to cover the event.
One reporter? Oh, yea this is the “most open and transparent White House” ever. What a joke.
Sarah, I hate to nit pick, but it is Scott Bruun. I hate that asshole, but you should get his name right.
I was standing on the other corner sporting my Scott Bruun yard sign. I was surprised on the lack of turnout by protesters from all angles for this event. With the lack of reporting, and the cost of the trip w/ taxpayer money, it should have stirred up many more people than it did.
Okay, I’m going to state my bias. My mom shook Herr Biden’s hand today, and had a conversation about her first name (turns out it was the same as Biden’s wife).
From the hearsay reported by my mother, sounds like it was just a nerdy Dem get together to raise funds for Schrader. I guess they are worried about the war chest that Scott “Steve” Bruun is amassing.
There was a few dick jokes told, one reference to LeBron, one reference to Biden saying inappropriate things while pretending like it is all a joke. Maybe one of those three things really did happen?
You’ll never know.
Unless you were the lowly reporter, Frau Mirk.
I heard that Joe Biden said the N-word several times before he sodomized Schrader on stage. Then they all drank blood from a goat’s skull. So I hear, but I guess we’ll never know because no reporters were allowed inside.
Sarah, who was the one reporter given the golden ticket?
What are they afraid of? Sarah Fucking Mirk, that’s what they’re afraid of.
Maybe the Mercury has slipped below that status as Portland’s highschool newspaper since Matt Davis left… whom, BTW would have found a way to get in to the event.
TBH I’m not sure I blame the White House. The Mercury is basically a weekly events guide.
@Rusty Yeah. Um, getting the candidate’s name wrong? Good journalism.
Hmm. You hate the Mercury but you read the Mercury.
Rusty, I hate to nit pick, but it is Fraulein Mirk. I hate that asshole, but you should get her title right.
@Lover For the events guide, obviously.
Sarah, just read Kari’s post at BlueOregon, and he’s right: fundraisers are usually closed. i’ve been blocked from events & i’m a friendly blogger. remember Obama’s comments about “angry & bitter” came at a “closed” fundraiser.
Scott Bruun is known to his best friends as “Steve” btw. it’s an inside joke….
Photo caption notwithstanding, there were actually 20 protesters (on a weekday morning). They demonstrated against the Obama administration’s recent decision to flip-flop on campaign promises and support the Bush-negotiated Korea Free Trade Agreement — something Congressman Schrader has been urging them to do. The Korea FTA is going to cost the state jobs, particularly in the high-tech industry, but also other areas.
“What are they afraid of?”
I would guess probably Joe Biden and his gaffes.
“What are they afraid of?”
Likely not a weekly event guide.