UPDATE: According to campaign finance records available online via the Colorado Secretary of State's office, "Anna Villoch-Jolly" was only paid twice by Suppes' campaign. A list of expenditures shows that Jolly received $410 on 6/4/14 and $208.48 on 6/27/14. Yet Suppes claims that he fired Jolly in September when he first learned about the Tweets in question. If you believe Suppes, he fired someone he wasn't paying anyway.
—–
The controversy over a Tweet sent from an account owned by SD-5 GOP candidate Don Suppes linking to a white supremacist website has made a lot of waves in one of the state's hottest legislative races, and is now the subject of mailers arriving in the district. In a story late yesterday, the Denver Post's Lynn Bartels reports on an alleged former campaign staffer who contacted her, hoping to jump on this proverbial grenade before it sinks Suppes' campaign:
A 47-year-old Castle Rock woman sobbed today when she outed herself as the person who posted a tweet from state Senate candidate Don Suppes’ account that linked to a neo-confederate website critical of women, blacks and others…
The inconsolable Jolly said she came forward today because a friend forwarded her a campaign mailer attacking Suppes that asked, “Did Don Suppes promote a white supremacist website?” The mailer, from a Democratic-funded group, includes a confederate flag, the tweet she wrote under the twitter handle @DonSuppes2014 and unflattering reports about Suppes from two liberal outfits, Mother Jones and ColoradoPols…
Suppes said he would have preferred Jolly stay behind the scenes because he fears she will be attacked.
“It’s done. The left is not going to change its campaign tactics,” he said. “My concern is I’m the candidate. I signed up for this. She didn’t.”
Well, actually, if she signed up to work on his campaign, and Tweeted out this link to a white supremacist website, she surely did "sign up" for whatever followed–including, as the latest version of the story is reported by Bartels, getting fired by Suppes for sending it.
The problem, and we're shocked that Bartels failed to mention any of this, is that Suppes has changed his entire story about what happened. When it was originally discovered back in September, you'll recall, Suppes tried to blame the whole thing on a Democratic "hack" attempt.
Candidate for Colorado Senate District 5 Don Suppes has suspended his Twitter account after noticing unauthorized activity. According to a press release from the Suppes campaign the Republican claims "The Democrats have utilized this opportunity to run a smear campaign"… [Pols emphasis]
Campaign Manager Matt Soper said, "The account hacking had been reported to the appropriate authorities."
A few days later, Suppes claimed he had "taken steps recommended for victims of identity theft," while introducing the possibility that the Tweet was the responsibility of "a staffer who has since been terminated." This came after we and others had found the "hacking" allegations to be pretty much laughable.
With all of that in mind, this latest attempt at cover raises many new questions. When exactly did Suppes figure out that he wasn't hacked by Democrats after all? Where is the evidence that this was ever reported to the "appropriate authorities?" Why would Suppes claim this was "Democrats running a smear campaign," and that he was monitoring his identity for theft, when the origin of this Tweet should have been clear to him from minute one? Why, after Suppes allegedly fired this staffer, didn't he admit that he was never "hacked" at all?
Obviously we're not going to get those answers from the Denver Post–so hopefully if another outlet gets a call from Suppes' bawling ex-staffer, they'll ask a few more questions.
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Lynn Bartels breathlessly reporting it was the work of a minion is so Lynn. I bet Chuckie is savoring every nickel he pays her to not ask any tough questions. And then Moldy goes all 'liberal bias' like it is still a relevant issue. Hopefully more people will see the mailer than read her gutless and slanted reporting. She is such an embarrassment to Woodward and Brenstein.
Photo of alleged perp
She is 47 years old?
This was and is character assassination. Get over yourselves, Pols.
Haha. The only character assassination taking place here is Lynn Bartel's impersonation of a real political reporter.
Hey I thought Republican's were big on personal responsibility but I guess what they are really big on is letting the minions take the fall for all their extremist and racist impulses.
I guess the other way you could look at this Baghdad is that Suppes has NO control over his staff that they felt it was all hunky-dory with him to use his twitter address to promote a white supremist website. Did Ms. Bartel's ask the confessed culprit why she thought it was OK to promote a white supremist website on a Republican legislative campaign account? Of course not because that would mean that nobody on his staff repects him enough to consult with him before launching all of their zany extremist promotions. The guy is a loser either way. Either he supports the promotion and sucks as a human being or he is a powerless wimp who has no control over his own campaign. Either scenario is a damning indictment of his ability to lead.
Character assassination for calling someone racist for propagating racist propaganda? Do tell!
This is reminding me of another really bizarre GOP candidate whose first name was Don and who ran in '10. The more things change, the more things stay the same.
did Dan change his name fro Don when he gave up undercover work?
My mistake. It was DAN Maes, not Don. How could I forget!
😉
It would still be interesting to find out what she was doing using Suppes Twitter account to promote White Supremacy racism. Was it some kind of anti Obama brotherhood? Lynn Bartels never bothered to ask. What an incurious reporter.
And of course the fucking dip shit Baghdad Bob never came back to explain how the sobbing staffer squares with their contention that they had been hacked or what she was doing promoting White Supremacy. Cries victim then runs off and hides in his/her/its little spider hole. What a bunch of fucking loser.
If you believe it was the sobbing staffer who did it then I have some prime real estate in West Africa to sell you.