Democrats Faked Online Push to Outlaw Alcohol in Alabama Race

[Lutherf]

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/07/us/politics/alabama-senate-facebook-roy-moore.html

In fact, the Dry Alabama campaign, not previously reported, was the stealth creation of progressive Democrats who were out to defeat Mr. Moore — the second such secret effort to be unmasked. In a political bank shot made in the last two weeks of the campaign, they thought associating Mr. Moore with calls for a statewide alcohol ban would hurt him with moderate, business-oriented Republicans and assist the Democrat, Doug Jones, who won the special election by a hair-thin margin.

...

The discovery of Dry Alabama, the second so-called false flag operation by Democrats in the fiercely contested Alabama race, underscores how dirty tricks on social media are creeping into American politics. The New York Times reported last month on a separate project that used its own bogus conservative Facebook page and sent a horde of Russian-looking Twitter accounts to follow Mr. Moore’s to make it appear as if he enjoyed Russian support.

The article also cites one of the operatives behind the Dry Alabama scheme as saying that such tactics are necessary because Republicans do it all the time. The article fails to cite any instances of Republicans using such a tactic. Furthermore, two other similar operations were alluded to in the article.

The funding for these operations seems to have come, in part, from the CEO of LinkedIn. Operational support seems to have come from, among others, someone who works in the National Archives.

While I appreciate the Times bringing this to light I would like to see a bit more investigation on their part. Primarily, I'd like to see them check on the claim that this kind of tactic is necessary due to comparable practices by GOP operatives. I'd also like a little acknowledgement that the whole damned federal government is trying to throw the president and his family under the jail because, allegedly, they did this same kind of thing. Why is it criminal for Trump to do this kind of thing and fine and dandy for for Progressive operatives to do it.

 

[Praxas]

Why is it criminal for Trump to do this kind of thing and fine and dandy for for Progressive operatives to do it.

Same reason why getting foreign donations into your campaign is illegal, but US citizen donating to your campaign isn't illegal. For the record, I don't approve of any of this and would like to see the Dems and Reps reign this type of **** in but instead they just exploit it because "someone else" is doing it.

 

[ecofarm]

Same reason why getting foreign donations into your campaign is illegal, but US citizen donating to your campaign isn't illegal. For the record, I don't approve of any of this and would like to see the Dems and Reps reign this type of **** in but instead they just exploit it because "someone else" is doing it.

It's not legit organizations doing these things. Despite the OP's claim, it happens on both sides. It's generally some fringe group not officially associated with anyone. So what can be done?

 

[Praxas]

It's not legit organizations doing these things. Despite the OP's claim, it happens on both sides. It's generally some fringe group not officially associated with anyone. So what can be done?

Correct and this is where Dems and Reps could reign that in but they don't because it benefits them. The only thing that can be done IMO is the Dems and Reps working together to squash it or if big name conservatives and liberals BOTH work together to form a bi-partisan political fact checking. It won't happen but that is what can be done.

Social media is the biggest pox on US society since "reality" T.V.

 

[Saladin4]

Outlaw Alcohol????...And the locals fell for that???......Yee Haw

 

[Praxas]

Outlaw Alcohol????...And the locals fell for that???......Yee Haw

Well see now here is the rub. Trump supporters have been telling us for years that even if Russia had a social media misinformation campaign that they know of no one who changed their mind over it. So wouldn't this fall under the same thing?

 

[Hatuey]

Republicans falsely claimed that the people being 'sent my Mexico' are rapists and murderers, they falsely equate universal health are to socialism, they make up lies about Hillary running a pizza hut prostitution station, they claim Obama is a Muslim ready to convert everyone over to Sharia, they claim Hillary - who is living her best life - secretly plotted so every Trump associate with a business card just so happened to be convicted of a crime, or a foreign agent, or money laundering, they falsely proclaim themselves to be the guardians of our constitutional rights for decades, they deny the importance of not making every outlet you disagree with to be fake news... And the horde follows quietly.

Democrats make Republicans look like idiots by showing how their tactics can be used against them, and the problem is now how Democrats lie.

You can't make these people up. Nobody's imagination is that stupid. That party needs to be bleached.

Sent from Trump Plaza's basement using Putin's MacBook.

 

[Saladin4]

Well see now here is the rub. Trump supporters have been telling us for years that even if Russia had a social media misinformation campaign that they know of no one who changed their mind over it. So wouldn't this fall under the same thing?

Yeah you are probably right....Still sounds like a bumbling clumsy way to pass false information....If true...punish the guilty...

 

[Obscurity]

Money + Politics = Abuse

Actually, Money + Anything = Abuse, frankly.

Unsurprised, both sides do it, I've always called for it to stop. Yellow Journalism is an atrocious thing and must be culled.

 

[D_NATURED]

Well see now here is the rub. Trump supporters have been telling us for years that even if Russia had a social media misinformation campaign that they know of no one who changed their mind over it. So wouldn't this fall under the same thing?

Neither side does **** that doesn't work. So, the argument that nothing happened is bull****. In this case, though, the left didn't conspire with the Russian government, who spent 4 million per month adding layers of new lies to the original. There is no way to equivocate here, Trump and Putin did something waaaaay worse.

If you want to clean up American politics, I'm with you, but we must first punish the dirty, like our president, and get all of this money out of the process. Public funding of elections is the only rational choice.

 

[TU Curmudgeon]

It's not legit organizations doing these things. Despite the OP's claim, it happens on both sides. It's generally some fringe group not officially associated with anyone. So what can be done?

Require that ALL political advertising - regardless of source - bear either

1. an endorsement stating that the candidate the endorsement favours officially approves of the advertising and accepts all legal liability for the advertising; or
2. the statement "Absolutely no candidate will endorse what this advertising says" in letters that occupy at least 25% of the advertising space.

with penalties for violation that start with incredibly onerous and scale up to extortionate might be a good start.

 

[TU Curmudgeon]

Money + Politics = Abuse

Actually, Money + Anything = Abuse, frankly.

Unsurprised, both sides do it, I've always called for it to stop. Yellow Journalism is an atrocious thing and must be culled.

But what will I have to read while waiting in the supermarket check out line?

 

[Surrealistik]

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/07/us/politics/alabama-senate-facebook-roy-moore.html



The article also cites one of the operatives behind the Dry Alabama scheme as saying that such tactics are necessary because Republicans do it all the time. The article fails to cite any instances of Republicans using such a tactic. Furthermore, two other similar operations were alluded to in the article.

The funding for these operations seems to have come, in part, from the CEO of LinkedIn. Operational support seems to have come from, among others, someone who works in the National Archives.

While I appreciate the Times bringing this to light I would like to see a bit more investigation on their part. Primarily, I'd like to see them check on the claim that this kind of tactic is necessary due to comparable practices by GOP operatives. I'd also like a little acknowledgement that the whole damned federal government is trying to throw the president and his family under the jail because, allegedly, they did this same kind of thing. Why is it criminal for Trump to do this kind of thing and fine and dandy for for Progressive operatives to do it.

Pretty disgusting stuff. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.

I'm personally of the mind that paid shilling and astroturfing (which both sides engage in) should be illegal in general (you want to engage in compensated advocacy? Fine. Disclose the fact that you're a paid shill rather than pretending otherwise in order to feign legitimacy you don't have), nevermind next level false flag nonsense like this.