Letter I Recieved From Rove About O'Donnell

[Stella]

www.karl@rove.com:

Thanks for your email.

This is about winning. And candidates can't win if they won't acknowledge problems. This is about the tough questions she's got to answer about her finances, background, record, statements and actions. All these issues have been in the public arena for month – covered by Delaware papers, radio and TV and she’s dismissed them or offered unconvincing answers.

The question is, will people in Delaware pay attention to her? This week, she went on Hannity and changed her strategy and started addressing the issues.

I thought she did a very good job in handling the foreclosure issue. In March she told the Wilmington News that her foreclosure was the result of a "technical error by the bank.” This week, she was more forthcoming, explaining she had failed to pay her mortgage because she was working as a pro bono adviser to a cause she felt strongly about.

Now people may say she should have been earning a salary to pay her bills. But at least she put the issue in the most sympathetic light.

Before she wasn't willing to really deal with her campaign finance and spending issues. Now she’s hired one of America’s best campaign lawyers. That's a good sign.

She also had a good answer to her comments on witchcraft, which was she was young and foolish when she hung out with witches. Now her opponent has already seized on that to say he was young and foolish when in college he wrote a stupid essay, saying he was a Marxist.

And she made a good point on Hannity, which was asking voters to focus on the big issues. But she won’t get people to focus on the big issues unless and until she can get by these personal issues.

She’s also dealt with issue of taxes this week on Hannity. In March, she told the Wilmington newspaper that she was puzzled why she had an IRS lien. This week she told Hannity the IRS gave her a letter saying the lien was their mistake. Now the press will want to see that letter. And it all begs the question did she owe taxes or not? But she's on the right course, which is to recognize you got a problem. You can't solve a problem if you think you can just ignore these things. She's confronting them and I'm convinced that's the only way she's going to be able to pull the wax out of people's ears in Delaware and have them listen to her.

Our nominees in Nevada, Colorado Alaska, Kentucky, Florida, Missouri, Ohio, Illinois, Pennsylvania, and New Hampshire all moved ahead of their Democratic opponents after they won the GOP nomination: Ms. O'Donnell didn't and remains 16 points behind in the Fox News poll. Until she deals with these personal issues, the people of Delaware may not hear her bigger message. And that would be a shame.

Here's one of the newspaper stories that appeared earlier this spring so you can get a sense of the kind of issues that have been raised in the state, as well as links to my Hannity appearance and hers:



Citing "Mental Anguish," Christine O'Donnell Sought $6.9 Million in Gender Discrimination Lawsuit Against Conservative Group...and falsely implied she was taking Master's degree classes at Princeton.

Weekly Standard

BY John McCormack

11:50 AM, Sep 12, 2010

http://weeklystandard.com/tws/daily/daily.asp#blog-494794



Court documents obtained Saturday by THE WEEKLY STANDARD reveal surprising new details about the gender discrimination and wrongful termination lawsuit filed by Christine O'Donnell in 2005 against her former employer, the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, a conservative non-profit based in Delaware.* O'Donnell, who is now challenging moderate congressman Mike Castle in the September 14 Delaware GOP Senate primary, sought $6.95 million in damages. In a court complaint, she extensively detailed the "mental anguish" she suffered after allegedly being demoted and fired because of her gender. And, although she didn't have a bachelor's degree until this year, O'Donnell implied she was taking Master's degree classes at Princeton University in 2003.



O'Donnell alleged in a July 1, 2005 complaint filed in district court that she had been demoted because ISI's conservative philosophy dictated that women must be subordinate to men. She claimed she was fired when she contacted the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission regarding her demotion. ISI told the Delaware News Journal that she had been "terminated for operating a for-profit business."



O'Donnell's finances, honesty, and stability have been called into question in light of her false and strange claims. The court complaint raises further questions on all fronts. O'Donnell, who made an annual salary of $65,000 at ISI, sought up to $6,952,477 million in damages, claiming, among other allegations, that ISI had defamed her and had violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. O'Donnell sought:



--Up to $3,952,447 in "Direct Damages, including back pay" and "lifetime lost income and liftetime damage to reputation."



--Up to $500,000 "for emotional distress, humiliation, emotional pain, embarrassment, depression."



--Up to $3.5 million in punitive damages for "willful, legally-malicious and outrageous conduct" by ISI.



O'Donnell claimed that ISI had caused her to suffer "mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life, mental and physical pain and anguish"--and that, according to an amended complaint, she had to "seek treatment for her distress."



According to O'Donnell's July 1, 2005 complaint submitted by herself:



Miss O’Donnell was and is profoundly humiliated by this demotion of being asked to perform clerical and administrative tasks, after appearing on national television as a media and public relations expert and spokeswoman, for a man who was hired straight out of college as ISI’s receptionist and clerical assistant, and whom she had been asked to train previously [emphasis in original]. [...]



For at least six months after being fired, Miss O’Donnell suffered enormous pain, cried frequently at the sense of personal loss and failure caused by ISI, and at the sense of injustice, and could not sleep at night, often wide-awake, replaying the whole scene in her mind, until 5:30 am, and has suffered from understandable and resulting depression.



"Miss O'Donnell's mother and sister both noticed and spontaneously told her at the time, prior to litigation, that she was differently [sic], and urged her to seek medical evaluation," according to the complaint.



According to an amended complaint filed by a lawyer on behalf of O'Donnell in September 2005 claimed that O'Donnell did, in fact, "seek treatment for her distress."



"Ms. O’Donnell has suffered extreme emotional harm as a result of the actions taken or not taken by ISI, and statements made by and on behalf of ISI, in the form of grief, shame, humiliation, embarrassment, anger, chagrin, disappointment and worry. This harm has caused physical manifestations, and caused Ms. O’Donnell to seek treatment for her distress."



The amended complaint also claimed that in one instance a male colleague made a lewd comment to her. "On one occasion during her employment, a co-corker, Mr. Cain, in connection with Ms. O’Donnell’s efforts and work on the Gala, ordered or stated to Ms. O’Donnell to 'strap it on,' which was a crude and demeaning reference to an artificial male sexual organ used by some females in order to act like a male in sexual acts," the complaint alleged. "To Ms. O’Donnell’s knowledge and belief, Mr. Cain was never disciplined or reprimanded for making this offensive statement."



Curiously, the July 2005 complaint alleges that "ISI violated its promise to allow Miss O'Donnell time to take Master's degree classes at Princeton," thus causing a loss of "earning power."



"Moreover, Miss O'Donnell has lost the increased earning power that a Master's degree from Princeton would have created. In the future with proper finances, Miss O'Donnell should probably be able to return and complete that program, however that increased earning power has been disrupted and delayed for at least three years, given college application cycles, and the damage to her reputation, creating a loss of increased earning power estimated at up to $50,000 per year, for three lost years at $150,000."



According to the amended complaint, O'Donnell had considered not taking the ISI job because "she had applied for admission to a Master’s Degree program at Princeton University, to start in the fall of 2003, and was concerned that the ISI position would not fit with her plans."



But, in fact, O'Donnell had not yet received her bachelor's degree at that time and had not been accepted to a Master's program at Princeton.



The Delaware News Journal reported on Saturday: "[O'Donnell's] alma mater, Fairleigh Dickinson University, sued her in 1994 for about $4,000 in unpaid tuition. She satisfied the debt in 2003 and received her diploma this month after completing an additional course." O'Donnell's campaign manager Matt Moran acknowledged in an email received at midnight Saturday that O'Donnell "was not admitted to a Masters Degree program at Princeton. She took an undergraduate non-matriculated class at PU on constitutional government." Moran has not yet replied to a subsequent email asking why O'Donnell claimed "ISI violated its promise to allow Miss ODonnell time to take Master's degree classes at Princeton in return for a salary as small as $65,000 for her credentials and expertise, and as a result of ISI's breach of its agreement, Miss O'Donnell was forced to quit her courses at Princeton, losing her time and money invested in this course of study at Princeton. [emphasis added]."



O'Donnell decided to drop the lawsuit in 2008, claiming that she couldn't afford the legal fees. "I definitely felt that there was gender discrimination," O'Donnell told me in a September 2 phone interview, but she declined to elaborate. "I believe that right now that if we unite in the conservative movement, the bigger picture is at stake, and we need to put that behind us."



Still, the implication that O'Donnell was accepted to a Master's degree program at Princeton is the latest of many false statements to come to light in recent weeks. Conservative radio host Dan Gaffney challenged O'Donnell on September 2 for claiming she had won two out of three counties in Delaware when she ran for Senate in 2008. In fact, she didn't win any.



According to her financial disclosure form, O'Donnell only made $5,800 last year. "I made more than $5,800," O'Donnell told me in the September 2 interview, but said she did not have to and would not disclose how much.



As the Delaware News Journal notes, O'Donnell "has denied that she was ever sued by her mortgage company or that a foreclosure sale date had been set." But:



"During her 2008 run, her mortgage company sued her, claiming she stopped making payments in October 2007, according to court documents. It received a judgment and the home was set to go to sheriff's sale, according to court documents. She sold it days before to her then-boyfriend, who was acting as her campaign legal counsel, she said."



"She has a shady history and we’re not talking ancient history," conservative radio host Dan Gaffney tells THE WEEKLY STANDARD. "We’re talking current history, and she lies about it."



"You know, everyone is allowed to have financial difficulties," Gaffney continued. "Everyone is allowed to take time to go to college. But misrepresenting yourself, lying about it, that’s what I have a problem with. I don’t understand why she has to lie about stuff she doesn’t have to lie about."



Even more disturbing, says Gaffney, is O'Donnell claim in her recent WEEKLY STANDARD interview that her home and campaign office were broken into and vandalized and burglarized in 2008. O'Donnell did not report the alleged burglary and vandalism to the police, but suggested that Castle supporters may have been the ones who committed the alleged crime.



“If that’s true and she didn’t call the police, she’s not only endangering herself but her neighbors," says Gaffney. "She also likes to say there are people hiding in her bushes.”



"It doesn’t sound stable when you add it all up."



*Disclosure: I had a 2006 summer internship at National Review and a 2007-2008 writing fellowship at The Weekly Standard that were funded by the Collegiate Network, a program administered by ISI. To the best of my recollection, I've only spoken to one person named in O'Donnell's lawsuit, Kenneth Cribb, only once in my life, back in 2005. I have not spoken to any current or former ISI/CN employees in months and did not obtain any information in this report from current or former ISI/CN employees.

[Stella]

I sent Karl Rove a note when all the controversy was going on after O'Donnell and Palin tried to squash his concerns by calling him and Krauthammer, part of the "elite" GOP who doesn't get it. This was his reply to me.

[saveliberty]

Yes, she has a problem where she speaks and then has to correct the record later. What does Karl want?

 

Edited to remove snark.

Edited October 1, 2010 by saveliberty

[Stella]

Yes, she has a problem where she speaks and then has to correct the record later. What does Karl want?

 

Edited to remove snark.

 

I know all Karl wants is to win in the Fall and in 2012. I'm sure he knew he would be attacked when he pointed out the GOP went from a sure GOP win in November to a potential loss. The reason I wrote to him is that I am very concerned about the schism happening in the GOP between the Express and the GOP establishment. The Express chose a bad candidate and I don't think Rove deserved to be bashed for telling the truth.

[clearvision]

The GOP should have run a candidate that could have won the Republican primary. They chose poorly by assuming they could win with a liberal candidate. They may have been correct that was needed to win the state, but they certainly were not correct that was what was needed to win their own party. The "Tea Party" is not a party anyway. It is a bunch of groups and individuals voting for whom ever comes along that gets the biggest traction from early on. I'm not sure what vetting occurs, except for what opposition or press might do. It's not like the GOP picked candidates (Whitman for example) don't have baggage to deal with too.

 

That said, O'Donnell is clearly flawed and will have a very tough time in this election.

[Stella]

The GOP should have run a candidate that could have won the Republican primary. They chose poorly by assuming they could win with a liberal candidate. They may have been correct that was needed to win the state, but they certainly were not correct that was what was needed to win their own party. The "Tea Party" is not a party anyway. It is a bunch of groups and individuals voting for whom ever comes along that gets the biggest traction from early on. I'm not sure what vetting occurs, except for what opposition or press might do. It's not like the GOP picked candidates (Whitman for example) don't have baggage to deal with too.

 

That said, O'Donnell is clearly flawed and will have a very tough time in this election.

 

One thing that I recently discovered was that the Express and the Tea Party Movement are two distinct entities. I went to 2 Tea Parties. They had no leaders, collected no funds, and consisted of individuals concerned about government spending. The Express was founded by someone as a moneymaking organization, whose entire purpose was to dictate to the GOP who should be on the ticket.

 

I have always felt the Primary is where people get their choice, so that's not the part I get upset about. I feel that the Tea Party name was hijacked by the Express to confuse people and meanwhile the entire purpose of the organization morphed. The Express is a multi million dollar organization and it's leaders are making over a million dollars in salary. People think they are donating to the TPM, when they are not.

 

What I find particularly offensive is when the Express went after the GOP. Who elected these people in the Express and why are they being given such power to influence elections? They are trying to overthrow the GOP establishment using the Tea Party name.

 

Every Independent, who was part of the original Tea Parties, is sure to feel betrayed because of the name confusion and goal change. We need the Independents to win. This is all about winning and taking the power back from the Far Left.

 

OK now I'm done with my rant but I am really annoyed about this.

[Guest areafiftyone]

Yes, she has a problem where she speaks and then has to correct the record later. What does Karl want?

 

Edited to remove snark.

 

I know all Karl wants is to win in the Fall and in 2012. I'm sure he knew he would be attacked when he pointed out the GOP went from a sure GOP win in November to a potential loss. The reason I wrote to him is that I am very concerned about the schism happening in the GOP between the Express and the GOP establishment. The Express chose a bad candidate and I don't think Rove deserved to be bashed for telling the truth.

 

Good Job Stella! Maybe when this is over in November we will finally learn to VET our candidates before throwing them into the ring - especially in liberal states. Red states I would not worry too much.

[Chickadee]

Totally agree with your "RANT" Stella. Thanks, it was excellent!

[pollyannaish]

Yes, she has a problem where she speaks and then has to correct the record later. What does Karl want?

 

Edited to remove snark.

 

I know all Karl wants is to win in the Fall and in 2012. I'm sure he knew he would be attacked when he pointed out the GOP went from a sure GOP win in November to a potential loss. The reason I wrote to him is that I am very concerned about the schism happening in the GOP between the Express and the GOP establishment. The Express chose a bad candidate and I don't think Rove deserved to be bashed for telling the truth.

 

 

I agree with this, but wish he'd been a tad more gracious. Looking back on it, I think he was just completely shocked. I also agree with this:

 

"You know, everyone is allowed to have financial difficulties," Gaffney continued. "Everyone is allowed to take time to go to college. But misrepresenting yourself, lying about it, that’s what I have a problem with. I don’t understand why she has to lie about stuff she doesn’t have to lie about."

 

Having said that, how cool is it that Karl took the time to write back to you.

 

 

Finally, Clearvision is correct. If she'd gone up against a more conservative candidate, we probably wouldn't be talking about this.

 

 

On a personal note, if I sued and won every time someone caused me emotional distress that played over and over in my mind I would be a very, very rich woman. Every experience changes us, life is profoundly unfair and difficult. And there is plenty of blame to go around in bad situations. I've learned that some of that blame belongs to me, some of belongs to the other people...and the best thing is to learn whatever you can, thank God for an experience that makes you stronger and move forward as quickly as you possibly can. I understand it's not easy. Believe me. But suing only extends the pain and makes you look foolish.

 

It surprises me that someone like her would want to enter politics. Talk about something likely to make you replay events over and over in your mind!

[pollyannaish]

 

One thing that I recently discovered was that the Express and the Tea Party Movement are two distinct entities. I went to 2 Tea Parties. They had no leaders, collected no funds, and consisted of individuals concerned about government spending. The Express was founded by someone as a moneymaking organization, whose entire purpose was to dictate to the GOP who should be on the ticket.

 

I have always felt the Primary is where people get their choice, so that's not the part I get upset about. I feel that the Tea Party name was hijacked by the Express to confuse people and meanwhile the entire purpose of the organization morphed. The Express is a multi million dollar organization and it's leaders are making over a million dollars in salary. People think they are donating to the TPM, when they are not.

 

What I find particularly offensive is when the Express went after the GOP. Who elected these people in the Express and why are they being given such power to influence elections? They are trying to overthrow the GOP establishment using the Tea Party name.

 

Every Independent, who was part of the original Tea Parties, is sure to feel betrayed because of the name confusion and goal change. We need the Independents to win. This is all about winning and taking the power back from the Far Left.

 

OK now I'm done with my rant but I am really annoyed about this.

 

 

Who was it that founded the Tea Party Express? I appreciate you bringing this up. I wondered what the difference was.

[Stella]

 

One thing that I recently discovered was that the Express and the Tea Party Movement are two distinct entities. I went to 2 Tea Parties. They had no leaders, collected no funds, and consisted of individuals concerned about government spending. The Express was founded by someone as a moneymaking organization, whose entire purpose was to dictate to the GOP who should be on the ticket.

 

I have always felt the Primary is where people get their choice, so that's not the part I get upset about. I feel that the Tea Party name was hijacked by the Express to confuse people and meanwhile the entire purpose of the organization morphed. The Express is a multi million dollar organization and it's leaders are making over a million dollars in salary. People think they are donating to the TPM, when they are not.

 

What I find particularly offensive is when the Express went after the GOP. Who elected these people in the Express and why are they being given such power to influence elections? They are trying to overthrow the GOP establishment using the Tea Party name.

 

Every Independent, who was part of the original Tea Parties, is sure to feel betrayed because of the name confusion and goal change. We need the Independents to win. This is all about winning and taking the power back from the Far Left.

 

OK now I'm done with my rant but I am really annoyed about this.

 

 

Who was it that founded the Tea Party Express? I appreciate you bringing this up. I wondered what the difference was.

 

Here are a couple of articles and an announcement. It was started by Sal Russo and originated in California.

 

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/sep/8/tea-party-express-starts-barreling-forward/?page=1

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/19/us/politics/19russo.html

 

Effective Immediately, Tea Party Express Is No Longer a Member

 

of the National Tea Party Federation

 

 

 

Date: Sat, 17 Jul 2010 at 3:43pm

 

 

 

Last night, the members of the National Tea Party Federation participating in an "All Hands" conference call unanimously decided the following:

 

 

 

The membership of the National Tea Party Federation has this evening suspended and will immediately expel Tea Party Express from any further association with the Federation should they fail to publicly rebuke Mark Williams and remove him from their ranks by 3 pm eastern time Saturday July 17.

 

 

 

The rebuke must take the following form:

 

 

 

1. Mark Williams must be officially removed from the ranks of the Tea Party Express.

 

2. Notice of Mark Williams' removal must be placed prominently on the official Tea Party Express website.

 

3. Tea Party Express must issue a press release articulating points 1 and 2 above.

 

 

 

* * *

 

Last night, a member of the National Tea Party Federation communicated our decision directly to a member of the leadership team of Tea Party Express. That leader's response was clear: they have no intention of taking the action we required for their group to continue as a member of the National Tea Party Federation.

 

 

 

Therefore, effective immediately the National Tea Party Federation is expelling Tea Party Express from the ranks of our membership.

 

 

 

Contact:

 

Christina Botteri

 

christina.k.bo@gmail.com

 

916-315-8989

[Stella]

I don't have a problem with any group sponsoring a candidate. I have a big problem with deception and not being honest with people. There are huge amounts of money going into the Express and being paid to Russo's PR group. The last thing we need is a scandal to break before an election.

[cudjo]

Stella -- that was excellent

[pollyannaish]

Well, hmmm. This kind of stuff is bound to happen. What I'm trying to figure out is, if this group is part of the GOP establishment, then why are they backing non-establishment candidates? That makes not sense.

 

I whole heartedly agree on fiscal transparency. I don't have any problems with most of the candidates they are supporting which for the most part I support myself.

 

On the other hand, I am irritated by the rant he posted on the blog. It was dumb frankly.

[Valin]

The GOP should have run a candidate that could have won the Republican primary. They chose poorly by assuming they could win with a liberal candidate. They may have been correct that was needed to win the state, but they certainly were not correct that was what was needed to win their own party. The "Tea Party" is not a party anyway. It is a bunch of groups and individuals voting for whom ever comes along that gets the biggest traction from early on. I'm not sure what vetting occurs, except for what opposition or press might do. It's not like the GOP picked candidates (Whitman for example) don't have baggage to deal with too.

 

That said, O'Donnell is clearly flawed and will have a very tough time in this election.

 

 

Question: Were their other candidates?

 

This is about the tough questions she's got to answer about her finances, background, record, statements and actions. All these issues have been in the public arena for month – covered by Delaware papers, radio and TV and she’s dismissed them or offered unconvincing answers.

 

Karl is correct, It appears to me that she has...PR problems, and dumping on people like Rove will not help her.

I've got no dog in this hunt, but if she want to win she's got to answer all these questions, that come out on an almost daily basis.

[pollyannaish]

Karl is correct, It appears to me that she has...PR problems, and dumping on people like Rove will not help her.

I've got no dog in this hunt, but if she want to win she's got to answer all these questions, that come out on an almost daily basis.

 

Ah. Perfect. You put into words what I've been trying to form up.

 

Rather than grousing about people asking questions...answer them.

 

Simple as that.

 

Thanks Valin!

[Valin]

Karl is correct, It appears to me that she has...PR problems, and dumping on people like Rove will not help her.

I've got no dog in this hunt, but if she want to win she's got to answer all these questions, that come out on an almost daily basis.

 

Ah. Perfect. You put into words what I've been trying to form up.

 

Rather than grousing about people asking questions...answer them.

 

Simple as that.

 

Thanks Valin!

 

HOORAY FOR ME!

[pollyannaish]

HOORAY FOR ME!