Fox News' Bream uncritically repeats conservative claim Obama judicial nominee "has ties" to ACORN
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SUMMARY: Fox News reporter Shannon Bream said regarding appeals court nominee David Hamilton: "Critics say Hamilton has ties to the liberal activist group ACORN." Bream did not note that Hamilton's "ties" reportedly consist of "raising contributions door-to-door for the advocacy group ACORN for one month after college" in 1979.
Reporting on President Obama's nominee for the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, David Hamilton, Fox News Supreme Court reporter Shannon Bream asserted on the March 18 edition of Special Report, "Critics say Hamilton has ties to the liberal activist group ACORN," echoing Pat Robertson's assertion on the March 18 edition of the Christian Broadcasting Network's The 700 Club that Hamilton is "an activist for ACORN." However, Bream did not note that Hamilton's "ties" reportedly consist of "raising contributions door-to-door for the advocacy group ACORN for one month after college" in 1979.
In addition, the Chicago Tribune's The Swamp blog, MSNBC's First Read blog and USA Today's The Oval blog all quoted the Judicial Confirmation Network calling Hamilton a "former fundraiser for ACORN" without noting that Hamilton's fundraising for ACORN reportedly took place for one summer 30 years ago after Hamilton finished college and before entering law school.
The Washington Times reported: "After college as a young man, he served one month as a canvasser for ACORN, helping them raise money door to door." Indeed, in the nomination questionnaire for his 1994 appointment to the Southern District of Indiana, which Right Wing Watch posted on its website, Hamilton was asked to list every organization he has been associated with since graduation from college. Hamilton listed "Summer 1979 -- fundraiser for Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania."
Further, at no point during Special Report did Bream note that both Indiana senators, Republican Richard Lugar and Democrat Evan Bayh, have expressed support for Hamilton. According to the White House press release:
"I enthusiastically support the Senate confirmation of David Hamilton for U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. Judge Hamilton has served the Southern District of Indiana with distinction as U.S. District Court Judge," U.S. Sen. Dick Lugar said.
"I was proud to work side by side with Senator Lugar to recommend Judge Hamilton for this lifetime appointment," said U.S. Senator Evan Bayh. "President Obama is right that Democrats and Republicans can work together to put highly qualified jurists on the federal bench. Judge Hamilton is an exceptional jurist who has demonstrated the highest ethical standards and a firm commitment to applying our country's laws fairly."
From the March 18 edition of Fox News' Special Report with Bret Baier:
BAIER: President Obama has made his first judicial appointment. U.S. District Judge David Hamilton has been named to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. Correspondent Shannon Bream is here to tell us what this selection reveals about the president's judicial philosophy. Good evening, Shannon.
BREAM: Hi, Bret. Well, as the president's first judicial pick, David Hamilton is being scrutinized not only on his own qualifications but also to see what his record says about what kind of judges the president will choose going forward, with the long-term focus on that big prize -- the Supreme Court. Hamilton is an experienced federal judge who has support from Democrats and Republicans and many supporters who say he is a perfect fit.
KATHRYN KOLBERT (president of People for the American Way) [video clip]: He's demonstrated his facility with the law, his willingness to apply it on a case-by-case basis, to really be a guardian of the Constitution -- and that's a very, very important role in our society.
BREAM: Hamilton's is just the first of many nominations the president will have the opportunity to make, with 52 openings in federal district courts and 15 at the appellate level. Critics say Hamilton has ties to the liberal activist group ACORN and the ACLU, and they're worried the president will pack the courts with others just like him.
WENDY LONG (Judicial Confirmation Network legal counsel) [video clip]: He is a real, real left liberal, and it's funny that the White House is trying to portray him as some kind of moderate. If he's a moderate, I shudder to think what we can expect coming down the pike.
BREAM: Just days ago, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg gave no hints about which justice could be the next to leave the Supreme Court, but said there could soon be an opening -- Bret.
BAIER: Shannon, thank you.
i thought they were seperate organizations that just happened to have the same acronym.
Nothing but dog whistle politics
Day before Yesterday's news: Scary Ex-VP scares bejesus out of remaining bedwetters due to eminent attack by unknown scary forces.
Yesterday's news: Scary gay Congressman single handedly brings economy to it's knees. Sole blame for financial meltdown.
Today's news: scary anti-poverty group has it's claws into Obama nominee.
Tomorrow's news? Not sure but I'll bet it's scary.
You're making a pretty big assumption there Comrade.
Do you really think there'll be any rich neighborhoods left after the President confiscates their riches and redistributes the wealth to all of us Commies?
Yep, sure will be...no doubt about it. Rich at 10 million is still rich, even if it's not 11 million.
ACORN is only a voter regestration group. They are not the voter fraud supporters it is the right and its AGs across the nation taking valid voters off the roles and not giving proper notification these people should be disbarred, tried for voter fraud, and sentence to life in prison without parrole.
ill do you one better progressive......again reaching back into my historian background.
during the Roman Republic, many types of fraud were considered a capital offense, because they saw it as threatening the fabric of the republic.
and the punishments for such offenses were thus.
1. being thrown from the Tarpein Rock. my personal favorite.
2. having hooks jammed into your body and thrown down from the Capitol, you would die because everyone was encouraged to beat you as you rolled down the pathway.
3. buried alive......this was usually the punsihment for unchaste Vestal Virgins. though they did use it once as a sacrifice to the Gods to help them in time of war using slaves.
4. decapitation....this was their earliest form. before using the Tarpein Rock even. supposedly this is what Lucius Brutus ordered for his sons when they tried to restore the monarchy. this was preceeded by using the fasces to beat a guy up and then the axe would decapitate him.
now im not knocking you progressive, im just making suggestions as to what could be used from the days of old
WHAT? This all ties into the illegal immigration. I was furious and contacted the local congressman in protest of them not requiring ANY ID to vote. I just signed the paper and said it was me. It was me, but very easily I could have voted scott free.
I can ASSURE you that the right where I live is very upset about this government involvement in the voting process. Many I know personally would vote to put these people UNDER a prison right with you. You can point the finger at the right all that you want, but that doesn't make it so. Those folks standing all over downtown with the clipboards were not looking to get MY family signed up to vote. They had a VERY selective process of walking up to you or not. I had to go ask to sign up (though I didn't really need to.)and the lady looked taken aback. Like I was Bigfoot standing in front of her. Something about that seemed to tip the scale a tad. What can you say though? The hustled and made it happen. The right sat back and watched. I thought McCain was a horrible candidate. Another democrat in Republican clothing.
Meygyn Kelly interviewed an ACORN rep this morning. She was going bats**t over the fact that there were indictment for registration fraud. The ACORN rep tried over and over to explain that no one voted illegally and ACORN was guilty of only hiring bad employees. Kelly then pulled an O'Reilly and threatened to cut off his microphone.
"Do I have to cut your mic? Ya know what..forget it. You're gonna give answers to my questions or I'm gonna cut your mic"
As soon as Fox viewers hear anything about ACORN, they grab their guns and pray that Obama doesn't destroy the country, all while Fox continually say ACORN ACORN ACORN ACORN ACORN.
And, even if this nominee DID have ties to ACORN, so freakin' what?
ACORN is a non partisan group. They help poor people of ALL political persuasions. And when registering to vote, they don't require that you're a republican.
Somehow, the right wingers freak out about ACORN. Must be empowering the poor people that they're scared of. I thought republicans were all about pulling oneself up by the good old bootstraps, and here is an organization that does that. I don't know what their problem is. The screech monkeys are ridiculously stupid on this, and ignorant.
And, even if this nominee DID have ties to ACORN, so freakin' what?
Exactly.
I'm supposed to think ACORN is a bad organization on their say-so?
All the evidence I've seen points to ACORN being a pretty great operation. They create jobs for the unemployed, and when a few of their employees break the law ACORN reports them to the authorities.
Can't get much more above-board than that.
And by the way. The guy did one summer of volunteer work for ACORN 30 years ago.
'Nuff said.
Here's a link with some bio and past decisions by Hamilton.
That Watkins vs. Miller case, and many other like it, makes me furious! ANY state, federal, or local court that doesn't allow DNA tests (no matter HOW long ago the verdict was) to be admitted, or the case to retied, should be prohibited from being in a courtroom.
DNA deteriorates over time if it is not in a still living organism. So some of these decissions may be because of that. I would need a sientist to tell me how long after the fact is still good for an id.
We don't want anybody with ties to Acorn in there. People like Acorn are the reason banks were forced to give mortgages to people that knew they couldn't pay them back. Glad Bream is keeping us informed.
>>We don't want anybody with ties to Acorn in there. People like Acorn are the reason banks were forced to give mortgages to people that knew they couldn't pay them back. Glad Bream is keeping us informed.
That is completely untrue.
Wow. You're once again completely wrong.
Bream did not note that Hamilton's "ties" reportedly consist of "raising contributions door-to-door for the advocacy group ACORN for one month after college" in 1979.
Sorry MMfA, those are "ties". I'd be interested to hear what your definition of ties are?
For the ACORN defenders. Search The Google and look at how many investigations ACORN was/is under.
Answer me this: I worked for McDonalds for 6 months when I was in high school 20 years ago. If I were a judge hearing a case about McDonalds, do you think I would need to recuse myself, or do you think my "ties" are so insubstantial that it would be silly to think that I am connected to them in anyway.
As for the google challenge, I would ask you to google what those investigations are. Are they against ACORN as an organization, or are they against individual people who were fired by ACORN when wrongdoing was brought to their attention and many times ACORN was the one who turned them in to the police?
Yup. Thirty years ago he volunteered for them one summer. Of course, there is nothing linking Hamilton to Acorn since then, but that doesn't matter.
For those of you attacking ACORN, Google how many times ACORN was found to be guilty of anything.