Ugh, we've been down this unpleasant road before. (Flashback: We are all Kenneth Gladney!) But sadly, when it comes to weaving half-baked conspiracy theories, Andrew Breitbart has shown he will attack law enforcement without hesitation, and without regard to the facts.

Still, I'm a bit surprised by the trend simply because smearing federal prosecutors doesn't really seem to be in accord with proud conservative values in this country. (Was the FBI agent involved in O'Keefe's arrest also crooked, Andrew?) But it appears the only card Breitbart has left to play is to claim his protégé was "framed" by federal prosecutors.

Don't you see people, there are all kinds of nefarious dots to connect, but only Breitbart and his protégé can properly paint the picture. To the rest of us, the conspiratorial claims make no sense. (AG Holder was somehow involved?!) But for Breitbart and his day-dreaming crew, after stewing over the arrest for six or seven days and pumping up their own self-importance to almost comical levels, it all makes perfect sense. And yes, it reaches to the highest level of government.

Whatever you say Andrew.

Meanwhile, let's note how funny it is that last week when news first broke of O'Keefe's arrest, Breitbart was practically sprinting away from his once-prized student, stressing that O'Keefe was merely an “independent contractor.” (Albeit, an “independent contractor” who 's paid a “salary.” I want that gig.)

Now however, O'Keefe has been transformed, at least in the unlimited imagination of Breitbart, into a martyr. Apparently O'Keefe was practically penning is own Letter From New Orleans Jail before the feds finally let him go, dontcha know.

BTW, having had the unpleasant task of monitoring Breitbart's colossal Gladney fiasco last fall, I can tell you where this O'Keefe nonsense is going. In the coming weeks and perhaps even months, Breitbart and his crew of clueless bloggers will launch all sorts of wild claims about O'Keefe's arrest as well as smear prosecutors associated with the arrest. And in the end, even if none of the allegations pan out, Breitbart will claim he was right all along.

It's a truly delusional spectacle to behold. And FYI, It's best viewed as a comedy/tragedy.

UPDATED: Note how Breitbart wants to focus on the 24 hours after O'Keefe was arrested. Because according to Breitbart there was some vast, left-wing government-wide conspiracy unfolded.

Note also that that has nothing to do with what O'Keefe was arrested for. Breitbart wants to turn O'Keefe's arrest into a process story, while he downplays the actual charges. Does that mean Breitbart condones the infiltration of Landrieu's office. Does that mean he thinks activists all over the country should suddenly start making undercover videotapes of their local representatives' office? And does Breitbart consider the charge against O'Keefe -- an intent to commit a felony -- to be trivial?

I guess suddenly, being a law-and-order Republican means dismissing federal charges as unimportant, and smearing prosecutors.

Good to know.

UPDATED: How exactly were O'Keefe and friends “framed”? David Neiwert at Crooks and Liars has it all figured out:

Apparently they were lured into donning phone-repairman disguises and attempting to infiltrate the phone system at a federal building. By, um, Sen. Landrieu! That's the ticket! They did the whole “jammed phone lines” thing just to sucker in poor O'Keefe. Uh-huh. Poor guys.