While looking through the Associated Press wires today to see if there was a story out about Congressman Denny Rehberg’s recent trip to Iraq, I came across this almost 900 word article from Associated Press reporter, Mary Clare Jalonick, about Rehberg and Cuba. That’s right, Cuba.
At least she was honest and forthright about the source for her story:
The pattern of Rehberg’s votes on Cuba, recently discovered by the Montana Democratic Party and pointed out to The Associated Press,
Maybe next time, it would be nice to have this disclaimer placed in the first sentence, so readers would know from where she received her information. Better yet, maybe she could just use the banner from the Montana Democratic Party press release.
It’s campaign season, Ms. Jalonick. I doubt your copied and pasted hit pieces from the Montana Democrats will have as much effect in 2008 as they did in 2006.
By the way, a different AP reporter actually wrote a story about Rehberg’s trip to Iraq. It was about 275 words.
The Western Word 
I think it is a pretty safe bet that Tester will be changing his tune on a lot of issues between now and his next election contest. He can’t continue to have a 95 percent liberal rating and expect to be reelected. So he’ll have to be shifting to the right on a lot of issues. So Jalonick will have her hands full doing stories on his policy shifts — NOT!!!
“Attack the messenger”? Newspaper reporters who take their stories from one, and one only, political party, need to be pointed out. Nobody said she was ugly or stupid. It’s just be pointed out, and even she acknowledges,she’s getting her marching orders from the Democrats. The lack of objectivity is the story here, not whether Rehberg came to his senses and supported the embargo. And it’s not just the writer, I read the story in the Chronicle, too, wondering why it was worth printing, Rehberg changing his mind, as he should have, about supporting oppression in Cuber.
What do you mean? She is AP, she already works for them.
Politicians change their views all the time on the issues for a variety of reasons. For example: Tester and Earmarks, Baucus and Iraq, democrats and their energy plan, democrats and earmark reform, Obama and Rev. Wright, Obama and public financing, etc. Attacking the messenger? When they are tools for a political party, it needs to be pointed out. The Montana Democrats should send her flowers or something for all the work she does for them. I think she should just go to work for the DNC or DSCC or some democratic group like that. -Jack
I notice that you don’t critique the substance of the report, but attack the messenger.Do you find it odd that Rehberg changed his mind and misrepresented his reasons for doing so?