MT Senate 2014: Department of Defense

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Yesterday the Associated Press (AP) reported that the Department of Defense (DOD) would be “overseeing a plagiarism investigation being conducted by the U.S. Army War College against Sen. John Walsh because the Montana Democrat is a member of Congress.”

The AP said the move was “unusual” which means the conspiracy theory people will be out in force. Of course, the Walsh haters and Rep. Steve Daines’ (Walsh’s opponent) supporters were also out in force. It was pure silliness and good for a laugh or two.

The Walsh plagiarism story has had a long life, and most of the time it’s been on the front page of Montana newspapers and in the first segment of the local television news. It’s not been a good week for Walsh. Plus, right-wing talk radio has been a big friend to Daines during the downfall of Walsh, so much so that during the few minutes that I have listened, I found myself waiting to hear the “I’m Steve Daines and I approved this message” disclaimer.

Although the AP devoted almost 700 words to the DOD overseeing the investigation, the reason why the DOD got involved was in the first paragraph, “because the Montana Democrat is a member of Congress.”

Some folks asked if it was a delay tactic. If Walsh could delay this until the cows came home, it probably wouldn’t change the outcome. If I were Walsh, I’d want this investigation to end today and the punishment, if any, handed out so I could move on.

If for some reason the investigation is delayed, I can imagine the conspiracy theorists believing that Harry Reid called Barack Obama and Obama ordered Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel to sweep the Walsh investigation under the rug. (Psst, that’s the rug where Obama’s real birth certificate is hidden).

Walsh still has a faint heartbeat. A few pro-Walsh letters to the editor are starting to appear. Take it from me; letters to the editor are still a great way to get your message out, although they are not as important as they used to be. They do have an audience.

It will be interesting to see what the post-plagiarism polls tell us. Will MT Senate 2014 be a contest or will it be like 2008’s Baucus v. Kelleher race?

 

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4 thoughts on “MT Senate 2014: Department of Defense”

  1. I think you make light of a serious matter and unfairly characterize the motives of others as “haters.” As you know Walsh was a colonel at the time he committed plagiarism. If this were a pure civilian matter with a civilian educational institution with a civilian politician, that would be up to that institution and the voters to decide his fate. That is not the case with Walsh. Theft of property is clearly conduct unbecoming an officer as well as other violations of the UCMJ. Plagiarism is the theft of intellectual property. The conclusions in his paper were purloined word for word from others.

    IMHO, the DoD stepped into this because of his previous letter of reprimand over pressuring those in his command to contribute to a lobbying group. It looks like the DoD has unfinished business. Now this is both good and bad for Walsh. The good part is providing a central body to negotiate with. The bad… is very bad if they recall Walsh to active service to stand trial for UCMJ violations. It’s my hope that a way out of found that addresses the military issues while giving Walsh an exit without this being dragged out. Just my opinion.

    • Craig: Yes, I am guilty of making fun of the situation. I am also VERY guilty of poking fun at those who are on one side or the other.
      I think the DoD stepped into the issue because of what was stated in my column.
      The anti-Walsh folks will cry murder if Walsh receives just a reprimand or if he appears before the board and gives them a valid excuse and they do little. On the other hand, if they come down on him hard, his supporters will cry murder because it was politics. No matter what, someone will be ticked off. This is `Merica and someone has to win and someone has to lose! -JmB

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