A man goes into a public assistance office in Charleston, South Carolina in a kilt, tells them he's a member of the Irish Republican Army and asks for help for 25 fellow Irishmen in a hospital who need Medicaid.
A government employee follows the rules and explains the process for filling out a Medicaid paperwork and the qualifications they'd need to meet. She informs them that a federal law intended to protect patient privacy requires her not to divulge any information he's told her.

So what happens next? James O'Keefe's Project Veritas releases a deceptively edited video that makes the woman look like a terrorist sympathizer, though it isn't even clear if she knows the background of the IRA.

The result of O'Keefe's cut and paste video job in Ohio counties is mandatory retraining for county social workers and an investigation by the Department of Job and Family Services.

Because the county employees did their jobs, explained the rules and the process, and helped with applications. Which were not approved.

There wasn't fraud here. Unless it's in O'Keefe's attempt to provide Republican policymakers with more ammunition for attacking public employees and the Medicaid program.

Daily Kos

quote:

James O'Keefe gets stupid again

MSNBC claiming he tapped phones again?

We heard 2 days ago that O'keefe was ready to run another scam. Seriously, why would you want to run cover for this proven criminal liar? I mean, I know you don't care that ACORN was taken down by lies and deceit, since that's all the right ever does.

O'Donnell showed the unedited version last night. You could tell without a doubt that the lady wasn't buying a bit of it (O'Keefe does the worst Irish accent in recorded history).

In the latest video, filmed in several Medicaid offices in South Carolina, an undercover reporter, dressed in a kilt and driving an expensive sports car, poses as an IRA terrorist.

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He explains that his comrades have gunshot wounds and is in need of twenty-five Medicaid applications.

The Medicaid case worker tells the reporter, who is identified as “Sean Murphy” that “his business is his business. She does not probe into the nature of his work. One of the Medicaid workers helps Murphy fill out a form and lists an injury as “shot offshore.”

“In this time of economic uncertainty, the American people deserve to know how their tax dollars are being wasted.” said James O’Keefe. “This is hardly an isolated incident. Government workers willing to aid people with criminal backgrounds and great wealth should be an outrage to every American. After tapes were revealed yesterday of a similar investigation in Ohio, one Medicaid worker has already been put on paid administrative leave. This should be a wake-up call for close scrutiny of the Medicaid system.”

http://theprojectveritas.com/medicaidII

Mario walks into a Medicaid office and says he is an unemployed plumber.

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The Medicaid official encourages him not to talk about his illegal mushrooms, and suggests how to account for his illegitimate income with a legitimate source.

In the latest video, filmed in several Medicaid offices in New York City, an undercover reporter, who identifies himself as “Mario” seeks to apply for Medicaid for himself and his pregnant girlfriend, “Peach.”

When Mario is asked about his income, he intimates that he was a plumber, but does not earn a steady living and his source of income may not be legal, specifically the sale of “Mushrooms.”

When the conversation turns to his income, the Medicaid worker says, “I don’t want to know nothing. I know you’re trying to survive, but you can’t tell me these things, okay?” Mario presses with, “If they come, I’m going to get arrested.” The Medicaid case worker also tells Mario to obtain a letter from a legitimate company saying that he is employed.

http://theprojectveritas.com/mario

Well, let's look at the unedited versions. They've been known to tell a different story.

A guy in a Zorro outfit walks into a Medicaid office and claims injuries suffered in a swordfight...

[Lawrence] O’Donnell began his segment highlighting his particular dislike of O’Keefe, “Andrew Breitbart’s protege,” and his “flamboyant costuming in his videography”– mocking his kilt and “what he alone thinks is an Irish accent.” Scoffing through the story of “Sean Murphy,” a fake IRA member played by a Project Veritas actor that visits a government office to apply for Medicare despite being part of a terror group, O’Donnell played an edited clip that appeared to show the government worker helping him apply. Then he played a more extensive clip, where, he explained, the employee was “taking very long pauses… in response to the insanity that comes her way.”

“Dealing with crazy people politely is part of the job,” O’Donnell noted, and while she fills out the form, O’Donnell notes that she gives “Murphy” “no guarantee that he and his fictitious associates will receive any Medicaid assistance.” Instead, she goes through the motions, “simply doing her job.” But what O’Donnell objected to the most, even more than O’Keefe’s pranks, was the fact that the state of South Carolina was actually going to investigate the office in the video. “State officials are actually, for some reason, investigating this incident,” agreeing, in some ways, with O’Keefe that tax dollars were being wasted in this scenario. “Their tax dollars,” he concluded of South Carolina, “are being wasted investigating a goofy right-wing stunt.”

Mediaite

Do the Irish wear kilts? Plaid kilts?

This reminds me of a supposed sting that a Pacifica radio personality in L.A. pulled that really annoyed me. It was shortly after the start of the Iraq war. Anyway, he called up an Army recruiter, ostensibly to inquire about signing up, and during the call said some incredibly racist things about who he did and didn't want to serve with. The recruiter was polite and didn't respond to his racist comments but did try to answer his questions. After the call ended, the radio guy was going on and on about how "stupid" the recruiter was to believe that he was as racist as he sounded and to not call him on it, etc. etc. I emailed the radio guy and said you have no idea what the recruiter thought; he was just doing his job. He may have gotten off the phone and said to a colleague, "Geez, you wouldn't believe the racist clown I just talked to."

James O'Keefe is just like that radio guy -- except that he's got Andrew Breitbart and Fox Noise promoting his shenanigans.

Well, yes, LD, the Irish do wear kilts, though theirs aren't nearly as ancient as the Scots. Most Irish tartans weren't created until the 19th century.

Regarding the rest of your post...spot on!
James O'Keefe is an idiot...and so are his fellow travelers.

quote:

Originally posted by Florida Righty:

quote:

James O'Keefe gets stupid again

MSNBC claiming he tapped phones again?

Can't you read, doof?