Coughlin v. Renner and NY Times v. Sullivan

While the blogosphere has been tittering about whether State Sen. Kevin Coughlin dallied with a staffer, some of us have been wondering why an alleged libel suit threat could possibly have spiked the story.

If you are late to the story, Scene Magazine reporter James Renner was fired last week for his reaction to news that his editor and publisher were burying a story alleging that Coughlin was having an affair with an identified former staffer. Renner sent the story to Tim Russo who published it. Professor Idontlink at Pol. Sci. 216 has also picked up the story and followed up with more detail from Renner

According to Renner's story posted on BI, Scene decided to kill the story after getting letters from Sen. Coughlin's attorney threatening a libel suit if the story went to press. The posted story also details Renner's reporting which includes interviewing multiple and an entertaining attempt to secure comment from Coughin's alleged paramour.

Based on the facts as presented by Renner, Scene's action is inexplicable. Coughlin is a public figure. As such any libel action he brings would have to meet the high constitutional standard set by the Supreme Court in New York Times v. Sullivan. The Court held that:

The constitutional guarantees require, we think, a federal rule that prohibits a public official from recovering damages for a defamatory falsehood relating to his official conduct unless he proves that the statement was made [280] with "actual malice"--that is, with knowledge that it was false or with reckless disregard of whether it was false or not.

Recall that Renner says he has the roommate of alleged Coughlin squeeze on tape verifying the affair, plus other witnesses, put squeeze's patently evasive response to an interview request. Put it together and Coughlin has a nearly impossible task of proving that Renner was reckless.

And the Sullivan standard assumes that allegations in a story are false and therefore defamatory. If the allegations are true, Scene also wins. The Sullivan actual malice requirement offers news organizations a way to avoid the long, expensive business of proving truth. Which in a way is a pity as (from what I've heard) the defense would be able to put together a long and impressive witness list.

Scene management knows (or at least should know) all of the above. Their abject surrender to Coughlin is puzzling.

Widowfield Dropping Out of County Council Race

From today's Beacon:

Former state Rep. John Widowfield, who resigned from the Ohio House of Representatives on Wednesday, plans to withdraw from running for Summit County Council this fall.

Makes sense, since he has a serious scandal to contend with and could be indicted before the election. All that said, the stated reason strains credibility:

Summit County Republican Party Chairman Alex Arshinkoff said Widowfield told him a few weeks ago that he planned to drop out because of his new private-sector job.

Are you effing kidding me? He knocks off the only sitting R in County Council and the party is OK with him saying "Never mind?" Sorry, not buying it. This sounds like he saw the investigation coming and went scrambling for a golden parachute.

What's more, if true, the party is taking it's time dealing with it:

If Widowfield withdraws from the county council race, the county party will have until Aug. 20 to appoint a new candidate to run in the Nov. 4 election for county council's District 3 seat.

But of course that person needs to be gearing up to run against Paul Colavecchio who came within shouting distance of unseating Widowfield in 2006. In other words, someone with name recognition, campaign experience and a campaign infrastructure.

This will be something of a gut-check for the Summit Republicans. Tapping Louise Heydorn, the well-respected incumbent whom Widowfield unseated, would seem the logical choice. But Heydorn (or at least her husband) sided with the Coughlin camp in the Elephant Wars which brought this whole mess on in the first place. If nothing else, party boss Alex Arshinkoff is consistently vindictive. If Heydorn gets the nod, it's a safe bet that the Central Committee has gone against A²'s wishes. Longtime Alex watchers have been waiting for the revenge phase of the Elephant Wars. Passing on Heydorn would be a colorful start.

Watching the Strickland/Dann Press Conference

No sooner did I post the following, than Plunderbund noted that Marc Dann and Gov. Ted Strickland are giving a joint press conference today at around 4:45. Right now it's 4:50 and ONN is standing by for the presser.

UPDATE: After some technical difficulties ONN cuts into Dann's statement just as he is announcing his resignation. The speech is a good one; probably the best shade of lipstick for this pig.

No wife in the background, but he drug his daughter along as the family support.

Now Ted is speaking. Hopefully he will address questions about what quid brought about this quo.

Brief statement -- Dann is doing the honorable thing. Then questions.

Q1: Was the threat of impeachment overstepping. My the MSM loves this narrative. Ted says no, "we've been consistent."

Q2: Any concessions: A: Absolutely no deal made between "Me and my administration." We met and he "expressed certain concerns." E.g., his employees. He wants his successor to treat them in a "professional manner."

Q3: Reports about Dann being concerned about the investigation. Was that discussed? A: I've said all along there should be an outside investigation. I signed the IG bill yesterday. My duty now as governor is to

Q4: Appointment? Ted is reading the Revised Code section. Right now Tom Winters, the First Assistant AG is assuming the duties. Ted mentions either interim appointment or appointment of an individual to stand for election in November. He hasn't made the decision yet.

Q5: What was Dann's attitude during the meeting? First meeting last Sunday night he insisted he did nothing warranting resignation. Last couple of days he's been realizing the seriousness of the situation.

Q6: What is the walk-off thought you'd like people to have: A: People will decide. I think it was handled appropriately. Etc.

Q7: Re: AG recognizing the seriousness. A: I would be speculating. But [then he speculates] that over the past several days the groundswell of opinion may have contributed to the decision he made today.

Q8: Damage to the Democratic party? A: Shouldn't damage the party. It's not the failing of a party, the party responded quickly and appropriately.

In terms of retaining the office in the Fall, I'm sure there will be a contested race but given the circumstances of

Q9: Affect on the Presidential election? A: Don't want to turn this into a political discussion, but (anecdote about (Obviously Ted doesn't read right-wing blogs.)

Q10: Unintelligible but Ted laughs about it. Seems to be about replacement but causes Ted to note that he doesn't have much influence w/r/t the Presidential primary.

Q11: Find it ironic that Tom Noe's former lobbyist is now the acting AG? A: Not ironic, it's just how the statute works.

Q12: How long will Winters stay in office, given that he was A: AG resigned about an hour and fifteen minutes ago. I'm dealing with one thing at a time.

Q13: Unintelligible, but seems to be about whether he's concerned about the overall quality of the workforce of the AG's office. A: AG employees number in the hundreds and many are career people. One reason I did what I did was to prevent just that -- the diminishing of the work they do.

Q14: Seems to be about how he feels about sexual harassment. He's agin' it.

Q15: Did Dann ask him to kill or delay the investigation. A: Never to me. Yesterday he asked Lt. Gov Fisher to speak to Sen. Harris and Spkr Husted. Fisher did that, but was simply conveying the message. Told them that the admin didn't support Dann's position.

Q16: Did Dann express concerns about his future financial situation? A: Yes, couched in terms of concern about his "three wonderful children."

Q17: What specific qualifications are you looking for. A: Maturity! (you can actually hear the exclamation point.) Also experience, administrative ability, etc.

Q18: Do you have a list? No. People have been suggested.

Q19: Lee Fisher? A: Would consider him but he's doing a great job at the Dept. of Devolopment and I'd hate to have him leave. I have a great deal of respect for Fisher and would consider him for anything.

Q20: Did you ever take Dann aside and say "we're hearing things, clean up your act." A: To begin with, the other Constitutional offices are occupied by individuals who have been independently elected who are office holders in their own right. Not part of my administration. Don't think the Gov office should assume the right to interfere with those offices.

Having said that, had I known any of the things that have come to light, I would have spoken to him.

Q21: Were the AG's misleading statements the reason we are here today? A: I believe I sa

Q22: What's next for Marc Dann? A: Heading back to Ytown to be with his children. Reiterates how wonderful Dann's children are.

And out.

Dann Catch-Up Notes

A few stray bits I missed in the flood after the Dann break. (Sorry about that.)

The ABJ has run not one but two editorials telling lawmakers to essentially to cool their jets, and a third suggesting that he may be able to pull it out of the fire. Interestingly, Monday, the day he released the email saying that he was working hard for the people of Ohio, Marc Dann was driving up I-71 (with his sleeves rolled up, of course) to meet with the Beacon ed board. Hardly the people's business, but given the tone of the ABJ ed page this week, Dann certainly took care of his own business.

This bit from the articles following the Monday letter confirmed a point:

Strickland, one of seven Democratic leaders to sign a letter requesting resignation, said he talked twice to Dann on the telephone Sunday and each time implored him to step down.

I had mentioned that calling Dann out publicly would just make him dig in. I'm happy that Strickland did the smart thing and back-channelled him first. If nothing else, Ted is a damn fine political strategist.

Or maybe he was just waiting for advice from PolSci 216.

I had also missed the story about why Leo Jennings asked Deborah Urban to lie until I saw it recounted in the TPM piece on the scandal. There was a lot of, er, love in that office. And the most incriminating texts are from Urban rebuffing Gutierrez's advances. Is there a woman in the Greater Columbus area under the age 70 that Gutierrez didn't lech at?

Finally Blue Bexley has two posts up making the point I've been waiting for. Bottom line, this is not an Affair-with-a-younger-staffer scandal. This is a Hiring-friends-who-are-completely-unqualified-and-doing-nothing-as-they-act-a-ass scandal.

Boccieri Reverses Field on Dann

H/t Swing State Project which hosts a cross-post from Boccieri's campaign blog. Here's Sen. Boccieri's statement:

"I am outraged that the Attorney General of the state of Ohio has neglected the duty and honor of public service," Senator Boccieri said. "The cronyism and lack of attentiveness to protocol and detail in Attorney General Dann's hiring practices has led us to this tragic moment in Ohio's history. I feel for his wife Alyssa and his children, who must endure the embarrassment he has caused to them, and the people of the state of Ohio.

"We support the ongoing investigation to determine whether any criminal lines have been crossed. However, after combing through the sordid details of the investigation transcripts, it is clear that ethical and moral lines have been disregarded. For this reason, I call upon Marc Dann to resign immediately."

Boccieri will take a hit from this as it's a sharp departure from his equivocal statement Friday, reported here. (By the way, the Repository evidently changes urls when moving stories to the archives, so you can find the original story here now.) The blow isn't fatal; Boccieri can say he hadn't read the report yet. Still it's a blow to a candidate in a tough election.

There will be plenty more collateral damage before this is all over.

Marc's Dannage Just Beginning

Fraudulent GOPper astroturf blog Stark Politics notes that State Sen and Congressional candidate John Boccieri (D-New Middleton) was asked about whether Marc Dann should resign. StarkPol of course drops a somewhat constricted version of the quote. Here's the discussion of Boccieri's position in full from the Repository:

"It's sad to see," said state Sen. John Boccieri, D-New Middletown. "At the end of the day, all of us as elected officials are held to a higher standard of accountability for our conduct in and out of office. These jobs take a lot out of the families; that's for sure."

Dann said the relationship was between consenting adults. He said it came during "a difficult time" in his marriage to Alyssa Lenhoff, a journalism professor at Youngstown State University. They have three children. He said the extramarital affair was wrong "and I deeply regret it."

Boccieri was satisfied with that.

"It's a personal matter as long as there were no criminal or ethical standards crossed," he said. "Clearly with the others, there were ethical and criminal issues that are pretty serious."

StarkPol has the obvious take: That boinking a staffer in itself crosses ethical lines. I would add that larding supervisory staff with unqualified drinking buddies also constitutes a breach of public trust if not more.

Sympathies to Sen. Boccieri. He's faced with the impossible mission of threading between party loyalty (and loyalty to a former Senate colleague from an adjoining district, no less) and maintaining assured clear distance from the slow-motion car crash ahead.¹ Point is, he didn't pass the test², and every other Democratic elected official and candidate faces the same test as long as Dann remains in office.

Stop the bleeding, Marc. Do the right thing and step down.

¹ By my count that sentence mixes three metaphors. I defy anyone to do better in the same number of words.

²Fourth metaphor in two sentences. Is this some symptom of Dann Derangement Syndrome?

Dann's Incredible Deposition: The Gutierrez Hire

A favorite sport arising from Marc's Mess is sifting through the various sworn statements and depositions for guns, smoking or otherwise. Bill Sloat, Eric Mansfield, and ModernEsquire have each spent quality time with the transcript.

The most compelling case against Marc Dann begins with his staffing the office with longtime FoMs who were initially unqualified for their jobs and were allowed to conduct themselves abominably. The passages concerning how the AGs office hired accused serial harasser Anthony Gutierrez suggest that Dann is either lying in the deposition or is so incompetent an administrator that he should resign for that reason alone. Dann essentially denies any involvement in either hiring his friend or overseeing his work. Here is the passage, with some italicized annotations.

Q. And during your transition period, you identified employees that could work within your office?
A. That's correct.
Q. And was one such employee Anthony Gutierrez?
A. Actually, not. My understanding is -- again, I had -- at the time, I wasn't aware of whether he had applied for a job. But I have become aware since this investigation started that he applied sometime in the second month that we were in office, sometime in late January or early February. So he was not in what I call the transition period, but after that.
Q. It's been reported that he is your neighbor back in West Liberty.
A. Liberty Township, Ohio. Tony lives at 607 Northlawn. I live at 637.


Wait a minute. Gutierrez has been a longtime friend, worked on the campaign, and lives a block away but Dann only heard about his application through channels? Given what we've heard about Gutierrez's outsized sense of entitlement, this defies credulity.

Q. When did you find out he applied for a position with your office?
A. Sometime in January or early February of 2007.


According to the timeline published by the Plain Dealer, Gutierrez applied in December and was officially hired as Director of General Services on Feb. 5.


Q. Do you know how he applied?
A. I don't.
Q. Do you know who interviewed him for the position?
A. I don't.


Gutierrez was hired to take care of all the material needs of the office. Doesn't that sound like a position the AG would want a personal hand in filling? And given that Gutierrez had no experience in either government or this kind of work, how is it he was the most qualified applicant in the pool? And if he wasn't, isn't that in itself proof that Dann took part in the hiring decision?

There's more where that came from.