James O'Keefe Fails To Find A Scandal, Union And Public Works Edition
What a tool.
In the latest of his heavily edited, deceptive videos, discredited conservative activist James O'Keefe claims that he found "union bosses" who "loved the idea" of a company that does nothing but dig holes in the ground and fill them again -- and that those union men said "public officials" would fund such projects. The unedited video, of course, shows nothing of the sort.
The edited video shows workers from the fictional company Earth Supply and Renewal (ESR) meeting with New York union leaders John Hutchings and Anthony Tocci and former NY state assemblyman Ronald Tocci (Anthony's brother). The faux-ESR employees explain that workers at their company dig ditches and then "put [the dirt] right back in the ground," then ask if the union leaders can help them get public funds for their hole-digging, hole-filling operation.
In a series of fast cuts, the union leaders are shown advising the supposed ESR employees to "just call it a jobs program for workers," explaining how they lobby officials, and saying that they are "good with [Sens. Kirsten] Gillibrand and [Charles] Schumer." The video repeatedly shows Hutchings saying, "It's awful hard for anybody to vote against a jobs bill right now" -- the implication being, apparently, that anyone will vote to fund any kind of jobs, even useless ones like repeatedly digging and filling holes.
http://mediamatters.org/blog/2012/07/18/james-okeefe-fails-to-find-a-scandal-union-and/187215