I don't know if you saw this interaction:
Questions on White House e-mail
This is Major Garrett of Fox News asking Robert Gibbs, White House Press Secretary, why people who have had nothing to do with the White House are getting e-mails from the White House about the Health Reform Act.
This might, at first glance, look just like a picky little complaint. But it's much more serious than that, and the White House apparently finally realized it this weekend. Here's their statement:
"The White House email list is made up of email addresses obtained solely through the White House website. The White House doesn't purchase, upload or merge from any other list, again, all emails come from the White House website as we have no interest in emailing anyone who does not want to receive an email. If an individual received the email because someone else or a group signed them up or forwarded the email, we hope they were not too inconvenienced. Further, we suggest that they unsubscribe from the list by clicking the link at the bottom of the email or tell whomever forwarded it to them not to forward such information anymore. We are implementing measures to make subscribing to emails clearer, including preventing advocacy organizations from signing people up to our lists without their permission when they deliver petition signatures and other messages on individual’s behalf."
- Nick Shapiro, White House spokesman for New Media
What this says is that, in fact, the White House, under David Axelrod's signature, spammed many people who specifically did NOT request or want e-mails from the White House.
This isn't just creepy. Imagine that a few years ago, you forwarded an anti-Iraq-war e-mail to all your friends, and someone on that list forwarded it to the White House for comment. Suddenly, you started getting pro-Iraq-war e-mails from Karl Rove. This is exactly like that.
In addition, it's illegal for the White House to lobby the public for its agenda. The President has the "Bully Pulpit;" that's plenty. And, since the furor over Nixon's "enemies list," it's illegal for the White House to collect information about the citizenry in this manner. However the spam e-mails occurred, there is some serious back-pedaling going on at the White House today.
If Gibbs is an honest man, he'll call Major Garrett and apologize.
Questions on White House e-mail
This is Major Garrett of Fox News asking Robert Gibbs, White House Press Secretary, why people who have had nothing to do with the White House are getting e-mails from the White House about the Health Reform Act.
This might, at first glance, look just like a picky little complaint. But it's much more serious than that, and the White House apparently finally realized it this weekend. Here's their statement:
"The White House email list is made up of email addresses obtained solely through the White House website. The White House doesn't purchase, upload or merge from any other list, again, all emails come from the White House website as we have no interest in emailing anyone who does not want to receive an email. If an individual received the email because someone else or a group signed them up or forwarded the email, we hope they were not too inconvenienced. Further, we suggest that they unsubscribe from the list by clicking the link at the bottom of the email or tell whomever forwarded it to them not to forward such information anymore. We are implementing measures to make subscribing to emails clearer, including preventing advocacy organizations from signing people up to our lists without their permission when they deliver petition signatures and other messages on individual’s behalf."
- Nick Shapiro, White House spokesman for New Media
What this says is that, in fact, the White House, under David Axelrod's signature, spammed many people who specifically did NOT request or want e-mails from the White House.
This isn't just creepy. Imagine that a few years ago, you forwarded an anti-Iraq-war e-mail to all your friends, and someone on that list forwarded it to the White House for comment. Suddenly, you started getting pro-Iraq-war e-mails from Karl Rove. This is exactly like that.
In addition, it's illegal for the White House to lobby the public for its agenda. The President has the "Bully Pulpit;" that's plenty. And, since the furor over Nixon's "enemies list," it's illegal for the White House to collect information about the citizenry in this manner. However the spam e-mails occurred, there is some serious back-pedaling going on at the White House today.
If Gibbs is an honest man, he'll call Major Garrett and apologize.
