Oh really? The Romney campaign has a large press entourage following them in Israel, but today the journalists were told that they would be shut out of a major fundraiser to be held on Monday, which violates an agreement Romney had with the press. Is this wise?
UPDATE: On Sunday, the Romney camp reversed their policy and will now allow journalists inside the fund raiser in Jerusalem. Apparently that includes both the American Press Corps, as well as the Jewish Press. But stay tuned in case another etch-a-sketch happens.
After London debacle, Romney teamre-institutes Mittness Protection Program. Now media will be barred from his Jerusalem fundraiser.
— David Axelrod (@davidaxelrod) July 28, 2012
Is it because Sheldon Adelson, the SuperPac King, will be among the guests?bit.ly/Qwvh69
— David Axelrod (@davidaxelrod) July 28, 2012
Sheldon Adelson, who once backed Newt Gingrich in the primaries, is a fabulously wealthy casino owner from Las Vegas. He also developed casinos on the island of Macau off the coast of China, one of which is the second-largest building in the entire world. Long-story-short, after the 2008 crash, Adelson bribed a local official on Macau with a ton of money so he could keep making sweet deals, and that was against a law called the "Foreign Corrupt Practices Act." Rachel Maddow did a great background story on him, and the fact that Adelson would love to have a new Justice Department installed by the candidate of his choice, Mitt Romney, so that all his legal problems will go away.
Though there have been a few occasions when the campaign has tried to limit access — citing an especially small venue or the fact that Mr. Romney was not giving formal remarks — this is the first time that a public fund-raiser has been closed without any explanation. Mr. Romney’s high-dollar event in London on Thursday, held at the Mandarin Oriental in Hyde Park, was open to a press pool. . . . “Closed press, closed press, closed press,” a Romney spokesman Rick Gorka said when asked for a comment or explanation.The Washington Post
The campaign’s decision to close the fundraiser to the press violates the ground rules it negotiated with news organizations in April, when Romney wrapped up the Republican nomination and began opening some of his finance events to the news media. Under the agreement, a pool of wire, print and television reporters can cover every Romney fundraiser held in public venues, including hotels and country clubs. The campaign does not allow media coverage of fundraisers held in private residences. Campaign spokesman Rick Gorka declined to explain the campaign’s decision to violate protocol with the Jerusalem event. Pressed repeatedly by reporters to offer an explanation, Gorka said only that the fundraiser was “closed press.” “That’s all I’ve got for you — it’s closed press,” Gorka said.
Fundraiser Invitation Via BuzzFeed
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