From Missouri's governor

Things are heating up in the Show-Me state, one of the swing states in this election.

The Missouri Truth Squad, an Obama campaign press release stated last week, would “respond quickly, forcefully, and aggressively when John McCain or his allies launch inaccurate claims or character attacks about Barack Obama, or when they distort Barack Obama’s record or plans.”

Many of the Obama Missouri Truth Squad members have law enforcement powers, such as St. Louis County Circuit Attorney Bob McCulloch, St. Louis City Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce, and Jefferson County Sheriff Glenn Boyer.

"Senator Barack Obama's presidential campaign is asking Missouri law enforcement to target anyone who lies or runs a misleading television ad during the presidential campaign,"

Today, Missouri's governor responded:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Contact: Jessica Robinson, 573-751-0290

_____


Gov. Blunt Statement on Obama Campaign's Abusive Use of Missouri Law
Enforcement


JEFFERSON CITY - Gov. Matt Blunt today issued the following statement on
news reports that have exposed plans by U.S. Senator Barack Obama to use
Missouri law enforcement to threaten and intimidate his critics.

"St. Louis County Circuit Attorney Bob McCulloch, St. Louis City Circuit
Attorney Jennifer Joyce, Jefferson County Sheriff Glenn Boyer, and
Obama and
the leader of his Missouri campaign Senator Claire McCaskill have attached
the stench of police state tactics to the Obama-Biden campaign.

"What Senator Obama and his helpers are doing is scandalous beyond words,
the party that claims to be the party of Thomas Jefferson is abusing the
justice system and offices of public trust to silence political criticism
with threats of prosecution and criminal punishment.

"This abuse of the law for intimidation insults the most sacred principles
and ideals of Jefferson. I can think of nothing more offensive to
Jefferson's thinking than using the power of the state to deprive
Americans
of their civil rights. The only conceivable purpose of Messrs. McCulloch,
Obama and the others is to frighten people away from expressing
themselves,
to chill free and open debate, to suppress support and donations to
conservative organizations targeted by this anti-civil rights, to strangle
criticism of Mr. Obama, to suppress ads about his support of higher taxes,
and to choke out criticism on television, radio, the Internet, blogs,
e-mail
and daily conversation about the election.

"Barack Obama needs to grow up. Leftist blogs and others in the press
constantly say false things about me and my family. Usually, we ignore
false and scurrilous accusations because the purveyors have no
credibility.
When necessary, we refute them. Enlisting Missouri law enforcement to
intimidate people and kill free debate is reminiscent of the Sedition
Acts -
not a free society."

http://governor.mo.gov/cgi-bin/coranto/viewnews.cgi?id=EkkkVFulkpOzXqGMaj
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