BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Everybody who follows Alabama politics knows about the gossip and everybody has a sarcastic joke about the state attorney general, so it’s not exactly news, which may partly explain why the state’s establishment media won’t touch it with a 10-foot pole.
Do a Google search and it’s hard to miss the online rumor that swirled in 2008 when the name of Troy King, who had been John McCain’s state campaign chairman, was inexplicably scrubbed from the campaign’s Web site. King previously had been rumored as a 2010 gubernatorial candidate, but the new rumor seems to have put an end to that talk.
The rumor was quite specific, involving J.W. Godwin, who interned in King’s office and was subsequently hired as an aide. Reports that the 24-year-old Godwin was being paid nearly $60,000 — a princely sum in Alabama, where the cost of living is very low — added grist to the rumor mill.
No political reporter in the Heart of Dixie will go near the ugly gossip about King, a Baptist who has a wife and three children. Maybe it’s all a left-wing Internet smear and, trust me, I’ve got first-hand experience with that stuff. At some point, however, a rumor becomes news.
King is up for re-election and the question is whether the Alabama press corps — or King’s Democratic opponent — will ignore this gossip until after Election Day in November. My guess? Probably not. Even if news reporters won’t touch this subject, that certainly hasn’t stopped Mobile Press-Register editorial cartoonist J.D. Crowe, who has taken to depicting King in kinky S&M regalia:
From a newsman’s angle, the question is this: How long until TPM, Daily Kos or Rachel Maddow takes notice of this rumor, forcing the Alabama press to stop pretending it doesn’t exist?
Let me get one thing straight (no pun intended): This wasn’t the story I came to Alabama to cover. While I was in Boston covering Scott Brown’s Senate race, I met Rick Barber, a Tea Party-backed congressional candidate who traveled to Massachusetts to volunteer for the Brown campaign. Since I’ve been following this theme for months — the impact of the grassroots uprising on GOP politics — the Barber campaign seemed like a natural excuse for me to make a trip down home, and I learned there were related stories in Alabama, including the campaigns of Les Phillip (the Tea Party candidate against Parker Griffith) and gubernatorial candidate Tim James.
However, as soon as I started blogging about the idea of a trip to Alabama, an anonymous tipster asked me if I was going to check out the talk about Troy King. I’d never even heard of the guy, so I Googled the name and discovered a very curious fact: Both of Alabama’s Republican senators had endorsed King’s GOP primary opponent last fall.
Three words: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?
That’s what we call a “clue,” Dr. Watson. Anybody who knows anything about politics would understand the profound significance of that story, and yet national media scarcely noticed it. Whatever the reason, Richard Shelby and Jeff Sessions clearly view King as a liability for the GOP in this crucial mid-term election.
Maybe Shelby and Session’s aren’t concerned about the Rumor That Dare Not Speak Its Name (172,000 hits). Maybe it’s all the talk about Troy King and gambling lobbyists. Maybe it’s the parade of King aides who’ve been called to testify before the federal grand jury. Clearly, however, there is the sense that the GOP attorney general is a ticking scandal-bomb that might explode into ugly headlines soon, and Republicans are worried about the potential for collateral damage in a year when all the political indicators seem to favor the GOP.
Nasty rumors are a dime a dozen in politics and, as I said, this might be just another left-wing blog smear. If so, the rumor needs to be refuted and the rumor-mongers silenced, rather than to permit a vicious whisper campaign to continue damaging innocent reputations. As it is now, the widespread gossip about Troy King portrays him as a cross between Jack Abramoff and Ted Haggard, a major Republican scandal just waiting to happen.
How long can Alabama’s political reporters ignore it?
UPDATE: Is Troy King The GOP’s Next Larry Craig? Or, considering the Florida connection, how about the next Charlie Crist?
UPDATE II: Alabama Republicans and the Tea Party movement are making big news today, but my misfortune is to actually be in Alabama covering Tea Party Republicans, so I’m suffering from a linky-love deficit. If only I could get Alyssa Milano to re-Tweet me . . .
