The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

Neal Rauhauser Boasts of Access to Secret Congressional Staff ‘Policy Intel’ Network UPDATE: Don’t Believe the Hype?

Posted on | July 7, 2012 | 57 Comments

FROM AN UNDISCLOSED LOCATION
Brooks Bayne at the Trenches quotes an April 2012 text message reportedly sent by Brett Kimberlin associate Neal Rauhauser:

“Keep in mind policy intel for 700+ Congressional staffers runs through a system I built and I back up the natsec editor. I hear stuff average bear does not.“

Bayne interprets the phrase “policy intel” to include sensitive national-security information, which would be extremely troubling given Rauhauser’s clear connections to Anonymous, the international computer hacking conspiracy. However, leaving aside that potentially scary implication, and stipulating that this text message is authentic — that Rauhauser did indeed send it, and that his claim is not just more of Neal’s habitual bragging — Bayne still has produced evidence worthy of serious investigation. Some questions that investigators might wish to ask:

  • What is this “system” that Rauhauser built? Is it an official system, paid for with taxpayer dollars?
  • Have these staffers been authorized by members of Congress to access the system Rauhauser built?
  • What are the names of the staffers participating in this “policy intel” system, and which members of Congress do they work for?
  • Who is the “natsec” (i.e., national security) editor of the system Rauhauser built? What sort of “stuff,” unknown to the “average bear,” does Rauhauser access through this system?
  • Was Rauhauser working with these congressional staffers at the same time he was harassing Patterico as “the Gaped Crusader”? Was Rauhauser being paid to operate this congressional “policy intel” system (and act as backup to the national security editor of the system) while assisting Matt Edelstein’s “Stop Rush” boycotters? If so, by whom was Rauhauser paid?

Perhaps the reader who hasn’t been following my “Kimberlin Files” reporting in depth now understands why Rauhauser’s involvement with Brett Kimberlin caused me to take notice on May 17.

Neal Rauhauser isn’t just some random crazy guy on the Internet. He is a well-connected Democrat operative who has worked for numerous candidates and campaigns, who was a featured speaker at the 2010 Netroots Nation conference, a consultant who represents a direct link between his client, convicted terrorist Brett Kimberlin, and the official Democratic Party political apparatus.

UPDATE: Friends inform me that this appears to be a typical example of Rauhauser’s boastfulness, and that the “policy intel” mountain to which Neal refers may actually be an online molehill known as Progressive Congress News. Here is an October 2010 Daily Kos post in which Rauhauser (aka “Stranded Wind”) hypes PCN.

Of course, the administrator of such an operation could probably use his access in nefarious ways (and Rauhauser is a distinctly hinky character) but PCN itself doesn’t seem all that important.

– Robert Stacy McCain, Whereabouts Unknown

Category: Congress, Democrats, The Kimberlin Files

Comments

57 Responses to “Neal Rauhauser Boasts of Access to Secret Congressional Staff ‘Policy Intel’ Network UPDATE: Don’t Believe the Hype?”

  1. brooksbayne
    July 8th, 2012 @ 2:35 pm

    looks like another one prefers the cult of personality and the echo chamber over principles. lemme guess, you’re a “big tent”, gay “marriage” supporter, right? 

    please explain how i’m as bad as rauhauser. i’d love to hear this. 

  2. Monday Morning Stuff, 7-9-12
    July 9th, 2012 @ 10:22 am

    […] I’ve mentioned this before, but it bears incessant repetition: Kimberlin is not merely a terrorist who uses the law to silence his opponents — he’s a  terrorist who uses the law to silence his opponents and is one degree removed from the official Democratic party hierarchy. […]

  3. SPQR
    July 9th, 2012 @ 10:04 pm

     Bayne,  your actions belie your claims.  That’s the bottom line.

  4. SPQR
    July 9th, 2012 @ 10:06 pm

     And as for “advancing” the story, you simply haven’t.  At worst, you’ve  slowed it down and distracted.

    And the gay marriage non sequitur?  Attacking Crawford with that bizarre crack?

    Not adding to your credibility.

  5. SPQR
    July 9th, 2012 @ 10:08 pm

    Stacey,  consider what Bayne has done to his credibility with this episode and other recent ones.

  6. brooksbayne
    July 9th, 2012 @ 10:11 pm

    to the uninitiated, or the pretenders, sure. but, i’m not the one hiding behind a nym. but, you are, socky.  

  7. FMJRA 2.0: A Day Late And A Dollar Short : The Other McCain
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