If you told me when I woke up this morning that by afternoon Newt Gingrich would be my ally and defending my livelihood, I would have said you were barking mad. But that is precisely the case. Politics calls for strange bedfellows and now Newt Gingrich just crawled under the covers with us. And as long as he’s talking this way, he’s welcome here. Crackers, Newt?
A few days ago news broke about a Florida State Senate bill which would require paid bloggers to register with the state every time they wrote a post about a Florida politician within five days or face stiff fines. They also would have to report how much money they made from each post.
It’s a clear and chilling example of prior restraint and unconstitutional as hell. Evidently it’s a bridge too far for Gingrich. And I remind you, this is the man who said reporters serve “as a second Obama person,” and we know what “Obama person” is a euphemism for, right? Be that as it may, evidently this bill is a bridge too far.
The idea that bloggers criticizing a politician should register with the government is insane. it is an embarrassment that it is a Republican state legislator in Florida who introduced a bill to that effect. He should withdraw it immediately.
— Newt Gingrich (@newtgingrich) March 5, 2023
That brought about a swift rebuke from another Florida legislator.
What’s embarrassing is that you didn’t even bother to read the bill and you’re just spouting MSM talking points.
Sorry Mr. Speaker. You’re wrong.
You should withdraw that comment immediately. @newtgingrich @BrendonLeslie pic.twitter.com/Kqzr1LFgDh— Blaise Ingoglia (@GovGoneWild) March 5, 2023
That set off a battle on Twitter.
I suggest you read it again. We can write it in crayon if you’d like. The bill talks about being paid, similar to a lobbyist, to sway public opinion. If the blogger gives her or his own opinion, and is not being paid, it would not apply. Full disclosure: this is not my bill.
— Blaise Ingoglia (@GovGoneWild) March 5, 2023
Patrick Watson is an economics journalist. Blaise Ingoglia is another Florida State Senator.
I’m not proposing it. I am not the sponsor.
— Blaise Ingoglia (@GovGoneWild) March 5, 2023
I respectfully disagree. I think you are mistaken. We have a lobbyist registration in Florida. For transparency reasons, lobbyists need to tell everyone what bill they are being paid to influence. From what I am reading, this bill is attempting to do something similar.
— Blaise Ingoglia (@GovGoneWild) March 5, 2023
“Lobbyists need to tell everyone what bill they are being paid to influence.” Bloggers are NOT lobbyists! The definition of a lobbyist is “a person who takes part in an organized attempt to influence legislators.” We are NOT being paid by anybody to influence a damn thing! We are reporting news and posting opinion pieces on the internet for the consumption of the general public and if we break news timely and/or our commentary is up to snuff, people come and read us and the ad revenue on the blog pays the costs of doing business and gives us some money to put in our pocket so we can continue our work.
And there is no “organized attempt” to influence legislators or anybody else except in the black helicopter fever dreams of Florida Senate MAGAs. There are no secret back room deals where some cigar smoking denizen plays assignment editor and bloggers scurry off in the night to their laptops to follow the directive of their Deep State overlord.
We are not in the employ of a corporation or PAC to achieve a prearranged result. That is a paranoid presupposition and it’s just plain wrong. We are small business owners (or independent contractors for same) and we believe in our work. We are political activists, yes, but blogging is not analogous to lobbying, it fails the definition, element by element. A first year law student would be laughed out of class for proposing this and yet it’s a bill in committee in the Florida State Senate. Newt Gingrich is right, 100%. The bill is insane and to conflate blogging with lobbying is an embarrassment, it is so inapposite and off the walls.
'I respectfully disagree' is not some sorta magic formula that makes up for being 100% wrong, being shown you are 100% wrong (in detail and at length) and still opting for wrongy wrongness. Ffs
— Josef O'Shea (@josefoshea) March 5, 2023
That was his Plan B when the crayon insult didn't work.
— Patrick W. Watson (@PatrickW) March 5, 2023
And now Gingrich’s ass is getting kicked.
Arsonist checks in on the fire he started. Film at 11.
— Ross Berger (@RB9CMS) March 5, 2023
Funny, that's pretty much exactly the thought I had when I read that news earlier today. Any reflections on maybe you shouldn't have gone there, Newt?
— Stan Clayton (@StanClayton11) March 5, 2023
When Newt Gingrich is the voice of reason, we are in the Upside Down.
Just curious, do you all in the bloggoworld, ie lobbyiers, know which blog or blogs this is targeted at in Florida? ron has thin skin, there must be some blog that has gotten under his skin. I doubt he is worried about the little train that could.
That is a terrific question. Let me look into that. I read a lot of blogs but I rarely make it my business to find out from whence they emanate. But all blogs will carry the name of the LLC (we’re going to have one soon) and where the blog physically does business. PZ is in Nevada although we started out in California. I’m going to find out who’s in Florida, other than the big kahunas, Lincoln Project.
ah, I think you may have nailed it in one. The Lincoln Project is big, bad, and against fascists like DeSantis
I never got paid for bling. It was,an outlet for living in GA,which from the PoV ofafeminist Yankee witch with two.graduate degrees was hell.bSo, since I never made a,dime,do I have to register too? Because even without pay,I will cheerfully shred Fat Donnie Donuts and the FL.governor and his enablers in the state legislature for free! I am glad my parents are dead because I couldn’t in good conscience visit them.in Ocala.
Blessed Be! )O(