Miller Campaign Security Guards Arrest Website Editor

Usually Republicans wait until they are in office to restrict civil liberties and abuse power.  Joe Miller, the Tea Party member who won the Republican nomination for the Senate in Alaska, looks like he is off to an early start:

The editor of the Alaska Dispatch website was arrested by U.S. Senate candidate Joe Miller’s private security guards Sunday as the editor attempted to interview Miller at the end of a public event in an Anchorage school.

Tony Hopfinger was handcuffed by the guards and detained in a hallway at Central Middle School until Anchorage police came and told the guards to release Hopfinger.

Hopfinger has not been charged but the owner of the Drop Zone, the private security firm that’s been providing Miller’s security, accused Hopfinger of trespassing at the public event, a town hall sponsored by the Miller campaign. The owner, William Fulton, also said Hopfinger assaulted a man by shoving him.

Anchorage Police who responded to the call said they would leave it to the District Attorney’s office to decide whether to prosecute. They spent more than an hour taking statements, then left.

Hopfinger, who was holding a small video camera, said he was attempting to draw out a statement from Miller on why he was disciplined by the Fairbanks North Star Borough when Miller worked there as a part-time attorney. After Miller walked away, Hopfinger said, he was surrounded by Miller supporters and security guards and felt threatened, so he pushed one of them away.

Perhaps Miller has adopted the Sarah Palin doctrine that the First Amendment is to protect her from the press.

5 Comments

  1. 1
    Rob Klippel says:

    RT @ronchusid: Usually Repubs wait until in office to restrict civil liberties & abuse power. Joe Miller is off to an early start: #p2 http://bit.ly/ahNceg

  2. 2
    BillieO Donald says:

    RT @ronchusid: Usually Repubs wait until in office to restrict civil liberties & abuse power. Joe Miller is off to an early start: #p2 http://bit.ly/ahNceg

  3. 3
    Brett says:

    RT @ronchusid: Usually Repubs wait until in office to restrict civil liberties & abuse power. Joe Miller is off to an early start: #p2 http://bit.ly/ahNceg

  4. 4
    Terry Kerr says:

    RT @ronchusid: Usually Repubs wait until in office to restrict civil liberties & abuse power. Joe Miller is off to an early start: #p2 http://bit.ly/ahNceg

  5. 5
    J. Michael Quante says:

    RT @ronchusid: Usually Repubs wait until in office to restrict civil liberties & abuse power. Joe Miller is off to an early start: #p2 http://bit.ly/ahNceg

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