You’ll recall that Major Garrett of Fox News was mocked by the left for suggesting to Robert Gibbs that the White House had been spamming Americans with talking points in emails they never requested. Some even accused Garrett of making the whole story up in order to slime the Obama Administration.
Yeah, well, guess what. Fox News received permission from the angry recipients of the emails and handed the messages over to the White House as evidence. Now, after days of not commenting, the Obama Administration has admitted that it spammed Americans with health care emails they never requested.
The White House said Sunday night that it will change its e-mail sign-up procedures after some recipients of a health-care e-mail complained that they had not asked to receive updates.
“We are implementing measures to make subscribing to e-mails clearer, including preventing advocacy organizations from signing people up to our lists without their permission when they deliver petition signatures and other messages on individual’s behalf,” spokesman Nick Shapiro said in a statement Sunday night.
After a few such recipients appeared on Fox News, White House officials determined that advocacy groups on the right or left could have sent in the names without the person knowing it.
Yeah, I’m sure it was advocacy groups on the right who were signing people up for propaganda spin from the Obama Administration. Because, really, it’s typical of those opposed to ObamaCare to sign people up for pro-ObamaCare messages from the government.
FoxNews.com reported: “FOX News has offered the White House examples of what hundreds of people say were unsolicited e-mails.”
Shapiro said in the statement: “The White House e-mail list is made up of e-mail addresses obtained solely through the White House website. The White House doesn’t purchase, upload or merge from any other list. … [A]ll e-mails come from the White House website as we have no interest in emailing anyone who does not want to receive an email.
“If an individual received the e-mail because someone else or a group signed them up or forwarded the email, we hope they were not too inconvenienced. Further, we suggest that they unsubscribe from the list by clicking the link at the bottom of the e-mail or tell whomever forwarded it to them not to forward such information anymore.”
I’m sure. Incidentally, the email was written in the form of a chain email, much like those who’ve made their way around the web in opposition to ObamaCare. It was 1,500 words long and compiled by chief Obama strategist David Axelrod. Even its subject, “Something worth forwarding,” was reminiscent of spam.
Apparently the White House just grabs whatever email address it comes upon and forwards its propaganda to the owner. Someone should report this as fishy to the White House snitch line. I’d do it myself, but I don’t feel like being signed up for the propaganda mailing list.
by Stephan Tawney on Sun, Aug 16, 2009