Most epic rap video cameo by a former Congressman EVER

This is amazeballs. Earlier today, Jack Keller, an attorney friend of mine in Orlando, sent me a YouTube rap video he created, "Jack of All Trades," with a featured cameo from a familiar face for Florida politicos:

Why it's a big deal that the White House Counsel knew about the IRS audit findings

2013's best new carnival ride, the Obama White House Scandalpalooza, continues to spit out new shocking headlines on a daily basis, and I wanted to put a spotlight on one detail regarding the targeting of conservative groups by the IRS. 

The administration admitted yesterday that the Office of the White House Counsel was informed about the findings of the IRS audit weeks ago - including specifically informing Kathryn Ruemmler, the Senior White House Counsel and the head of the office. 

President Obama somehow knew nothing about the whole mess until he saw it in the press with the rest of us little people. 

Why is this a big deal? 

Because attorneys have a ethical duty to keep their clients informed. 

Sarah vs. ObamaCare

I've never been a "blog-every-story-every-day" blogger. It's easier to tweet the stories of the day (follow me @rumpfshaker if you aren't already) and occasionally write some longer commentary when I have time and schedule the post to go live the next day. 

I don't often get to break stories. 

But apparently I do today....or, at least, I get to break the story of my little role in a much bigger story.

Was Elizabeth Warren practicing law without a license?

Wow. Professor William Jacobson has a knock-your-socks off exposé of what appears to be repeated instances of unlicensed practice of law by Massachusetts Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren at his blog, Legal Insurrection, this morning:

Lawson Lamar, In His Own Words [VIDEO]

As I posted a few days ago, some of the most damaging arguments against Jeff Ashton's candidacy for State Attorney come from his own words:

Most telling is Ashton's admission that the one time he was in a management position at the State Attorney's Office, he "hated it" and demanded a transfer. 

The same guy who "hated" managing one division at the State Attorney's Office and couldn't even stick it out for a year, is now asking Central Florida voters to put him in charge of the entire office...

As a contrast, let's take some time to hear what the current State Attorney, Lawson Lamar, has to say in his own words. Lamar sat down for an interview with me earlier this week, and I've broken it up into several short video segments, posted below.

Jeff Ashton, In His Own Words

My concerns about Jeff Ashton's ability to lead the Ninth Circuit State Attorney's Office aren't based on just the ridiculous Facebook comments by his campaign manager or the campaign's willingness to accept support from shady characters like Doug Guetzloe. 

Specifically, I have concerns about Ashton's temperament and suitability for the job itself. Running the State Attorney's Office for a large metropolitan area like Orange and Osceola Counties is not a job for an amateur.

It's election season, so Doug Guetzloe is making up stories again

It's election season, and a perfect time for a reality check: just because someone posts something on the internet does not mean it is true. 

Exhibit A: Doug Guetzloe's repeated claims about supporters of Lawson Lamar being charged with ethical violations. He, both individually and through his "Ax the Tax" group, has been sending out mailers, making robocalls, and writing too many Facebook posts to count, with a wild assortment of false accusations.

Facts are pesky things to people like Guetzloe, so I thought I'd just share some information as a reminder to question what you read and demand evidence of his claims.

A quick note on "executive privilege" [UDPATED]

 ***Please scroll to bottom for important update***

Drudge headline today (hat tip: @TheHenry)

There's going to be a lot written about the Fast and Furious hearing today debating whether to hold Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt regarding failure to turn over materials requested by subpoena, but I wanted to make a quick point about a comment Rep. Darrell Issa made about the failure to turn over a privilege log.

"If we lose our freedom here, where do we go?"

My friend Robert Stacy McCain attended the Values Voter Summit yesterday and scored a great interview with Texas Senate candidate Ted Cruz:

Thanks, Charlie!

What an interesting week this has been!

I happened to catch the world premiere of Charlie Crist's first ad for Morgan & Morgan, and my YouTube video of the ad has, as of this morning, now been viewed over 40,000 times.

The video got a few laughs when I originally posted it here and sent out a few comments on Twitter, but the tipping point was when Ben Smith posted it at Politico at 8:53 a.m.

From Politico, it spread across the internet like the proverbial wildfire. (I have to say, the best headline goes to New York Magazine: "Look What Marco Rubio Did To Charlie Crist.") I had figured the ad would be funny to a few political people here in Florida, but I never expected that the entire blogosphere would be interested.

What originally struck me about the ad was that Crist seemed a little off his game. The energy and charm of the happy-go-lucky former "People's Governor" was missing, and all that was left was a sad Oompa Loompa in a suit. To compare, see the video of Crist's "Best of Both" ad from his failed Senate campaign.

The ad also lacks the usual high-quality production values of other Morgan & Morgan ads (I especially like the one where Ultima Morgan, John Morgan's wife, talks about the name of the firm). There is something very sad about Crist's performance here. It seems very clear that he just does not want to be there.

If you missed it, here's my original post, along with updates of some of the many, many places the video was linked this week:

Sunshine State Sarah | It was only a matter of time

Finally, last night, Sunshine State Sarah made its prime time debut. MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews featured my video:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

First up...whiplash specialist! Just one year ago Charlie Crist was  of course Governor of Florida and a candidate for the U.S. Senate. Now Crist has turned from public service to public pitchman...I thought trial lawyers were all Democrats!

Well, Chris, there's a lot of us who think Charlie is a Democrat, so you may not be that far off. Thanks for playing the video. It was great to see my website up on the screen for all 37 of your viewers to see. ;)

Anyway, I've enjoyed my 12 seconds of internet fame. Thanks to everyone who helped pass this video on, and hello to my new readers. It's nice to have you.

UPDATE: Robert Stacy McCain, who blogs at The Other McCain and I had the pleasure of meeting at CPAC, posted this today:

The Other McCain | VIDEO: Charlie Crist Helps Sarah Rumpf (Finally) Get Her 15 Minutes of Fame

McCain also posted on Twitter his campaign to get me invited on RedEye...thank you!

"How could someone with the Twitter handle '@Rumpfshaker' not be famous?" http://bit.ly/jgQMda [] @GregGutfeld @AndyLevy #LegChairSat May 07 16:18:52 via webRobert Stacy McCain
rsmccain

@rumpfshaker for #RedEye #LegChair CAMPAIGN HQ http://bit.ly/jgQMda [] Tell @GregGutfeld @AndyLevy you want some RUMPF! #tcotSat May 07 17:49:56 via webRobert Stacy McCain
rsmccain

It was only a matter of time

Charlie Crist made headlines when he joined the Morgan and Morgan law firm after getting his tail handed to him by Marco Rubio in last year's Senate race.

Tonight, the World's Tallest Oompa-Loompa made his transition from the self-appointed "People's Governor" to "For The People," as this television ad began running:

YouTube | Charlie Crist's new TV ad!

It's nice that they helpfully point out that Ol' Charlie is actually an attorney.

The ad looks like he put on a jacket and wandered down the hallway right after finishing this infamous video:


YouTube | Charlie Crist Official Apology to David Byrne for Copyright Infringement

Update: Here is Saint Petersblog's take on the ad.

Update #2: This post was linked on PolitiJax, the Florida Times-Union's political blog.

Update #3: My video is now linked on Politico.

Update #4: The video has now truly gone viral. (Hello new readers!) It is all over the internets, and the universal response seems to be ridicule, if not outright contempt. I've had to gently remind a few people to give me credit, but most (but not all...ahem!) are giving links back.

Anyway, here's some of what I've seen so far. Let me know if you find other links:

New York Magazine | Look at What Marco Rubio Did to Charlie Crist
The Daily Caller | Need a lawyer? Charlie Crist's new television ad
Salon | Charlie Crist will get you the personal injury settlement you deserve
Moe Lane | Charlie Crist, Ambulance Chaser
RedState | The "Charlie Crist, ambulance chaser" Open Thread
Wonkette | Charlie Crist Now Making Local TeeVee Ads, Working for Ambulance Chaser
South Florida Lawyers | Charlie Crist, Plaintiffs' Lawyer!
Ricochet | This is What Happens When You Mess With Marco Rubio
St. Petersburg Times | The Buzz | Charlie Crist back on TV - as trial lawyer pitchman 
Sun-Sentinel | Florida Politics | Charlie Crist turns lawyer pitchman
Sun-Sentinel | Blogosphere has fun with new Charlie Crist ad
Club For Growth | Charlie Crist is Chasing Ambulances
Palm Beach Post | Cerabino: Crist's new job a sign of how far he's fallen
Democrats for Sale Blog | Update on Former Governor Charlie Crist
The Stranger | Slog | Rent Charlie Crist by the Hour!
Towleroad | Do you have an accident claim or insurance dispute? Attorney Charlie Crist is here to help
CNN Political Ticker | Crist hits the tube with a new ad...for a law firm
Yahoo! Blogs | The Ticket | Charlie Crist is back on TV...as a trial lawyer pitchman
The Huffington Post | Charlie Crist Now Just Working as a Personal Injury Lawyer
Real Clear Politics | Charlie Crist's New TV Ad...for a law firm
Gawker | Charlie Crist Now Just Another Ambulance Chaser
Wall Street Journal | Meet Charlie Crist, personal injury lawyer
USA Today | On Politics | Meet Charlie Crist, personal injury lawyer
Fox News | America's Election HQ | Charlie Crist's New Job: TV Pitchman
HotAir | Good news: Charlie Crist launches exciting new career

Heh. I wonder if they are rethinking the wisdom of that TV ad. It's free press for the firm, but wow, such a negative reaction can't be good.

I know a lot of excellent, ethical, hard-working personal injury attorneys (including several others at Morgan & Morgan), and I really question the judgment of anyone who thinks hiring the Oompa Loompa is a good idea.

Update #5: the video has now been viewed over 4,000 10,000 20,000 (!) times. I've added a title on the video with my website address now to capitalize on the free press, since not everyone was nice enough to give me credit for finding the ad. I seriously never thought this would catch on like this. I thought it would be funny for a few dozen of my politico friends in Florida, but never like this. I'm also shocked I was the first one to find it.