Shucks, our latest Hoosier hero, former Rep. Dan Burton, is just a plain ol' Hoosier Azerbaijani patriot-for-hire

A crucial piece of information was left out of the Daily Caller's presentation to readers of former Congressman Dan Burton as the right-wing whoring dirtbag used its space to pimp for the fascist thugs of Azerbaijan.

by Ken

There's a good chance that if you're denounced as "a gossip monger" by a certified right-wing whoring dirtbag, it can be taken as a badge of honor. And today's gold star goes to washingtonpost.com's Erik Wemple Blog.

It was mere hours ago that we were commiserating with the proud bigots of Hoosier country who are in mourning for the damage to their great state's reputation ("Oh no! Has Indiana's reputation for 'Hoosier hospitality' been tarnished?") caused by the orgy of organized homophobia represented by the state's pioneering Gotta Hate Them Homos Act, so proudly signed into homo-hating law by right-wing whoring dirtbag Gov. Mikey Pants and his proud circle of homo-haters -- before, to their great amazement, all heck broke loose.

Poor Hoosiers! Of course, one important question had to be asked regarding the alleged hit to the Hoosier State's reputation: What reputation? There are, after all, good reasons why the state's other popular nickname is the Right-Wing Whoring Dirtbag State. And tonight we're gathered to pay tribute to yet another proud Hoosier right-wing whoring dirtbag, former Congressman Dan Burton.

"A couple of months back," the proprietor of the EWB reported the other day, "the Washington Times ran an opinion piece from Dan Burton titled 'Why Azerbaijan is important to America and the free world.' " The EWB noted a problem, however.

As initially published, the Washington Times disclosed that Burton was a former Republican congressman from Indiana. But not his other, more relevant title: current chairman of the Azerbaijan America Alliance, which in its own words strives to be the “premier organization dedicated to promoting a lasting partnership between Azerbaijan and America.” Burton’s piece appeared in the same edition of the Washington Times as a special section titled, “Azerbaijan: A Quarter Century Since Restoring Independence, A Thriving U.S. Ally.”

After the Erik Wemple Blog alerted the newspaper to Burton’s nonexistent disclaimer, it added in his chairmanship of the Azerbaijan America Alliance.

THE SAME BOUT OF AMNESIA AFFLICTS ANOTHER
ORGAN OF RIGHT-WING WHORING DIRTBAGGERY

Can you believe that the very same omission was made by the Daily Caller, edited by celebrated bow-tied right-wing whoring dirtbag Tucker Carlson? Back to the EWB:

Witness a Burton-penned March 12 piece in the Daily Caller titled, “Is Armenia America’s Ally Or Iran’s?” What follows the headline is an out-and-out hit piece on Armenia. This passage represents the tone pretty capably:

Further evidence of Armenian/Iranian friendship is plentiful. Both Tehran and Yerevan have pushed hard for progress on the construction of the Southern Armenia Railway, which will more closely link the two countries. Meanwhile, in May 2014, Iran and Armenia increased weekly flights between the two countries from three to 50. That’s not tourism. That’s business.

Elsewhere, Burton writes that Russian President Vladimir Putin is vested in promoting “the burgeoning Armenian/Iranian partnership. And we have everything to lose.” Those words sound like just the sort of thing you’d expect from the chairman of the Azerbaijan America Alliance. After all, Azerbaijan and Armenia have become “perilously close to open war,” as the New York Times put it in late January. There have been recent reports of clashes between the two.

"So how," the EWB asks, "does the Daily Caller present Burton to its readers?" There was, first the sunny graphic I've popped atop this post. And then there was "a tagline at the bottom of the piece":

Dan Burton is a former Member of Congress representing Indiana’s 5th Congressional District. He served in Congress from 1983 until 2013 notably serving on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

Note: "An inquiry to Tucker Carlson, the Daily Caller's top editor, went unanswered." Color me surprised.


SO THE EWB TRIED THE AZERBAIJAN AMERICA ALLIANCE

And the result was "not much luck."

The Erik Wemple Blog sent an interview request to the organization yesterday and didn’t hear back by this morning, at which point we presented ourselves at the Pennsylvania Avenue address listed on the group’s Web site. After a short wait, a woman appeared to hear our request. She said that the questions I had were properly directed to Burton. When we asked for assistance in contacting Burton, she declined to provide any.

FINALLY, STRAIGHT FROM THE HORSE'S MOUTH

Yes, finally the Erik Wemple Blog establishes direct contact!

In a short phone chat with Burton, the advocacy group chairman asked, “Are you the one who’s been calling everyone about my op-eds?” Yes, responded the Erik Wemple Blog. “I don’t really want to talk to you,” said Burton. Why not? “Because you’re a scandal monger and I don’t want to talk to you. I have no desire to talk to you,” he said. A plea to hear out the Erik Wemple Blog fetched no response.

Th-th-th-that's all, folks!

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