Rove Super-PAC: Smear First, Get Answers Later

US Secretary of Commerce John Bryson. Official portrait

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Secretary of Commerce John Bryson was involved in a series of car accidents in California on Saturday, and allegedly left the scene of one of them, Reuters and other news wires report. It’s not publicly known what caused these incidents, but police have said that so far “there is no indication that alcohol or drugs played a role in the collisions.” That didn’t stop American Crossroads, the GOP super-PAC advised by Karl Rove, from recklessly speculating. Progressive Media’s Josh Dorner grabbed a screenshot of a tweet from the group (it has since been deleted):

Bryson’s spokeswoman says he had a seizure, and Bryson has been released from a hospital after spending the night there. Jonathan Collegio, a spokesman for American Crossroads, has since apologized for the tweet, saying the hashtag he used “attempted levity” but “communicated poorly.”

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Managing an independent, nonprofit newsroom is staggeringly hard. There’s no cushion in our budget—no backup revenue, no corporate safety net. We can’t afford to fall short, and we can’t rely on corporations or deep-pocketed interests to fund the fierce, investigative journalism Mother Jones exists to do. That’s why we need you right now. Please chip in to help close the gap.

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