This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jul/07/james-okeefe-breakthrough-memoir

The article has changed 2 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
James O'Keefe's Breakthrough: memoir of a merry prankster James O'Keefe's Breakthrough: memoir of a merry prankster
(2 months later)
The memoir of political prankster James O'Keefe – most famous for stinging Acorn and NPR – just passed Dan Brown's Inferno on the Amazon bestseller list. This feat may seem odd here in the dog days of summer: on its surface, O'Keefe's Breakthrough: Our Guerrilla War to Expose Fraud and Save Democracy is not much of a beach read. I am probably saying more about Brown than O'Keefe in assuring you that Breakthrough is every bit the overheated techno-thriller as Inferno – ripe with conspiracies, pulse-pounding narrow escapes, mistaken identities, false accusations, an array of powerful forces bent on doing evil, and even a kind of Holy Grail (spoiler alert!): to break through into the mainstream media, to get the message out.The memoir of political prankster James O'Keefe – most famous for stinging Acorn and NPR – just passed Dan Brown's Inferno on the Amazon bestseller list. This feat may seem odd here in the dog days of summer: on its surface, O'Keefe's Breakthrough: Our Guerrilla War to Expose Fraud and Save Democracy is not much of a beach read. I am probably saying more about Brown than O'Keefe in assuring you that Breakthrough is every bit the overheated techno-thriller as Inferno – ripe with conspiracies, pulse-pounding narrow escapes, mistaken identities, false accusations, an array of powerful forces bent on doing evil, and even a kind of Holy Grail (spoiler alert!): to break through into the mainstream media, to get the message out.
O'Keefe is as much a child of James Cameron and Quentin Tarantino as he is of Andrew Brietbart or Matt Drudge (though the latter two are the ones who've nurtured him most directly). Breakthrough is larded with as many references to popular films as it is with their tropes. He compares his media strategy to the black goo in "Prometheus" (he said it, not me); watching the fruits of one "sting" unfold, he feels "like that guy in the movie Limitless". He's a student of more obscure fare, as well – thinking of his desire to go undercover as a pimp to Acorn offices is, he imagines that:O'Keefe is as much a child of James Cameron and Quentin Tarantino as he is of Andrew Brietbart or Matt Drudge (though the latter two are the ones who've nurtured him most directly). Breakthrough is larded with as many references to popular films as it is with their tropes. He compares his media strategy to the black goo in "Prometheus" (he said it, not me); watching the fruits of one "sting" unfold, he feels "like that guy in the movie Limitless". He's a student of more obscure fare, as well – thinking of his desire to go undercover as a pimp to Acorn offices is, he imagines that:
"Philippe Petit, the Frenchman who in 1974 violated just about every rule of God and New York City by slinging a wire between the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center and walking across it, had a similar urge. He had his own dream, his own little posse, and his own sense of destiny. We both hoped to make the world a better place, he by entertaining it, me by exposing it. The difference, I suppose, was that the outcome would be a little more brutal if he fell off the wire than if Hannah [the woman playing his prostitute], say, fell off her platform shoes.""Philippe Petit, the Frenchman who in 1974 violated just about every rule of God and New York City by slinging a wire between the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center and walking across it, had a similar urge. He had his own dream, his own little posse, and his own sense of destiny. We both hoped to make the world a better place, he by entertaining it, me by exposing it. The difference, I suppose, was that the outcome would be a little more brutal if he fell off the wire than if Hannah [the woman playing his prostitute], say, fell off her platform shoes."
Yes, I suppose. But O'Keefe earns most of these pop culture comparisons with the aforementioned setpieces, such as a mad dash down Sixth Avenue to a Glenn Beck taping, "hard drive in hand, cords dangling, dodging cars and pedestrians both, my heart pounding, looking skyward now and then as the rain clouds gathered, and wondering if I'd live to be 26." There's also the brutal interrogation sequence, after O'Keefe is arrested for attempting to tamper with the phones of Senator Mary Landrieu:Yes, I suppose. But O'Keefe earns most of these pop culture comparisons with the aforementioned setpieces, such as a mad dash down Sixth Avenue to a Glenn Beck taping, "hard drive in hand, cords dangling, dodging cars and pedestrians both, my heart pounding, looking skyward now and then as the rain clouds gathered, and wondering if I'd live to be 26." There's also the brutal interrogation sequence, after O'Keefe is arrested for attempting to tamper with the phones of Senator Mary Landrieu:
"They took off the chains and shackles and left the handcuffs on. Pure Stockholm syndrome – I was beginning to feel grateful … My words simply did not register. His indifference was frustrating, unnerving. I could see how easy it was to break a prisoner. I was close.""They took off the chains and shackles and left the handcuffs on. Pure Stockholm syndrome – I was beginning to feel grateful … My words simply did not register. His indifference was frustrating, unnerving. I could see how easy it was to break a prisoner. I was close."
The Landrieu incident and its aftermath actually undergirds most of the book's deepest purple prose, flights of rhetoric untethered by the fact that O'Keefe is perhaps the only federal prisoner in recent memory "broken" by the thought of missing out on a winter holiday:The Landrieu incident and its aftermath actually undergirds most of the book's deepest purple prose, flights of rhetoric untethered by the fact that O'Keefe is perhaps the only federal prisoner in recent memory "broken" by the thought of missing out on a winter holiday:
"A nightmare day in windowless cages had shrunk my will to nothing. Plus, I had a plane to catch. I was supposed to go skiing at Tahoe.""A nightmare day in windowless cages had shrunk my will to nothing. Plus, I had a plane to catch. I was supposed to go skiing at Tahoe."
Forget waterboarding, buy those guys at Gitmo lift tickets!Forget waterboarding, buy those guys at Gitmo lift tickets!
Now, I'm under no illusion that it's Breakthrough's gripping yarn that's propelled it upward on the bestseller list. However refreshing his narrative structure – the book is essentially a series of clock-and-dagger capers – the book's villains are the same ones that pop up in the work of Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Michelle Malkin or any of the other CPAC-marquee authors you'd find shelved next to O'Keefe. The bad guys are the mainstream media and the progressive/liberal power structure it supports.Now, I'm under no illusion that it's Breakthrough's gripping yarn that's propelled it upward on the bestseller list. However refreshing his narrative structure – the book is essentially a series of clock-and-dagger capers – the book's villains are the same ones that pop up in the work of Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Michelle Malkin or any of the other CPAC-marquee authors you'd find shelved next to O'Keefe. The bad guys are the mainstream media and the progressive/liberal power structure it supports.
O'Keefe doesn't actually name the villains specifically very often. Whenever he unloads about the double standard to which he feels held, there's a lot of "the same people that said X, said Y", as in Acorn "seized the House banking committee hearing room" in 1991 "without reproach from the same media that were now libeling me a thug and a felon". Taking him at his word that there was no critical coverage of Acorn in 1991, I mean, "the same"? Really? Even Sam Donaldson's hair has changed since then.O'Keefe doesn't actually name the villains specifically very often. Whenever he unloads about the double standard to which he feels held, there's a lot of "the same people that said X, said Y", as in Acorn "seized the House banking committee hearing room" in 1991 "without reproach from the same media that were now libeling me a thug and a felon". Taking him at his word that there was no critical coverage of Acorn in 1991, I mean, "the same"? Really? Even Sam Donaldson's hair has changed since then.
But lack of specificity about the enemy is key to the appeal of the sort of genre O'Keefe nominally fits into. Readers pick up political polemics not for the excitement they provide, but for the comfort: the articulation of a set of beliefs, supported by facts ("facts", really) that fall so neatly into place no one dare question them. To the extent these books provoke emotion, it's only to sustain outrage already felt, to normalize it.But lack of specificity about the enemy is key to the appeal of the sort of genre O'Keefe nominally fits into. Readers pick up political polemics not for the excitement they provide, but for the comfort: the articulation of a set of beliefs, supported by facts ("facts", really) that fall so neatly into place no one dare question them. To the extent these books provoke emotion, it's only to sustain outrage already felt, to normalize it.
Breakthrough does those things. Fact-checkers will do a better job than I at ferreting out the howlers of conservative folklore it contains, though I did pause to Google one tidbit that struck close to home (literally). O'Keefe masterminded a "sting" of Minnesota voter registration drives that purported to show how easily people who were obviously not who they said they were ("Tim Tebow") could get voter registration applications.Breakthrough does those things. Fact-checkers will do a better job than I at ferreting out the howlers of conservative folklore it contains, though I did pause to Google one tidbit that struck close to home (literally). O'Keefe masterminded a "sting" of Minnesota voter registration drives that purported to show how easily people who were obviously not who they said they were ("Tim Tebow") could get voter registration applications.
Well, yes, they can get the applications. Are they then registered? Not necessarily.Well, yes, they can get the applications. Are they then registered? Not necessarily.
He also asserts that "there is reliable evidence that more than a thousand ineligible felons voted illegally" and "nearly 200" felons were "convicted" of voter fraud in Minnesota after the 2008 elections – an important claim given Al Franken's narrow victory. Hello, Google? One hundred and thirteen people (not necessarily felons who voted) have been convicted of some form of voter fraud in Minnesota since 2009, and it's unclear if any of those votes were actually cast or counted.He also asserts that "there is reliable evidence that more than a thousand ineligible felons voted illegally" and "nearly 200" felons were "convicted" of voter fraud in Minnesota after the 2008 elections – an important claim given Al Franken's narrow victory. Hello, Google? One hundred and thirteen people (not necessarily felons who voted) have been convicted of some form of voter fraud in Minnesota since 2009, and it's unclear if any of those votes were actually cast or counted.
What's more, O'Keefe uses these numbers to support the need for a "voter ID" law, like the one Minnesota rejected last fall, despite the fact that a voter ID law would do little to keep felons from attempting to cast a vote: there's nothing about committing a felony that would keep one from getting an ID.What's more, O'Keefe uses these numbers to support the need for a "voter ID" law, like the one Minnesota rejected last fall, despite the fact that a voter ID law would do little to keep felons from attempting to cast a vote: there's nothing about committing a felony that would keep one from getting an ID.
Twisting evidence to fit an ideological agenda gives the lie to O'Keefe's notion that he's a fearless truth-teller who comes to his partisanship only after his exposure to the deceits of the other side. He fashions himself an Abbie Hoffman of the right (he quotes Hoffman approvingly), but he's really more of an Eddie Haskell.Twisting evidence to fit an ideological agenda gives the lie to O'Keefe's notion that he's a fearless truth-teller who comes to his partisanship only after his exposure to the deceits of the other side. He fashions himself an Abbie Hoffman of the right (he quotes Hoffman approvingly), but he's really more of an Eddie Haskell.
Indeed, O'Keefe is such a diligent soldier for the conservative cause that I doubt he set out to write a book either so interesting or as intentionally revealing as Breakthrough is. Much as with his video stunts, O'Keefe's lust for theatricality, combined with youthful arrogance, seems to have made Breakthrough more informative than he intended.Indeed, O'Keefe is such a diligent soldier for the conservative cause that I doubt he set out to write a book either so interesting or as intentionally revealing as Breakthrough is. Much as with his video stunts, O'Keefe's lust for theatricality, combined with youthful arrogance, seems to have made Breakthrough more informative than he intended.
O'Keefe's videos have an obvious ideological appeal. He protests that his target is simply "fraud" or "abuse", but his victims are, to a person, aligned with progressive causes. I've found his work to be fascinating on another level entirely: they pit two forms of performance against each other. On the one side, the flamboyantly subversive O'Keefe and his allies, posing as pimps or Irish terrorists or lederhosen-clad Colombians (yep). On the other side, the oppressed (more than oppressive) bureaucrat: the office worker, the poll-watcher, the county clerk.O'Keefe's videos have an obvious ideological appeal. He protests that his target is simply "fraud" or "abuse", but his victims are, to a person, aligned with progressive causes. I've found his work to be fascinating on another level entirely: they pit two forms of performance against each other. On the one side, the flamboyantly subversive O'Keefe and his allies, posing as pimps or Irish terrorists or lederhosen-clad Colombians (yep). On the other side, the oppressed (more than oppressive) bureaucrat: the office worker, the poll-watcher, the county clerk.
O'Keefe and his band have agency; they can flout rules and go off-script. Bureaucrats have to perform the motions prescribed to them, regardless of what their personal beliefs are. Yes, he has captured instances of workers bending the rules – or saying that the rules are stupid – but more often, he documents something far more mundane: civic workers trying to do their jobs under baffling circumstances.O'Keefe and his band have agency; they can flout rules and go off-script. Bureaucrats have to perform the motions prescribed to them, regardless of what their personal beliefs are. Yes, he has captured instances of workers bending the rules – or saying that the rules are stupid – but more often, he documents something far more mundane: civic workers trying to do their jobs under baffling circumstances.
If there is one remarkable takeaway from all the hours of video O'Keefe has produced, it is that bureaucrats are far more kind and patient than popular culture, and certainly O'Keefe, give them credit for. He thinks he's showing us the casual cruelty of systematic oppression à la 1984. He seems to forget that Winston Smith was a bureaucrat. Smith's tragedy was being trapped in the system; O'Keefe has the luxury of operating outside of it – and he is blissfully unaware of that privilege.If there is one remarkable takeaway from all the hours of video O'Keefe has produced, it is that bureaucrats are far more kind and patient than popular culture, and certainly O'Keefe, give them credit for. He thinks he's showing us the casual cruelty of systematic oppression à la 1984. He seems to forget that Winston Smith was a bureaucrat. Smith's tragedy was being trapped in the system; O'Keefe has the luxury of operating outside of it – and he is blissfully unaware of that privilege.
That is perhaps the most subtle of the privileges O'Keefe glosses over. Although I enjoyed a lot of the cat-and-mouse intrigue he lingers over, the book's laugh-out-loud moments are the product of guileless petulance. Of being on federal probation and barred from travel without permission, he grieves:That is perhaps the most subtle of the privileges O'Keefe glosses over. Although I enjoyed a lot of the cat-and-mouse intrigue he lingers over, the book's laugh-out-loud moments are the product of guileless petulance. Of being on federal probation and barred from travel without permission, he grieves:
"There is something soul-killing about being confined anywhere, especially given the political nature of that confinement.""There is something soul-killing about being confined anywhere, especially given the political nature of that confinement."
Don't feel too sorry for him: his "confinement" is to a restored country carriage house. Or do feel sorry for him – it was in New Jersey.Don't feel too sorry for him: his "confinement" is to a restored country carriage house. Or do feel sorry for him – it was in New Jersey.
Indeed, when Breakthrough bored me, it was during O'Keefe's lengthy detours into the details of that probation. He really and truly seems to believe he was a political prisoner of some sort, the target of specific harassment by a liberal government, rather than the victim (like so many) of an over-worked and under-staffed judicial system. A victim with, you know, media appearances to make:Indeed, when Breakthrough bored me, it was during O'Keefe's lengthy detours into the details of that probation. He really and truly seems to believe he was a political prisoner of some sort, the target of specific harassment by a liberal government, rather than the victim (like so many) of an over-worked and under-staffed judicial system. A victim with, you know, media appearances to make:
"Early on, I went in to ask permission to be on Sean Hannity's TV show. 'Why Hannity?' she asked. I told her I was trying to get my story out. Dorothy missed the irony of my needing permission from a federal court officer to tell the story of my mistreatment at the hands of other federal court officers.""Early on, I went in to ask permission to be on Sean Hannity's TV show. 'Why Hannity?' she asked. I told her I was trying to get my story out. Dorothy missed the irony of my needing permission from a federal court officer to tell the story of my mistreatment at the hands of other federal court officers."
Someone is missing some irony there, but I'm not sure it's Dorothy.Someone is missing some irony there, but I'm not sure it's Dorothy.
The vehemence of O'Keefe's complaints about his treatment at the hands of the federal criminal system would make sense if, you know, he wasn't a criminal. He pled guilty to the misdemeanor he was charged with.The vehemence of O'Keefe's complaints about his treatment at the hands of the federal criminal system would make sense if, you know, he wasn't a criminal. He pled guilty to the misdemeanor he was charged with.
You can argue that what he did shouldn't be against the law, but that's not the same as saying the law should just be ignored. He repeatedly confuses his right to free speech with his right to escape consequences. He waves the first amendment in front of his probation officer, saying that he has the right to make a video mocking the judge who sentenced him – and then seems shocked that the probation officer thinks it prudent to restrict his travel. With typical humility, he muses:You can argue that what he did shouldn't be against the law, but that's not the same as saying the law should just be ignored. He repeatedly confuses his right to free speech with his right to escape consequences. He waves the first amendment in front of his probation officer, saying that he has the right to make a video mocking the judge who sentenced him – and then seems shocked that the probation officer thinks it prudent to restrict his travel. With typical humility, he muses:
"The higher-ups who were leaning on Hattersley made me rethink which country I pledged allegiance to.""The higher-ups who were leaning on Hattersley made me rethink which country I pledged allegiance to."
All of this blindness, ego and misguided idealism is easily attributed to the fact of O'Keefe being still in his 20s. He is a savant of sorts, with a genius for publicity yet a stunted understanding of himself. I was so charmed by his brio and lack of self-awareness, I'm even tempted to believe him on the subject of his most disturbing exploits: a near-miss at active sexual harassment when he planned to trap a CNN correspondent on a "love boat", and an accusation of sexual misconduct (also involving stranding a female alone) by a former colleague.All of this blindness, ego and misguided idealism is easily attributed to the fact of O'Keefe being still in his 20s. He is a savant of sorts, with a genius for publicity yet a stunted understanding of himself. I was so charmed by his brio and lack of self-awareness, I'm even tempted to believe him on the subject of his most disturbing exploits: a near-miss at active sexual harassment when he planned to trap a CNN correspondent on a "love boat", and an accusation of sexual misconduct (also involving stranding a female alone) by a former colleague.
On both counts, O'Keefe pleads ignorance of wrongdoing. The former, he says, was just a joke; the second he alleges to be a plot to entrap him. (After she presses charges, he notes, "Nadia was clearly playing hardball. I wondered if someone was paying her to play.")On both counts, O'Keefe pleads ignorance of wrongdoing. The former, he says, was just a joke; the second he alleges to be a plot to entrap him. (After she presses charges, he notes, "Nadia was clearly playing hardball. I wondered if someone was paying her to play.")
The truth is likely closer to what's already obvious: O'Keefe is so convinced of his righteousness he can't understand why pretending to sexually harass someone isn't funny. And his ego is large enough to obscure any awareness that some actions can seem threatening, even as it amplifies actions taken against him.The truth is likely closer to what's already obvious: O'Keefe is so convinced of his righteousness he can't understand why pretending to sexually harass someone isn't funny. And his ego is large enough to obscure any awareness that some actions can seem threatening, even as it amplifies actions taken against him.
O'Keefe's persecution complex exists side-by-side with a life so charmed as to provide Breakthrough with a real-life fairytale ending: heading over the Tappan Zee bridge over the Hudson River in moonlight, off to that long-delayed California sojourn, his probation release flapping in the breeze.O'Keefe's persecution complex exists side-by-side with a life so charmed as to provide Breakthrough with a real-life fairytale ending: heading over the Tappan Zee bridge over the Hudson River in moonlight, off to that long-delayed California sojourn, his probation release flapping in the breeze.
The woman bringing charges is an African American "dressed to the max", "her braided hair cascad[ing] dramatically to her waist". O'Keefe suspects she's not the one calling the shots. But, he says, the judge was "my old baseball coach … I do catch the occasional break." On the verge of having the charges dismissed, he ponders the scene:The woman bringing charges is an African American "dressed to the max", "her braided hair cascad[ing] dramatically to her waist". O'Keefe suspects she's not the one calling the shots. But, he says, the judge was "my old baseball coach … I do catch the occasional break." On the verge of having the charges dismissed, he ponders the scene:
"This was all so bizarre, so oddly American.""This was all so bizarre, so oddly American."
Yes, a young white man accused by a beautiful black woman of sexual miscounduct is about to walk out of the courtroom without having to answer for a thing. That really is "so bizarre, so oddly American". But it's a version of America O'Keefe seems unable to see. Someone get this man a viewfinder.Yes, a young white man accused by a beautiful black woman of sexual miscounduct is about to walk out of the courtroom without having to answer for a thing. That really is "so bizarre, so oddly American". But it's a version of America O'Keefe seems unable to see. Someone get this man a viewfinder.
Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning.