WaPo whitewashes Ethridge in Citizen Mauling case..

Man, am I getting good at writing inflammatory headlines or what?

Remember this?

Well, the Washington Post -- in typical fashion -- wants to get to the bottom of this and determine..

..why Ethridge is at fault?

..why charges are not being files against a congressman who manhandled a student on a public street?

..where the outrage is over the lack of contrition by Ethridge?

No, actually, they are running a short piece on who the students were:

Who are the videographers? Lots of theories about GOP operatives, but no one has come forward to take credit, reports our colleague David Weigel. The reason for stopping Etheridge outside a fundraiser for Nancy Pelosi? "A project," one of the men said on the video. Anything happen that's not on the tape? Unclear, since no other version of the encounter has emerged. The National Journalism Center and the Leadership Institute, two Virginia organizations that train conservative journalists (the latter boasts ACORN sting artist James O'Keefe), flatly denied the men worked for them, as did the National Republican Congressional Committee.

Gasp! They might be evil Republican operatives? Heaven forfend! I guess by asking these penetrating questions in the article (which, of course, go unanswered), the probably want to deflect some heat away from the North Carolina conngressman.

The readers aren't buying it. Check out a couple of comments -- most of which chide the WaPo for missing the obvious story:

Disgusting as usual WaPo! If I didn't know what your agenda was I would struggle to confirm who was the villain in this story. What is it about the Progressive agenda that you are so desperate to protect? Is there anything that would get you to report the news rather than try to shape it? Is there anything vile enough that a Democrat/Socialist/Communist can do that would make you report the story in such a way as to portray the Democrat/Socialist/Communist in the poor light the deserve? I am struggling to understand why your allegiance to these people is so incredibly unflappable. I can't imagine what depths they must sink to for you to report the news as it should be in a story such as this. This Congressman is a despicable human being!

.and..

What difference does it make who Etheridge attacked? Is it "OK" that he attacked them if they were Republicans? Not students? Their identity is 100% irrelevant to his conduct, which unarguably terrible and disgraceful. Stop making excuses for this arrogant thug.

..and again..

Not only should he be tried for assault, but he should submit to drug testing. What normal person behaves like that? And look at his face, does that look like someone clean to you? He serves public office, it should be mandatory anyways. We need to know our public workers are clean and sound of mind when they perform their duties.

Again, I recommend you head over there and sample them yourself. It's pretty much all unfavorable towards this attempt at deflection by the Post.Oh, and, just for grins, Adam Goldstein over at HuffPo gets his licks in:

I don't. I don't care if it's a Republican operative--congressmen shouldn't assault Republican operatives. I don't care if it's an ambush interview--congressmen shouldn't attack ambush interviewers. I don't care if it's the ghost of Richard Nixon, foaming at the mouth rabid and wearing nothing but a placard accusing Etheridge of being of questionable parentage. No matter who this is, Etheridge doesn't have the legal right to put hands on him for asking a question.

Some people are trying to deflect blame by questioning the motives of the would-be interviewer, as if the law of assault was a complicated moral issue. It isn't, by the way. It's a simple moral issue. If someone asks you a question, you don't get to start grabbing him or her. Asking whether the questioner has some political motive is as morally bankrupt as asking what specifically Tina Turner said to Ike before he started hitting her--as if there were any answer that would suddenly make the conduct okay.

I guess that pretty much sums up against Ethridge and the WaPao, doesn't it? I mean if most of the liberal readership and a columnist at a liberal blog condemn this, then you've pretty much screwed the pooch, haven't you?

By the way, Here is the Hot Air! piece on the unedited Ethridge videos, by the way.