Mind-numbingly Inane Conspiracy Theory About White House Information Site Still Riling Up GOP

Posted by Steve Benen, Washington Monthly at 3:31 PM on August 18, 2009.

WHITE HOUSE CHANGES EMAIL TIP LINE.... The "controversy" was mind-numbing from the start, but White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs explained that while flag@whitehouse.gov is no more, Americans can still get in touch with officials with questions about health care reform.

Gibbs ... said a White House effort to encourage people to provide examples of "misinformation" about health care reform has not ended but has instead been folded into a broader initiative to combat opposition to the Obama's health care proposals.

That information can now be provided to the "reality check" section of the White House Web site, Gibbs said.

"To better understand what new misinformation is bubbling up online or in other venues, we want your suggestions about topics to address through the Reality Check site," states a message posted Monday night on the White House Web site by White House Director of New Media Macon Phillips. "To consolidate the process, the e-mail address set up last week for this same purpose is now closed and all feedback should be sent through" an address on the "reality check" Web page, Phillips writes. "We also ask that you always refrain from submitting others' information without permission."

In other words, "We really, really don't want anyone's names or contact information. Seriously."

In the meantime, the Republican obsession continues.

Conservative media have baselessly suggested that people who reportedly claim to have received unsolicited email from White House adviser David Axelrod may have been added to a White House "enemies list" after emails they sent that were critical of the Obama administration were purportedly forwarded to flag@whitehouse.gov. These media figures have failed to provide any credible evidence in support of this conspiracy theory.

I've been told by reliable sources who watch the network that Fox News has emphasized this "story" on a near-constant basis over the last 24 hours.

Tagged as: conspiracy theory, white house information s

Steve Benen is "blogger in chief" of the popular Washington Monthly online blog, Political Animal. His background includes publishing The Carpetbagger Report, and writing for a variety of publications, including Talking Points Memo, The American Prospect, the Huffington Post, and The Guardian. He has also appeared on NPR's "Talk of the Nation," MSNBC's "Rachel Maddow Show," Air America Radio's "Sam Seder Show," and XM Radio's "POTUS '08."