My support for and endorsement of Bob Corker on Monday created quite a stir.

I expected some of it. But I was unprepared for the level of animosity that would drive some to either intentionally lie about Corker or to engage in shoddy reporting and justify that lack of integrity in the name of defeating Corker. The end justifies the means and all that …

Matt Collins and the Tennessee Campaign 4 Liberty (TNC4L) are a prime example of political passion gone bad. They are promoting a story designed to discredit Senator Corker. The problem is, as is often the case with their shrill and negative missives … they are wrong.

Emailed to me directly by TNC4L and passed on to me by others on their list for my consideration is a story from October, 2010 reported in the American Spectator concerning remarks attributed third hand to Senator Corker. In it, AmSpec quotes Corker as being quoted by the Labor Union Report (LUR) as being quoted by the Davis Intelligence Group (DIG) as saying to an unidentified group that might have met somewhere at some time that Senate GOP leadership had no intention of repealing Obamacare and incoming GOP members were crazy to think they had a chance to keep campaign promises to do so.

The problems with this are myriad. The original DIG report is not available online. Or it is not available to non-subscribers. In any event, there is no way to verify the original reporting.

The original LUR post is still available but only says DIG says Corker said what they say he said. That is hearsay and not admissible in court and taken with a grain of salt by thoughtful people unable to independently verify the original statements. AmSpec separates us from whatever the truth is a full additional step by quoting LUR without verification from either DIG or anyone else attending a meeting we cannot say even took place.

None of the “multiple sources” at the meeting has ever come forward to corroborate the reporting. To my knowledge, neither the DIG nor LUR has issued a “We stand by our story” statement. Which is important because Senator Corker did issue an on the record statement about the story.

Just 90 minutes after the original story posted, AmSpec posted a follow-up with on the record statements regarding the original reporting and Corker’s actual position. Again, to my knowledge, no one has ever repudiated or disproved these on the record statements definitely attributable to Senator Corker.

Which ought to be the end of the matter. News outlets often get things wrong in the rush to get news out. It happens. AmSpec posted an unsubstantiated report and then fairly posted on the record statements from the people involved. In 18 months, nothing has come to light to support the original report while much has come to light to argue against it. AmSpec quickly and professionally did the right thing.

Not everyone exhibits such integrity. Certainly not Matt Collins. Not only is he continuing to spread unsubstantiated and discredited accounts in an effort to somehow discredit Senator Corker, I would be stunned, albeit pleasantly so, if Matt were to send a link to this post to his list in order to present the whole story. That would seem to be the minimum response required by integrity. I’m not holding my breath.

Collins is so vehemently anti-Corker he is willing to score the occasional cheap point at the expense of things like truth, integrity and responsibility. To him, it just matters if he can damage Corker. He desires the hurt, wound and injury. It’s his vision of how political activism is to be conducted. He has told me as much.

He then has the gall to suggest I am not to be trusted for not agreeing with him. To whatever extent it is true that I am known by the company I keep, let me say I’m happy to be opposed by Matt Collins.

I’m still happy, too, to be supporting Senator Corker. Not just because Matt Collins doesn’t like the Senator – but that’s as good a place as any to start.