ACORN Sues Breitbart, Filmmakers Over Undercover Video

At the Washington Post, "ACORN Sues Conservative Filmmakers Over Baltimore Video" (via Memeorandum):

ACORN, the community organizing group embarrassed recently in a video sting, said Wednesday that it needs to regroup and determine if it has a major internal problem -- but it also struck back, filing suit against the filmmakers who made undercover videos and the Web site whose publication of them prompted a national outcry.

The secretly taped videos show ACORN housing counselors advising two young conservative activists, James O'Keefe and Hannah Giles, who were posing as a pimp and prostitute, on how to conceal their criminal business. The videos were taped in Baltimore, Washington, New York and California, and their airing in the past two weeks has sent the organization reeling.

Named in the suit, filed in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City, were O'Keefe, Giles and Breitbart.com LLC, who owns the Web site BigGovernment.com. The lawsuit asserts that neither O'Keefe nor Giles obtained consent from ACORN workers for videotaping them, as state law requires.

ACORN executive director Bertha Lewis told reporters in a conference call that ACORN, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, does not support criminal activity and believes the filmmakers should have obeyed Maryland laws.

Meanwhile, ACORN's founder says many of the accusations about the group are distortions meant to undermine President Obama and other Democrats.

In an exclusive interview with The Washington Post, founder Wade Rathke said conservative claims that ACORN is a "criminal enterprise" that misuses federal and donor funds for political ends -- a claim contained in a report by House Republicans -- are a "complete fabrication." He said exaggeration and conjecture about the group are being passed off daily on cable television and Web blogs as documented fact.

"It's balderdash on top of poppycock," said Rathke, who was forced out last year amid an embezzlement scandal involving his brother. "It is a tactic they are trying to aggressively use to attack Obama . . . to paint the president and anybody else they can as radicals."

Forced out by an embezzlment scandal? Hmm, must just be one of those strange things that are totally unrelated to accusations of corruption, fraud, underage human sex-trafficking ... you know, stuff that's a complete fabrication.

Also, at Breitbart, "ACORN Sues Hidden-Camera Filmmakers."

Screencap: Via Hot Air.