The World According to Oatney

Feds Execute Warrant Against Kernell in Palin Hacking Affair

The FBI has served a search warrant on 20-year old University of Tennessee student David Kernell, as the Bureau and the Secret Service step up their investigation into the hacking of the personal e-mail account of Republican Vice Presidential nominee Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska:

The FBI is stepping up its investigation into the possibility that a
University of Tennessee student hacked into the personal e-mail of Vice
Presidential candidate Sarah Palin.

A person who identified himself as a witness tells 10 News that agents
with the FBI served a federal search warrant at the Fort Sanders residence of
David Kernell early Sunday morning. Kernell lives in the Commons apartment
complex at 1115 Highland Ave.

Kernell's three roommates were also subpoenaed, and must testify this week
in Chattanooga, according to the witness.

East Tennessee radio host, political columnist, and friend of this writer and weblog Terry Frank has uncovered screen shots of David Kernell's Facebook pages sent to her by some anonymous students at the University of Tennessee. There appears to be a tenuous connection between David Kernell and David Plouffe, the campaign manager for Barack Obama. A Technorati search turns up a video of David Plouffe that may have been made by David Kernell. (Hat Tip: Dave Kittley)

David Kernell is the son of Democratic State Representative Mike Kernell of Memphis, who earlier in the week apparently denied to Nashville blogger Sharon Cobb that the authorities had contacted his son, but told WBIR that they had:

Kernell, a Memphis Democrat, said his 20-year-old son David had been
contacted by authorities investigating the hacking of Palin's personal email
account.

The FBI and the Secret Service started a formal investigation on
Wednesday into the hacking.

A larger question can be raised from all of this: How involved is David Kernell in the Obama campaign, and did anyone connected with the Obama organization authorize this kind of behavior?

I will reiterate that I share the opinion of both Sharon Cobb (a Democrat) and State Rep. Stacey Campfield (a Republican) that Mike Kernell would never countenance the actions that his son has allegedly taken. It is quite concievable that he would try to cover both his rear and David's in the wake of those actions.

Labels: Democrats, Presidential Election, Republican Party, Tennessee politics

posted by Deacon David Oatney @ 10:39 AM