Dan Riehl flays Erick Erickson for defending the indefensible

"Redstate is a DC and establishment-centric blog and always has been"
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In a Monday post at Riehl World View, Dan Riehl woodsheds Erick Erickson for defending the indefensible:

Unfortunately, Redstate editor Erick Erickson made a woefully misguided post in defense of John Ziegler after Ziegler posted yet another one of his manifestos, this one aimed at the Palins and published by the Daily Caller. I'm assuming the Stalker Weekly rejected it first and DC picked it up. They're always trolling for a negative Palin story to drum up traffic. From Ziegler's pre-criticism rebuttal, I suspect we learn his true motivations. There's a documented history of his turning on people while claiming he isn't whenever he has been met with rejection.

(Ziegler) -- I sent them an e-mail saying that I no longer thought me working for them was a good idea. I did make a proposal of various things I could do for them in late 2009 (including a new movie similar to the one about to be released) but I am not even 100% sure they got that and after she later decided to work for Fox News those options were no longer viable or interesting to me.

Ironic that this comes out just as "The Undefeated" is released, wouldn't you say?

It's doubly unfortunate that Erick felt the need to attack many honest conservatives in his weak and poorly thought out defense of Ziegler, compounded by some Tweets. Intelligent and insightful observers always knew the day would come when Ziegler turned: it's his MO. Erick sure has some strange friends given the title of his post.

On John Ziegler: How Easy We Trash Our Friends

I’m ... titling this post over the angst of those coming in via twitter and email about John Ziegler’s work. We should be better than that and ... maybe consider his sincerity instead of descending with lefty like(sic) relish directly into attacks on his motives. The reaction to his work has way too much a resemblance to how the Soviets treated the Trotsky supporters. I’m sure some are busy in their basements tonight digitally photoshopping Ziegler out of their photos.

Heavens! "We should be better than that" given the facts? Actually, Erick should have been better than that and did some thinking, and, or his homework, before posting. This is the second time in a week he's demonstrated a lack of one or the other, if not both...

[More]

By way of disclaimer, your editor has crossed swords with both Dan Riehl and John Ziegler in the past, ironically bother on matters related to CPAC, but for different reasons. On the other hand I had a good working relationship with Erick while a front page contributor at RedState a couple of years back and left on good terms.

That doesn't alter the fact that I agree with Dan here. Even though Erick is one of the good guys, he has made a bad decision without gathering all the required information. Plus, the entire premise of Erick's argument that we shouldn't "trash our friends" is a fallacy. In order for it to work, a friend has to be a real friend. Ziegler's only friend is Ziegler, and he stabbed Sarah Palin in the back just as he has stabbed so many of his former associates in the back. He would do the same to Erick if it suited his purposes.

Erick, who are you going to believe about Sarah Palin -- Mark Levin (whose credentials and judgment speak for themselves) or John Ziegler and the nest of PDS cases you should have kicked off of RedState (or at least fairly applied your own website's standards to) years ago? You're still one of the good guys -- one of the best, in fact -- which makes it all that more of a shame that someone is giving you bad advice.

Related: John Nolte knocks down Ziegler's arguments, one by one. Ed Morrissey challenges Ziegler's argument on his electability point and has an online poll up where you can vote your opinion.

- JP