[TN Democrat State Rep] Kernell mum as feds probe Palin e-mail hacking

[cinyc]

Kernell mum as feds probe Palin e-mail hacking
Memphis Commercial Appeal/Trevor Aaronson and Richard Locker
September 18, 2008

State Rep. Mike Kernell today declined to respond to online allegations his son is responsible for hacking into Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin’s e-mail account.

“My son’s the one in question, and I can’t comment on him,” said Kernell, a Memphis Democrat.

Bloggers have alleged David Kernell, 20, is the one who has claimed responsibility for accessing the Alaska governor’s e-mail account. The evidence is tenuous.

However, on Wednesday, the day the FBI and Secret Service launched an investigation that includes agents in Memphis. C.M. Sturgis, a spokesman for the Memphis FBI branch, confirmed late today that this office is involved.

“All I can say is that a matter was referred to us from the Anchorage, Alaska, office. An investigation at this time is being coordinated out of FBI headquarters in the Department of Justice,” Sturgis said.

Also Wednesday, a person using the e-mail address rubico10@yahoo.com posted to an online forum about how he used Yahoo! Mail’s password-recovery tool to obtain Palin’s password.

“i am the lurker who did it, and i would like to tell the story,” rubico10@yahoo.com wrote on the website 4chan.

--Snip--

In Nashville Thursday, Rep. Kernell would neither confirm nor deny his son had any involvement in hacking Palin’s e-mail account. Although Kernell said he was aware of the claims his son was responsible for hacking Palin’s e-mail, the politician would not address any of them.

“Father-son relationship,” Kernell explained.

The longtime legislator would not say whether rubico10@yahoo.com is his son’s e-mail address. “I can’t comment on my son,” he repeated.

Asked if he has been contacted by investigators, Kernell responded: “Me, no.”

“I can't say about my son,” he added. “That doesn't mean he has or hasn't been contacted.”

David Kernell, now a student at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, could not be reached.

FBI and Secret Services officials have not identified suspects in the case.
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Interesting. 

While there's still no concrete proof that Kernell's son hacked Palin's e-mail, one would think that if State Representative Kernell's son wasn't the hacker, he'd be screaming that from the rooftops.

[cinyc]

If this was Obama or Bidens email this would be all over the news.

It is all over the news.  Drudge has it.  The evening newscasts had it.  And if it's confirmed that it was a Democrat State Rep's son, the story will explode.  The question will become what did the Obama campaign know and when did they know it?

[cinyc]

If this was Obama or Bidens email this would be all over the news.

It is all over the news.  Drudge has it.  The evening newscasts had it.  And if it's confirmed that it was a Democrat State Rep's son, the story will explode.  The question will become what did the Obama campaign know and when did they know it?

you know it's entirely possible that just because the family of one democratic state senator may be involved, the Obama campaign still might not have had anything to do with it.

Certainly is.  It's also possible the guy didn't do it.  But if he did, it looks really bad and will raise questions - especially if Obama hasn't said anything about this yet.

[cinyc]

More:

UPDATE: FBI serves search warrant against UT student in Palin case

Synopsis: WBIR-TV in Knoxville is reporting that the FBI executed a search warrant against David Kernell in a midnight raid of his apartment last night.  His 3 roommates have been subpoenaed to appear before a Chatanooga grand jury next week.

Kernell is still innocent until proven guilty, but it appears that the noose is tightening.

[cinyc]

If this was Obama or Bidens email this would be all over the news.

It is all over the news.  Drudge has it.  The evening newscasts had it.  And if it's confirmed that it was a Democrat State Rep's son, the story will explode.  The question will become what did the Obama campaign know and when did they know it?

This is such a moronic statement I can't even begin to address it. Oh, yes, the Obama campaign hired some amateur hacker who happens to be related to a nobody politician with no relation to the campaign to hack into Sarah Palin's private e-mail account and yet fail to publish anything of note, not because nothing was found, but because he didn't record most of it.

It's not a moronic statement.  If Obama doesn't get ahead of the story if/when David Kernell is indicted, that WILL become the question.  According to his now-defunct Facebook page, David Kernell is a self-described Obamacon.  His father is a Democrat state representative.  The optics don't look good at all.

What is it that the Democrats say all the time?  The nature of the evidence is irrelevant; it's the seriousness of the charge that matters.

By the way, the hacker said he went through all of Palin's e-mails and found nothing, not that nothing was found because he didn't record most of it.

[cinyc]

You think he is innocent?

I don't presume to divine such things, but I think it would be a shame for his life to be ruined over this.

Besides, it exposed a weakness - it wasn't even hacking, but just good guessing, from what I've read.  Someone who thinks herself capable of being vice president of the United States should try a bit harder to secure her email, and she should conduct official business over official channels, not try to hide communications in a personal account.  But I digress.

Laws don't matter. The stupid b*tch deserved it.  Got it.

[cinyc]

This heinous hacking crime is no doubt the work of some leftist looney ranting raving pinko commie sleazebag attention whore liberal elitist with too much time on his hands.

Perhaps he would like to spend too much time in prison and take his chances with the inmates there.

Oh, please...... it sounds like the hacker didn't gain anything except for some jail time and on top of that whomever it was hit the wrong email account anyways.

This is such a non-issue.... If Palin had only used her official email account, the hacker would not have been able to gain access to any files whatsoever. It doesn't seem like she kept any incriminating emails in this account anyways, and the perp will get caught.

This is totally irrelevant to anything, and is less of an issue than the passport file hack of six months ago.

If only Palin had used her official e-mail account for PERSONAL business, the MSM and so-called "progressives" would be complaining that she had misused state resources.  Republicans can't win.

The hacker found NOTHING in Palin's personal accounts, except PERSONAL e-mails.  NOTHING.  Is a politician not allowed to have a personal e-mail account? 

Despite the MSM and "progressive" spin, Obama wasn't the only candidate whose passport file was hacked.  And from what I understand, it may have been an Obama SUPPORTER who looked into his passport file.

[cinyc]

Are you people really justifying this and blaming Palin? Really?

Phil, I am not justifying it, but to make such a huge deal out of some stupid 19 year old kid that obviously did this on his own, and will face the consequences of his actions, is ridiculous.

^ This.

That Palin's incompetence is once again exposed is merely a byproduct of this incident.

If incompetence=truthfully answering Yahoo!'s security questions, are you equally incompetent? 

[cinyc]

Are you people really justifying this and blaming Palin? Really?

Phil, I am not justifying it, but to make such a huge deal out of some stupid 19 year old kid that obviously did this on his own, and will face the consequences of his actions, is ridiculous.

^ This.

That Palin's incompetence is once again exposed is merely a byproduct of this incident.

If incompetence=truthfully answering Yahoo!'s security questions, are you equally incompetent? 

"You" meaning me?  First, I use Gmail, not cool-circa-1998 Yahoo, for my personal correspondence, but if I were governor of a state, I would try to make it a bit tougher to crack my email password.  My password-prompt questions and answers are always very cryptic, and I have no reason to suspect that anyone would want to read my messages.  Surely she knew that lots of people would want to read hers.

Once again, laws don't matter. The stupid b*tch deserved it.  Got it.

[cinyc]

Law enforcement is on top of it... Obama's campaign has nothing to do with it!!!!

You don't know for sure that the Obama campaign has nothing to do with it.  They've said nothing at all about it, as far as I know - no denial.  Anything is possible.

You must be logged in to read this quote.

Yep.  Laws don't matter. The stupid b*tch deserved it.  Got it.

[cinyc]

Give me a frickin' break! Look current evidence indicates it is some college kid whose dad happens to be Dem state Rep from TN, who hacked the account. The Obama campaign has much bigger fish to fry, even assuming that they were in the business of email account hacking.

I have never said the Palin "deserved to be hacked", simply that she was a little naive in not protecting her information better knowing that there would be di**wads that would most likely try to hack her account.

I'm sure if some "kid" who was a member of UT Republicans, UTK for McCain and the McCain Facebook group and whose dad "just happened" to be a Republican state Rep from TN hacked into Obama's e-mail accounts, every "progressive" would be blaming KKKarl Rove, George Bush and the McCain campaign for the attack.  And no "progressives" would be downplaying the "kid's" crime or blaming Obama for "not protecting his information better".

[cinyc]

I don't care about punishing the kid because it was so ingenious of him.  Had he actually defeated her security through hacking, that would be a different story.  I find this whole story such a ridiculous sideshow to the campaign - what other public official but Palin would have the place she met her husband as her password hint?

I haven't been able to determine what crime, if any, he could be charged with, and the news articles are rather vague on the matter.  If it had been her mailbox at the state capitol, or the one beside her driveway at home, then things would be more clear (mail fraud having granted us a rather well-developed body of case law).  Does anyone know?

Ask former Philadelphia anchorman Larry Mendte whether hacking someone's e-mail is a federal crime.  Hint: it is.