This is not a story about Amy Koch, Michael Brodkorb, and/or sex. Yes, it’s a scandal, but not because it’s scandalous/salacious – it’s a scandal because four Republican State Senators called the media to attend a press conference in December of 2011, smiled at the camera — and one of them, for sure, proceeded to lie through his teeth. How do we know this?

Because just a few weeks later, he tried to explain it away by basically claiming “I only lied because I had to.”

Two of those four Senators, Dave Senjem of Rochester and David Hann of Eden Prairie (far right, literally), are on the ballot in November. The other two, Geoff Michel of Edina and Chris Gerlach of Apple Valley opted not to run.

That’s the scandal, Gentle Readers – elected officials brazenly lying to the press. We know Geoff Michel lied; he admitted it. What isn’t known is what the other three knew, and when did they know it.

Last night on Fox9 TV, Reporter Tom Lyden interviewed Michael Brodkorb. Brodkorb strongly inferred all four new quite a bit more than what they claimed at that December 2011 press conference.

It’s interesting that Tom Lyden got this scoop. I’m speculating it’s because Republican Senators have a recent history of not quite being quite fully truthful with Mr. Lyden; see MnGOP State Senate: “…we are in this together…” and MnGOP State Senate: We Are In This Together Part 2. The short story of this case of Republican “less than truthfullness” is he MnGOP Senate Caucus was campaigning (“Lunch Hour Lit Drop”) out of a room in the State Capitol (which is a no, No, NO!”). Tom Lyden had the email; he had the video. When he asked a GOPer (camera rolling) about this illegal campaigning out of a State Capitol Office, his response was basically “Who ya gonna believe – us, or yer lyin’ eyes?”

So basically, there’s a pattern here, of GOPers tellin’ whoppers to the media, and I found it fitting Tom Lyden got the interview. And there was a funny – as in ironic – claim in that interview: Brodkorb claimed the Judge’s gag order was lifted because GOPers in the Senate Caucus had been violating it by talking to the media about the case. So Lyden asked the GOPers about it; their response was “no comment.”

Assuming that’s true, you can’t make that up. When they can’t talk to reporters, they do; when the Judge lifts the gag and they can? They don’t.

The story that’s evolving is that David Hann was actually a ring leader in what Brodkorb called “a palace coup” and Hann may even have been in on it from the very beginning. If so, that means when Geoff Michel was telling the press whoppers from a table (see picture, above) that David Hann was sitting at, David Hann knew – KNEW – that what Michel was saying was simply not – NOT – true.

Let’s take a look at today’s Strib story about this scandal:

Asked about Brodkorb’s allegation on Sunday, Republican Sen. David Hann, who was involved in confronting Koch about the affair in December, denied any political motivation for his actions.

“Of course, it’s not true,” said Hann, R-Eden Prairie.

Hann, who narrowly lost his bid to be majority leader after Koch resigned, also questioned the reasons for Brodkorb’s accusation, noting that Brodkorb is suing the Senate over his firing.

“You have to consider the source,” Hann said.

“You have to consider the source.”

Indeed. And when the “source” of any claim is a Minnesota GOPer, especially from the State Senate, that source is exceedingly suspect.

David Hann and Dave Senjem need to come clean with what they know and when did they know it. And if/when Hann & Senjem state what they knew, and when they knew it?

Consider the source.

And remember: You Couldn’t Trust The GOP Then, You Still Can’t Now, And Tomorrow Won’t Be Any Different.

(cross posted at MnProgressiveProject.com; comments welcome there)