* What is it about people these days who see a video camera and don’t immediately think “My stupid overreaction could be seen by thousands of people on YouTube”? Sheesh…

More rough tactics were on display last night in Washington DC as a hotheaded campaign worker for the Alexi Giannoulias campaign for Senator of Illinois confronted a man with a video camera at a fundraising event.

The event took place on the rooftop of an apartment building in Washington DC which is a public space for residents of the building and their guests. The unidentified camera man has stated that he was, in fact, the guest of a friend of his who lives in the building. Even if one stipulates that the campaign had the right to the section of the roof that was set aside for the event, the way in which the situation was handled certainly calls into question the judgement and temperment of the people candidate Giannoulias surrounds himself with.

As seen earlier this week in the outrageous response by Rep. Bob Etheridge to two college students with cameras who asked him if he supported “The Obama Agenda”, Democrats seem more and more reactionary when they see a person with a video camera near by. In the words of a seasoned DC insider: ”The heat is on.”

It’s not nearly as bad as the Etheridge incident, but it’s not good, either. The video…

* The NRSC did a nice job of pushing the video into the public domain by issuing a memo advising campaigns on how to deal with trackers…

After the second clip in a week hit the web showing a confrontation between a Democratic political campaign and a person shooting video, the National Republican Senatorial Committee sent out a memo to its campaigns Thursday reminding them to be sure staffers don’t become “verbally abusive” or “make physical contact” with videographers.

The memo, penned by NRSC Counsel Sean Cairncross and obtained by POLITICO, warns GOP Senate campaigns how to handle video trackers, stating that “this physical confrontation took place less than 72 hours after Democrat Congressman Bob Ethridge was recorded grabbing and placing a chokehold on another videographer.” […]

The NRSC’s memo states that as long as the videographer is “on public property and not actively disrupting” the event, he or she can continue filming. The NRSC recommends that campaigns tell staffers not to insult or threaten or physically touch a videographer, and to “always be polite” with them because “your interaction is likely being recorded.”

“The video attached to the e-mail containing this memorandum is an example of precisely how not to handle a videographer – and has created potential legal liability for both the individuals involved and the Giannoulias campaign,” Cairncross wrote. “Instituting these policies will help your campaign avoid both the political embarrassment and legal exposure that accompany inappropriate responses to videographers.”

Thoughts?

*** UPDATE *** The Giannoulias campaign called to say that they had just one paid staffer at that fundraiser and that nobody in the video was a campaign staffer or a volunteer. They were event attendees, according to the campaign.