Videographers known as campaign trackers, a fixture in modern politics, follow their candidate's rivals to document every public appearance on tape. But some Democratic trackers are crossing the line between public and private this year, Politico reports, shooting video of the homes of wealthy GOP congressmen and candidates and posting the footage online — to Republicans' dismay. "It's totally inappropriate," said Rep. Reid Ribble (R-Wis.), after a 38-second clip of his generously proportioned home showed up on the web. For their part, Dem officials say videotaping Republican candidates' mansions to show they can't relate to struggling families is perfectly legitimate. Invasion of privacy or just political hardball?
This is simply creepy: Following candidates around is "part of the game," says Moe Lane at RedState, and even that — waiting for hours in the hope your opponent will say something "career-ending" — is "kind of obsessive and sad." This, however, is unquestionably an invasion of privacy. Rep. Jim Renacci (R-Ohio) told Politico that his neighbor caught a tracker hiding in his bushes. Sorry, but that is "out and out stalking."
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