Republican IT Guru Dies In Plane Crash

Was Sought In Controversies Over E-Voting And Missing White House E-Mails; His Death Sparks More Controversy

(CBS/AP)  Federal investigators are looking into a small plane crash in Ohio which claimed the life of its pilot, a Republican media consultant who was instrumental in the presidential and gubernatorial campaigns of three members of the Bush Family.

Michael Connell,45, of Akron died Friday when his plane crashed near a vacant house in Uniontown while attempting to land at nearby Akron-Canton Airport.

But the fatal accident is also raising questions about Connell and his work for key political figures and lobbyists, which has targeted him in investigations over missing White House e-mails and a lawsuit alleging electronic voting fraud.

Following Last Friday's fatal accident, CBS Affiliate WOIO reported that Connell, who had recently been subpoenaed to testify in relation to a lawsuit alleging vote rigging in the 2004 Ohio election, was warned at least twice about flying his plane because his plane might be sabotaged.

Quoting an anonymous close friend of Connell's, WOIO correspondent Blake Chenault also reported that twice in the past two months Connell, who was an experienced pilot, canceled flights because of suspicious problems with his plane.

The National Transportation Safety Board and the FAA are investigating the crash.

Ohio State Highway Patrol spokesman Lt. Tony Bradshaw said that Connell's plane hit a flagpole two miles from the runway and crashed on the front lawn of a vacant Ohio house. The crash sparked a fire that damaged the house's garage, but no one was inside the Uniontown home.

There were no passengers on the plane, and no one on the ground was injured.

Neighbors told The Canton Repository that they heard what sounded like an engine sputtering before the crash and that the noise sounded like it was coming from a plane.

A Republican Loyalist

Beginning as a political campaign worker and congressional staffer, Connell became a key Republican media consultant who developed Internet strategies for the 2000 and 2004 Bush-Cheney campaigns. He was founder and CEO of Cleveland-based New Media Communications, which built Web sites for President Bush and former presidential nominee John McCain, according to the company's Web site. He was also chief IT consultant for Karl Rove.

Connell's ties to the Bush family extend back to working on campaigns for George H.W. Bush and former Fla. Governor Jeb Bush, for whom he built the campaign site jeb.org. In 1999 he told the Cleveland magazine Inside Business, "I'm loyal to my network, I'm loyal to my friends, and I'm loyal to the Bush family."

He was also quoted as saying, when asked to predict the Internet's role in the upcoming presidential race, "There are things we will be doing on Election Day that haven't even been dreamt of yet."

The rise of the Republican Party in Washington in the '90s, and especially after the 2000 election, meant that Connell's network of connections was expanding as well. Having worked with Ohio Congressman Bob Ney and Governor Bob Taft, Connell's IT skills were sought after for the campaigns and Congressional sites for dozens of GOP candidates and officeholders. The New Media Communications Web site (now turned off, with a memorial to Connell in its place) boasted, "New Media’s client list reads like a 'Who’s Who' of Republican politics."

In 2000, Connell cofounded with his wife Heather GovTech Solutions to pursue government contracts.

GovTech's clients for databases, content management systems and other services included the White House, the Energy Department, several Republican-led Congressional committees and a few dozen congressional members' Web sites.

The Center for Public Integrity reported that in 2002 and 2004, the General Services Administration allowed federal agencies to purchase services directly from GovTech without a full bidding process.

In 2004 Connell helped form an online advertising firm called Connell Donatelli, which administered the Web site for Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, a 527 developed to attack Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry.

Connell’s central role in building the IT infrastructure of the White House and his association with Karl Rove has brought him into the controversy surrounding missing White House e-mails relating to the firing of U.S. Attorneys and other topics, and the fate of e-mail communications sent by Rove and other administration staffers which were sent via a Republican Party Web site, gwb43.com, rather than through a whitehouse.gov address.

Connell built the gwb43.com site, which shares mail servers with GovTech.

Connell's Internet expertise also led him to be subpoenaed earlier this year to testify in an Ohio federal court regarding alleged voter fraud in the 2004 election. Despite exit polls showing a lead by Democratic nominee John Kerry of more than 4 percent, Mr. Bush won the state's vote by 2.5 percent, along with its crucial electoral votes.

Much has been written about problems at the polls in Ohio that year, where voters in many (predominantly Democratic) precincts were forced to wait hours because of a shortage of working voting machines. A lawsuit being pursued by attorney Clifford Arneback seeks to answer questions about this and other ballot problems. [For example, in Franklin County Mr. Bush received 4,258 votes in a precinct where only 638 voters cast ballots.]

Questions have also been raised about how votes from Ohio counties were tabulated. Computer expert Stephen Spoonamore, a Republican who works in detecting fraud in network architecture and protecting computer infrastructures, has testified that the Ohio election returns he saw were indicative of a "KingPin Attack," in which a computer is inserted into the communications flow of an IT system, with the intent to change data as it passes to its destination.

It was later learned that Ohio Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell's office had routed Internet traffic from county election offices through out-of-state servers based at SMARTech in Chattanooga, Tenn. SMARTech hosts dozens of GOP Web domains.

Last month, U.S. Judge Soloman Oliver refused Connell's request to quash a subpoena connected to the lawsuit, King Lincoln Bronzeville Neighborhood Association v. Blackwell, and demanded his testimony relating to his IT work.

In his deposition given in November, Connell denied any knowledge of vote rigging.

Since his death Friday, the Internet has buzzed with news about an IT entrepreneur, until now in the background of Republican politics, whose sudden death has sparked conspiracy theories and thrust him into the center of continuing controversies involving White House communications and electronic voting.

Meanwhile, a man the Akron Beacon-Journal recounts as a devout Catholic who organized annual missions to aid communities in El Salvador with as much passion as he devoted to the businesses he built, leaves behind his wife of 18 years and four children.

[allzwell]

Sounds like the Repugnants are covering their tracks.

[vanfer-2009]

You mean someone would stoop so low as to sabotage a plane? Wow. Would this have been a slimy dem that did this?

[nycsense]

Looks like someone who knew a little too much had himself an "accident". Isn''t that extrodinarily convenient for the current administration? Something tells me that there are going to be more "accidents" to come. But, just like every other news story this one will be just brushed off by the public who doesn''t want to know anyway. That is until another GWB type of republican administration takes office again. I myself don''t like conspiracy theories, but this one is just screaming for attention.

[inventagod2]

NeoCon Bu$hie Alert....

This is how RepubliCons repay loyalty...

This guy was, or knew the engineer of the Bu$h juntas

[slinginrich]

CIA to Dead GOPerv Operative:

"Okay, Plane Crash or buried in the hills out past Taralingua, you choose".....

[slinginrich]

Oh yea, I almost forgot....RED-RUM!!!....RED_RUM!!!

[slinginrich]

Following Last Friday''s fatal accident, CBS Affiliate WOIO reported that Connell, who had recently been subpoenaed to testify in relation to a lawsuit alleging vote rigging in the 2004 Ohio election, was warned at least twice about flying his plane because his plane might be sabotaged......

Connell:"Oh, you guys are just paranoid panty-wetters"

[caligula1--2008]

Wow, all those little details you need to take care of before leaving office for a speaking career. Poor Bill had to do much the same, except he did his cleaning up on thes spot as needed.

Pity for him he missed that ONE hard to get out stain. Bush, however, will not make THAT mistake.

[bm6005]

Sounds like he deserved it!

vanfer, you''ve been smoking to much of your own product. Why would a Dem want him dead? This has Bush Familia written all over it.....

[noloyalisti]

Sounds like another Rove hit job. These neo CONS will do anything and kill anyone to cover their crimes. After all, they let 911 happen to gain power, attacked the wrong country to steal oil and sent Anthrax powder to key Democrats. NOTHING is beyond the Butch/GOP Crime Family.

[vincan-2009]

Unfortunately, there are evil forces out there working their wickedness who are willing to burn down someone''s house, to threaten people, and break in to the offices of people to go through only their documents and take computers leaving all other expensive equipment behind. How far will these people go? Will they kill some? Yes, I think so.

[cdfoxtrot6]

Sounds like one less a$$hole in the world.

[wingnutsblow]

You mean Bush stole the 2004 election? I''m shocked, SHOCKED, I tell ya!

[ludvig1-2009]

If you read Jeremiah, nothing has changed. He''d be just as fed up with the corruption nowadays as he was back then and would probably be predicting bad times ahead.

you_fool, it''s been awhile since Clinton has been President....I seriously doubt that he would want the guy dead either. Now try to make some sense (which I know is all but impossible when you''re trying to defend President Pinky and The Brain).

[zzy-izzy]

BUSH/CHENEY AND SOME OF THERE BEST WORK IN PLAY NOW

[cdfoxtrot6]

I wonder who might want this guy dead? Hmmmm.....
Someone who might not want this little weasel to tell his story?

Bill Clinton? I don''t think so.

[downsteamjim]

Imagine if CBS investigated Obama Inc. with this intensity, innuendo, and speculation. Never happen.

[trglazier]

Plane crashes killing Republican enemies or former operatives. Seems to be their prefered way of "dealing" with issues.

[slinginrich]

You mean Bush stole the 2004 election? I''''m shocked, SHOCKED, I tell ya!


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by WingnutsBlow at 06:34 PM : Dec 23, 2008
+ report abuse

I also am astounded....ASTOUNDED, says I !!!...LOL

[jsd330]

The republican spin doctors are right on top of this already, He hit a flagpole on his approach to Akron Canton airport, according to an ohio highway patrol Lt. of course they are all republicans. And I''m sure he was told to say that.

[newhound2]

Just in case the trolls would like to review the story so far and explain What really happen?
What i''ve learned so far is Someone in High power wanted Mr. Mike Connell dead .
Google - Rawstory
Google- small plane crashes ohio
Google -bradblog
google -ohio.com
google - velvetrevolution
This story has legs
I wish to thank CBS for your brave insight and reporting it Thank-you
Newshound2

[tincup356]

Makes you wonder if all elections have valid results?I know many people were upset with both parties this last election...I wonder how many third party votes went somewhere else? I would have thought the third parties would have gotten more than 3% after how both parties had turned deaf ears on voters warning they didn''t want the bailouts to take place.

[solarrays247-2009]

Jeeze, can''''t the liberal media give it a rest? Talk about beating a dead horse.

The media is better off turning thier attention to Obama and his connections to the corrupt political machine there, of which he is a product, and his personal connections to convicted criminals.

Obama can''''t blow this stuff off forever. Let his impeachment proceedings start on Jan 21st

Posted by gctomajtom at 07:32 PM : Dec 23, 2008


Give it up! You can''t compete with Rove, and the public finally did catch on to him! Duh!

[harrydoghiny]

wish to thank CBS for your brave insight and reporting it Thank-you
Newshound2
Posted by Newhound2

I was surprised, too. Usually CBS is the best news money can buy. This guy was Wellstoned and a full investigation is warranted. Yeah, right, I''ll hold my breath...

[cdfoxtrot6]

This is someone who literally wrapped himself in the flag.

[tmittelstaed]

I would bet money this guy''s plane was sabotaged, someone probably dumped water into the fuel tank - enough of it, and you will get the same symptoms, and the investigators will just put it down as pilot error in that the pilot failed to adequately drain the condensation from the fuel tanks during preflight checks.

[idnnsg]

A "Republican Loyalist" is killed under suspicious circumstances... This should be a warning to any remaining republican loyalists. When you stop being useful to your evil masters, and the very instant you become an inconvenience, you''re toast!

[piratecafe]

I''m sure it was merely a coincidence! Now that''s one way to squash a subpoena. One thing is certain - he AIN''T testifying against anyone!

[newhound2]

Can we say news dump . Mr. Connell just might have been .. should i say murdered , and the news reports it on a day when readership is at it lowest .
Poor Gore all He had to was contest the election and the Whole can of worms may have sprung out .
Kerry had to know, so he''s just dumb or part of the neoMAfia
What the banna republic needs is a real Attorney General.

[powmadeak47]

Any time a GOP tool dies, it''s good for America

[centerfall94]

No terribly surprising, but it is a little scary. The Bush/Cheney neocon regime is now in damage control mode, removing witnesses and evidence by any means possible.

This neocon IT guy wasn''t the first, and won''t be the last.

[nearl4511]

Too bad he didn''t live to give testimony and shed light on a few things.

[terrorislame]

ALL RE-CONS Take Heed !!!!!
A "Republican Loyalist" is killed under suspicious circumstances... This should be a warning to any remaining republican loyalists. When you stop being useful to your evil masters, and the very instant you become an inconvenience, you''''re toast!

Posted by IDNNSG at 09:04 PM : Dec 23, 2008
So VERY TRUE !!!!!!!

[safe11-2009]

This cover up began before Connell plane blew up look at the wreakage not much left

That guy was never going to testify he was walking dead the day Michael Connell day was set

Guaranteed the NTSB will be dealing with this plane wreck like 9/11, good look founding out what really happened folks

[chetthor]

Lets see... Bush has secret service in retirement.

Cheney doesn''t

Who poses a risk from W''s last 8 years?

Who else poses a risk to the GOP

Time to line up at the FBI

tattle for protection

before it is too late

[chetthor]

Lets see... Bush has secret service in retirement.

Cheney doesn''t

Who poses a risk from W''s last 8 years?

Who else poses a risk to the GOP

Time to line up at the FBI

tattle for protection

before it is too late

[comeon11]

OH, BUDDY. THIS IS SCARY.

[safe11-2009]

Posted by amer_icon at 10:58 PM : Dec 23, 2008

Did those planes blow up because this one sure looks like it did?

Republican IT Guru Dies In Plane Crash
Was Sought In Controversies Over E-Voting And Missing White House E-Mails; His Death Sparks More Controversy


Stolen elections Rove, Bush, Cheney and the GOP and the guy with all the goods all those

There were no passengers on the plane

plane crashed while attempting to land

Where''s the plane? NTSB will investigate like the 9/11 crashes

the public will be stoned walled, lied to and never find out what really happended just like 9/11

And even now the 9/11 trails hidden from public view

[barbaraf4]

After the dust settles, maybe we will find out he left his Testimony with his attorney.

[shanev137]

I''m surprised this even made it to the mainstream media, not to mention creating a posting board about it.

Shows how much the media isn''t scared of the Bush Administration anymore....but hey, if I were you guys, I wouldn''t do very much flying if you didn''t have to.

[clathrate]

Just like with CLinton, the loyalists are one by one being picked off so that there aren''t any witnesses to squeal.

Just another day for the Bush crime family.

[bpai99]

The party elders cleaned up this potentially-damaging loose end quite nicely. Problem solved.

[alphaa10000]

Nearl4511 said, "Too bad he didn''t live to give testimony and shed light on a few things..."
---

There are others. Taking out one guy is a hamhanded tactic, at best, since it calls more attention to the plotters, but is a good sign Connell knew too much-- ie. if this crash were not an "accident".

Rove, himself, was figuratively on the scene of other scandals. He was almost nabbed in the Scooter Libby case, but some back-channel deals may have saved him and others next to Bush, at the last minute. Cheney now admits he played a crucial role in the Plame case.

Speaking of back-channel communications, apparently Connell served as more than an IT "media consultant". Cnnnell for years may have provided a secret email channel for GOP skullduggery in the fashion of Sarah Palin, who routed sensitive email involving official state business through an unofficial (private) email account-- counting on the claim of "private communications" to shield her.

Connell''s own server farm provided a number of private web domains, all of which provide the perfect shield of "privacy" for high GOP figures to evade official scrutiny of their email traffic.

Therefore, any investigator who could squeeze Connell with the right evidence could help himself to whatever GOP traffic his server farm contained. It may be that whatever Connell actually had, someone believed Connell had far too much damning evidence.

[dakotaclark]

Hmmm...

This is the result of ONE individual knowing too much about all of the skeletons...

More than likely, someone will make a movie about this one.

[faletinme]

Reminds us of the mysterious deaths of many Clinton-era "inconvenients" like Vince Foster, Ron Brown and dozens of others. Presumably the guy had evidence of Democrat misconduct during the elections or perhaps evidence connecting Blagojevich with Democrat higher-ups. It''s a shame when but it''s never been "healthy" to get on the bad side of the Dems.

[alphaa10000]

mnelsonix quotes CBS, "Connell%u2019s central role (lay) in building the IT infrastructure of the White House..." and comments, "I bet he was a helluva good tech..."
---

Connell capitalized on his loyalty, first and foremost. Apparently that was not enough.

In the beginning, what the GOP needed (and probably paid Connell out the kazoo to acquire), was somebody to build a "shadow GOP", a virtual, secret clubhouse where the real business of the conspirators was conducted.

Connell obliged. But while he may have been bright enough to run a few servers and maintain some domains, but he seems never to have guessed all this made him (and his family) vulnerable if things went bad-- as they always have a tendency to do with the GOP and Bush.

For example, as Bush neared the end of his term, the Libby prosecution required some official White House email traffic, and it was found "missing". What professional IT person could say that with a straight face to a prosecutor? This kind of thing makes investigators reach for their more effective tools, which can end many a promising IT career.

We can only hope the data contents of the Connell farm survive largely intact.

[notfooled]

Rove to Cheney: I think he knows too much.

Cheney to Rove: No problem, just wax him and I''ll add notch # 1 million and 1 to my list of murdered humans. Ain''t killin fun !

[notfooled]

I would like to extend an offer for anyone who has concrete evidence tying the Bush/Cheney crime syndicate to this and the other one million humans murdered in the last 8 years to come forward now before you are the next victim.