South Carolina governor Mark Sanford should have hired his attorney general Henry McMaster as PR manager after Sanford’s return from Argentina; for the attorney general truly knows how to turn stupidity into public ploys for productive publicity. McMaster’s latest bid for political office is the July 21, 2009 filing of “Defendants Memorandum in Support of Motion to Dismiss.” The crux of the South Carolina claim is that there is plenty of precedent indicating a federal court may not initiate action while a state court case is ongoing.

The filing in the Charleston division of the South Carolina district of the U.S. Dstrict Court is ludicrous, most notably warning that were the Craigslist May 20, 2009 district court request for temporary restraint and preliminary injuction against McMaster to be granted, a “Wild West” [Sultry South?] would ensue. McMaster accused Craigslist of “First Amendment blackmail,” stating in the filing that “it appears Plaintiff’s management has knowingly allowed the site to be used for illegal and unlawful activity after warnings from law enforcement officials and after an agreement with forty state attorneys general.”

Actually, Craigslist has initiated several changes in its processing of adult services ads, including the category’s name change. See AIM Group’s special report for details. As a reminder of what has occurred up to now, here’s the timeline:

November 2008 – Craiglist enters agreement with 43 U.S. attorneys general and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to initiate Craiglist changes “to prevent illegal activity and improve safety” throughout the classified site.

March 5, 2009 – Cook County Illinois Sheriff Thomas Dart sues Craigslist for law enforcement costs and demands permanent injunction to close erotic services category on the site.

May 5, 2009 -  SC Attorney General McMaster vows to launch a criminal investigation against Craigslist and its management, if Craigslist does not block all prostitution ads in its South Carolina pages and prevent any posts containing pornographic images.

May 12, 2009 – Craigslist shuts down erotic services category, and starts manual approval of each ad in the new Craigslist adult services category.

May 15, 2009 – Deadline is given to Craigslist by McMaster to comply, although it appears that Craigslist has already complied.

May 20, 2009 – Craigslist files temporary restraining order against McMaster. McMaster declares “victory”, belatedly acknowledging approval of Craigslist changes.

May 21, 2009 – North Carolina attorney general refuses to join the ranks of other attorneys general in the Craigslist suit, saying he’d rather spend his limited resources on fighting child molestation. 

May 22, 2009 – U.S. District Judge Weston Houck orders Attorney General Henry McMaster “to refrain from initiating or pursuing any prosecution against Craigslist or its officers in relation to content posted on the site, until the merits of the McMaster lawsuit have been studied.”

So, McMaster seems to have violated a court demand that he not pursue action against Craigslist until his prior action against Craiglist has been resolved. And, the violating action that he has pursued is the demand for the federal government to not pursue any action until the state action has been resolved.  

In these latest court papers, McMaster and his South Carolina Circuit Solicitor cronies further claim that “plaintiff is not entitled to CDA [Communications Decency Act] immunity from prosecution, for aiding and abetting prostitution in violation of South Carolina criminal law.”  

Whatever sound arguments may have been hidden among the ridiculousness of this filing, its conclusion is absurb: “If Plaintiff prevails in this action, however, its websites will become the functional equivalent of the “Wild West” with the only law being the federal marshal, who enforces federal law when he happens to pass through town. Plaintiff will be free to develop categories such as “Murder for Hire,” “Preferred Prostitutes,” or “Drug Supermarket,” with absolute impunity, and states will be helpless to stop the resulting destruction and chaos within their borders.”

Gene Roddenberry would be proud of you, Henry McMaster. You’ve spun a fantastic yarn.