After no one took him up on his televised “lie detector challenge,” the man accused of scamming his co-investors in the failed television venture Tea Party HD is trying to make his case by calling a number of high-profile conservative witnesses like Michele Bachmann and Ann Coulter to his defense.
Anthony Loiacono, who was sued for $19 million by a group of conservative businessmen in November, introduced a list of 50 witnesses he plans on calling in the case, Brandon Gee of The Tennessean reports. The list includes Bachmann, Coulter, conservative commentator Phil Valentine, Tea Party Nation founder Judson Phillips and Tennessee legislators Rep. Glen Casada and Sen. Jack Johnson, both Republicans.
TPHD was founded in 2010 by Loiacono and Bill Hemrick, purporting to be the “world’s first HD provider of news about the Tea Party.” But Hemrick and the five other businessmen who invested in the company claim that Loiacono never put in his share of the funding, used the existing money as his “personal bank account,” and didn’t do the work laid out by the initial deal. “In reality it was an investment scheme to defraud politically conservative-minded citizens who support the Tea Party mission,” the suit said.
Loiacono countersued last month, asking for $1 million in damages each from Hemrick and the other five investors. In his initial response the lawsuit, Loiacono said he would be willing to settle the suit through a televised “lie detector challenge” between he and Hemrick. If he were to win, Hemrick would have to drop the suit and cover Loiacono’s legal fees.
Before being named as a witness, Bachmann already had a tangential connection to the suit. Hemrick is a prominent conservative fundraiser who acted as the financial director for her presidential campaign in Tennessee.
And, in one of its ventures that did come to fruition, Tea Party HD operated that camera that Bachmann was famously staring into — instead of the camera operated by CNN that was carrying the live broadcast — during her Tea Party Express rebuttal (to the rebuttal) of President Obama’s State Of The Union address in 2011.
Phillips, of Tea Party Nation, who was also named as a witness in the suit, was also sued by Hemrick in March, 2010 over that year’s Tea Party Convention. Hemrick claimed he loaned Phillips and Tea Party Nation $50,000 to go toward the $100,000 speaking fee for keynote Sarah Palin, on the condition that Hemrick could be involved in the PAC Phillips was planning to put together. Hemrick claimed that Phillips backed out, banned him from attending Palin’s speech, and then trash-talked him to other Tea Party Nation supporters. Hemrick eventually dropped the charges.
Phillips said that he was not aware he was named as a witness until TPM contacted him. “I’m stunned,” he said. “I had nothing to do with that venture so I am not sure what I would have to offer. I guess I’ll find out.”
Loiacono has previously been sued over a proposed ‘virtual reality online” project that also allegedly never materialized.
Bachmann did not immediately respond to TPM’s request for comment, but we’ll update if we hear from her team.
Jillian Rayfield
Jillian Rayfield is a Reporter/Blogger for TPM, and started as a News Intern in May 2009. She graduated from Cornell University in May 2008 with a degree in Film, and worked as a Research Assistant for a market research firm in London in between.
If I was a lawyer I wouldn't let them near the witness stand. Neither woman could tell the truth if they knew what it was.
There's a sucker born every minute, and most of them are Republicans.
Is this going to happen in Nashville? We have all the luck.....
Seems like these businessman are asking for a bailout....
I just can't believe this so called group of conservative businessmen would sue another conservative businessman, an entrepreneur, a job creator. Why are they anti capitalism? Evidently they don't understand the 'free market system'
awwalk56 Apparently they hate America.
UNIONS MAKE RICH PEOPLE SHARE !
A Tea Party scammer. Isn't that pretty much the mission statement of Tea Party?
What a Tea Party scam I am shocked shocked
Morons, all of them.
When is Coulter going to jail for felony voter fraud?
Hi HO, hi HO, it's off to court we go, to lock 'em up and flip the switch and shing his hair to dust!
BTO and Coultergiest... Watch out for the food fight...
"We are all born mad. Some remain so." -- Samuel Beckett
So based on the Tea Party's desire for no government and no regulations, coupled with their utter disdain for 'trial lawyers'...why aren't they just celebrating their 'free market' loss? Why are they wasting tax payer dollars on a trial?
We all saw this movie before (Coulter & Bachmann) it was called: Dumb & Dumber..
CORN DOGS! Git yer piping hot corn dogs!
I want the concession contract for this trial.
attilatheblond Do we REALLY have to entertain the thought of Michele eating any more corndogs? That's still just ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.
"Bachmann did not immediately respond to TPM’s request for comment, but we’ll update if we hear from her team."
I predict you will not hear from Michele. She's too busy trying to get Marcus back into the closet.
Just goes to show you that humans are not hard-wired for the "selfishness as virtue" trip. Everytime they rig their lives to fit that dingy old bill, they end-up going too far with it. Some of the most selfish people on earth, by the way, happen to be criminals--so it's only natural that criminals would be attracted to a political ideology that gives them room for doing their nasty thing. Ayn Rand, who is considered a buttress of the Tea Party movement, based much of her philosophy on an obsession with a murderer. Buyer beware.
Gordon Hilgers
I think that a huge chunk, if not a majority, of criminals are sociopaths. I wonder what the breakdown is for Republican politicians?
I miss her so much. All I have left is @Bachmannsbrain
I don't know who is worse, Annhole or Bachmann. Of course Ann has been accused of voter fraud more than once. She is "entitled" because she is Ann Coulter.
Her 15 minutes have expired, she now desperate to keep her face in front of ANY camera that will show her is at the least pathetic just like her campaign was.
Lee Butler Like the security cameras of the court house.
Bachmann and Coulter called to task and forced to testify...Love to see and hear that.
Bill Van der Busch Ditto. Bachmann may try to claim that as a "member" of Congress, she is immune from testifying, but i don't think she wants to have Bill Clinton thrown in her face. Ann The Mann, well, she has an even bigger problem than Bachmann. Finding a Bible that won't burst into flames when she touches it to be sworn in. Hell, I'll swear her in, but I'm pretty sure the court has rules against using that kind of language in the courtroom!
DF2691Bill Van der Busch After years of living with her closeted husband maybe Michele would like to have Bill Clinton thrown in her face.
Circular Firing Squad.....ATTENTION!
I think Loiacono's strategy of calling all these teabagging losers as witnesses for him is brilliant.
Any jury in America could only conclude Loiacono is insane - and let him off - with "friends" like that.
TPHD and GBTV sound like nasty STDs that cause chronic side effects like hallucinations, tourrette's and excessive drooling.
imfabulous13 I like it. I think it might be true!
These people have more money than they know what to do with. They should donate some to the US Treasury. Plus, Yea, Bachman's Back!
PS: I buried the lead.
So many Tea Party shenanigans = very high profits for the popcorn industry.
Where are all the TP apologists to tell us how strong their movement is, they aren't the minority, and that it wasn't a fever dream from which we are still recovering.
"I've said it before and I'll say it again, Democracy doesn't work."--Kent Brockman.
red cabbage I was hopping it was a case of the brain chiggers. That doesn't go away easy.
Good grief these toads can't find anyone else to screw so they go after each other. I'd hate to see their family trees. Loaded with cousins married to cousins or worse?
To the TPers, when you feel you are being screwed, look behind you. It's one of your own. Filth deserves filth.
A fool and their money...
It hurts!! it hurts!! oh, the truth that the TP was simply being co-opted by entrepreneurial charlatans who's only objective was to bilk them out of their 'hard earned' $$ - - oh, say it isn't so, Joe.
What a bunch of nut-jobs.
I'd love to see Bachmann go off on one of her fact-free fantasy rants while under oath. Plaintiffs should have a blast destroying her credibility. Same goes for Coulter. They could bring up her voter fraud case.
FawkesFOX Perhaps the defense is hoping the special brands of crazy that are Coulter and Bachmann can be counted on to such outrageous thngs that they could argue for a mistrial?
Can that happen in civil suits? If so, one or both of those two women can probably be counted on for being so outlandish while all eyes are on them (which they both crave) that the defense could raise the question.
Awesome Friday news dump.
Can you imagine the court transcripts on this one?
JJRothery LOL
JJRothery TV will need something to fill the air when the GOP debate reality farce is over.
Can we make them swear on something more binding than a Bible? I mean, one's a plagiarist and both are nuts; these two don't really have any honor or anything to offer as a guarantee.
fargo116 Perhaps they could swear in using their investment portfolios... Or Bachmanns financial disclosure forms.
Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing, but the truth, so help you Grover Norquist.
So THAT's where Bachmann was starring when she made her rebuttal-rebuttal.... I just thought her eyes went lazy from all the political BS she buys and sells. Good to know...
hoo boy. What morons. Even as talked about as the Tea Party was in 2010... a TV network? That takes a lot of money and effort just to launch it. What could a Tea Party HD network do that isn't being done already by Fox News Channel?
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