WASHINGTON — Daily Caller founder Tucker Carlson's brother Buckley Carlson referred to New York City mayor Bill de Blasio's spokesperson as a "self-righteous bitch" in an email to his brother obtained by BuzzFeed News.
The email appears to have been accidentally sent to de Blasio's spokesperson, Amy Spitalnick, as well as to Tucker Carlson. In the email, Buckley Carlson, who occasionally writes for the Daily Caller, makes several offensive comments about Spitalnick after she asked for a correction on a piece about the mayor:
Great response. Whiny little self-righteous bitch. "Appalling?"
And with such an ironic name, too… Spitalnick? Ironic because you just know she has extreme dick-fright; no chance has this girl ever had a pearl necklace. Spoogeneck? I don't think so. More like LabiaFace.
Spitalnick had reached out to Daily Caller writer Peter Fricke to ask for a correction on a story about de Blasio that claimed the mayor had said that the president's $80 billion transportation proposal was not enough. After a back and forth between Spitalnick, Fricke and editor Christopher Bedford, Bedford told Spitalnick that if she "annoyed" him "with another whiny email before then, I'm muting this thread, thanks," prompting Spitalnick to contact Tucker Carlson directly. He responded to Spitalnick:
Dear Amy,
Thanks for your email. You believe our story was inaccurate and have demanded a correction. Totally fair. We are going over the transcript now.
What Bedford complained about was your tone, which, I have to agree, was whiny and annoying, and I say that in the spirit of helpful correction rather than as a criticism. Outside of New York City, adults generally write polite, cheerful emails to one another, even when asking for corrections. Something to keep in mind the next time you communicate with people who don't live on your island.
Best,
Tucker Carlson
The email sent from Buckley Carlson to his brother and to Spitalnick appears to have been a response to this.
In response to a request for comment from BuzzFeed News, Tucker Carlson said, "I just talked to my brother about his response, and he assures me he meant it in the nicest way."
The story by Fricke, which had been the subject of the email exchange, has been updated.
The full email exchange, capped by Buckley Carlson's comments about Spitalnick:
From: Buckley Carlson
Sent: Wednesday, March 25, 2015 3:18 PM
To: Tucker Carlson; Spitalnick, Amy (OMB)
Subject: Re: Correction Needed
Great response. Whiny little self-righteous bitch. "Appalling?"
And with such an ironic name, too…Spitalnick? Ironic because you just know she has extreme dick-fright; no chance has this girl ever had a pearl necklace. Spoogeneck? I don't think so. More like LabiaFace.
--
Buckley Carlson
XXX-XXX-XXXX
From: Tucker Carlson
Date: Wednesday, March 25, 2015 2:58 PM
To: "Spitalnick, Amy (OMB)"
Subject: Re: Correction Needed
Dear Amy,
Thanks for your email. You believe our story was inaccurate and have demanded a correction. Totally fair. We are going over the transcript now.
What Bedford complained about was your tone, which, I have to agree, was whiny and annoying, and I say that in the spirit of helpful correction rather than as a criticism. Outside of New York City, adults generally write polite, cheerful emails to one another, even when asking for corrections. Something to keep in mind the next time you communicate with people who don't live on your island.
Best,
Tucker Carlson
On Mar 25, 2015, at 2:38 PM, Spitalnick, Amy (OMB) wrote:
Tucker – it's pretty appalling that this is how your staff chose to respond to us requesting a basic correction (and providing a transcript that directly contradicts the original story).
From: Christopher Bedford
Sent: Wednesday, March 25, 2015 2:31 PM
To: Spitalnick, Amy (OMB)
Cc: Peter Fricke
Subject: Re: FW: Correction Needed
We're reviewing the video now, Amy. If you annoy me with another whiny email before then, I'm muting this thread, thanks.
On Wed, Mar 25, 2015 at 2:26 PM, Spitalnick, Amy (OMB) wrote:
This clearly states that we should "follow the president's vision." It is disingenuous at best for you to suggest the mayors were calling for anything else. Please correct the story now.
That's where we should – to question before about [inaudible] – if we really are serious about infrastructure investment, we would follow the president's vision, which is long-term funding and substantially increased funding, and a higher share of [inaudible].
From: Spitalnick, Amy (OMB)
Sent: Wednesday, March 25, 2015 2:16 PM
To: 'Peter Fricke'
Cc: Christopher Bedford
Subject: RE: FW: Correction Needed
That is simply wrong. Watch the video and you will see the context – and, most importantly, I am telling you now as a mayoral spokesperson that they were highlighting the President's plan as an "ideal reference point" for what the funding should be. So please correct the story now.
From: Peter Fricke
Sent: Wednesday, March 25, 2015 2:14 PM
To: Spitalnick, Amy (OMB)
Cc: Christopher Bedford
Subject: Re: FW: Correction Needed
Amy,
Based on what is in the transcript, I have to respectfully disagree with your assessment.
The mayor called Obama's plan "an ideal reference point" and talked about "[following] the president's vision," but never said that $80 billion was "adequate."
Indeed, his claim that "we're going to push for the highest number attainable" clearly implies that the mayors would gladly accept an even higher figure. That impression is further reinforced by his response to the question about exact dollar amounts, where he said, "we're all working on that together," indicating that the task force has not endorsed any specific figure.
Cordially,
Peter Fricke
On Wed, Mar 25, 2015 at 1:51 PM, Spitalnick, Amy (OMB) wrote:
Please correct this ASAP.
http://www1.nyc.gov/office-of-the-mayor/news/192-15/transcript-mayor-de-blasio-participates-press-conference-transportation-u-s-conference
From: Spitalnick, Amy (OMB)
Sent: Wednesday, March 25, 2015 1:25 PM
To: peter@dailycallernewsfoundation.org
Subject: Correction Needed
Peter -
Your story on Mayor de Blasio and the USCM is totally inaccurate. The mayors said $50B in flat funding was not enough, and cited the President's $80B proposal as one that boosted funding to adequate levels.
The transcript is on nyc.gov.