The Mirror

Reporter’s Surfing Story Lands Congresswoman In Hot Water

Betsy Rothstein Gossip blogger
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Watch out, reporters. It may sound like a fun idea to go yachting, surfing or to stuff your face with a member of Congress. But it could also mean a boatload of trouble if they’re supposed to be somewhere else when they’re with you. And then they may hate you, and the rest of the Washington media, for the rest of their political careers.

Case in point: Yahoo! NewsChris Moody. From here on out, we’ll just refer to this as Moody-ghazi.

Moody recently went surfing with Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) on a Hawaiian beach, eliciting grunts of jealousy from other members of the White House Press Corps.

But it made unintended waves.

As reported by Honolulu Civil Beat Monday, Gabbard missed a Senate veterans hearing to surf Waikiki. She blamed a video shoot with Yahoo! and a subsequent traffic jam, but never revealed the surfing. Ouch! Now it’s a campaign fundraising pitch.

“After the hearing, Gabbard’s staff ignored repeated media inquiries as to why she was not at the hearing. Four days later, Gabbard’s staff at first said she was at a meeting then said “an earlier commitment ran very late.” No one mentioned the Yahoo News interview or that she was surfing much of the morning.”

The Mirror requested comment from Yahoo! News‘ Moody.

Just to add a real punch in the gut, the Civil Beat includes a photograph of a vet who showed up to the hearing. He holds a sign that reads, “Please help Mr. President Obama. All I want is two legs like you.”

The optics are absolutely wrenching with one of his stumps peeking out from beneath his shorts or a cloth.