“When you think what happened to Communists after the wall fell down in ‘89,” said King, “they didn’t just curl up and decide to become capitalists. They would go back and reform like — Oh, it’s like trying to squash an amoeba.”

King stressed that Republicans had momentum on the issue right now, and needed to “push as long and hard as we can, because once the media turns their attention away, I don’t know that they come back again.”

Video after the jump:

–

You can follow TWI on Twitter and Facebook.

Curiously, however, there is no record of charges being filed against Gladney’s alleged attackers. And Gladney’s Website is down, with this message replacing the content.

Unfortunately, this site is no longer available due to nonpayment on the part of Kenneth’s attorney, David Brown. The site will resume normal operation once payment is received.

The site below the jump:

Here’s the video that shows the alleged attack — and Gladney (the one in the grey polo shirt) walking around casually after the incident, claiming that an SEIU member attacked him. Meanwhile, as Daily Kos diarist KevinNYC points out in his play-by-play of the event, there’s a big white guy in a white polo shirt yelling — “they attacked him!” The guy on the video looks strikingly like his lawyer, David Brown, who now says he was a witness to the event, so he can’t officially represent Gladney.

When I asked Brown, who was in a car with Gladney on their way to see Brown’s brother, who is going to be Gladney’s official lawyer, Brown said that there’s been lots of misinformation floating around online about this case.

For one, Brown said, contrary to recent reports like this one from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Gladney wasn’t laid off and has health insurance. “He’s just unemployed,” says Brown, and “has insurance through his wife.”

Although Brown initially identified Gladney as “a friend,” when I asked him what line of work Gladney is in, he had to go ask Gladney about that before he could report back to me that about a year ago, Gladney worked for an optical store. Brown said he thinks Gladney’s wife is a social worker, but he’s really not sure.

Meanwhile, though Gladney appears to be just fine in the video right after he was supposedly beaten up, he showed up the next day at a tea party event in a wheelchair. At the event, Bill Hennessy, the organizer of the St. Louis tea parties, asked the crowd to donate money to Gladney to help him pay for his injuries, despite the fact that he now says he has insurance. When I asked Brown about this, he said: “Well, who doesn’t need a donation? If people want to give him a donation because he’s injured and unemployed, that’s up to them.” Brown said Gladney has raised about $1,100 in donations so far.

Brown also told me that Gladney is not a conservative activist. He was just selling the 18th-century patriotic resistance flags to try to make some extra money. Brown said Gladney plans to sue both the individuals he says attacked him and the SEIU, since the “attackers” were wearing union T-shirts and “unions have a 100-year history of intimidation.”

On the Fox News Channel’s “Your World with Neil Cavuto” on Friday, Gladney said he’s “in some pain” but “I’m okay, I’m still kind of shaken up, just kind of upset about the whole thing.”

Brown said he doesn’t yet have the medical report of his client’s alleged injuries, but that his lawyer brother, Andrew Beeny, will be getting a copy for the lawsuit. Brown said he didn’t know whether his brother would release the report to the public.

Solis is considered a strong ally of organized labor, and she supports the Employee Free Choice Act, which would facilitate the formation of unions. Her selection has earned praise from the Service Employees Internation Union. She is the third Hispanic member of Obama’s cabinet, and like Bill Richardson, she gave a substantial portion of her acceptance speech in Spanish.

LaHood, on the other hand, has been criticized by Democrats for his weak environmental record. Some consider him a token Republican, appointed to fulfill Obama’s promise of a bipartisan cabinet — and indeed, Obama said today that “Ray’s appointment reflects that bipartisan spirit.” His primary credential as a transportation progressive appears to be his tempered support for Amtrak. Obama also highlighted his advocacy for aviation and bicycling, and said, “Few understand our infrastructure challenge better than … Ray LaHood.”

As relatively obscure members of Congress, Solis and LaHood stand in contrast to Obama’s previous cabinet appointments, which include two senators (Hillary Clinton for State and Ken Salazar for Interior), a former senator (Tom Daschle for Health and Human Services) and two governors (Richardson for Commerce and Janet Napolitano for Homeland Security). The New Republic argues that their low profile is an indication that labor and transportation may not be top priorities for Obama.

Kirk served as the mayor of Dallas from 1995 to 2002, and he sought to transform the city into the “capital of NAFTA.” Obama called him a “principled proponent of trade.” The New York Times today highlighted Kirk’s policy differences with Solis over free trade.

Mills is the president of MMP Group in Brunswick, Maine. House Small Business Committee Chairwoman Nydia M. Velázquez (D-N.Y.) praised her selection, saying, “This appointment shows that his economic team recognizes the key role that small firms play in job creation and the need to take quick steps to revitalize the agency’s role in spurring growth.”

Obama opened the press conference by applauding President Bush’s $17-billion bailout of the auto industry, arguing that it would contribute to “jobs and wages,” which he called his primary measure of the economy’s success. In the question-and-answer period, he noted that there has been much progress, albeit in “baby steps,” in the negotiations with the auto executives. “We started off with the automakers coming before Congress asking for a blank check,” he said. “And I, like many others, said that’s not gonna fly.”

“My top priority in this administration is going to be to create 2.5 million new jobs,” he continued, “and I want some of those jobs to be in the auto industry.” He added that the concessions made by the auto industry should not be at the expense of the workers and unions.

MSNBC’s Savannah Guthrie asked Obama if there would be a cap to his stimulus spending next year.

“The economic forecasts have deteriorated,” he responded, referencing his conversations with leading economists. “The conclusion has been … that unless you have a bold approach, you could continue to see the economy decline. … That is not acceptable to me, and I don’t think it’s acceptable to the American people.”

Tomorrow, Obama leaves for a family vacation in Hawaii. Conveniently, he will be away when his team releases its report on its interaction with Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich next week.