Who Created Julian Schmidt?

[Note added, November 11th, 2011: Comment from the real Julian Schmidt.]

[Note added, November 7th, 2011: Today, The Eye received a request from a Julian Schmidt in Germany, requesting that we remove his photo from our web site. We have done so. Separately, the Facebook page for Julian Schmidt, Wesleyan '14, was deleted at some point between November 4th and 7th, 2011, and the name and photo were also deleted from the TSV Mutlangen sports club in Stuttgart.]

“Julian Schmidt, Wesleyan Class of 2014” has been the author as well as the subject of comments in the online news media outlets. “Schmidt” describes himself as a Democrat who is intending to challenge Joe Serra in a primary for the nomination to the 33rd District State Legislative Seat. This would be big news in our City, except for one detail. “Julian Schmidt” does not exist.

The comments section during the municipal election season becomes an even deeper than usual cesspool of insults, attacks, and unsubstantiated rumors. Virtually all of these are signed with “anonymous” or an obviously fictive name. The Eye comments section has not been fertile ground for this cowardly spew, because its comment moderators will reject the worst of them. However, the moderators see a substantial number of comments on the borderline between negative and nasty, we often agonize (and sometimes disagree with each other) over whether a particular comment is part of a productive dialog or drags the community down.

If a comment is signed, Eye moderators give it the benefit of the doubt, even if it approaches that border. We shouldn't be surprised, I suppose, that at least one commenter, eager to find a way to make negative comments, has taken to signing posts with the names of obscure public figures. These have included Al Pratt (the "real" Al Pratt is a DC Comics superhero), Bill Duke, and a number of others (challenge to our readers: how many have we let slip by?). [If there is a real Al Pratt or Bill Duke in Middletown, The Eye will treat you to an O'Rourke's breakfast as an apology for not printing your comment.]

Many of these comments include the phrase, “As a Dem...”, and then go on to criticize the Democratic nominee for mayor, Dan Drew.

A week ago Monday, we received the following comment which fit into that pattern, but included some jaw-dropping news below his name.

Dan is definitely a fraud.

The other night after the Wesleyan event he refused to talk to students after the debate. As a Dem, I was outraged by this and wanted to ask him questions about his platform and ideas with the hopes that he could help me with my upcoming campaign against Joe Serra in 2012.

Ironically enough, Giuliano and other Wes students had a pow-wow at the foot of the stage and then invited me to coffee afterwards. Weird town?

I met Pulino as well, very nice and chummy. I checked the qualifications of the city treasurer and one does not have to know how to manage millions of dollars, it's basically a check and balance system. Would Phipps, have the guts to vist Mayor Drew if there was a problem?. That I don't know, based on the past of both Raffa and Pulino I would bet they would not be afraid to blow the whistle on wrong-doings.

Julian Schmidt
Wesleyan Class of 2014
Pending Dem Candidate for the 33rd District

The 33rd District has been represented for many years by Joe Serra, and a primary challenge to Serra would be very big news indeed.

This was not "Schmidt’s" first comment. On October 20th, and 21st, he commented on articles in The Middletown Press, including the statement, “As a Wesleyan student I am outraged at the secret left wing activity that goes on at our wondeful [sic] campus...”

"Schmidt" was on several people’s minds on October 27th. Schmidt himself commented on The Eye in support of a Republican candidate, “I will [vote for you] even though I am a Democrat hoping to take on Joe Serra in August.” Also on Wednesday, “Leslie Washington III”, who describes himself as a Herman Cain 2012 Supporter, referred in an Eye comment to Monday evening’s Westfield Candidates night, “Nice speaking to a lot of people at Westfield the other night including Joe Bibisi and Julian Schmidt who had some interesting alternate ideas to to offer about govenrment [sic].” And Jason Keane over on Patch had this to say, “Hurray! When Juilen Schmidt primaries Joe Serra this summer we can finally dump the dinosaur!”

The Birth Of Julian

“Julian Schmidt” does not appear in the Wesleyan student directory, and the Dean of the Class of 2014 told me that there is no one by that name at Wesleyan. The president of the Wesleyan Democrats, Ben Florsheim, said he had done some research as well, and found no such person.

A Wesleyan ('14) German Studies major named "Julian Schmidt" has a Facebook page, and he has in the past 2 weeks accumulated a total of 7 friends, all associated with Wesleyan. However, the name and photo are identical to those of the Youth Director at TSV Mutlangen, a sports club near Stuttgart, Germany.

Why was Schmidt created, and who did it? While the definitive answer to those questions are not clear, there are some suggestive hints.

The comments from “Schmidt” reflect a deep and up-to-date knowledge of Middletown political activity. “Schmidt” attended both the Wesleyan and the Westfield debates. He knew that Giuliano remained after the debate to speak with students for as long as they wanted to, while Drew left almost immediately after the conclusion of the debate. He knows who Joe Bibisi is. This makes it likely that “Schmidt” is the avatar of someone who is a long-time observer of, or participant in, our city's municipal politics.

The creator may be someone who is unwilling to publicize his or her identity. However, I think it is more likely to be someone who is very public with their opinions, but who thinks those opinions would be more convincing or more influential if they were thought to come from a Wesleyan student. Florsheim, the Wesleyan Democrat, has a different theory. He told me he suspected that the fabrication of a student challenger to Joe Serra was an attempt to drive a wedge between the established Democratic Town Committee and the Wesleyan Democrats.

The earliest reference to “Julian Schmidt” is in a Facebook posting by Jon Pulino. About 10 years ago, Pulino wrote and directed the short movie "The Sands of Destiny," based on the DC Comics novel "Lex Luthor: An Unauthorized Biography." Pulino is the Republican candidate for City Treasurer, and the host of a local access cable show called “The Edge.”

In the open group, “Jon For Middletown City Treasurer 2011!”, Pulino wrote on October 18th:

I know why a lot Wesleyan students are registering to vote? Julian Schmidt class of 2014 for State Rep this summer to primary Joe Serra. The Argus had a story about this last night, but it was removed?

The Argus news editor told me that nobody at the Wesleyan student newspaper had heard anything about any story on a student who might challenge Joe Serra.

On October 23rd, Pulino wrote, “I am trying to get Mark Loomis, write in candidate for BOE and Julian Schmidt, a potential Dem contender for Serra’s 33rd House seat, (Wesleyan 2014) to speak on the Tuesday edition of “The Edge” on Tuesday night.” After the October 25th show, Pulino wrote, “Thanks to Julian Schmidt for calling in too.”

The video recording of The Edge shows Pulino speaking on the telephone with a man who identifies himself as "Julian Schmidt". "Schmidt" tells Pulino that he is on leave from the university, while he takes part in the Occupy Wall Street protests. Pulino seems bemused by the phone call. Here is that portion of the show:

One of the participants in the show, Billy Wilson, told me last week that he has also interacted with Schmidt outside of that phone call. Wilson is a Republican candidate for the Board of Assessment Appeals. He told me that Schmidt was unable to attend the Wesleyan debate, but kept in touch with the local news through a smart phone. In a message, he wrote “[Schmidt] has posted on Jon’s facebook site and I replied a couple of times. I have never talked to him or meet him.”

Actually, We Know That Schmidt Does Not Exist
On Friday, when I confronted Wilson with the evidence that Schmidt does not exist, he admitted that Schmidt was a fabrication, but he denied that either he or Pulino were responsible for his creation. He was offended at my suggestion that he would resort to anonymous attacks on Drew, “I tell people how I feel, to them on the tv or in the paper. I use my name.” This is true.

Wilson said there was a Wesleyan employee, whom he did not know, who was afraid to express certain opinions. In order to express those opinions, this employee had created the Schmidt identity, “There is someone at Wesleyan who is afraid of retribution.” I asked him how he knew even this about the creator of Schmidt. “Mr. Pulino said it was a Wesleyan employee.”

Pulino confirmed this, and said he had given this person a commitment he would remain anonymous. He said that in the middle of October, "I received a phone call from X, who claimed he wanted to run for office for the Joe Serra position." He said that this person was going to appear on his show, but then got cold feet. "Julian Schmidt" was born around this time. Pulino admitted that he had not seen any news article about Schmidt in the Wesleyan student paper, "X said he was in The Argus, and they were going to do a piece on him."

Pulino also denied that he was responsible for any of the comments about Schmidt purportedly written by others ("Washington" or "Keane"). Like Wilson, he pointed out that he was completely unafraid to tell his honest opinion to anybody, Republican or Democrat. This is true.

I have been unable to confirm Pulino's contention that there is a Wesleyan employee responsible for Schmidt's creation. I have also not been able to identify the person claiming to be Schmidt who phoned in to The Edge and spoke with both Pulino and Wilson on the air.

Perhaps if one of our readers can identify "Schmidt's" voice, the mystery of his creator would be one step closer to being solved.