Dan Bell Responds: "I'm Just A Political Activist"

The mini-saga over the Springfield man tracking Jay Nixon with a videocamera took a new twist when Dan Bell phoned the KY3 Political Notebook today.

Yesterday Gov. Matt Blunt acknowledged that his campaign had paid Bell to track Nixon. But Bell told me today that he worked for Blunt's campaign from June 1st to August 15th. "I don't work for the Governor anymore," Bell said. "My last day with the campaign was the 15th."

Bell said he did travel to the state fair in Sedalia to record Nixon on his own free will. "I record things, I do. That's one of the things I do, as a political activist. I was not working for the campaign or the party."

"As a veteran who has fought for the ideals of the nation, I think it's important to keep tabs on people who don't support those ideals," Bell said of Nixon. "I disagree with Nixon and his platform, and if keeping him accountable means tracking him with a video camera or taking notes, that's what I'll do."

Bell said he has no plans to return to the payroll of Governor Blunt's campaign. He said he will be concentrating on finishing up his undergraduate degree, and his work with veterans, including the group Veterans for Freedom.

But that doesn't mean you won't see him lurking over Jay Nixon's shoulder in the future. "I'm just a political activist, and this is what I do," he said.