Minor setback for the Randy Brock campaign: he’s had to cancel a planned fundraising event due to extreme cluelessness.

As reported by the Vermont Press Bureau, Brock was planning to tap into the deep conservative well of the Northeast Kingdom later this month with an event at a lovely little B&B:

A Facebook posting today from Brock’s fund-raising guru, Darcie Johnston, asked prospective voters: “Want to support Randy Brock for governor? Plan on attending this event at the Wildflower Inn.”

Hmm, Wildflower Inn. Ring a bell?

Located in bucolic Lyndonville, the establishment earned some unwanted notoriety last year when the American Civil Liberties Union filed suit against the owners for refusing to host the wedding of a lesbian couple from New York.

Oh, THAT Wildflower Inn. Apparently someone (probably the Vermont Press Bureau) pointed this out to Randy & Darcie. And the event was quickly canceled.

Brock and Johnston swear they had no idea about the inn’s baggage. Brock says the fund-raiser wasn’t organized by his campaign but by some supporters.

“Now that I’ve been made aware of this pending case, it would be inappropriate to hold an event at a place with a cloud like that hanging over it,” Brock said this afternoon.

Nice move, throwing your “supporters” under the bus. But really, two prominent political Vermonters had no idea about the inn’s baggage? They ought to get out more often, maybe read a paper once in a while.

And on a more serious note: This is why campaigns typically have full-time paid staff. Randy Brock’s campaign is staffed by fee-for-service consultants. Which means nobody’s keeping track of these little details. Y’know, spend five minutes Googling all your candidate’s upcoming appearances, and you won’t be embarrassed like this. By depending on consultants, Brock’s leaving himself vulnerable to these kinds of snafus.