Democracy in Action & History Made.. Take That George! (w/Photos)
Mon Feb 04, 2008 at 08:39:19 AM PDT
On Thursday, something very rare happened.
Protesters protested President Bush.
No, it wasn't the protesting which was rare... (Obviously) What was rare, was how the protest unfolded. We were able to do something not many protesters have before.
You see, Bush's advance people couldn't avoid us. You might say, "Mission Accomplished."
Come take a look over the jump.
Everyone remembers the "Presidential Advance Manual" which was entered as evidence in court right? The one which the Washington Post wrote about? If you're interested, here is the manual in raw PDF form. A quick refresher, the Post described it as:
A White House manual that came to light recently gives presidential advance staffers extensive instructions in the art of "deterring potential protestors" from President Bush's public appearances around the country.
Pathetic as this is, the Bush White House is probably not the first Administration to have some sort of advance plan like this. Though this is probably the case, I would wager big bucks they took it A LOT further then any other White House. Continuing with WaPo:
But that does not mean the White House is against dissent -- just so long as the president does not see it. In fact, the manual outlines a specific system for those who disagree with the president to voice their views. It directs the White House advance staff to ask local police "to designate a protest area where demonstrators can be placed, preferably not in the view of the event site or motorcade route."
I'll get back to the Presidential Advance Manual in a bit.
We chose not to wait for the police or Secret Service tell us where to protest. Though I should come clean about what I think of them. These protest areas, so called "First Amendment Zones," I agree with them. Yeah, you read this correctly. The "First Amendment Zone" I believe in is called the "United States of America." The Nevada State Democratic Party organized this protest. We came from all parts of the Democratic Party. People who have been morally offended by this President know no boundaries of issues. Though it can sometimes make life more difficult with the media and presenting an effective coordinated message, it is fantastic in terms of entertainment (creative signs are entertaining). After the caucus, I think everyone here needed a nice break. What better way to unite the Democratic Party than to protest George Bush! I saw folks who supported Senator Clinton, Senator Obama, and Senator Edwards. Whats even better, they weren't arguing with each other!
As it turns out, the place Bush was speaking at didn't have a back entrance/exit. They had to come in and out the same general area. Not only this, but we were right across from where he had to come in and out. Fantastic! This was the first protest I've ever been at where I decided if they told us to move I wouldn't listen and would be arrested. (There was no way I was going to not let that guy know what I think). I can't help but laugh as this. The self-proclaimed "Party of the Military," didn't ensure the President of the United States had a back egress (exit). There are a million places in Las Vegas he could have spoke at which had multiple ways out. PATHETIC. Somebody call Pete Hegseth quick! Here's a map of the protest location courtesy Google Earth (with some notes).
Before I tell you any more, let me show you a couple of pictures.
This last picture is me and a new acquaintance of mine (I have the hat on). His name is Terry Davis. He is a Gold Star dad who I met on New Years Day at a common friend's house who wanted to get involved with the Nevada Democratic Veterans & Military Families Caucus. The Las Vegas Review Journal even featured him in the story about the protest. I marked the spot the R-J described in the story with a white square. Not only is Terry an amazing person for having to deal with the death of his son, he served 20 years in the Marine Corps himself. Even after being out of the Corps for three years now, I call him gunny sometimes just because 4 years can be more than enough in the Corps, let alone 20. 20 years is unbelievable to me. I have a lot of respect for this man.
There were two things which amazed me the most about this protest. The first thing which amazed me was we got to protest Bush's motorcade not just once, but twice. Here is a link to a video showing when his motorcade was leaving. The video is quite amazing and heart warming (especially after the ranker of the primary season). The second thing (it more makes me sick and makes me laugh hysterically at the same time) is the aforementioned Bush Advance Team I told you I would get back to in a bit.
After they realized there were going to be protesters and they couldn't get around them they sent out Bush staffers to counter-protest us. The Review Journal says: (emphasis mine)
That view was not shared by a group of about a dozen women who emerged from a office building across from Boca Park to wave and cheer for the president as his car went by.
This is the biggest load of garbage I have ever read in my life. These women were there when his motorcade arrived for 3 minutes, then left. Then MAGICALLY when his motorcade was just about to leave they were there again! Wait but where have I read about something like this before... OH YEAH! The Washington Post!
To counter any demonstrators who do get in, advance teams are told to create "rally squads" of volunteers with large hand-held signs, placards or banners with "favorable messages."
The same article again goes on to say:
Advance teams are advised not to worry if protesters are not visible to the president or cameras:
"If it is determined that the media will not see or hear them and that they pose no potential disruption to the event, they can be ignored. On the other hand, if the group is carrying signs, trying to shout down the President, or has the potential to cause some greater disruption to the event, action needs to be taken immediately to minimize the demonstrator's effect."
Though the context of this article is referring to demonstrators inside the actual events, it clearly pertains to our situation here. After all the WaPo article also talked about not wanting protesters even in view of the motorcade or event site. Anyway, here's a picture of the most pathetic group of people I have ever seen.
All in all this was not the biggest protest I have ever been to. Nor was this the best protest I've been to in terms of media coverage. However, I can say without a doubt for myself (and probably for many people there as well), it was the most satisfying (by a long shot). Not only did Bush have to see us twice, when we saw his detail walking to the motorcade to leave, we knew he could hear us chanting. Thats right... George W. Bush not only had to see us twice, he had to hear us chant "Bush Lied, Thousands Died."
Finally, the R-J article referenced a protester who had a "large foam hand with all the fingers folded down except for the middle one" at the protest. The Presidential motorcade carrying the current occupant of the Oval Office came by twice. I can say they were not the only ones who used this gesture. After all, we have a great leader's example to follow (click for a bonus video).
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