I read the diary about the guy who got arrested for protesting, I decided to pass on some info to those who might not know. Bottom line: the Bush Administration had plans to address protesters alooooooooooooong time ago.
It may have had something to do with Bush's less-than stellar inaguration during his first "term." Maybe it's just another example of his people being control freaks. Whatever.
Anyway, if you haven't heard about this, you might want to keep reading...
I'm aware that in the case of Mr. Jonas, he was arrested because of a violation of a county ordinance, (Buncombe County Ordinance 16-2, which has been reserved, BTW) pretty much like Kevin Egler, who was also arrested (for putting up a "Impeach Bush" sign0. And I'm pretty sure that when Mike Stark said this:
That said, the fact that at the Police Headquarters decisions are being made that will provide the state a means to prosecute an innocent man... Well, that's simply too much. That demonstrates that this isn't two rogue cops with degenerate ideas about what it means to "Protect and Serve"... Nay. This is the entire force... The rot begins at the top.
he wasn't talking about anyone beyond North Carolina. But maybe "the top" is a little bit higher.
The ACLU certainly believed so. From a post back on 6/28/07:
The ACLU is suing Gregory Jenkins, former Director of the White House Office of Presidential Advance and a Deputy Assistant to President Bush, for setting the policy in the manual. Jenkins' policies have led to the removal and, in some cases, arrest of innocent people from taxpayer-funded events. The lawsuit names as plaintiffs Jeff and Nicole Rank, who were arrested at a Fourth of July presidential appearance at the West Virginia State Capitol because they were wearing t-shirts critical of the president, and Alex Young and Leslie Weise, Denver residents who were thrown out of a town hall meeting with President Bush because they had an anti-war bumper sticker on their car.
The Ranks had tickets to attend the July 4, 2004 event, but drew attention when they removed their outer garments to display t-shirts bearing the international "no" symbol (a circle with a diagonal line across it) superimposed over the word "Bush." Although other people in the audience were allowed to wear pro-Bush paraphernalia, White House event staff demanded that the Ranks remove or cover their t-shirts. When the Ranks refused, the White House staffers instructed local police to arrest the couple, causing them to be removed from the Capitol grounds in handcuffs, jailed and charged with trespassing. Ms. Rank was also temporarily suspended from her work with the Federal Emergency Management Agency. City officials later apologized for their part in the arrest when they realized they'd been used as political operatives by the White House.
In the course of the trial, the ACLU learned that the White House, in 2002, created the "Presidential Advance Manual," which (even though it's been haevily redacted) says things like:
Preparing for Demonstrators
There are several ways the advance person can prepare a site to minimize demonstrators. First, as always work with the Secret Service and have them ask the local police department to designate a protest area where demonstrators can be placed, preferably not in view of the even site or motorcade route.
The formation of "rally squads" is a common way to prepare for demonstrators by countering their message. This tatic involves utilizing small group of volunteers to spread favorable messages using large held signs, placards, or perhaps a long sheet banner, and placing them in strategic areas around the site.
These squads should be instructed always to look for demostrators. The rally squad's task is to use their sign and banners as sheild between the demonstartors and the main press platform. If the demonstrators are yelling, rally squads can begin and lead supportive chants to drown out the protestors (USA! USA! USA!). As a last resort, security should remove the demonstrators from the event site. The rally squads can include, but not limited to, college/young republican organizations. local athletic teams, and fraternities/sororities.
So to recap: not only can we be arrested for just standing on the sidewalk doing a one-man protest...but we have virtually no chance of criticizing the president at a public, tax-paid event without the threat of arrest or the presence of hired goons trying to shut us up.
Special Note: I just learned that the Ranks have won about $80,000.00 in their lawsuit. That's a start.