[Peace-discussion] San Francisco Democrats Under Seige as Anti-war/Vet Rights Power Surges

Tue, 9 Jan 2007 06:57:00 -0800 (PST)

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(1) Antiwar Protesters Ambush Democratic Leadership/28 arrested in San Francisco

Ambush At Democrat Pass
By Alec Dubro
January 3, 2007, TomPaine.common sense 

http://www.tompaine .com/articles/ 2007/01/03/ ambush_at_ democrat_ pass.php
<http://www.tompaine .com/articles/ 2007/01/03/ ambush_at_ democrat_ pass.php
> 

Chaos. That's what one reporter called it after the House Democratic
leadership fled the media stakeout outside the
Caucus Room. TV crews with no one to focus on. Angry reporters. Jubilant
protesters. Briefing postponed until sometime.

It was meant to be a sober display of the new responsible Democratic
power, a reading of the "100 Hours Agenda," a
political moment in the limelight before the inevitable conflicts began
in the actual legislative process.

It certainly seemed like the presentation would unfold as planned.
Fashionably late, Rahm Emanuel and Steny Hoyer
appeared confidently before the microphones massed under Cannon House
Office rotunda. They faced a dozen live TV
cameras and a hundred domestic and foreign reporters.

Emanuel, looking as smooth and rich as a polished cordovan loafer, took
the stage and a hush fell. He said all the right
things: 'move in a new direction,' 'changing the relationship between
lobbyist and legislator,' 'take away gas subsidies,'
'The People's House.' But he got no further than that.

A chorus of voices began chanting 'de-escalate, investigate, bring the
troops home' over and over. The actual chant time,
carried out by no more than 15 or 20 people, lasted less than two
minutes. By time it was over, though, the Democratic
leadership was gone. Back into the safety of the Caucus Room.

To the Dems and the reporters it seemed like more of a bushwhack than a
media stakeout. But when Cindy Sheehan shows
up accompanied by Code Pink women and men without ties or briefcases,
it's likely that something is afoot.

Prior to the Emanuel-Stoyer show, Sheehan had drifted through the crowd.
She told TomPaine that she was there to show
support for her new Peace Surge, a hoped-for and probably
phantasmagorical withdrawal of troops, rather than the troop
surge Bush is planning.

Her cohorts were not entirely pleased with their earlier reception.
According to anti-war activist David Swanson, they
had been stopped at the building entrance by the Capitol Police, who had
been distressed to find them laden with leaflets.

'There were 50 or 60 of us,' Swanson said, 'and we came to talk to House
members. The police told us that since 9-11, the
bringing of leaflets is forbidden.' The only way to distribute them,
police said, was to use a Pitney-Bowes delivery service. 

'They've outsourced access to Congress,' he fumed.

What really got the police was the content of the flyers. 'One cop told
another,' said Swanson, "This is against the war.
They can't bring this in." "We wouldn't budge and worked our way up to
a captain. In the end, they reversed the policy, and
we handed out the leaflets."

Accompanying Swanson was Candy Anderson of Sacramento, a member of Gold
Star Families for Peace . It was her first trip
to the Capitol, and she meant to 'meet as many members of Congress as
[she] can.' She was asking for more than just a
cessation of the war; she wanted reparations for the bereaved American
families and money to rebuild Iraq.

Candy Anderson had none of the powerful glow of a Rahm Emanuel or a
Nancy Pelosi. She said she had been 'humble' in
congressional offices. She wasn't sure how things worked.

But in the end, it was Anderson's message that got heard, not the
prefabricated points which conspicuously avoid any mention
of ending the war. The 100 Hours agenda is a good one, a needed one. But
America's most burning issue has not died out.
Today it flamed up in the People's House. The Democrats may have to face
Iraq sooner than they hoped. 

(2) 28 are arrested at courthouse protest
By Bob Egelko
<http://sfgate. com/cgi-bin/ article.cgi? file=/c/a/ 2007/01/05/ BAGLHNDE4J1.
DTL>
<http://sfgate. com/cgi-bin/ article.cgi? file=/c/a/ 2007/01/05/ BAGLHNDE4J1.
DTL%3e> ;
San Francisco Chronicle
January 5, 2007

Twenty-eight opponents of the Iraq war were arrested after blocking
entrances of the San Francisco federal courthouse Thursday during a
demonstration in support of an Army officer who refused to go to Iraq,
police said.

The demonstrators, from a group called Declaration for Peace, were among
about 150 people from several organizations rallying outside the
building at 450 Golden Gate Ave. to protest the war and support 1st Lt.
Ehren Watada. After lying down in front of the entrances, they were
arrested and cited for failing to comply with police orders to disperse,
said Stella Meyerhof, an area commander with the Federal Protective
Service.

Watada, 28, the first commissioned U.S. officer to publicly refuse
deployment to Iraq, had a preliminary hearing Thursday at Fort Lewis, Wash., for his upcoming court-martial, which is scheduled for Feb. 5 at
the same base.

He is charged with missing a troop movement, for failing to accompany
his armored infantry unit to the Middle East in June, and with four
counts of conduct unbecoming an officer, for criticizing the war and
President Bush in press interviews and public statements. The charges
are punishable by six years in prison.

Watada's lawyer, Eric Seitz, asked a military judge to dismiss the
charges based on his client's statements, arguing that they were
protected by freedom of speech. Seitz's office said the judge did not
rule on the issue at Thursday's hearing.

(c)2007 San Francisco Chronicle

Donations can be sent to the Baltimore Nonviolence Center, 325 E. 25th
St ., Baltimore, MD 21218. Ph: 410-366-1637; Email: mobuszewski [at]
verizon.net 

"The master class has always declared the wars; the subject class has
always fought the battles. The master class has had all to gain and
nothing to lose, while the subject class has had nothing to gain and
everything to lose--especially their lives." Eugene Victor Debs

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(1) Antiwar Protesters Ambush Democratic Leadership/28 arrested in <SPAN id=lw_1168354417_1 style="BACKGROUND: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; BORDER-BOTTOM: #0066cc 1px dashed">San Francisco</SPAN><BR><BR>Ambush At Democrat Pass<BR>By Alec Dubro<BR>January 3, 2007, TomPaine.common sense <BR><BR><A href="http://www.tompaine.com/articles/2007/01/03/ambush_at_democrat_pass.php" target=_blank rel=nofollow><FONT color=#003399>http://www.tompaine .com/articles/ 2007/01/03/ ambush_at_ democrat_ pass.php</FONT></A><BR>&lt;<A href="http://www.tompaine.com/articles/2007/01/03/ambush_at_democrat_pass.php" target=_blank rel=nofollow><FONT color=#003399>http://www.tompaine .com/articles/ 2007/01/03/ ambush_at_ democrat_ pass.php</FONT></A><BR>&gt; <BR><BR>Chaos. That's what one reporter called it after the House Democratic<BR>leadership fled the media stakeout outside the<BR>Caucus Room. TV crews with no one to focus on. Angry reporters. Jubilant<BR>protesters. Briefing postponed
 until sometime.<BR><BR>It was meant to be a sober display of the new responsible Democratic<BR>power, a reading of the "100 Hours Agenda," a<BR>political moment in the limelight before the inevitable conflicts began<BR>in the actual legislative process.<BR><BR>It certainly seemed like the presentation would unfold as planned.<BR>Fashionably late, Rahm Emanuel and Steny Hoyer<BR>appeared confidently before the microphones massed under Cannon House<BR>Office rotunda. They faced a dozen live TV<BR>cameras and a hundred domestic and foreign reporters.<BR><BR>Emanuel, looking as smooth and rich as a polished cordovan loafer, took<BR>the stage and a hush fell. He said all the right<BR>things: 'move in a new direction,' 'changing the relationship between<BR>lobbyist and legislator,' 'take away gas subsidies,'<BR>'The People's House.' But he got no further than that.<BR><BR>A chorus of voices began chanting 'de-escalate, investigate, bring the<BR>troops home' over and over. The
 actual chant time,<BR>carried out by no more than 15 or 20 people, lasted less than two<BR>minutes. By time it was over, though, the Democratic<BR>leadership was gone. Back into the safety of the Caucus Room.<BR><BR>To the Dems and the reporters it seemed like more of a bushwhack than a<BR>media stakeout. But when Cindy Sheehan shows<BR>up accompanied by Code Pink women and men without ties or briefcases,<BR>it's likely that something is afoot.<BR><BR>Prior to the Emanuel-Stoyer show, Sheehan had drifted through the crowd.<BR>She told TomPaine that she was there to show<BR>support for her new Peace Surge, a hoped-for and probably<BR>phantasmagorical withdrawal of troops, rather than the troop<BR>surge Bush is planning.<BR><BR>Her cohorts were not entirely pleased with their earlier reception.<BR>According to anti-war activist David Swanson, they<BR>had been stopped at the building entrance by the Capitol Police, who had<BR>been distressed to find them laden with
 leaflets.<BR><BR>'There were 50 or 60 of us,' Swanson said, 'and we came to talk to House<BR>members. The police told us that since 9-11, the<BR>bringing of leaflets is forbidden.' The only way to distribute them,<BR>police said, was to use a Pitney-Bowes delivery service. <BR><BR>'They've outsourced access to Congress,' he fumed.<BR><BR>What really got the police was the content of the flyers. 'One cop told<BR>another,' said Swanson, "This is against the war.<BR>They can't bring this in." "We wouldn't budge and worked our way up to<BR>a captain. In the end, they reversed the policy, and<BR>we handed out the leaflets."<BR><BR>Accompanying Swanson was Candy Anderson of <SPAN id=lw_1168354417_2 style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #0066cc 1px dashed">Sacramento</SPAN>, a member of Gold<BR>Star Families for Peace . It was her first trip<BR>to the Capitol, and she meant to 'meet as many members of Congress as<BR>[she] can.' She was asking for more than just a<BR>cessation of the war; she
 wanted reparations for the bereaved American<BR>families and money to rebuild <SPAN id=lw_1168354417_3 style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #0066cc 1px dashed">Iraq</SPAN>.<BR><BR>Candy Anderson had none of the powerful glow of a Rahm Emanuel or a<BR>Nancy Pelosi. She said she had been 'humble' in<BR>congressional offices. She wasn't sure how things worked.<BR><BR>But in the end, it was Anderson's message that got heard, not the<BR>prefabricated points which conspicuously avoid any mention<BR>of ending the war. The 100 Hours agenda is a good one, a needed one. But<BR>America's most burning issue has not died out.<BR>Today it flamed up in the People's House. The Democrats may have to face<BR><SPAN id=lw_1168354417_4 style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #0066cc 1px dashed">Iraq</SPAN> sooner than they hoped. <BR><BR>(2) 28 are arrested at courthouse protest<BR>By Bob Egelko<BR>&lt;<A href="http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2007/01/05/BAGLHNDE4J1." target=_blank rel=nofollow><FONT
 color=#003399>http://sfgate. com/cgi-bin/ article.cgi? file=/c/a/ 2007/01/05/ BAGLHNDE4J1.</FONT></A><BR>DTL&gt;<BR>&lt;<A href="http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2007/01/05/BAGLHNDE4J1." target=_blank rel=nofollow><FONT color=#003399>http://sfgate. com/cgi-bin/ article.cgi? file=/c/a/ 2007/01/05/ BAGLHNDE4J1.</FONT></A><BR>DTL%3e&gt; ;<BR><SPAN id=lw_1168354417_5 style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #0066cc 1px dashed">San Francisco</SPAN> Chronicle<BR>January 5, 2007<BR><BR>Twenty-eight opponents of the <SPAN id=lw_1168354417_6 style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #0066cc 1px dashed">Iraq</SPAN> war were arrested after blocking<BR>entrances of the <SPAN id=lw_1168354417_7 style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #0066cc 1px dashed">San Francisco</SPAN> federal courthouse Thursday during a<BR>demonstration in support of an Army officer who refused to go to <SPAN id=lw_1168354417_8 style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #0066cc 1px dashed">Iraq</SPAN>,<BR>police said.<BR><BR>The demonstrators, from a group called
 Declaration for Peace, were among<BR>about 150 people from several organizations rallying outside the<BR>building at 450 Golden Gate Ave. to protest the war and support 1st Lt.<BR>Ehren Watada. After lying down in front of the entrances, they were<BR>arrested and cited for failing to comply with police orders to disperse,<BR>said Stella Meyerhof, an area commander with the Federal Protective<BR>Service.<BR><BR>Watada, 28, the first commissioned U.S. officer to publicly refuse<BR>deployment to <SPAN id=lw_1168354417_9 style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #0066cc 1px dashed">Iraq</SPAN>, had a preliminary hearing Thursday at <SPAN id=lw_1168354417_10 style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #0066cc 1px dashed">Fort Lewis, Wash</SPAN>., for his upcoming court-martial, which is scheduled for Feb. 5 at<BR>the same base.<BR><BR>He is charged with missing a troop movement, for failing to accompany<BR>his armored infantry unit to the <SPAN id=lw_1168354417_11 style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #0066cc 1px dashed">Middle
 East</SPAN> in June, and with four<BR>counts of conduct unbecoming an officer, for criticizing the war and<BR>President Bush in press interviews and public statements. The charges<BR>are punishable by six years in prison.<BR><BR>Watada's lawyer, Eric Seitz, asked a military judge to dismiss the<BR>charges based on his client's statements, arguing that they were<BR>protected by freedom of speech. Seitz's office said the judge did not<BR>rule on the issue at Thursday's hearing.<BR><BR>(c)2007 <SPAN id=lw_1168354417_12 style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #0066cc 1px dashed">San Francisco</SPAN> Chronicle<BR><BR>Donations can be sent to the <SPAN id=lw_1168354417_13 style="BACKGROUND: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; BORDER-BOTTOM: #0066cc 1px dashed">Baltimore</SPAN> Nonviolence Center, 325 E. 25th<BR>St ., <SPAN id=lw_1168354417_14 style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #0066cc 1px dashed">Baltimore, MD 21218</SPAN>. Ph: <SPAN id=lw_1168354417_15 style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #0066cc 1px
 dashed">410-366-1637</SPAN>; Email: mobuszewski [at]<BR>verizon.net <BR><BR>"The master class has always declared the wars; the subject class has<BR>always fought the battles. The master class has had all to gain and<BR>nothing to lose, while the subject class has had nothing to gain and<BR>everything to lose--especially their lives." Eugene Victor Debs<BR><BR>  <DIV class=ygrp-dateline>  <DIV class=offset><A href="http://us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ym/ShowLetter?MsgId=5026_12825938_2025846_2070_17039_0_130557_46590_3981703886&amp;Idx=1&amp;YY=38997&amp;y5beta=yes&amp;y5beta=yes&amp;inc=25&amp;order=down&amp;sort=date&amp;pos=0&amp;view=a&amp;head=b&amp;box=Inbox#toc" rel=nofollow><FONT color=#003399>Back to top </FONT></A></DIV><A href="http://us.f318.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=wholt@law.ua.edu&amp;Subj=Re%3ATwo%20articles%3A%20%20recent%20anitwar%20protests%20in%20DC%20and%20SF" target=_blank rel=nofollow><FONT color=#003399>Reply to <SPAN class=bld>sender</SPAN>
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