Trio Removed From Bush Social Security Town Hall Over Bumper Sticker

[Chip R]

Originally Posted by CbusRed

Of course they could, but I cant see any situation as to where they would knowingly abuse their power like that.

Why not?

[westofyou]

Originally Posted by pedro

I didn't say it wasn't someone who worked for Bush.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...2005Mar29.html

Initially, the three believed Secret Service agents had grabbed them and ushered them out of the auditorium, Recht said. But he said that Lon Garner, the Secret Service agent in charge of the Denver office, told them the service investigated the matter and found it was a "Republican staffer" who removed them because they had a "No More Blood for Oil" bumper sticker on their car.

Scott McClellan, Bush's press secretary, said it was a volunteer who asked them to leave "out of concern they might try to disrupt the event." He said the White House welcomes a variety of voices into events but discourages people from coming to heckle the president or disrupt town hall forums. "If someone is coming to try to disrupt it, then obviously that person would be asked to leave," he said. "There is plenty of opportunity outside of the event to express their views."

[CbusRed]

Originally Posted by pedro

I didn't say it wasn't someone who worked for Bush.

Ok, so lets all just speculate as to who it was that did it

[CbusRed]

Originally Posted by Chip R

Why not?

For the reason I asked before, why would bush kick innocent people out of events, knowing that it would get out into the media, and come back and bite him in the ass?

He has better things to do... trust me.

[Redsfaithful]

This isn't the full text of the article btw.

http://www.kctv.com/Global/story.asp?S=3136534

President Bush has visited at least 17 states since the State of the Union to gain support for his plan, meeting with people who are generally supportive.

Some people who have stood up to disrupt Bush while he was talking have been removed. But a group called Americans United to Protect Social Security said there have been at least two additional instances where people who have done nothing wrong have been removed or barred from a Bush event beforehand.

One instance happened in February in Fargo North Dakota, where a "black list" of people banned from getting tickets was obtained and published by the Forum of Fargo-Moorhead. The White House and the Republican Party denied such a list existed and Gov. John Hoeven's staff said nobody was denied tickets.

Brad Woodhouse, a spokesman for Americans United, called the Denver example the most egregious violation.

The entire thing is at the link, it includes a few more details.

This is from the people involved:

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/3/29/113651/512

Very rarely does the everyday public get a glimpse of what happens behind the scenes in a normally-secret Bush Administration.

But Monday, March 28, the Secret Service called three everyday people into their offices to discuss why we were kicked out of a presidential event in Denver last week where Bush promoted his plan to privatize Social Security. What they revealed to us and our lawyer was fascinating.

There we were - three people who had personally picked up tickets from Republican Congressman Bob Beauprez's office and went to a presidential event. But as we entered, we were told that we had been "ID'ed" and were warned that any disruption would get us arrested.

After being seated in the audience we were forcibly removed before the President arrived, even though we had not been disruptive. We were shocked when told that this presidential event was a "private event" and were commanded to leave.

More astonishingly, when the Secret Service was contacted the next day they agreed to meet with us this Monday, March 28 to discuss the circumstances surrounding our removal. We had two big questions going into this meeting:

1. How is the Bush Administration "ID'ing" citizens before presidential events?

2. Why was an official taxpayer-funded event called a "private event" - leading to citizens being kicked out?

Most shocking of all, we got answers to both questions.

The Secret Service revealed that we were "ID'ed" when local Republican staffers saw a bumper sticker on the car we drove which said "No More Blood For Oil." Evidently, the free speech expressed on one bumper sticker is cause enough to eject three citizens from a presidential event. (Similarly, someone was ejected from Bush's Social Security privatization event in Arizona the same day simply for wearing a Democratic t-shirt.)

The Secret Service also revealed that ticket distribution and staffing of the Social Security event was run by the local Republican Party. They wanted us to be clear that it was a Republican staffer - not the Secret Service - who kicked us out of the presidential event. But this revealed something else that should be startling to all Americans.

After allowing taxpayers to finance his privatization events (let's call them what they really are after all,) and after using the White House communications apparatus to set them up, Bush is privatizing the ticket distribution and security staffing at his events to the Republican Party. The losers are not just taxpayers, but anyone who values the First Amendment. Under the banner of a "private event" the Republican Party is excluding citizens from seeing their president because of the lone sin of expressing the wrong idea on a bumper sticker or t-shirt. The question for Americans is - will we allow our freedom to be privatized?

Karen Bauer, Leslie Weise. Alexander Young
Denver residents

[DunnersGrl44]

Originally Posted by CbusRed

Ok, so lets all just speculate as to who it was that did it, since we all dont know!!

AND..... here we go again

[Redsfaithful]

Originally Posted by CbusRed

Ok, so lets all just speculate as to who it was that did it, since we all dont know!! SOUNDS LIKE A PLAN!!

Actually, I think it was a john kerry supporter that was acting like a Bush agent, and he kicked these guys out because he wanted to get Bush in trouble!! hahahahahaha those silly libs.

gO pOLITICAL tHREADZ!!!!!!111

That, placed right under WOY's quote of the Washington Post invalidating pretty much everything you're saying, is priceless.

[westofyou]

Originally Posted by CbusRed

For the reason I asked before, why would bush kick innocent people out of events, knowing that it would get out into the media, and come back and bite him in the ass?

He has better things to do... trust me.

Yeah I trust you and your infinite wisdom... was this your first or second election?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...2005Mar29.html

This is not the first time people have complained about heavy-handed monitoring of who can attend -- and speak at -- Bush's events promoting his Social Security plan. A newspaper in Fargo, N.D., reported that when Bush came to the city on Feb. 3, more than 40 residents were barred from attending the event.

The president has held Social Security rallies in more than a dozen states this year. The crowds are closely monitored for possible disruptions, and protesters are quickly escorted away.

Protesters often stand out because the crowds are packed with Bush supporters, who have been invited by a local GOP House member or organization. Those onstage at most of the town hall meetings are carefully screened people from the area who agree with the president's Social Security proposal. The participants typically rehearse what they will say with members of the president's advance team and rarely, if ever, say anything critical about his plan for private accounts.

[pedro]

Originally Posted by CbusRed

He has better things to do... trust me.

apparently the people that work for him don't.

basically this is analogous to removing you from Redszone because you might become disruptive.

oh wait.....

[CbusRed]

a "republican staffer" could be anything from a senior advisor to a telemarketer. Hell, I guess you could say I am a republican staffer, I worked at 4 different Bush events last year.

so again. I guarantee this guy wasnt under direct order from the president to do this, so what is the issue?

[Redsfaithful]

Keep backtracking Cbus.

[CbusRed]

Originally Posted by Redsfaithful

Keep backtracking Cbus.

Im not backtracking, I just dont understand the senseless whining.

[westofyou]

Originally Posted by CbusRed

Im not backtracking, I just dont understand the senseless whining.

It's only to drown out the senseless blathering.

[Redsfaithful]

Great thread.

[Redsfaithful]

edited: Looks like the comment I was referring to has been deleted.