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The Party Police
The Democratic and Republican national conventions have passed, but controversy surrounds how they were funded and how they were run. Mass arrests of peaceful protesters, excessive police violence, wholesale disregard for the Bill of Rights and the targeting and arrest of journalists marred what should have been celebrations of democracy. The "host committees," the legal entities that organize and pay for the conventions, act as large party slush funds, outside of campaign-finance restrictions. Scores of major corporations (and a couple of unions), barred from giving unlimited funds to political parties, could give whatever they wanted to the host committees of Denver and St. Paul, Minn.
According to a recent article in National Underwriter magazine, "Both the Republican National Committee and Democratic National Committee refused to comment on their insurance purchasing decisions, or even reveal who was providing coverage for their respective conventions." Bruce Nestor, president of the Minnesota chapter of the National Lawyers Guild, who organized scores of legal observers around the Twin Cities to protect citizens' legal rights, told me: "St. Paul actually negotiated a special insurance provision with the Republican host committee so that the first $10 million in liability for lawsuits arising from the convention will be covered by the host committee. The city is very proud of this negotiation. It's the first time it's been negotiated between a city and the host committee. But it basically means we [the city] can commit wrongdoing, and we won't have to pay for it." According to the Minnesota Independent, more than 40 journalists were arrested or detained during the Republican National Convention.
Like what happened to "Democracy Now!" producer Nicole Salazar, videotaping protests in downtown St. Paul. She was violently forced to the ground, her nose bloodied, was held down with a man's knee or boot on her back, with another person pulling on her leg. Fellow producer Sharif Abdel Kouddous was thrown against a wall and kicked in the chest and back. The police might normally intervene and arrest the perpetrators. Except here, it was the police who were the assailants. And they arrested their victims. Arriving on the scene, I tried to have my colleagues freed, as we were all accredited journalists, and the police arrested me. And we were not the only ones.
As the mayors and police of St. Paul and Minneapolis patted each other on the back for a job well done, the nonprofit group FreePress, the head of the local chapter of the Newspaper Guild and other media advocates and reporters delivered more than 50,000 signatures to the mayor's office demanding that the charges against the journalists be dropped. We were met by St. Paul Deputy Mayor Ann Mulholland. Free Speech TV CEO Denis Moynihan asked about the Republican host committee indemnification of the city, "Isn't that just giving a $10 million ticket to the police to violate civil rights?" Mulholland countered, "We are very proud of that ... the $10 million was critical for our city. We would not have been able to host the convention otherwise."
The two major-party conventions have become protracted, expensive advertising spectacles for the presidential candidates. It makes sense that Democrats and Republicans would want to control the message. But democracy is not an advertisement, nor is it under the sole dominion of the two parties. People were engaged in Denver and St. Paul in a vast array of civic dialogue, public gatherings, marches, protests, concerts, art openings-in fact, there was more democracy happening outside the convention halls than inside them. The convention center names tell the story: It was the Pepsi Center in Denver, the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. Xcel, which pushes nuclear power, gave $1 million to each convention. Both top candidates support nuclear power as a viable option.
In Denver, but particularly in St. Paul, dissent was crushed with a massive array of paramilitarized police, operating under the U.S. Secret Service, granted jurisdiction over the "National Special Security Events" that the conventions have been dubbed. Corporations pay millions to the host committees, earning exclusive access to lawmakers and candidates. The host committees, in turn, unleash police on the public, all but guaranteeing injuries, unlawful arrests and expensive civil litigation for years to come. More than just a campaign-finance loophole that must be closed, this is a national disgrace.
Throughout the convention week, one of the 25 remaining typeset copies of the Declaration of Independence was on display at St. Paul City Hall-not far from where crowds were pepper-sprayed, clubbed, tear-gassed and attacked by police with concussion grenades. As the clouds clear, it is instructive to remember the words of one of the Declaration's signers, Benjamin Franklin:
"They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."
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76 Comments so far
Show AllI wonder if it is legal for a municipal police force to be privatized as happened in St. Paul...I wasn't there so I don't have grounds to sue but I hope someone pursues this question. 3500 mercenaries were brought in and we see what happened.
If there's one thing Bush/Cheney learned, it's that if you can privatize the military, you can privatize just about everything from the way everything's turned out these last 8 years.
A cop is not a government representative, nor are they subject to martial law. They are private civilians (i.e. subject to civilian law) working for money. The only difference between a government employee and a private contractor is labor law, pensions, seniority rules, and the like.
"They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."
Amy's quote of Benjamin Franklin is a very timely one. The videos I saw showed a few protestors out of line in both Denver and St. Paul, but in looking at all the tapes available I have little doubt that the police were over reactive and out of line.
The presence was intrusive at times and they obviously reacted badly to the threats made before the conventions. They owe everyone an apology.
For seven years, our freedoms and eventually the Constitution were trashed. And yet, even the puppet reports confirm that America is no more safer from terrorist attacks than 7 years ago. Homeland security is a total joke. Ben Franklin must have sensed something in his time. Not sure what it was though.
There is also a story that someone stopped him outside the building where they ratified the Constitution and asked him, "well what kind of government did we get?" To which he answered a democratic republic IF WE CAN KEEP IT."
We haven't done too good a job of keeping it lately, have we?
BTW Amy Goodman is one of the few American heroes left IMO, listening to the podcast of Democracy Now! democracynow.org everyday at work is the only thing that keeps me sane.
It's best, in my view, to have no heroes. They usually disappoint. And it's critical thinking that's needed. If you set someone up as a hero, and he or she sells his or her soul, Will you be so quick to denounce that person? Setting that person up as a hero has now made it harder for you to do the right thing here.
Often, Those who some would like to idolize in that way are repulsed by it and they try to discourage it. Chomsky comes to mind in that regard. It's just not a good idea. At the same time, We need good examples. Pointing out progressives who are good examples is just something that needs to be done carefully.
I don't mean hero in the sense neo-cons use it regarding McCain i.e. worship me for my "heroism", but rather someone whose actions have been so consistent and courageous that they inspire us to take our own actions. And yes you are quite right that truly good people don't want hero worship which is what the Buddha meant when he said "if you see me in the middle of the road kill me." Not to be taken literally of course but kill the idea of leadership, slavish following, and hierarchy. The best "heroes" IMO are people who instead of telling us what to do inspire us by their doing what they do without needing to tell us anything except the truth about the world.
"Corporations pay millions to the host committees, earning exclusive access to lawmakers and candidates. The host committees, in turn, unleash police on the public, all but guaranteeing injuries, unlawful arrests and expensive civil litigation for years to come. More than just a campaign-finance loophole that must be closed, this is a national disgrace."
I forgot to say, this is the most important point of the article in my opinion, Amy is correct.
It can be deceptive, sometimes the few “out of line” are just using the demonstration to vandalize and steal, and sometimes they are police disguised as vandals.
I’m really pessimistic about America’s democratic future. I haven’t detected much outcry over the “pre-crime” raids, police without id, arrest of accredited journalists, is there any outcry?
I know I pick on Obama but his silence tells me that you folks are in for more of the same either way. I think you as a society have to decide whether you want police that protect and serve the community or bamboo stick wielding goons that crush dissent.
Don't get too pessimistic, we have plenty of problems, plenty....but change is coming, its coming from the local politics and state politics. It will filter to the federal level soon enough.
It took us 30 years for these pol's to get us into this mess (while we weren't paying attention) and it won't be tomorrow when we get out.
Living within our means is the first order of business. Obama or McCain? Who knows? Regardless of the stuff about Bush's 3rd term, McCain is not a Bush clone. Obama? I really just don't know. But its congress that we need to fix first in my opinion.
Restoring the police to their proper function won't be that hard...I think. But other things need to be sorted out first.
"Restoring the police to their proper function won't be that hard...I think."
They were hired to do their job which was to smack the protestors unfortunately. Those who didn't obey would either be replaced immediately or punished big time. The parties and the corporate sponsors control them.
"Restoring the police to their proper function won't be that hard...I think."
Oh? Do you think they are just going to turn in all their shiny new military gear and say gosh sorry, won't happen again? This police state thing has been going for decades now under bother parties, Chicago Democratic Convention 68' ring a bell? How about WTO Seattle 99' How about FTAA Miami, etc. Now the cops in big cities quite literally have armoured personal carriers and "fusion centers" where the heavy Federal cops coordinate and give orders down to the now paramilitary local cops. You'd very naive to think that's suddenly going to reverse itself, it's rather going to require intense dissent from both the hard direct action activist left and Constitution loving Libertarian/paleo con right.
I don't think he's saying that it'll be quick. However, there are underlying issues to take care of and the police stuff looks more like a symptom than the problem itself.
As for protesting, I don't think that it's enough to fly to DC or do it on a special event like a convention. I would recommend going local and reaching out to people in your area also fed up with the war and building friendships and social meetings needed to discuss ways to convince others and rethink the Iraq issue in a whole new light. The more people you can meet and bring, the more there is to to the same and multiply support against the war. Eventually, people can take it up with their Congress people and when he or she faces thousands of his or her constituents questioning the war, they'll be forced to listen and put the monied elites aside. The more districts do it and even unite it all the way to state level, the better a coalition in Congress and Senate against continuing the war will grow. Eventually, we will have a invincible Congress that can SHUT DOWN this war/occupation in Iraq and repair the country's infrastructure.
jlocke123,
You must not live in the USA or you wouldn't say things like "you folks" and "you as a society." The thing is, it's "we folks" and "we as a society."
As much as I hate to admit it sometimes, we're all in the same boat.
I don't know about the outcry jlocke, but I'm hoping that folks noticed. We play a part in that. By noticing the injustice and criminal behavior and talking about it, among ourselves, and to a more limited extent, to others when the opportunity arises, we keep, firstly, the facts and story visible for those looking in our direction. Caring persons who receive that info (noticing, 'because' they care) through us might not cry out, but that doesn't mean that when the time and place is right, they won't act helpfully. That may mean that they simply, in their own way, will choose to disagree with someone about a course of action or about a conclusion drawn, in effect, crying out. When someone disagrees with you about the need to allow police to break the law, What you will notice is not how loud they disagreed with you. It's the fact that they disagreed with you that will get your attention.
I don't think there are enough caring people out there to make the kind of difference we want. But I do think there are some caring people out there and that it's important for us to reach them.
A lot of these companies simultaneously whine about employees demanding a payraise even when they deserve it. Yeah, waste millions on conventions and lobbies and screw the employees. Talk about giving employees the middle finger.
Good point...no doubt that Corporate America needs to be brought to heel. We need to give them a bit of digititus back.
About Corporate America, there used to be more good corporations until Wall $treet found a way to put profits first ethics last and make it look "good". I've witnessed good corporations that pay well and even offer wonderful benefits face more IRS audits than the bad ones. And if that weren't enough, Wall $treet would try to pressure or even threaten the company to give up its ethics and even law abiding practices or face punishment from the stockholders. Good news though. Good corporations such as CostCo has amazingly withstood all this bullying from Wall $treet and Big Government. We need to learn from them and get good small businesses and corporations to counter the bad ones.
Agreed.
I believe you are correct. I have said it myself, but it is getting more and mroe bitter in my mouth. "The GOP is worse...". It's starting to sound like "our civil liberties are a 'little bit' dead"!
Republican and Democrat conventions are a complete waste of taxpayer money. There's no national convention for 3rd parties. Besides, if either of these parties were really worth shit, they wouldn't have to be propped up in the first place?
You are totally right on this! A despicable WASTE of taxpayer money. And all for the 2 parties for the Financially-Elite.
The MICC* has funneled Trillions of Tax dollars into the Department of War (the perversely named DOD). We need to demand that a minimum of 2% of the military budget fund our public media. Money matters.
*Military Industrial Congressional Complex
Eisenhower's term not mine.
Thanks Amy. Agree... although the title should read "The Party" police in my opinion. I can no longer find much to distinguish between the "the two". Perhaps once, but no longer.
Republican and Republican Lite use the same fascist tactics. It is just one corporate-fed controlling class who squabble to determine who will pocket the loot for the next four years... and use "voters" to enable and validate their criminality.
Both Obama-Biden and Palin-McCain are guilty and unworthy of leading this country.
This is one piece of toast I can enthusiastically butter up!
Here's the REAL party:
It's Time for some Campaigning
Namaste
thank you, thats a good laugh.
ROFL!
TVM N
YW S
Namaste
So the benchmark is $10 Million, which just one pepper-sprayed protester ought to demand in damages. It would be great if everyone suing the St. Paul government sought $10 Million in damages. That would send its own message to those who would sell out their city to the forces of reaction.
Many of us have said for several years that terrorists pose much less of a threat to us then locally hired and contracted "brownshirts" who will threaten, assult, imprison, and bully any of us who are thought not be be patriotic enough or have enough courage to voice our opposition to any of our government's criminal activities. Jack-booted thugs and hired-guns will now be on our streets to "protect us", apparently from democracy.
William John Cox
For accord, please see "RoboCops: Professional Policing of Political Protest" at
http://globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=10128
"In early September, hundreds of protesters in St. Paul were arrested outside the Republican National Convention by helmeted police officers wearing black uniforms and full body armor reminiscent of scenes from the 1987 movie, RoboCop featuring: "Part man. Part machine. All Cop. The future of law enforcement."
The Robocop in that movie actually fought for the people. The real world ones will be insensitive to being brutal to the people their supposed to be protecting. And who knows if they can be hacked? Now, that would be worse.
Global Research is an interesting, if not terribly polished, website. There's a particularly interesting article there somewhere about Ahmadinijad's threat to wipe Israel off the map. (He probably does feel that way, for which reason he apparently hasn't tried to argue that that's not what he said.) The author looks closely at the statement, the actual language used, the context, everything, and concludes that the Iranian leader's meaning was more along the lines of 'We won't rest until the Israeli government is changed'.
One of Global Research's principals, Michel Chossudovsky, is a Canadian economist and author of a book (among how many I don't know) called THE GLOBALISATION OF POVERTY. I recall some video footage of him talking somewhere and, after reading many of his excellent articles, was alarmed at how in this video he worked himself up to the point that, while he began his presentation rather calmly and straightfowardly, before he had finished he was in an agitated state and sort of shouting.
Our best examples are still imperfect. I recommend Global Research. I'll have to bookmark it myself. I am slowly but surely retreiving all my lost bookmarks, including this one, since re-installing windows on my pc. :-(
Hi Amy! What happenned to you in St Paul was a disgrace, but unfortunately that's America's 4th Reich mentality for you.
"Police" with no identification, Blackwater Nazis with no accountability, Impeachment "off the table", this is NOT what I gave 23 years of blood, sweat and tears to defend. Welcome to AmeriKKKa!
"...50,000 signatures to the mayor's office demanding that the charges against the journalists be dropped."
That's it? No demands for accountability? No demands for the arrests of all officers who violated the law and Constitution, and all politicians who ordered said unlawfulness? So the charges are dropped, so what? If the real, actual lawbreakers go unpunished, violent quashing of dissent and protest will only continue.
Not that this is new - back in 00, at the DNC in LA, we were herded into a cage surrounded with LAPD in full battle-rattle, with choppers dropping low whenever anyone tried to deliver a speech or a song. When the LAPD decided protest time was over, they opened fire with "non-lethal" weapons, forcing the crowd towards the ONE cage exit, which was being blocked by incoming cops on horseback. Lots of us, including women, children and journalists, were shot, trampled, and dragged... and nothing has changed... nor does it appear likely that it will in the near future...
the nakedness of their violence is evidence of their deperation. move now, citizens, or move never. sheehan: www.CindyforCongress.org .
I'm all for that, kloro. I hope Cindy boots Pelosi out of office! She has my support...and money.
Is there a kind of blurring when two parrallel themes are running through this, Amy?
The conventions were paid for by corporate donors. Were the police acting the same way in both places? You said they were more violent in St.Paul. Ques. What is the relationship between the political party, the convention and the police in each city?
How much control does each/either political party have of local police? How much was the involvement of the federal gov't in local policing a factor? This needs looking at, since I don't think it will get less in the future. (Regular listener to "DemocracyNow" from its first day, over Pacifica Network's WBAI 99.5FM)
I think the presence of Secret Service and the way they treated journalists gives some indication of the involvement level of the federal government. But when politicians get away with refusing to testify and withholding important documents, I wonder what the chances of getting a clear and honest answer are?
We've always been on the edge of a police state in this country- some administrations are just worse than others. The jailings and tortures of the Suffragettes trying to win women the right to vote. Japanese Americans thrown into concentration camps during WW II. The Civil Rights movement, with its beatings, fire hoses, Bull Connors, and deaths. Kent State and the Viet Nam War protests. The police riot at the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago. And on and on and on, examples too numerous to mention. Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose.
I don't think the Republican's are too worried. They have erected 800 prison camps, amassed a half million body bags, can anoint anyone as a terrorist that they choose, have private armies, trashed the Constitution and rendered it meaningless, have the full support of the Democratic Congress, Christian Religions, the Military, Corporations, and a majority of Americans. Have I left anything out?
ZORBA: As per "la meme chose," I'd say the domestic use of weapons have altered and these pose SEVERE threats. Some of us, over 50, could be tasered and that's it. Our lights (heart and its electric circuitry) just plain go out! And the surveillance technology makes it a lot easier for the thugs' fingers to "do the walking" when it comes to targeting "the local infidels." SCARY times... human nature has been thwarted, held back from evolving thanks to foci on war as heroism in films, brute force as worth emulating in sports, false appearances as indicative of celebrity in media, and religious figures advocating war and hatred against their fellow man/womankind... IF human nature had been nurtured in such a way as to advance in parallel with these technological inroads, the quote would hold more water.
Oh, as someone who was active in the Viet Nam War protests, I agree with you, Siouxrose. I was just trying to point out that the authorities have always found ways to harass, arrest, beat, torture, even kill those who don't happen to agree with them and try to protest (as is their Constitutional right) in order to make things better. It's just that the technology is now better ("better" being a relative word- not better for us, just them). If not tasers, then they kill with tear gas, bludgeons, guns, torture. Not to mention the methods used to execute so-called criminals, some of whom were innocent and just happened to be too poor, or too black, to receive proper legal representation. Surveillance technology is certainly more advanced, but J. Edgar Hoover (and, I'm sure, others before and after) illegally wiretapped people all the time. I am opposed to war, and opposed to the death penalty. I often despair for this country, because I don't see things getting any better, just worse. They certainly do not try to nurture human nature. We are lied to and saturated with propaganda to the extent that far too many people believe the garbage that is spewed by officialdom. The technology has changed, but the response of authorities has remained oppressive. Those in power seem to want to remain in power at any cost.
Amy Goodman should email this article to Norman Soloman. He was at the DNC and seemed oblivious that this even occurred. He certainly didn't feel it was worth mentioning in his coverage here on CD. At the time, he was too enraptured by Obama's "campaign against racism". But that's the type of bias you get when you choose a delegate to cover their own convention.
I watched the PDA live from Denver. I was totally amazed. Here was Hayden--of SDS askingif protest was "relevant in the age of Obama". They censored the chats. It was just ridiculous. I have admired most of these peple all of my life. It was a rude awakening.
Apparently Hayden has "evolved", and is now in sync with Obama's disdain for the political activism of the Sixties.
Another time-server heard from.
That's "devolved" or "sunk", Little Brother.