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Republican “Rally Squads” Used To Shout Down And ‘Corral’ Protesters, And Squash Dissenters

A strategy manual put together by the White House reveals a detailed set of guidelines on how to marginalise, discredit and isolate Americans exercising their democratic rights to dissent against President Bush, during his public appearances and fund-raising rallies.

The same White House manual also details how local organizers of Bush’s public appearances should carefully screen each and every ticket holder, so not one person opposed to the president’s policies, on anything, gets within eyesight of the president.

That the White House would formulate such strategies, to essentially keep anti-Bush protesters out of his eyesight and away from the media, during his public appearances, should come as no surprise to the 70% of Americans who are now opposed to their own president, and the millions who want to make him aware of their displeasure.

But what is surprising, and downright disgusting, about the revelations from the White House manual, is that it also explains how local pro-Bush organisers can create fake support for the president, and organize rally squads to round up, “drown out”, any and all protesters.

In short, Bush’s own White House has a systematic, and years old, program to create a fake reality : that is shows of support for President Bush, through crowds of chanters, sign wavers and cheerers, where little or none genuine non-Republican lackey support actually exists, and to keep away Americans wanting to express real, passionate opinions to their elected leader.

The revelations from the White House manual also unleash a host of troubling questions :

How often does the White House help state Republican and conservative groups to organise shows of support for the president where little local support actually exists?

How many of those “USA! USA! USA!” crowds that show up at anti-war protests, waving American flags and demanding that protesters shut the fuck up and support the troops are nothing more than hired actors, or ring-ins?

How long has the mainstream media been aware that the White House creates fake public shows and rallies of support for the president, and his War On Iraq policies, and why do they so often fill stories with images of supposedly patriotic Americans who may be nothing more than fakes?

This article from the Washington Post also reveals White House strategies on carefully screening audience members at Bush public appearances to make sure absolutely no protesters, or even silent dissenters, get within a mile of the president :

…any event must be open only to those with tickets tightly controlled by organizers. Those entering must be screened in case they are hiding secret signs. Any anti-Bush demonstrators who manage to get in anyway should be shouted down by “rally squads” stationed in strategic locations. And if that does not work, they should be thrown out.

….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.”

The manual demonstrates “that the White House has a policy of excluding and/or attempting to squelch dissenting viewpoints from presidential events,” said ACLU lawyer Jonathan Miller. “Individuals should have the right to express their opinion to the president, even if it’s not a favorable one.”

The manual offers advance staffers and volunteers who help set up presidential events guidelines for assembling crowds. Those invited into a VIP section on or near the stage, for instance, must be ” extremely supportive of the Administration,” it says. While the Secret Service screens audiences only for possible threats, the manual says, volunteers should examine people before they reach security checkpoints and look out for signs. Make sure to look for “folded cloth signs,” it advises.

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.” Squads should be placed in strategic locations and “at least one squad should be ‘roaming’ throughout the perimeter of the event to look for potential problems,” the manual says.

“These squads should be instructed always to look for demonstrators,” it says. “The rally squad’s task is to use their signs and banners as shields between the demonstrators 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.”

“If it is determined that the media will not see or hear (protesters) 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.”

The manual adds in bold type: “Remember — avoid physical contact with demonstrators! Most often, the demonstrators want a physical confrontation. Do not fall into their trap!”

Some trap.

Could Bush’s public appearances be any more stage-managed? Crowds screened for dissenters, fake rallies of support, “shout down” roaming squads of anti-dissenters on the hunt for fellow Americans angry at the Iraq War, and police corrals for protesters.

The White House, and Republicans, spend an awful amount of time and money creating a fake reality for President Bush.

No wonder he believes that many Americans still support his policies. If he looks around at huge crowds at public events and fundraisers and sees nothing but cheering support, then it would have been very easy for the likes of Karl Rove to convince him that public dissent was of no great consequence and merely the opinions of a rare few, instead of the reality that is the hundreds of millions of Americans (70%) now vastly opposed to his administration.

The Last Days Of President Bush