White House Manual Details How to Deal With Protesters

By Peter Baker
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, August 22, 2007; A02

Not that they're worried or anything. But the White House evidently leaves little to chance when it comes to protests within eyesight of the president. As in, it doesn't want any.

A White House manual that came to light recently gives presidential advance staffers extensive instructions in the art of "deterring potential protestors" from President Bush's public appearances around the country.

Among other things, 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.

But that does not mean the White House is against dissent -- just so long as the president does not see it. In fact, 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."

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."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/21/AR2007082101662_pf.html

- Deterring Protestors
- Rally Squads (consisting of spineless chickenhawks)
- designating protest areas
- shielding political leaders from the message of dissenters
- Removing demonstrators

The Land of the Free brought to you by today's christian conservative republicans.

Our men and women in uniform are dying for rally squads??

but late one night, on his own, alone with no SS, he left the White House and walked to the Lincoln Memorial and met with some protestors. Can you imagine Chucklenuts even dreaming about doing something like this?

Nixon is a friggin leftie compared to the presidents we have had since. Odd, that.

and the Vietnam War experience never again to allow the people of the United States to witness protest against Presidential policies. They see those years as big mistakes and tightened the noose on public assemblies of protest as well as television news coverage of war (never show suffering American soldiers in the field---how long has it been since we've seen Life magazine type images for all of America to see).

:mad:

There was no internet in those days. The truth has been getting out whether the Bush regime likes it or not.

This is true and heartening. Still, for all those people who like to get their news passively, it would be better if TV was as uncompromising as it used to be. I miss the very pointed questions at news conferences too.

During the reign of Catherine the Great, whenever she traveled, and advance squad would arrange for gatherings of "supporters" at every stop, and you can be sure that dissenters were nowhere in sight. * is supposed to hold a degree in history, right? Sheesh. :banghead: