The Party Police - by Amy Goodman

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bigron:
Published on Thursday, September 11, 2008 by TruthDig.com

The Party Police

by Amy Goodman

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."

© 2008 Amy Goodman
Amy Goodman is the host of "Democracy Now! [1]," a daily international TV/radio news hour airing on more than 700 stations in North America.

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Article printed from www.CommonDreams.org

URL to article: http://www.commondreams.org/view/2008/09/11-10

Overgrown:
what bs loophole makes it so the ones who were arrested cant sue the local gov for breach of constitution and kid knapping? false imprisonment. etc.

Like Alex was kidknapped by Bush. Thats a felony isnt it? Caught on video as evidence. all for asking a question.

this whole thing and the prevoius conventons have been our conditioning, it worked apparently. every one accepts that they should be arrested because they believe the media that they deserve it somehow. for invoking their freedom of speech and right to protest peacefully. Demonizing anyone who protests.

This is beyond my capacity. it pisses me off every time i think about them getting away with it like it happened for the first time and I keep waiting for the poeple to revolt. but they dont. they sit like rocks on their couch and probably peek out the window to see what they can tell on their neighbor about it.

We have a lot of work to do poeple. the masses are more brainwashed than you might think. I was on the side of the enemy for a couple years. I hated it, (long story), but after a few months, it just became ...my job. I was becomeing conditioned! it can happen to anyone. I was stupid for taking that job, but it just confirmed EVERYTHING i was paranoid about from guvs. It wasnt until a few ppl called me out and told me what I would have told me..."Youre unamerican, this goes against the constution, you dont have the right"!! A few, I never turned in the paper work. But, i can see how the gub workers get into it. ya just do. as aganst it as you can be.

I DONT see how the poeple can get conditioned long term though into thinking its ok to break the constitution! I ranted the whole community out anonamously on a forum and called them all nazi commie tattle tales who love their cookie cutter homes, and only about 3% agreed. The rest, even a couple from CASTRO cuba told me I didnt know what i was talking about. They could not see the similarities at all in telling on neighbors. Theyre brain DEAD! I was 100% right. Now we hear plans that theyre getting ppl to do this on purpose. We really need to stop code enfocement. This is a HUGE EVIL that is making a doorway for the biggest government invasion in grass roots. It has everything to do with conditioning ppl to tell on each other and accept things like the constitution getting ripped like those who were arrested at BOTH conventions... illegally.

I wonder if this will ever end or just get so bad, it will be worse than nazi germny. even if they knew the truth about 911, i wonder if it would change anythng for some. hardheads.

Cruise4:
"This is where the lines of freedom can get real blurry"

Not to me. I want Police gone. They are useless unneeded scum that protect the criminal system and those that run it. It's like saying mob enforcers are necessary because then my business isn't burnt down. Any supposed good that comes from these people is vastly outweighed by the bad. I'd rather have the criminals, and I'd rather have the terrorists... but of course we won't because most of them are police and government officials in some capacity. Total filth!

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