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Arrest as an Image Management Tool

By TChris, Section Civil Liberties
Posted on Sat Jul 22, 2006 at 11:01:09 AM EST
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by TChris

Had these folks been wielding signs that supported the president, do you suppose they would have been arrested?

Christine Nelson showed up at the Cedar Rapids rally with a Kerry-Edwards button pinned on her T-shirt; Alice McCabe clutched a small, paper sign stating "No More War." What could be more American, they thought, than mixing a little dissent with the bunting and buzz of a get-out-the-vote rally headlined by the president?

Their reward: a pair of handcuffs and a strip search at the county jail.

Authorities say they were arrested because they refused to obey reasonable security restrictions, but the women disagree: "Because I had a dissenting opinion, they did what they needed to do to get me out of the way," said Nelson, who teaches history and government at one of this city's middle schools.

Suppressing dissent has become the standard practice during Bush's presidency.

In the months before the 2004 election, dozens of people across the nation were banished from or arrested at Bush political rallies, some for heckling the president, others simply for holding signs or wearing clothing that expressed opposition to the war and administration policies.

Similar things have happened at official, taxpayer-funded, presidential visits, before and after the election. Some targeted by security have been escorted from events, while others have been arrested and charged with misdemeanors that were later dropped by local prosecutors.

Be sure to read the linked article to learn how arrests are just another tool of Republican image management.

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    Arrest as an Image Management Tool | 40 comments (40 topical)
    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#1)
    by Ernesto Del Mundo on Sat Jul 22, 2006 at 12:10:05 PM EST
    Come on wingnuts, defend this crap and show us your true colors. As in brownshirts, totally UN-American and a stain on the red, white and blue.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#2)
    by Peter G on Sat Jul 22, 2006 at 12:13:11 PM EST
    TChris - the linked AP story doesn't say when this particulary incident with the two schoolteachers in Cedar Rapids happened, or how it all turned out. Was it during the 2004 campaign? Or is this a current, 2006 campaign story that hearkens back to the abusive strategies of 2004, pointing out that nothing has changed? The story is so badly edited that I can't tell. Do you know any more about it?

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#3)
    by Peter G on Sat Jul 22, 2006 at 12:17:04 PM EST
    Ok, I got it. The incident happened Sept. 3, 2004. This story says the teachers sued the Secret Service over their arrests in April 2005.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#4)
    by JSN on Sat Jul 22, 2006 at 12:41:58 PM EST
    It is an old story. My recollection was what the ladies did might result in a simple misdemeanor interference charge if the cop was in a very bad mood. On the other hand if someone horns in minor things like that can result in being jailed. I do not recall if the secret service horned in. The security for Bush speech was paranoid to the max. They had surrounded the building where he spoke with dump trucks and road graders and backhoes parked end to end. I think GWB would look pretty spiffy in an orange jump suit with Linn County Jail printed on the back.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#6)
    by aw on Sat Jul 22, 2006 at 01:33:09 PM EST
    Shorter wingnut response expected: Criticizing the president in a time of war gives aid and comfort to the terrorists and should be illegal. The fact that it isn't illegal is of no concern to us.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#7)
    by rdandrea on Sat Jul 22, 2006 at 02:04:44 PM EST
    It *IS* illegal, isn't it? I mean it's been illegal under this President, it was illegal during the Nixonian era, and I even remember some skulls being cracked at a certain Democratic convention in Chicago.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#8)
    by teacherken on Sat Jul 22, 2006 at 02:33:08 PM EST
    but AW, how can it be a time of war? Wasn't it "mission accomplished" on May 1, 2003? So if it is a time of war, then I guess Bush lied 3 years ago. Of course, I do not remember a Declaration of War, even with the republicans having both the House and the Senate. So officially it is not a war, is it? Oh, and I guess Teddy Roosevelt wasn't a Republican president, was he? After all, he is the one who taught us in 1918 (gee, that was during a War, wasn't it?):
    To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that we are to stand by the president, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public.
    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#9)
    by JSN on Sat Jul 22, 2006 at 04:55:09 PM EST
    The ladies were not a threat to their own safety or that of anyone else. In Johnson County they would have the option of being released by the jail staff on cash bond. I don't know if Sheriff Don Zeller has a similar policy in Linn County. If not they would have been detained until initial appearance the next day. Most likely they were released on their recognizance. I wonder why the magistrate did not dismiss the charges at initial appearance.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#10)
    by Sailor on Sat Jul 22, 2006 at 05:47:05 PM EST
    The strip search is especially troubling. w/o cause to suspect hidden weapons that is going way too far. I tihnk that battle has been fought and won before. It was obviously used as a weapon to humiliate them and discourage dissent.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#11)
    by JSN on Sat Jul 22, 2006 at 07:25:59 PM EST
    I have visited the Linn County Jail and it is a very professional operation. When a person is admitted they are searched they take a shower and are issued prison garb. Their property is placed in secure storage and they are detained in what are called fish bowls until initial appearance. For someone who has never been in jail before it must have been a humiliating experience. For a frequent flier it is pretty standard treatment.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#12)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sat Jul 22, 2006 at 09:51:53 PM EST
    teacherken - If you are a teacher and are unable to grasp that "mission" is singular, thus "mission accomplished" refers to the men and women aboard the aircraft carrier.... I feel for your students. et al - These things shouldn't happen, but they do. They are the result of security people who desperately don't want anything to go wrong on their watch, and have included arrests during Bubba's time, as well as Hillary's. In this instance I see nothing that refutes the charge of the police that they were uncooperative re security. That, boys and girls, will get you arrested everytime. If you don't like it, sorry.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#14)
    by bad Jim on Sat Jul 22, 2006 at 10:23:27 PM EST
    It's a free country, after all. Nobody has a right to wear a t-shirt wherever they want.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#15)
    by Johnny on Sat Jul 22, 2006 at 11:41:37 PM EST
    If you are a teacher and are unable to grasp that "mission" is singular, thus "mission accomplished" refers to the men and women aboard the aircraft carrier.... I feel for your students.
    LMFAO... I guess that depends on your definition of "is". Wow! You never cease to amaze me Jim!

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#16)
    by aw on Sun Jul 23, 2006 at 07:23:17 AM EST
    teacherken - If you are a teacher and are unable to grasp that "mission" is singular, thus "mission accomplished" refers to the men and women aboard the aircraft carrier.... I feel for your students.
    President Bush Announces Major Combat Operations in Iraq Have Ended Remarks by the President from the USS Abraham Lincoln At Sea Off the Coast of San Diego, California from the whitehouse

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#17)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sun Jul 23, 2006 at 08:00:14 AM EST
    aw - And they had. Your problem is that you are not capable of understanding the meaning of "major combat operations." No surprise there. bad jim - No shoes, no shirt, no service.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#18)
    by Sailor on Sun Jul 23, 2006 at 08:59:02 AM EST
    If major combat ops have ended then why have more americans and iraqis died in the last 12 months than during the war?

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#19)
    by squeaky on Sun Jul 23, 2006 at 10:06:40 AM EST
    PPJ is absouletly shameless in his relentness shilling for Bush.
    And they had. Your problem is that you are not capable of understanding the meaning of "major combat operations."
    OK Mr. Condesending Military expert, what does that mean? I will answer in lieu of an oft repeated quote:
    `When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, `it means just what I choose it to mean -- neither more nor less.' `The question is,' said Alice, `whether you can make words mean so many different things.' `The question is,' said Humpty Dumpty, `which is to be master -- that's all.'
    link You sure are no master here and for Bush, well he is as much a Master as Humpty Dumpty.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#20)
    by aw on Sun Jul 23, 2006 at 11:26:58 AM EST
    aw - And they had. Your problem is that you are not capable of understanding the meaning of "major combat operations."
    I'm very capable of understanding what photo ops and propaganda are. I'm also capable of remembering how Bushco had to backtrack on what the meaning of mission accomplished was till they settled on your talking point above (referring only to the carrier mission).

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#21)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sun Jul 23, 2006 at 12:17:08 PM EST
    Squeaky - So again we have someone who has no military experience whatsoever, except, perhaps demonstrating outside the front gate of a military base, explaining to the rest of us what Bush meant we said, "Mission Accomplished." Tell us again how you support the troops. sailor - Why don't you try looking up the word "major."

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#22)
    by squeaky on Sun Jul 23, 2006 at 12:40:23 PM EST
    OK ppj, ducking the question again. Here it is once again Mr. self proclaimed expert on military matters: What is the meaning of "major combat operations"? And for bonus points: How is that any different from what has been going on since Bush announced the end to "major combat operations."? We are all waiting to hear from you oh great military expert.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#23)
    by Bill Arnett on Sun Jul 23, 2006 at 01:22:25 PM EST
    PPJ again (and again and again) shows his arrogance and willful inability to grasp facts. For everyone here, don't fall for the inane straw man argument that Bush was referring only to the mission of the aircraft carrier when he clearly stated that "Major combat operations are over...and American has prevailed." (May not be exact quote, doesn't matter.) The point is that it was the idiot boy king Bush who stated "major combat operations are over...", which makes it crystal clear that either BUSH does not recognize a major combat operation or PPJ does not, and that it is totally unnecessary therefore for anyone else to have any understanding or definition of the phrase. That is also the most pitiful excuse for Bush lies on the internet, which shows you how much the participation of PPJ lowers the quality of debate and discussion here. Don't be suckered by or fall for his irrelevancies. He may think the people here are impressed by his lies defending his King; I think it merely confirms his utter shallowness, lack of clarity in thinking, and that he posts here because, unlike Armstrong Williams, he cannot obtain a paying job spreading Bush propaganda.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#24)
    by jondee on Sun Jul 23, 2006 at 02:08:52 PM EST
    I feel sorry for anyone that has to contort themselves into the kind of knot of disengenuity that expects people to buy that "mission accomplished" was refering to a successful ocean voyage.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#25)
    by Sailor on Sun Jul 23, 2006 at 07:03:25 PM EST
    ppj, why don't you try to stay on topic? this post is about bush arresting people for free speech. And you must be as stupid as you claim other are if you can't figure out more people dying is major compared to less people dying. bush locked folks up for wearing tshirts, having bumperstickers or presenting a petition. High crimes indeed.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#26)
    by Sailor on Sun Jul 23, 2006 at 07:21:33 PM EST
    Jondee, I don't feel sorry for them I feel pity ... but I still feel a lifeguard should say "you genes, out of the pool!"

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#27)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sun Jul 23, 2006 at 08:30:54 PM EST
    Alice and Christine are middle aged middle school teachers/counselors. They went with some friends of mine to the Bush event, with home-made little signs ("no blood for oil" etc) on little bits of cardboard. They'd never been to anything like this. The event was in a suburban part of town, little sidewalks, nowhere to park. I used to go ice skating in the park by the school -- it was bizarre: Cars parked on the road, lots of activity, and makeshift cordons with heavy equipment. No one had EVER seen anything like that mobilization of command in our little town, not for any primary, or any other presidential visit. When they got there, the police were very aggressive, and said "you can't walk here/stand here, etc.", so they asked "where can we go, then? We've come to see the event..." the normal sort of conversation you have with your local police, at a football game, etc. No shouting, just rather startled puzzlement about the heavy security. HOWEVER, the police got extremely aggressive, told them they couldn't stand ON the sidewalk or OFF the sidewalk, overreacted, arrested them without ANY provocation etc. My friends saw the whole thing, totally shocked: finally got a reporter, got them released, etc., AFTER the booking and the strip. They were traumatized. These are VERY middle class ladies, who went to the event to show their 7th graders how you could do your civic duty by attending political events and exercising your right to free speech. They were humiliated, shocked -- and had their eyes opened to the reality of the Bush regime. They're suing to show their students you should not accept the repression. It's the first time they'd ever experienced anything like this. Of course everyone wanted them to dismiss the suit afterwards, and just go away. Mission accomplished, the scary guidance counselor was kept from the rally (jeesh)and humiliated. But I think they're very brave to continue the suit so the bush regime can't make it go away - don't underestimate little ladies in Iowa

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#28)
    by aw on Sun Jul 23, 2006 at 08:34:15 PM EST
    Sound like anyone we know?
    When people have limited perspectives because of limited knowledge, you might assume that giving people more knowledge would give them broader perspectives. But then there's the phenomenon of elective ignorance. People practicing elective ignorance start with a point of view and then admit into evidence only those facts that support their point of view. Those with a really bad case of elective ignorance become incapable of acknowledging facts that contradict their opinions. You can present data to them all day long, and it won't make a dent; "bad" facts are shoved off the edge of consciousness before they get a chance to complicate the E.I. sufferer's worldview. Please note that elective ignorance is not necessarily connected to an individual's intelligence potential. A person can possess sufficient cerebral material to store and comprehend considerable knowledge but elect not to use it. High-I.Q. people with E.I. Syndrome will sometimes concoct elaborate and fantastical rationalizations to explain why some facts are "bad" and others are "good." These rationalizations will make sense only to those who have elected the same worldview, of course, which leads us to the Dittohead Corollary -- People whose opinions are shaped by E.I. pathologies cannot grasp why other people don't understand issues as "clearly" as they do. Therefore, they assume something sinister stands between those other people and the elected reality; e.g., "liberals hate America."
    mahablog

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#29)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sun Jul 23, 2006 at 09:25:53 PM EST
    I remember when President Clinton was in Chicago several years ago and a young couple who made a derogatory but not threatening comment were promptly arrested. So arresting dissenters is not a unique Republican or Bush activity.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#30)
    by Johnny on Sun Jul 23, 2006 at 11:17:41 PM EST
    So arresting dissenters is not a unique Republican or Bush activity.
    That's right, but it is an increasingly American activity. And some americans are defending the governments "right" to use armed representatives to suppress dissent. It is a sick and twisted american who feels that dissent is a bad thing, or to voice that dissent where it does the most good (at, say, an actual event) is in poor taste. Or bad decorum LOL. I hear there are countries that are run by conservative religionists who seriously dislike political dissent. Of course, many of these people who wish to shut dissent up ehre, would find it inconvenient to live in Iran.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#31)
    by jimakaPPJ on Mon Jul 24, 2006 at 07:25:56 AM EST
    Johnny - These two young ladies, by their own admission, showed up at what was, essentially a partisan political party hoorah. Purpose? To be noticed. Well, they got noticed by the police, who probably decided they didn't want to be bothered by partisan Repubs yelling at partisan Demos. So when the young ladies in question refused to obey some command, bingo. They got arrested. Now. They had the perfect right to be there. The police had the perfect right to think they were trouble makers and arrest them. It is the old, and very silly, "I fought the law and the law won." So while you can argue that they the right to do what they did, I argue that the police had the right to do what they did. And before you claim that their rights have been violated, how about the right of the Repubs' right to have a orderly, happy get out the vote meeting? And BTW - I would argue the same if it were Demos or Libbies or...you name it. In the meantime, think of what these young ladies could have done that would have actually helped their party. They could have blogged, written letters to the editor, put up yard posters, solicited money, volunteered to drive voters to the polls, etc. and etc. Note something here. They were not prevented from working for their side. They were prevented from interrupting the other side. A little common courtesy would go a long way in today's world.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#32)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Mon Jul 24, 2006 at 07:40:39 AM EST
    AW, the word "major" was added later, in a bit of Orwellian history editing.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#33)
    by JSN on Mon Jul 24, 2006 at 07:44:32 AM EST
    Bush was running for President so he was giving a political speech. It is perfectly ok for demonstrators and hecklers to be present at a political event. It is not a crime to support Kerry and opose the war (even though Kerry voted for it). It costs a lot of money to sue in Federal Court. If the ladies and their supporters want to spend their money that way they should be free to do so.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#34)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Mon Jul 24, 2006 at 07:47:41 AM EST
    The ACLU has sued several presidents over attempts to silence opposition, as in 1997, when President Clinton tried to prevent protesters from lining his inaugural parade route.
    It is not right, but it is not unique to Republicans.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#35)
    by Sailor on Mon Jul 24, 2006 at 08:45:27 AM EST
    To be noticed. Well, they got noticed by the police, who probably decided they didn't want to be bothered by partisan Repubs yelling at partisan Demos.
    then arrest the repubs causing the problem.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#36)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Mon Jul 24, 2006 at 08:54:00 AM EST
    So PPJ is saying that Repubs probably wouldn't be able to control themselves around people who are self-identified as Demos. Must be true if he says so.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#37)
    by roy on Mon Jul 24, 2006 at 09:56:25 AM EST
    Jim, So the cops have "the perfect right" to A) order somebody to stop doing something legal, then B) arrest them for not obeying that order? That's just nutty; it's cops arresting people for non-crimes, with a beurocratic flourish. Maybe the cops made an honest mistake, thinking the protestors were breaking the law, but if so then that's a bad thing in need of fixing. Cops should be expected to know the law, not just get a friendly wink from the judge when they mess up.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#38)
    by Ernesto Del Mundo on Mon Jul 24, 2006 at 10:10:37 AM EST
    So when the young ladies in question refused to obey some command, bingo. They got arrested.
    Political dissent is a crime. You heard it here first.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#39)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Mon Jul 24, 2006 at 10:57:25 AM EST
    Come on, people! Clearly we can't interfere with the police's First Amendment right to express themselves freely by arresting people as they choose.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#40)
    by JSN on Mon Jul 24, 2006 at 11:42:14 AM EST
    The Linn County Attorney dropped the charges against the two ladies. One report indicated that the press was involved prior to initial appearance and that probably accounts for why the magistrate passed the case on to the County Attorney. My guess is that he waited for the case to cool off and then dropped the charges. The Iowa Highway Patrol has a good reputation in Iowa but if the reports are correct they were far to deferential to the secret service in this case. I wonder if they had a credible bomb threat.

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#41)
    by Johnny on Mon Jul 24, 2006 at 03:02:23 PM EST
    Jim, Roy nailed your hide on this one. You lose, your endorsement of police order over political dissent is glaringly apparent. Why do you despise american values?

    Re: Arrest as an Image Management Tool (none / 0) (#13)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sun Aug 27, 2006 at 10:47:56 PM EST
    In the United States of Happy Families (R), a Bizarro Universe creation, (1) anything can be considered a protest, and (2) yes, any protest is considered an attack on the president. Is this the America you remember?

    Arrest as an Image Management Tool | 40 comments (40 topical)