The Obama administration told law enforcement authorities to go easy on Occupy Wall Street protesters, even though they were violating local laws, according to documents obtained by watchdog group Judicial Watch.
Emails from the General Services Administration show that the federal agency, acting on orders from the White House, told federal law enforcement authorities in Portland, Ore., not to enforce curfews on protesters camped out on federal property. JudicialWatch.org obtained the emails through Freedom of Information Act request lodged last year.
In one email exchange between the GSA and the Department of Homeland Security, it was clearly said that the White House preferred that Occupiers be left alone and allowed to camp overnight as long as there was no threat to public safety. What arrests had been made at that point had been carried out by local police in defiance of a request from the feds.
Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said the emails show the White House was protecting Occupy protesters.
“We now have a new GSA scandal — one that involves the Obama White House,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “These documents clearly show that federal agencies colluded with the Obama White House to allow the Occupy Wall Street protesters to violate the law with impunity. These documents tell us that the GSA and DHS can’t be relied upon to protect federal workers or property.”
Although it’s touching to know that someone on the Right actually cares about federal workers, I must note that this new scandal is the flip side of the old one, in which the DHS, under orders from the White House, coordinated a violent crackdown of Occupiers. This story was pushed last November in a widely read Guardian post by Naomi Wolf. Even after thorough debunking, some posters at Firedoglake continued to flog this long-deceased horse for several more months because, your know, Obama is evil and we should have elected Hillary.
And I’m not holding my breath waiting for the Fox News story to pop up at Firedoglake.
So, once again, President Obama is Hitler, when he isn’t Bambi.
A rust-remover, when he isn’t a dessert topping.
I can understand this from the right, since they need to vilify him if they want to regain complete control of the govenment.
But from Liberals, I expect better.
We’re supposed to be the “Big Picture” folks!
Let the right myopically focus their microscopes on every visual, and their microphones on every syllable, trying to convince their already convinced base, and “Independents,” that they’re right, and Liberals are wrong. These are the “Independents” who, if they ever knew the real goals of Conservatism, might beat Mr.Hussein Bolt in a dash to get as far away from it as possible.
We’re supposed to be working on bending that arc of history towards justice, even if sometimes our leader(s) have to do something contrary to that for some political “expedience” – aka: necessity. To ‘keep our eyes on the prize.’
If FDL, among others of “The Progressive Purity Police,” causes Democrats to sit home on their asses because Obama hasn’t exactly been their ideal ‘Civil Rights and Freedom Fairy,’ and get Mitt elected, they’ll be like the old Jewish people in Germany who said, “So, how much worse can this Hitler fellow be than The Kaiser, who also had no geat love for us?”*
*With apologies to Mr. Godwin and his “Law” – who can go feck himself, and his rule, because sometimes a good analogy is a good analogy.
And someone like Mitt, who’ll be the willing puppet of both the corporations AND Dominionist Christians, WILL help to to make America even more Fascist – just with a healthy dollop of Jesusy “goodness.”
You want that?
Then sit home – and dream about your future “Progressive Nirvana,” which arise when the regular people. the brainwashed masses, now awakened from their decades long Reagan induced slumber, realize how bad Conservatism is for them, and line-up to vote for “REAL” Democrats, and “REAL” Liberals and “REAL” Progressives.
Enjoy those dreams, because there will be a long, long period of nightmares before anyone will ever be able to dream those dreams again.
Amazing. I was trying to imagine how a small government type could possibly be outraged over the Feds failing to roust a bunch of campers in Portland Oregon, but of course it makes perfect sense in their frame of reference. The Feds are protecting these degenerates. At any rate, I do hope the Republicans try to make a campaign issue out of this.
“We now have a new GSA scandal ” This is what passes for a scandal? What does he want– troglodyte federal agents cracking heads with nightsticks? Gee, I guess so, judging from recent GOP conventions and rallies.
Now, running for election without releasing relevant details about your financial dealings– THAT’s a scandal.
Off Topic:
Lot’s of “chatter” around Ryan. That would be a gift. I have been expecting Mittens to pick someone so boring (Thune, Portman) that we would not be presented with a “target rich” environment. I think Biden could tear a heartless cretin like Ryan to shreds.