Newsgroup: it.politica.internazionale
Titolo: White House Manual Details How to Deal With Protesters

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."
The "Presidential Advance Manual," dated October 2002 with the stamp
"Sensitive -- Do Not Copy," was released under subpoena to the American
Civil Liberties Union as part of a lawsuit filed on behalf of two people
arrested for refusing to cover their anti-Bush T-shirts at a Fourth of
July speech at the West Virginia State Capitol in 2004. The techniques
described have become familiar over the 6 1/2 years of Bush's presidency,
but the manual makes it clear how organized the anti-protest policy really
is.
The lawsuit was filed by Jeffery and Nicole Rank, who attended the
Charleston event wearing shirts with the word "Bush" crossed out on the
front; the back of his shirt said "Regime Change Starts at Home," while
hers said "Love America, Hate Bush." Members of the White House event
staff told them to cover their shirts or leave, according to the lawsuit.
They refused and were arrested, handcuffed and briefly jailed before local
authorities dropped the charges and apologized. The federal government
settled the First Amendment case last week for $80,000, but with no
admission of wrongdoing.
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."
White House spokesman Tony Fratto said that he could not discuss the
manual because it is an issue in two other lawsuits.
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."
Advance teams are advised not to worry if protesters are not visible to
the president or cameras: "If it is determined that the media will not see
or hear them 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!" And it suggests that advance
staff should "decide if the solution would cause more negative publicity
than if the demonstrators were simply left alone."
The staff at the West Virginia event may have missed that line.
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Beh, potrebbe andare peggio, perlomeno non raccomandano di piantare
molotov nelle scuole come finte prove o di mettere firme false sulle
dichiarazioni in cui i pestati della Diaz dicevano di non voler vedere il
proprio avvocato.