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In a move that suggests the White House is feeling the heat on its slow-motion approach toward repealing DADT, it’s now resorted to trying to stop press coverage of direct actions.
As Ben Smith of The Politico notes in his post “Most transparent White House ever…“, closing Lafayette Park to the public during a demonstration is almost unheard of. Until now, when LGBT military veterans, including barista Autumn Sandeen, chained themselves to the White House fence today.
Police chased reporters away from the White House and closed Lafayette Park today in response to a gay rights protest in which several service members in full uniform handcuffed themselves to the White House gate to protest “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
People who have covered the White House for years tell me that’s an extremely unusual thing to do in an area that regularly features protests.
31 Comments
“We have nothing to fear except fear itself.”We have come a long way since FDR. And I not, I think, in the direction we should have been travelling.
Closeting the fags, againunless showing them is useful for his political purposes.
God, now this aspect of the Obama Administration’s media handling I despise.
Wow.Did they expect the press to chain themselves too?
This is unreal.
Hope somone is getting an explanation from whichever cops they were. And someone needs to bring this up at the daily WH briefing.
incrediblefierce advocate…for empty parks
Oh, ObamaRahm Inc. is definitely transparent….
It’s transparent that they have decided that LGBTs are a political liability and will only reach for the lowest hanging fruit of our rights. The ObamaRahmbots still wet themselves at the very mention of the hate crimes bill conveniently forgetting that all he did was pose for a picture with Judy Shepard and sign the bill that others had been fighting for for over a decade, before anyone ever heard of him. Hospital visitation yet to take effect that could have been ordered the day he was sworn in; crumbs for partners of gay federal employees…still not applied; and, oh yes, refusal to use his Congressionally mandated authority to freeze discharges even tho he said 10 months ago they weaken national security.
It was transparent even before Barney Frank acknowledged it and SLDN complained about it that ObamaRahm is working AGAINST repeal of DADT this year not for it.
It was transparent in the rage in his eyes last night and the Bush Reich-like over reaction of the Winkies guarding him today that the audacity of hope has been replaced with the arrogance of power.
It is transparent that the only thing that is going to change this latest Pharoah’s heart is more of the same.
“President Obama was unhappy when he heard of this”“The president has said repeatedly that he is in the forefront of the movement to repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
“President Obama was in conference with his spiritual advisers when this happened, and he knew nothing about it.”
“The president is a fierce advocate for freedom of the press.”
We can write their press handouts in our sleep by now, nicht wahr?
One Thing this Does Tell MeIf the administration is going to these lengths to hide/silence the protest, then GetEqual is definitely doing something right! The administration has obviously been made uncomfortable by this protest. They are worried. That is the only conclusion I can come to from their actions. Good Work GetEqual!
It really does look that way, doesn’t it?
“President Obama was in conference with his spiritual advisers when this happened”Those “spiritual advisers” wouldn’t happen to be Rick Warren and other prominent homophobic bigots, would they?
I expect they were VERY unhappy to hear about this. The demonstration, I mean.
IndeedI will do what I can to support them in these and similar actions.
Very similar to the Melody Barnes fiascomedia and message control by the White House to hide…what exactly?
Face itthe new clinton lie to us, he used us, to get himself in office… I bet we will never see the end of DADT, he will be a one turn President the Rep’s will we take the house and we be seeing the past to come back into play.
Obama and his gang lies to us everyday.
Closing the park to hinder the media sounds like the actions……of the current regime in China or the former Soviet Union.
This is really very, very chilling.
I’ve heard a lot of right-wing criticism of the President calling him a facist or worse, I hope they don’t have a valid point in there somewhere.
Not a valid point…after allhe never hindered media coverage of the teabaggers.
If… TVC can get into the mainstream media while the WH willingly collaborates with media and other entities to erase the other side of the story, then the combination of all that sends a pretty clear message.
The powers that be are in adamant and stifling denial.
He treats the teabaggers more respectfullythan he does us when we disagree, obviously….
Or they matter more than we do….
His spiritual advisors pushed Final Solution for gaysat least some of them did.
Alas, it has become par for the course with Democratic presidentsI witnessed the birth of “free speech zones” under President Clinton, at the 1999 WTO ministerial in Seattle. Yup: they were created at the insistence of President Clinton as a way to shield foreign diplomats from the displeasure of working, VOTING Americans.
What they were afraid of was
Video and still photos of 5 uniformed servicemembers being handcuffed (or worse, wrestled to the ground, maced or tased, then cuffed)
I am sickened by the complascency of the ‘press’ being herded like docile sheep into the pen.
Not one refused to leave or challenged what was clearly an unlawful order and prior restraint of the press.
Gutless cowards in reporter suits.
WowDC has become a f)(ing police state.
So much for…freedom of the press…
That look speaks volumesContempt.
Sheer Contempt.
Seen it too many times in court.
Anyone can speak out except the LGBT’s, the lapdogs of the Democratic Party.
Anyone can protest, except the LGBT’s
We are stage props for the DNC, and then only if we are wearing the right clothes and have offices on Rhode Island Avenue.
The President cannot claim to be our fierce advocate when he is silencing us and claiming to be wrestling “as a christian” with our citizenship and equality.
If someone is going to sell us out in the White House, I prefer it to be one of our own
By the way, Mr Presidentif you ever intend to actually practice law, learn to avoid looks like that. It lets opposing counsel or a hostile witness know that they have gained the upper hand.
Bad show, Chap, bad show….
Rick Warren? I wish. When asked, during the primaries…Obama said that his “three spiritual mentors” were Jeremiah “God damn America!” Wright, Michael “Hillary Clinton thinks she’s entitled to the presidency because she’s white” Pfleger and James “thank Hollywood Jews for bringing us Brokeback Mountain” Meeks.
How on Earth anyone who calls themselves a progressive could have supported him during the primaries after that is beyond me.
Here’s hoping…That the Greens or Libertarians come up with a candidate this time who isn’t a complete nutcase. (There isn’t a Republican who can challenge Obama in the general election at this point, so I’m not particularly worried about supporting a potential spoiler.)
Correction:That answer was given in 2006, presumably before the primary season began in earnest.
To be made uncomfortable….BINGO! Can you imagine NO MORE Presidential-anything happening in the media without an LGBTQ or allie screaming “ENOUGH”!
Can you imagine NO MORE weeks and months going by without other incidences of brave bodies chaining themselves to the White House fence?
Can you imagine MORE MORE media faces – from actors to newscasters to sports folk – all begin to insert mentions of inequality when appropriate.
Think of when a group of folks on a TV show discuss their marriages, while one woman is reluctant to mention how she is not allowed to get married. Or when a woman proudly boasts of how she “screwed” her wealthy husband financially after ending a 20-year marriage, while a man is reluctant to share how he became destitute and homeless after ending his 20-year relationship. Or ANYTIME a straight person complains about taxes, all while enjoying a freedom none of us can even imagine…yet.
Thus my belief that a revolution in thought needs to occur before we begin to make larger leaps in equal rights. We can’t afford to act as if we are 99.99% sure we deserve these rights.
Lafayette Park looking like Tiennamen Square!Let’s ask Obama:
Why was Lafayette Park Closed to the Media and the Public? What were the legitimate reasons? Was there a Bomb Threat or other “National Security” concerns?
http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact
Email CNN:
Same Questions plus: Will the Media simply allow this type of Oppression via Censorship without legitimate justification in the US Government? Will the Media go along with this?
http://www.cnn.com/feedback/fo…
Let’s ask Maddow too! What’s going on here???
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10…
What’s that you say, I can’t hear you.Muffling of the media. That’s a major step in the wrong direction. It seems averything about us is expendable except our money. Throw a few crumbs periodically so we can get on the intermittent reinforcement schedule in hopes we will eventually win the whole tamale. But even intermittent reinforcement only works for so long. And this money bag has run dry.
^ True – Gay Money is accepted without delay by the Feds, oh but when wewant the benefits that everyone else gets, THAT”S a huge problem.
YUP. You have to make noise to get attention!Thank goodness for GetEqual who came right at the right time. The have jump started our movement. Where do we contribute to these great folks?