Bush-backers-only policy riles voters at RNC rallies(more on loyalty oaths

[Khephra]

Bush-backers-only policy riles voters at RNC rallies

RIO RANCHO, N.M. -- A Republican National Committee practice of having people sign a form endorsing President Bush or pledging to vote for him in November before being issued tickets for RNC-sponsored rallies is raising concern among voters.

When Vice President Dick Cheney spoke July 31 to a crowd of 2,000 in Rio Rancho, a city of 45,000 near Albuquerque, several people who showed up at the event complained about being asked to sign endorsement forms in order to receive a ticket to hear Cheney.

''Whose vice president is he?" said 72-year-old retiree John Wade of Albuquerque, who was asked to sign the form when he picked up his tickets. ''I just wanted to hear what my vice president had to say, and they make me sign a loyalty oath."

Nick Lucy, a 64-year-old veteran and Democrat, said he was turned away from a May 7 rally in Dubuque, Iowa, at which President Bush spoke even though he had a ticket given to him by a local Republican leader. Lucy, who was not asked to sign a form, said he has seen every president since Ronald Reagan, but he was denied access because he is not a registered Republican. He is a Democrat and a past commander of the American Legion in Dubuque who plays taps at veterans' funerals.

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2004/08/09/bush_backers_only_policy_riles_voters_at_rnc_rallies/

[hang a left]

1. Ha ha ha ha.

Now they are doing voter backround checks on people who attend rallies. They know they are not gonna get one dem vote. Then they make the republicans sign a pledge.

[spooked]

2. Great point! He's our Vice-President too! (unfortunately)

''Whose vice president is he?" said 72-year-old retiree John Wade of Albuquerque, who was asked to sign the form when he picked up his tickets. ''I just wanted to hear what my vice president had to say, and they make me sign a loyalty oath."

Are we not allowed to hear the views of OUR Vice President??

[TahitiNut]

3. Those cities and counties MUST bill the RNC for the costs.

There's no way that ALL taxpayers should bear the costs (police, sherrif, road closings, etc.) of such egregiously partisan and private rallies. These people are disgusting. I'd be camped in the county offices protesting any costs passed on to the tax base.

[havocmom]

7. They should REQUIRE DEPOSITS before any events requiring extra

services. The campaign won't honor bills so cities should get the $$ up front like they do with most other organizations. To do otherwise is to let bush*/Cheney 04 force what amounts to a campaign contribution. Especially if bush*/Cheney 04 is taking the Hitler-esque action of requiring loyalty oaths!

Get these scum sucking thieves OFF the public dole! No more Corporate welfare kings riding around in limos and denying audience with all but sycophants and ditto heads.

[duhneece]

26. Thanks

I hadn't thought about it that way.

[wryter2000]

4. Great

P*ss off your own party, Whistle Ass.

[Trillo]

5. What about vote secrecy?

It reads like the republicans don't care much about democracy as it's been practiced in the U.S. for as long as I can remember.

[AndyTiedye]

12. Diebold Has a Solution to That Little Problem

If they keep track of the smartcards they hand out, they can easily
tell who voted for who.

[kysrsoze]

33. I'm sure violation after signing is punishable by death or Gitmo!

Ha ha!

[John_H]

6. Kerry should do the same thing

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know the purists just won't hear of it, Tsk. Tsk. Tsk, etc. but Rovie knows that it's better to have a couple of negative stories about only letting supporters into your rallies than it is to have dozens of bad stories about your guy getting shouted down. Besides this is politics, not an ethics class.

[Maeve]

8. Sure--heaven forfend that our candidate should be ethical

Kerry and Edwards have had some GREAT stories of how they treat hecklers; much better publicity than just imitating the Gestapo tactics that you deplore.

[John_H]

15. Heaven forbid we give the mediawhores another avenue

to bash our guy. Case in point: MSNBC did thier usual thirty seconds on the stump for each candidate. Chimp got thirty seconds of his platitude-spewing, which generated a huge applause line from his paper-signing crowd. Kerry got ten seconds of himself pausing while people screamed four more years, then a smackdown. If that's a great story I'd hate to see the pretty good ones.Chimp got his message out. Kerry impressed the converted with his ability to deal w/ hecklers.

The "The subliminable" effect was that chimp is a popular president while Kerry is faced with derision.

[Maeve]

23. Not the take I've gotten from the press in Ohio

The reports have mentioned Bush's "hand-picked" audiences several times--and this in the heart of the state from a conservative-leaning press.

I prefer to be "bashed" as unpopular when the crowds remain greater for Kerry than Dubya, rather than be bashed as no better than the opposition (and ethical hypocrites to boot).

[merh]

29. Do you not understand, there is nothing Kerry & Edward or you

and I can do to get the media to report more on Kerry & Edward than what they are doing now. I would rather have 10 secs of positive news than 60 secs of negatives.

K&E are campaigning in earnest and their open rallies are having a better impact on the folks that matter than the twisted news of the repukes.

Our guys need to be the good guys, *&Co. are destroying their credibility and reliability within their own party. The folks that will stay home will have an impact - negative impact - for the repukes. (IMHO)

[Lefta Dissenter]

9. I thought that the idea

is to try to appeal to the undecideds. How do you do that if they can't come to hear you? My republican brother-in-law went to see Kerry (well, my sister sort of made him), and he was impressed. There's not a chance in hell he would have signed an oath of support - and there would go that chance to gain a vote.

Makes NO sense to me. :shrug:

[apnu]

10. because they don't care about undecideds

They know they have enough for a close win (by the poll numbers which I disagree with) and because the fix is in Florida (and other states) this year, they don't have to sweat it. Or so they believe, so they think, why bother appealing to the undecideds when they only have to worry about the moderate base of the GOP?

[John_H]

16. Campaign events aren't really intended to get votes from those who attend.

In the 21st century (and for a while before) they're made for TV. The idea is to get your thirty second bite with the roaring crowd and sybolic stage set adding a subliminal message of popularity.

In a country with 150 million voters, you'd never get a statistically significant number of votes throgh in person stops.

[Old and In the Way]

11. Actually, I think not.

Kerry's campaign stops have had pro-Bush disrupters.....it contrasts nicely with the sterile, Repubs-only rallies that Bush/Cheney must conduct. Can you imagine what an open Bush/Cheney rally would look like? There'd be 3 protestors for every supporter.

The more these stories reach the mainstream voter, the more apparent it becomes that Kerry is unafraid to hear a small opposition and that his campaign is open to all Americans. Amazing that the current pResident is so afraid of meeting the general electorate that they need to make their speeches before Republicans only. This strategy only reaffirms that this administration is not, in anyway, representitive of all Americans.

[John_H]

18. I'm not sure it works that way.

In a perfect world inhabited by voters as enlightened and thoughtful as you, having the media report your heckler encounters might produce votes by proving how egalitarian your campaign is.

I may be a cynic, but I think Rove is right on this one--better to have a visual that says "popular and adored" than depending on millions of people intellectualizing the thirty seconds you'll get on CNN.

[JerseygirlCT]

17. That's ridiculous!

He needn't do the same thing. First, because it's absolutely the wrong thing to do. Second, because he doesn't need to do it. He can easily speak (without a prepared script) about why he is the better candidate. He can engage people who disagree with him quite well, actually.

He doesn't need a sterilized environment with Karl Rove in his earphone in order to speak to the American people about why they should hire him for this very important job.

Should a Bush supporter show up -- who knows? Kerry has the right answers, and is the right person -- he may just make a few converts.

[yardwork]

25. Disagree - Kerry's open train tour is the perfect contrast

Which one represents American values?

[Jo March]

13. What happens if you sign & don't vote for Bush?

Do they sue you for breach of contract? Throw your ass in Gitmo and torture you?

[enki23]

14. this is SUPPOSED to be the president of *all* american people

this is yet another deeply shameful act. the latest in a very, very long roster for this shameless administration.

[John_H]

20. That's a great thing for Team Kerry to say. Too bad they won't.

"President Bush claims to be a uniter who's president of all Americans. Yet he excludes anyone who might disagree with him form his rallies."

[arwalden]

19. So... If Someone Signs The Form...

can they be prosecuted for breach-of-contract if they heckle or protest? Are the then obligated to vote for the criminal Bush?

[calico1]

22. Yes. They send someone to go in the booth

with you and MAKE you vote for them! If you resist, off to Gitmo you go! :silly:

[Habibi]

21. How interesting! And yet, just a few days ago,

They pledged to stop doing that!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=731840

[kwolf68]

24. Sad

John Kerry was willing to go to Bob Jones University and speak...Dingbat is sceered to go to the NAACP, because "they were mean" to him. Waaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!

And now this? What a funny lot the Conservative clown patrol.

[Retrograde]

27. so this is now a private event

Registered Republicans only, loyalty oaths, anyone who disagrees not welcome - sounds like a private event that should be funded by private resources to me.

[truthisfreedom]

28. SOMEBODY STAND UP AND CHARGE BUSHCO FOR ALL OF THE PLANE RIDES

and secret service protection this theif is taking from our country. he's a cheat and a fraud.

[Reciprocity]

30. loyalty oaths

All they need now is to only have their rallies on sunny days and the difference between Hitler and Bush disappear.

[shawn703]

31. Whoa, wait a minute here - they know our cell phone numbers?!

This little quote worries me. How do they know that any given owner of a cellphone is a member of an anti-Bush political organization? Is this our Patriot Act/Total Information Awareness database at work?


"He added that the decision was made to use the forms at the New Mexico rally after the local RNC office received ''suspicious calls" about the event before it was advertised. He said the caller identification indicated some numbers were from cellphones of members of America Coming Together."

[Zech Marquis]

32. ah-haaaa

I recently took a language test for one fo the intelligence agencies. I knew I passed it easily, BUT I wasn't allowed to ocntinue my application "due to the groups you associate with" memo....in order words, you're a Democrat who already knows our dirty laundry, retake the exam when Kerry becomes President :evilgrin:

Seriously. No shit. In fact, the NSA guys are probably reading this now--hi guys, see in January :-)

[Swamp Rat]

34. Loyalty oaths? Bush&Co have turned the GOP in to a fascist party.

What more proof does anyone need?



"I pledge allegiance to the Bush of the United Bushes of Bush, and to the Bush for which it stands, one Bush under Bush, divisible, for Bush and Bush for all."

[annabanana]

35. First.... break up the media monopolies!

So Americans can get to know their country again!! Without this, it'll just be the "Hunting of the President" all over again.