Stop the Presses! President Bush is a Pussy!

For all the branding of President Bush as a no-nonsense, brush-clearing Cowboy, tough guy, hard ass, "bring it on terrorists" war president, you would think that he could handle a couple of liberal longhairs (hippies, in case you're unfamiliar with the colloquialism) with t-shirts and loud voices.

Released today under supboena to the ACLU, the "Presidential Advance Manual" provides presidential staffers a detailed list of instructions on how to deal with protestors.

Basically, it's a how-to on keeping protestors out of public presidential appearances. (Although, as you will see, how truly public are they?)

From the Washington Post:

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.

So insurgents can "bring it on," but rascally anti-war peaceniks are hidden from sight? Interesting, but this next quote really illuminates Bush's pussy-ocity:

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."

Out of sight, out of mind for the leader of our country. It appears, despite collecting all that "political clout" from the American voters in 2004, Bush only wants to be a president to those few people who still think he's competent. He's running the country on an invitation-only attitude.

This really isn't news - the micromanaging of Bush's public appearances - but it is news that the White House went so far as to create a top-secret manual for this curtailing of free speech. The manual was only released 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 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.

People often complain that modern wars are waged by the men in suits who sit comfortably in their peaceful capitals, and we often ask rhetorically why, if these men are so adamant on vanquishing a particular foe, they don't lead the charge themselves. Bush and Cheney can send troops to the Baghdad meat grinder, but why don't they put on a uniform and stand on the front lines with the troops?

But it's mindbogglingly beyond that now. The aforementioned rhetoric probably is a fanciful notion that is merely a nostalgia for leaders like George Washington. But as for Bush, not only will he never stand on the front lines of war, he seems incapable or unwilling to even stand on the front lines of reality.

Part of me wonders if Bush is truly a bastard and a pussy, or if he is more like Britney Spears (or any other pre-conceived and test-marketed bands) in that he is a carefully crafted brand, always needing extreme care. He's almost like a child, one whose parents want to shield it from the harsh cruelties of reality. It's tough to say, and tougher to know which one is more dangerous.

Link to the Washington Post story here.

On another note:
Seriously, there is so much shit that's pissing me off in the news the last few days (i think i'm off my regular pill-taking regimen), and so many personal existential thoughts that my mind and hands can't even seem to get in sync long enough to write about it all. I'll probably end up having some sort of in-blog breakdown, so stay tuned!