Huh. For some inexplicable reason, I don’t remember Lanny Davis wanting to photograph and investigate anti-war protesters to prove that they weren’t just tools of MoveOn.org. But suddenly, when it comes to liberal policies that Americans disagree with, the man has an itch for hampering free speech through intimidation.
Remember when the left considered dissent the highest form of patriotism? Ah; those were the days.
The “shout downs” organized by the Republican right meet one of the classic definition of “fascist” tactics–defined as using shouting and disruption to deprive the civil and respectful debate of ideas. There is literally no defense to these tactics. I don’t criticize those who feel genuine anger or fear and show up to meetings to express those emotions. But I do call out the tactic of screaming and disrupting a meeting and the fact that this is a systematic tactic by thugs who want to prevent civil discourse, not promote it.
Let’s have the media name names, publish photographs, and do interviews of those responsible for approving, even organizing these techni[q]ues. And let’s find an investigative journalist – are there many left – to prove these so-called grassroots shouters are, or are not, being paid.
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, Lanny Davis considers holding signs, asking questions, and chanting slogans “fascist”. Basically, everything protected by the First Amendment’s section about speech and assemblage is now “fascist” because it’s done in opposition to The One.
And since when does the left have a problem with groups organizing protests? Code Pink organized protests during Congressional testimonies to the point that liberal representatives got pissed; MoveOn.org was wherever liberal policies needed defending; pro-amnesty groups brought together massive protests that shut down city streets; ACORN had mobs going around to harass AIG executives; and just today Barack Obama’s official political organization sent out an email about its planned rallies and telling people to show up at town halls to back ObamaCare.
Between this and the White House’s “report dissenters” email address, the left is going to have to work really hard at getting more Orwellian this week.
6. August 2009 at 12:54 pm
I lost any respect for Lanny Davis after I heard him calling citizens who passionately raised their concerns about Obama’s Health Care reform at the Townhall meetings “nazis in brown shirts”. Had I been at any of these meetings my voice would have gone up as well for sure. So I take his words as a personal insult (my grandfather and three granduncles fought nazis on the european eastern front in Red Army, two of them were killed in action). Mr. Davis is a real Bolshevik: those who are not with us are enemies of the people and should be reported on.
30. August 2009 at 8:18 pm
I thought that the Democrat’s didn’t like the McCarthy era. Maybe they don’t for a more obvious reason: that they are truly burgeoning Fascists and/or Communists.
Perhaps Lanny doesn’t like us Conservative voters is because we aren’t shouting “You’re racist” or “We got here first… go back to Europe” like we get accused of regularly. A tactic that frankly isn’t working as we know ourselves and we are not racists. We merely follow Dr. MLK and consider the real issue to be with the person’s behavior and not the color of their skin.