Posted on 08/06/2005 5:15:28 PM PDT by markomalley
CRAWFORD, Texas (AP) - The angry mother of a fallen U.S. soldier staged a protest near President Bush's ranch Saturday, demanding an accounting from Bush of how he has conducted the war in Iraq.
Supported by more than 50 demonstrators who chanted, "W. killed her son!" Cindy Sheehan told reporters: "I want to ask the president, 'Why did you kill my son? What did my son die for?'" Sheehan, 48, didn't get to see Bush, but did talk about 45 minutes with national security adviser Steve Hadley and deputy White House chief of staff Joe Hagin, who went out to hear her concerns.
Appreciative of their attention, yet undaunted, Sheehan said she planned to continue her roadside vigil, except for a few breaks, until she gets to talk to Bush. Her son, Casey, 24, was killed in Sadr City, Iraq, on April 4, 2004. He was an Army specialist, a Humvee mechanic.
"They (the advisers) said we are in Iraq because they believed Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, that the world's a better place with Saddam gone and that we're making the world a safer place with what we're doing over there," Sheehan said in a telephone interview after the meeting.
"They were very respectful. They were nice men. I told them Iraq was not a threat to the United States and that now people are dead for nothing. I told them I wouldn't leave until I talked to George Bush."
She said Hagin told her, "I want to assure you that he (Bush) really does care."
"And I said if he does care, why doesn't he come out and talk to me."
Sheehan arrived in Crawford aboard a bus painted red, white and blue and emblazoned with the words, "Impeachment Tour." Sheehan, from Vacaville, Calif., had been attending a Veterans for Peace convention in Dallas.
The bus, trailed by about 20 cars of protesters and reporters, drove at about 15 mph toward Bush's ranch. After several miles, they parked the vehicles and began to march, in stifling heat, farther down the narrow country road.
Flanked by miles of pasture, Sheehan spoke with reporters while clutching two photographs, one of her son in uniform, and the other, a baby picture, when he was seven months old.
She said she decided to come to Crawford a few days ago after Bush said that fallen U.S. troops had died for a noble cause and that the mission must be completed.
"I want to ask the president, `Why did you kill my son? What did my son die for?" she said, her voice cracking with emotion. "Last week, you said my son died for a noble cause' and I want to ask him what that noble cause is?"
White House spokesman Trent Duffy said response that Bush also wants the troops to return home safely.
"Many of the hundreds of families the president has met with know their loved one died for a noble cause and that the best way to honor their sacrifice is to complete the mission," Duffy said.
"It is a message the president has heard time and again from those he has met with and comforted. Like all Americans, he wants the troops home as soon as possible."
The group marched about a half-mile before local law enforcement officials stopped them at a bend in the road, still four to five miles from the ranch's entrance. Capt. Kenneth Vanek of the McLennan County Sheriff's Office said the group was stopped because some marchers ignored instructions to walk in the ditch beside the road, not on the road.
"If they won't cooperate, we won't," Vanek said.
"Andy is coping by becoming Casey"
Her younger son is "becoming" Casey? Joinging the military?
Oh my!
Yup. She is certainly a moonbat cavorting with other moonbats.
That poor, sick, deluded woman. I really pity her.
CampusActivisim.org
Buddy Spell (Cindy's attorney)
Permanent Address
xxxxxxx xxxxxx xxxxxx
Franklinton, LA 70438
USA
Bio
Activist/Criminal defense attorney
******
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JANUARY 14, 2005
According to local criminal defense lawyer, Buddy Spell, one of the event’s organizers, “While the rest of the country will be focused on the beginning of Bush’s second term, our objective is to show the world that we are not in support of a continued war in Iraq, record inflation, flagrant disregard for the constitutional rights of all citizens and four more years of rule by a small group of wealthy elite. This will be a time to remind the president that he has a sworn obligation to represent and respect the rights and wishes of all Americans, including the 56 million people who voted against him.”
A horse-drawn hearse will carry a mock coffin containing copies of the Patriot Act and the U.S. Constitution through the streets of New Orleans. The Treme Brass Band will lead the procession, followed by marchers wearing traditional mourning clothes and black armbands, symbolizing the tragedy of the Iraqi war effort.
Spell continued, "We hope that this event will result in the establishment of a Southern front for resistance to the occupation of Iraq. We are staging this peaceful event for one simple reason . . . because we can. Because the Bill of Rights, at least for now, guarantees that we can. Ours will be a defiantly upbeat gathering of the tribes; an opportunity to prepare for many months of resistance to come."
For more information call (985) xxx-xxxx or log onto http://www.jazzfuneralfordemocracy.com/
Hopefully, she'll get her crazy self arrested and booted out of Texas.....
These are her new "friends"...
Buddy Spell, a felony defense trial lawyer in Covington, LA, is the National Liaison for the Louisiana Activist Network (LAN), a member of the board of directors of the Louisiana Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Annie’s husband, and Sarah Jane’s dad. LAN is sponsoring the Peace Train to Washington, DC from September 22-24.
The Reverend Winston Edward Rice serves at Christ Episcopal Church in Covington, LA where he also continues in the practice of law as well as the practice of humanity.
******
Franklinton, Louisiana
Louisiana Activist Network
Franklinton, LA
Buddy Spell
2spells@bellsouth.net
(985) 795-9500
Regional organizational arm of various progressive coalitions.
Louisiana Activist Network
In Louisiana and across the southeastern United States, there are dozens if not hundreds of small groups working for progressive causes. These groups are powerful voices for change and watchdogs for the community, protecting values such as civil rights, racial justice, gender equality, and taking up the cause of the poor and disenfranchised. Individually, these organizations speak truth to power and are a catalyst for change on a variety of issues. Taken together, they are the lifeblood of the progressive movement in this country.
The idea behind the Louisiana Activist Network is to leave these potent groups in place, while adding a thin layer of coordination when larger actions are called for. Our vision is of a large community of organizations, with the capability to carry out a large-scale action such as the Jazz Funeral or New Democracy Rising in coordination.
We have begun L.A.N. with the member organizations of the January 20th Coalition and C3. We are excited to welcome other progressive groups to join with us for the New Democracy Rising march and future common causes. For more information, please e-mail info@newdemocracyrising.com
http://www.newdemocracyrising.com/
ANTIWAR RALLY
PEACE TRAIN SEND-OFF
Please join the Louisiana Activist Network and Cindy Sheehan of Gold Star Families for Peace
for an antiwar rally and demonstration
in Covington, LA on the eve of the departure of the PEACE TRAIN to Washington DC
Wednesday, Sep 21 2005
5:30PM until 7:00PM
St. John's Coffeehouse
535 East Boston Street
Covington, LA 70433
Peace Train Scheduled Stops
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22
7:20 AM New Orleans, LA
8:16 AM Slidell, LA
8:38 AM Picayune, MS
9:43 AM Hattiesburg, MS
10:17 AM Laurel, MS
11:17 AM Meridian, MS
12:51 PM Tuscaloosa, AL
2:31 PM Birmingham, AL
4:04 PM Anniston, AL
7:40 PM Atlanta, GA
9:03 PM Gainsville, GA
9:44 PM Toccoa, GA
10:20 PM Clemson, SC
10:57 PM Greenville, SC
11:43 PM Spartanburg, SC
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 23
12:43 AM Gastonia, NC
1:25 AM Charlotte, NC
2:36 AM Salisbury, NC
3:17 AM High Point, NC
3:35 AM Winston-Salem, NC
3:42 AM Greensboro, NC
4:44 AM Danville, VA
5:54 AM Lynchberg, VA
7:07 AM Charlottesville, VA
7:59 AM Culpeper, VA
8:33 AM Manassas, VA
9:27 AM Alexandria, VA
9:50 AM Washington, DC
As reported, Cindy Sheehan did have a meeting with the president, though the location of that meeting is not fully clear to me. In her most recent spin of the meeting, Sheehan says that they met at the White House in June 2004. But another report I've read (see below) reports that the June 2004 meeting was in Washington state. Most of the reports about that meeting are that it was a bad encounter, Sheehan herself says that it was a very bad meeting.
Except for this report, by reporter David Henson.
You have to buy the archived article, from The Reporter.com's website (and I don't do credit cards). But I found the text of the article from another site. Read this:
Sheehans meet President Bush
By David Henson/Staff Writer
Thursday, June 24, 2004 - Since learning in April that their son, Army Spc. Casey Sheehan, had been killed in Iraq, life has been everything but normal for the Sheehan family of Vacaville.
Casey's parents, Cindy and Patrick, as well as their three children, have attended event after event honoring the soldier both locally and abroad, received countless letters of support and fielded questions from reporters across the country.
"That's the way our whole lives have been since April 4," Patrick said. "It's been surreal."
But none of that prepared the family for the message left on their answering machine last week, inviting them to have a face-to-face meeting with President George W. Bush at Fort Lewis near Seattle.
Surreal soon seemed like an understatement, as the Sheehans - one of 17 families who met Thursday with Bush - were whisked in a matter of days to the Army post and given the VIP treatment from the military. But as their meeting with the president approached, the family was faced with a dilemma as to what to say when faced with Casey's commander-in-chief.
"We haven't been happy with the way the war has been handled," Cindy said. "The president has changed his reasons for being over there every time a reason is proven false or an objective reached."
The 10 minutes of face time with the president could have given the family a chance to vent their frustrations or ask Bush some of the difficult questions they have been asking themselves, such as whether Casey's sacrifice would make the world a safer place.
But in the end, the family decided against such talk, deferring to how they believed Casey would have wanted them to act. In addition, Pat noted that Bush wasn't stumping for votes or trying to gain a political edge for the upcoming election.
"We have a lot of respect for the office of the president, and I have a new respect for him because he was sincere and he didn't have to take the time to meet with us," Pat said.
Sincerity was something Cindy had hoped to find in the meeting. Shortly after Casey died, Bush sent the family a form letter expressing his condolences, and Cindy said she felt it was an impersonal gesture.
"I now know he's sincere about wanting freedom for the Iraqis," Cindy said after their meeting. "I know he's sorry and feels some pain for our loss. And I know he's a man of faith."
The meeting didn't last long, but in their time with Bush, Cindy spoke about Casey and asked the president to make her son's sacrifice count for something. They also spoke of their faith.
While meeting with Bush, as well as Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, was an honor, it was almost a tangent benefit of the trip. The Sheehans said they enjoyed meeting the other families of fallen soldiers, sharing stories, contact information, grief and support.
For some, grief was still visceral and raw, while for others it had melted into the background of their lives, the pain as common as breathing. Cindy said she saw her reflection in the troubled eyes of each.
"It's hard to lose a son," she said. "But we (all) lost a son in the Iraqi war."
The trip had one benefit that none of the Sheehans expected.
For a moment, life returned to the way it was before Casey died. They laughed, joked and bickered playfully as they briefly toured Seattle.
For the first time in 11 weeks, they felt whole again.
"That was the gift the president gave us, the gift of happiness, of being together," Cindy said.
So, which is it? Was she lying then? Or is she lying now?
Yes, she has chosen to surround her self with left wing activists....but I ask again:
Doesn't her comment on her younger son:
"Andy is becoming Casey"
sound like Andy has joined the military? If so, this man really needs our support and prayers.
Mr. "Peace & Justice" Buddy Spell (who is Cindy Sheehan's so-called attorney) who is married to NAACP attorney Anne Spell.
I guess he was too busy protesting SOMETHING or starting a new website for some type of PEACE activisim to actually SHOW UP for his client's sentencing!!!
******
Defense attorney fails to show for sentencing
THE DAILY NEWS FRANKLINTON
The sentencing of Brian Archuleta was postponed Thursday, after defense attorney Buddy Spell did not appear in court, prosecuting attorney Kenny Gatewood said. Archuleta, who was found guilty as charged on July 1 of secon...
It seems her "attorney" doesn't have much advice for his "clients". roflol! I hope she knows a better "attorney". lol!
******
Buddy, this would be great. Would you or Annie (Louisiana NAACP attorney) consider doing a question/answer format regarding legalities for activists? Like - what to do if you're arrested during a protest, etc.?
Buddy Spell:
We are not licensed to give legal advice outside of the State of Louisiana or outside of matters within the jurisdiction of the Federal Claims Court.
Also, we have a policy in our firm of not dispensing group advice; i.e., Q & A sessions. Such activities are frought with liability. I have many years of tuition to pay ahead of me and few other revenue generating skills.
So, the answer is a polite, "no". But, I will provide resources generated by other attorneys on the subject available on the web.
Finally, I will note that the back of the firm t-shirt says, "Nobody talks; everybody walks" You'll get no other general advise from this guy.
And that's all I have to say about that.
"I now know he's sincere about wanting freedom for the Iraqis," Cindy said after their meeting. " I know he's sorry and feels some pain for our loss. And I know he's a man of faith."
I think this babe needs lithium and not the battery kind.
Where did you find this? ..it is truely disgusting I hope that he never meets with her again.
Not the best source, but here is some more info
http://tinyurl.com/d4wmb
AntiChimp: Were you politically active before your son Casey was sent to Iraq?
Cindy Sheehan: No. I still don't consider myself politically active. I don't consider peace a political issue, although I know it is, it is a bipartisan human issue. So, I still don't think I am politically active in that sense... even though I meet with Congressman and Senators and spoke at the hearing.
AC: How did you become affiliated with Military Families Speak Out (MFSO)?
CS: I found them shortly after Casey died, and joined.
AC: Were you referred to MFSO by someone, or did you find them on the Internet?
CS: A friend of mine, Bill Mitchell, whose son Mike was killed in the same ambush as Casey, found them on the internet.
AC: Who do you think is primarily responsible for your son's death?
CS: Me.
AC: Why do you say that?
CS: I didn't teach him not to die for this country.
MFSO members Rafael and Dante Zappala, Lila Lipscomb, Bill Mitchell, Celeste Zappala, Cindy Sheehan and Al Zappala. (above photo)
Michael Berg, father of Nicholas Berg
Bill Mitchell
Bill Mitchell getting arrested.
Those who crossed the barrier and were arrested. Bill Mitchell whose son was killed in Iraq on 04/04/04 and Michael Berg whose son Nicholas was beheaded on 04/07/04 in Iraq.
Cindy Sheehan's Testimony on Downing Street Memo
Congressman Conyers and all, it is an honor to be here to testify about the effect that the revelations of the Downing Street Memo has had on me and my family. It is an honor that I wish never had to happen. I believe that not any of us should be gathered here today for this reason: as the result of an invasion/occupation that never should have occured.
My son, Spc Casey Austin Sheehan, was KIA in Sadr City Baghdad on 04/04/04. He was in Iraq for only 2 weeks before L. Paul Bremer inflamed the Shi’ite Militia into a rebellion which resulted in the deaths of Casey and 6 other brave soldiers who were tragically killed in an ambush. Bill Mitchell, the father of Sgt. Mike Mitchell who was one of the other soldiers killed that awful day is with us here. This is a picture of Casey when he was 7 months old. It's an enlargement of a picture he carried in his wallet until the day he was killed. He loved this picture of himself. It was returned to us with his personal effects from Iraq. He always sucked on those two fingers. When he was born, he had a flat face from passing through the birth canal and we called him "Edward G" short for Edward G. Robinson. How many of you have seen your child in his/her premature coffin? It is a shocking and very painful sight. The most heartbreaking aspect of seeing Casey lying in his casket for me, was that his face was flat again because he had no muscle tone. He looked like he did when he was a baby laying in his bassinette. The most tragic irony is that if the Downing Street Memo proves to be true, Casey and thousands of people should still be alive.
I believed before our leaders invaded Iraq in March, 2003, and I am even more convinced now, that this aggression on Iraq was based on a lie of historic proportions and was blatantly unnecessary. The so-called Downing Street Memo dated 23 July, 2003 only confirms what I already suspected: the leadership of this country rushed us into an illegal invasion of another sovereign country on prefabricated and cherry picked intelligence. Iraq was no threat to the United States of America and the devastating sanctions and bombing raids against Iraq were working. As a matter of fact, in interviews in 1999 with respected journalist, and long time Bush family friend, David Herskowitz, then Governor George Bush stated: ‘One of the keys to being seen as a great leader is to be seen as a commander-in-chief. My father had all this political capital built up when he drove the Iraqis out of Kuwait and he wasted it. If I have a chance to invade….if I had that much capital, I’m not going to waste it. I’m going to get everything passed that I want to get passed and I’m going to have a successful presidency.” It looks like George Bush was ready to lead this country into an avoidable war even before he became president.
From the expose of the Downing Street Memo and the conversations with George Bush from 1999, it seems like the invasion of Iraq and the deaths of so many innocent people were preordained. It appears that my boy Casey was given a death sentence even before he joined the Army in May of 2000.
When a President lies to Congress and the American people, it is a serious offense. If the Downing Street Memo proves to be true, then it would appear that the president, vice president and many members of the cabinet deceived the world before the invasion of Iraq. As the result of this alleged lie, over 1700 brave young Americans who were only trying to do their duties have come home in flag draped coffins: images, as if they were ashamed of our children, our leaders won’t even let the American people see; thousands upon thousands of Iraqis who were guilty only of the crime of living in Iraq are dead; thousands of our young people will go through the rest of their lives missing one or more limbs, and too many will come home missing parts of their souls and humanity.
Kevin Lucey who found his Marine son, Jeffrey, who was recently home from Iraq, hanging dead from a garden hose in his basement wrote to me:
We ask daily where was the urgency; where was the necessity of rushing in. Can anyone explain to us, his mother and to his father as to why he felt that he had to die by his own hand. Why are the ones in position of power so afraid to ask people like us to discuss what happened to Jeff? Jeff can teach us so much. This war was so misguided and had so many other agendas which had nothing to do with the country.
Kevin, who cradled his son when he was his sweet baby boy, cradled Jeff's lifeless body for the last time in his arms after he cut him down from the hose. The Jeff that the Lucey's saw march off to a wreckless war was not the one who limped home. The Jeff his family knew died in Iraq, murdered by the inhumanity of gratutitous war.
The deceptions and betrayals that led to the US invasion and occupation of Iraq cost my family a price too dear to pay and almost too much to bear: the precious and young life of Casey. Casey was a good soldier who loved his family, his community, his country, and his God. He was trustworthy and trusting and the leadership of his country seemingly betrayed him. He was an indispensable part of our family. An obedient, sweet, funny, and loving son to myself and his father, Pat, and an adored big brother to his sisters, Carly and Jane, and his brother Andy. And the beloved nephew to my sister, Auntie, who is here with me today. Our family has been devastated and torn asunder by his murder.
I believe that the reasons that we citizens of the United States of America were given for the invasion of Iraq have unequivocally been proven to be false. I also believe that Casey and his buddies have been killed to line the pockets of already wealthy people and to feed the insatiable war machine that has always devoured our young. Casey died saving his buddies and I know so many of our brave young soldiers died doing the same thing: but he and his fellow members of the military should never have been sent to Iraq. I know the family of Sgt. Sherwood Baker, who was killed guarding a team that was looking for the mythic WMD's in Baghdad. The same WMD's that were the justification for invading Iraq as outlined in the Downing Street Memo. Sherwood's brother, Dante Zappala, and his dad, Al Zappala are here with us today. I believe the Downing Street Memo proves that our leaders betrayed too many innocents into an early grave. The lives of the ones left behind are shattered almost beyond repair.
I also believe an investigation into the Downing Street Memo is completely warranted and the necessary first step into righting the wrong that is Iraq and holding someone accountable for the needless, senseless, and avoidable deaths of many thousands. As far as I am concerned, it doesn’t matter if one is a Democrat or a Republican, a full investigation into the veracity of the Downing Street Memo must be initiated immediately. Casey was not asked his political affiliation before he was sent to die in Iraq. The innocent people who are having their blood shed by the bucketsful in Iraq don’t even know or care what American partisan politicking is all about. Every minute that we waste in gathering signatures on petitions, or arguing about partisan politics, more blood is being spilled in Iraq. How many more families here in America are going to get the visit from the Grim Reaper dressed in a US military uniform while we are trying to get our Congressional Leadership to do their duties to the Constitution and to the people of America? I believe that Congress expediently abrogated their Constitutional responsibility to declare war when they passed the War Power's Act, and they bear at least some responsibility for the needless heartache wrought on this world by our government. I believe that supporting a full investigation into the Downing Street Memo is a good beginning for Congress to redeem itself for abandoning the Constitution and the American people.
There are too many stories of heartache and loss to tell at a hearing like this. I have brought testimonies of other families who have been devastated by the war. Their soldiers' names are: Sgt. Sherwood Baker, KIA 04/26/04; 1st Lt. Neil Santoriello, KIA 08/13/04; Sgt Mike Mitchell, KIA 04/04/04; Spc Casey Sheehan, also KIA 04/04/04; Lt. Jeff Kaylor, KIA 04/07/03; Spc Kevin S.K. Wessell, KIA 04/19/05; Spc. Jonathan Castro, KIA 12/21/04; PFC William Prichard, KIA 02/11/04; Spc Joseph Blickenstaff, KIA 12/08/03, and 1st Lt Kenneth Ballard, KIA 05/30/04. I would like to have the testimonies put into the record and recorded for all to read the words of boundless love, bottomless loss, and deep despair.
There are a few people around the US and a couple of my fellow witnesses who were a little justifiably worried that in my anger and anguish over Casey's premeditated death, I would use some swear words, as I have been known to do on occasion when speaking about the subject. Mr. Conyers, out of my deep respect for you, the other representatives here, my fellow witnesses, and viewers of these historic proceedings, I was able to make it through an entire testimony without using any profanity. However, If anyone deserves to be angry and use profanity, it is I. What happened to Casey and humanity because of the apparent dearth of honesty in our country's leadership is so profane that it defies even my vocabulary skills. We as Americans should be offended more by the profanity of the actions of this administration then by swear words. We have all heard the old adage that actions speak louder than words and for the sake of Casey and our other precious children, please hold someone accountable for their actions and their words of deception.
Again, I would like to thank you for inviting me to testify today and giving me a chance to tell my story, which is the tragic story of too many familes here in the US and in Iraq. I hope and pray that this is the first step in exposing the lies to the light and bringing justice for the ones who can no longer speak for themselves. More importantly, I hope this is a step in bringing our other children home from the lie of historic proportions that is Iraq. Thank you.
CS: He lied to the American people about WMDs and Saddam's link to 9/11. Of course he should be impeached. At the very least the DSMs should be investigated. Our country has ignored the Geneva Convention, and the lies have caused tens of thousands of innocent deaths.
Our work has helped change public opinion.
They worry that as the war verges on entering its third year, the public seems to be losing interest in it. When Sheehan tells people she lost a son in the war, she said, she is sometimes asked, "Which war?"
"It's like the American public can listen to the war news for five minutes, and then they can hear about Michael Jackson," she said. "We're trying really hard to bring it to the forefront, to make people care about what's going on there."
Zappala said, on Inauguration Day, half a dozen Gold Star Families, letters in hand, tried to gain an audience with Bush and Rumsfeld. They were turned away at the White House by guards.
The most prominent member is Lila Lipscomb of Flint, Mich., who was featured in Michael Moore's "Fahrenheit 9/11." The film shows her encouraging her son, Michael Pederson, to join the Army for its career opportunities, only to end up grieving for him two weeks after the war in Iraq began.
"I consider being in that movie such a blessing," she said, "because it has given me the opportunity to have an audience."
Bill Mitchell said Gold Star Families in general have had no problem capturing a crowd's attention. "When we get together," he said, "it's pretty powerful."
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