Posted on 03/04/2011 5:14:16 AM PST by Loyal Buckeye
The volatility surrounding the collective-bargaining debate spilled into the night Wednesday when police were called to a German Village restaurant after a group verbally accosted a gathering of Senate Republicans.
After the vote on Senate Bill 5, seven Republican senators, including President Tom Niehaus, R-New Richmond, grabbed dinner at the Easy Street Cafe. As the lawmakers neared the end of their meal, a group of five to 10 union supporters angry about the passage of the bill hours before burst into the restaurant and began shouting.
The commotion eventually led to pushing and shoving with the restaurant staff and owner, before police arrived to calm the situation as a police helicopter hovered overhead. No senators were involved in the physical altercations, and no charges have been filed.
"It could have (gotten physical)," said Sen. Frank LaRose, 31, a Fairlawn Republican who served as a Green Beret. "The group was agitated and they were shoving the owner, and he had nothing to do with this."
LaRose said it didn't take special intelligence training to notice that while the lawmakers were eating, a woman walked past the window several times, poked her head in the door and got on her cell phone.
"It was planned," LaRose said. "They gathered as a group and waited until they had about 10 people before they caused a disturbance."
When the group burst into the restaurant, the woman, Monica Moran, deputy director of public affairs for SEIU District 1199, raised her hands in the air, yelled "Can I have your attention?" and then shouted "something nasty," LaRose said. Soon after, the rest of the group of men and women joined in with a chant.
"They stormed through my dining room," said George Stefanidis, owner of the Easy Street Cafe. "I told them they had to leave, and they wouldn't."
Stefanidis said he called 911 when the protesters refused to leave. LaRose said there was pushing and shoving with the restaurant staff. Meanwhile, someone on the outside slapped an anti-Senate Bill 5 sign on the window near where Niehaus was sitting.
"I understand their argument, but they should do that some other place," Stefanidis said. "It just ruined the whole night."
He said about 70 people were in the restaurant, at 197 Thurman Ave., at the time.
Witnesses said Stefanidis and his staff held the group back from the senators.
"I was tempted to help, but us getting involved would have escalated it, not de-escalated it. We decided to stay quiet," LaRose said.
Moran, who is married to a top researcher at the Ohio Republican Party, was unapologetic.
"It is unfortunate that rather than focus on the adverse impact that this legislation will have on hard-working, middle-class Ohioans, there are those who would choose to focus on a conversation I had with Senate Republicans," she said in a written statement to The Dispatch.
"The moment of discomfort Senate Republicans may have felt as a result of my expressing my opinion pales in comparison to the extreme discomfort and financial hardships that public employees will endure as a result of SB5."
Sens. Kevin Bacon of Minerva Park, Keith Faber of Celina, Larry Obhof Jr. of Montville Township, Chris Widener of Springfield and Gayle Manning of North Ridgeville also were at the restaurant. All but Manning voted in favor of Senate Bill 5.
Indeed—The “top researcher at the Ohio Republican Party” is a mole and needs to be bounced forthwith.
yet another call from the Alinsky playbook
The rats always come out at night.
Because:
1) they have a cause they're fanatical about;
2) they are willing to use ANY means to win;
3) they have been fed our tax money for many years via their advocacy groups, which have grown powerful;
4) the state controlled media is on the extremists' sides;
5) we are a diverse group simply living our lives and wanting to be left unmolested by government or the special interests;
6) we don't believe "the ends justify the means";
7) we tell the truth poorly, while they spew effective lies using Mein Kampf techniques;
8) we stupidly allow the leftist media to pick our "leaders" and "spokesmen" - ala McLame.
I'm recalling the Don Adams incident from years back, and it's my impression that some judges are also DEM hacks, who will deny damages to a conservative complainant in a civil suit, when the defendant is union or DEM, etc.
I'm of the firm opinion that, other than contract and some routine family law matters, our justice system fails to meet the standards for objectivity and adherence to the constitution.
Typical display of liberal ethics and manners.
They physically attacked resturant workers and the owner of the resturant but NO CHARGES WERE filed. They threatened election officials, but no charges were filed. They invaded and occupied private property and no charges were filled.
This injustice and inequality before the law, will enbolden the radicals and they will be more violent on a larger scale. They have a lot of money and the way to decrease their money is to tie them up in courts every time they violate the law or the rights of others.
That supposes the courts are fair. What happens is that the injured conservative plaintiff spends lots of money and time trying to obtain justice, and ends up losing more in the end.
That said, I think a restraining order would be a cinch to get in this case. It's cheap, the disruptors are known, and the judge is likely to grant an appropriate "stay away" order, based on the conduct of the disruptors, at this particular restaurant.
It's a but tougher, but the GOP legislators might be able to get an order, not "stay away" per se, but "stay away, except at the legislators' places of legislative business." That serves to protect the interest of the union to be heard, and it protects the interest of every business that the legislator visits.
“Flying squads” were used often in the 20th century by police and unions. With unions, they are pre-determined groups of individuals who are “on call” to take whatever actions may be required of them wherever needed.
Flash mobs require communications to spread geometricly among unrelated individuals and may or may not come to fruition.
I realize that “Flying Squad” may not sound as hip as “Flash Mob”, but it is what it is. Flying squads were named and used long before the first flash mob was ever dreamed of.
Fair enough. I think this particular “Flying Squad” need to find a “clothesline”, at speed.
You have a nice family,wouldn’t want anything to happen to them?.
Oh they just want to get even with Fox News for filming auto workers getting stonde and drinking beer on lunch brake.
The comments for this article are overwhelmingly in support of SB5; however, some union thugs showed up to comment. Here are some of them:
Post #1 - They should have beaten the living crap out of ‘em.
Post #19 - The police should have arrested the senators and charged them with rape!
Post #34 - AWESOME!!! Way to go SEIU, If you are going to live your life in the public eye and your work is going to damage other peoples lives, then you should be prepared for the consquences when you go out in public. Much like Hollywood stars have to face the papparazi. Good for SEIU!! Go get em!
Post #37 - Should attack those republicans wherever they go....
Post #42 - Well the restaurant should watch out what kind of trash they are serving to.
Post #57 - When you pick a fight. You will get a fight. This is far from over. The radical Republicans have gone too far this time.
Post #67 - The Senators had it coming.
Post #81 - Wake up people, this is a war. We didn’t start it, they did. The motto should be...disrupt, disrupt, disrupt!!!!!!! The 2nd American Revolution began in Ohio!!!!!
Post #101 - …..But the Senators that voted for that nasty bill and especially Niehaus and Bacon who ran this circus, need to understand that the bad old times are back—and they are fully to blame and need to accept the consequences.
Post # 103 - They should have beat the crap out of the senators!
Post #119 - I AGREE! I wish they were jumped by some TEAMSTERS.
Post #125 - Andy Stern “we watched how they voted and we know where they live”
Post #133 - As a union member and wife to a union steward, i have asked my waitress sister to spit in the food of any patron who looks like one of those evil republican.
Post #170 - It’s over-due. Perhaps we can follow Egypt and Libya’s example.
In Columbus, he might as well be. Although there is an "R" after his name, Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O'Brien has his head firmly up the backside of the Democrat Mayor and all Democrat City Council of Columbus.
We need to get the husband fired.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.