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The DC Chapter of Free Republic organized the protests at the VP's mansion on the grounds of the Naval Observatory during the aftermath of the 2000 Election. We showed up the first time on Thursday evening two days after Election Day (just a handful of us) and the Gore team hastily called upon some college students to show up as a counter and distributed Gore/Lieberman campaign signs for them to hold up. Someone even called the DC Police and reported a group of vandals who were jumping on cars -- us. Imagine our surprise.

From that night, we quickly organized other vigils/protests and passed out the DC Chapter Rules for Protesting to keep order as others equally outraged by Gore's and the democrats' attempts to steal the election in Florida joined us. We brought extra signs and sign-making materials, passed out buttons and flyers, and made many new and lasting friends.

The Saturday after Thanksgiving, when 1,000 plus people showed up in a chilly, drizzling rain, Al Gore was on the phone trying to find John Sweeney in order to get some union reps out to counter us. Unfortunately, as we learned from the book published by Washington Post reporters, Sweeney doesn't carry a cell phone and was unreachable. Too bad for Al Gore.

C-Span sells a tape showing some of the protesting on this same Saturday. The voiceover at the beginning mentions a few dozen protesters assembled in support of George W. Bush across from the VP's mansion, but then pans the crowd and it is apparent that there are many people gathered there and the opposite side of the street has about 40 Gore supporters. The corner had people 12 deep on the front lawn of the Vatican Embassy and the line of protesters stretched all the way down Massachusetts to a bend in the road. The signs were creative, clever, witty, humorous and we all smiled as we shouted, "GET OUT OF CHENEY'S HOUSE."

The Gores are trying desperately to rewrite history and make themselves into the victims...again.