George W. Does Liberty

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Their first move was against a small group of Texans, mostly senior citizens, who were protesting some of Bush's most atrocious environmental policies. They were carrying colorful signs and peacefully walking up and down the public sidewalk in front of the governor's mansion, not disturbing anyone. This sidewalk has historically been the site of Texas protest, and while previous governors undoubtedly wished that the balky citizenry of their time would go away, none tried to act on their wish.

But in '99, George was gearing up for his presidential run, and scads of national media-types were coming in and out of town to evaluate this politically hot governor. Having protestors draw attention to his record of servitude to corporate polluters was definitely off message, so Bush unleashed his state police detail to swoop down on the picketers and order them removed to a faraway parking lot, which they arbitrarily designated as a 'protest zone.' It was conveniently beyond the sight and sound of His Gubernatorial Eminence...and of the media. Those protestors who objected to this sweep were promptly arrested, cuffed, and thrown in jail.

As you might expect, such thuggishness was completely illegal, and a judge later threw the state's trumped up charges out of court, reopening the public sidewalk to (O, democracy!) the public. But by the time this decision came down, George and Karl were long gone, safely in the White House.

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