Planned Bush visit stirs police, protesters (Portland, Oregon)

[Nambe]

Associated Press

Both police and protesters are planning for a possible raucous day Thursday when President Bush visits for a fund-raiser on the University of Portland campus.

Portland police are coordinating security with the U.S. Secret Service and a White House advance team, hoping to avoid some pitfalls that led to major police clashes with demonstrators a year ago at a money-raiser for Sen. Gordon Smith in Portland.

Meanwhile, local activists are making plans of their own as they gear up to protest his appearance. -

So far, the Portland Peaceful Response Coalition has applied for a city permit to gather about 10 a.m. Thursday at Portsmouth Park and march south to Willamette Boulevard, and to demonstrate until 5 p.m.

EDITED BY ADMIN: COPYRIGHT

[peekaloo]

1. Little Beirut as Poopy refers to them

GIVE THE MONKEY HELL!

[Systematic Chaos]

2. Go good citizens of Portland!!

Workshops have been held in the last few weeks on civil disobedience and the gathering of photographic and videotaped evidence of police misconduct. A fund-raiser was planned to help support those who may be arrested or jailed during Bush's visit. -


I'm sure they'll have a LOT to compile by the time this is over. I just hope these people are prepared to drop some HUGE civil rights violation lawsuits on the Portland PD.

[searchingforlight]

3. How about slain Iraqi children too. They are the forgotten innocents.

[ElsewheresDaughter]

4. the commander in thief isn't wanted anywhere doen't his handlers GET IT!

[dArKeR]

5. Anyone have any idea how much a pResidential visit costs the tax payers?

Enough to build a new grid? Or at least 10 super-duper capacitors?

I can guess $10 Million.

[lindashaw]

7. millions...

Remember when Poppy threw the opening baseball down here in Texas? They had to have his blood type flown in and available, all kinds of alternate exit plans...it cost mucho dollars.

[jbfam4]

8. It would have saved money

if Bush would have gone from California to Portland....maybe his tight fund raising schedule wouldn't permit it.

[dmr]

19. Or how many children it could feed and educate? n/t

[deutsey]

6. Info on Portland Indymedia

http://portland.indymedia.org/en/action/a22round2/

You may remember, the last time Bush visited Portland, police peppersprayed protesters (including parents with a baby). Witnesses said it was an unprovoked attack by police.

http://portland.indymedia.org/archive/a22/

http://portland.indymedia.org/en/2002/08/17932.shtml

[Pastiche423]

14. August 22, 2002

Peppersprayed baby

[stevedeshazer]

15. Do these people look like anarchists?

The local press keeps calling us 'anarchists.' Here's an example from hate-radio station KXL:

KXL Policitical Analyst Jim Moore said that, while anarchists may try to cause trouble like they did
during the president's last visit, he expects more union and suburbanites will protest the state of the
economy. Who they are and how many show up matters.

"If we have more than about 5,000 protestors, that means there's more wide-spread disillusionment
with Bush policies." That could affect whether the Bush campaign puts Oregon in the win column in
next year's election.

http://kxl.com/ArDisplay.asp?SecID=22&ID=38647

[study_war_no_more]

17. jesus was an anarchist

are yu breeding bolshevicks in your bathroom?

[NYC]

18. Good luck, Stevie D.

Give us a full report. You have my support in spirit. :hi:

[Mari333]

9. Bush raises funds, soldiers die daily

[stevedeshazer]

10. Front page in 'The Oregonian' today

We could not get a better recruiting tool. I was getting concerned about not enough publicity. This ensures a huge turnout.

Gotta make some new signs. Any suggestions?

[grasswire]

11. the university is really ...

...an out of the way location for this. It's in North Portland. A Catholic university. I wonder if it was picked because it's out of the central area, for security.

[stevedeshazer]

13. I'm sure it was chosen for that reason

I scouted it last week. Since it is on the Bluff, it can only be approached from two sides.

Remember how the cops took a lot of flak for allowing demonstrators to disrupt business downtown? We shut it down. They certainly can't have us smelly, hairy disruptors interrupting the flow of sacred Capitalism again. Lars Larson might not approve.

Anyway, I think they've made a basic strategic error. Since the closure of the St. John's Bridge, there is only one way in and out. The only place large enough on the UP campus to facilitate such an event, IMO, is the Chiles Center, right on Willamette Boulevard. The donors have to get there somehow...unless the cops try to cordon off the entire university neighborhood, which seems unrealistic.

[Parche]

22. lars

Speaking of good old right wing ignorant Lars Larson
did you watch the town hall meeting this past year when
Peter Jennings was in town, he roasted Lars, it was tooo funny!!!!!

[stevedeshazer]

26. Yup

Jennings basically told him to shut up. The look on Larson's face was priceless. Plus that creep Jeff Kropf, R-Sublimity (Oregon legislator) ugh.

[Parche]

21. i wish i had the day off

So I could be with you to protest, but you know this economy
I cant afford to be off

[Voltaire99]

39. Sign suggestion

Gotta make some new signs. Any suggestions?

"Portland pretzel vendors for Bush"

[Fleshdancer]

12. Give him hell Portland! n/t

[samsingh]

16. another example of Bush unity.

[0007]

20. Let's just hope the media covers the protest

Give 'em hell Portland. Wish I could come.

[0rganism]

23. That hated ratfucker costs us a million every time he comes to town

Hundreds of Thousands in security.
Hundreds of Thousands in police overtime.
Hundreds of Thousands in traffic jams.
Tens of Thousands in property damage.
Tens of Thousands in injuries.
Tens of Thousands in lawsuits.

It adds up, in this economically-damaged city that just passed a special levy to keep our schools open.

I wish we could get a court order telling him to stay the fuck away from Portland, or sue the RNCC for negligence in bringing his ass here. Most of his rich GOP supporters are out in eastern Oregon anyway, he could just take his dog&pony show to Prineville for a warm redneck reception, and all the rich twits could just fly over on their private jets for his fundraiser.

Just one more of a gazillion reasons to dislike chimpy...

[0rganism]

24. Alternate link for the AP story

The KGW link asked for a registration to view the story, which is pure grade-A bullshit IMHO.

http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/front_page/1061207769223410.xml

Back to working on some signs and flyers. See you there in spades, fellow Portlanders.

[Nambe]

25. Does anyone know how he's getting to U of P? Hellecopter?

It would be to easy to choke him off if they go by motorcade.

[stevedeshazer]

27. That's the only way I can see

It's a real bottleneck to get there. I really think the Bushies have made a big mistake. Even if they break out the ChimpChopper to get * there, all the $2K/plate donor swine have to get there somehow. We'll be waiting.

[0rganism]

28. My guess is the cops will barricade off a large section of N. Portland...

...enough for the chimpster and his worshippers to have more than one way into the area right around the campus. Bush* doesn't want to waste time with a fundraiser no one can attend, so look for a huge police action in support of what will end up being the mother of all constitution-free zones.

[concord]

29. Viking jet?

Parachute? Zip line? Trampoline? Pogo stick?

[newyawker99]

31. Hi concord!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[young_at_heart]

30. Ican't remember ANY president causing so much division!

At age 64 I find myself wondering just what is going on? We've had numerous demonstrations, etc. over the years, but I just don't remember this much disharmony!

[brook]

36. We've never...

experienced domestic disharmony vis-a-vis a pResident to this degree in my lifetime - and I have a couple of years on you.

Despite the herculean efforts of RRRove, the national media and other enablers, I find it impossible to believe that * is unaware of just how throughly he's reviled by we citizens.

[newyawker99]

32. Nambe

Per DU copyright rules
please post only
4 paragraphs from the
news source.

Thank you.

NYer99
DU Moderator

[Pastiche423]

33. The emails regarding this event

are coming in fast and furious. There is talk that the police will try to erect a fence. (Around the whole campus?)

Protesters are being urged to either bicycle in or take buses. The buses will definitely will be slower as they will be clogged in traffic.

Several different groups will be protesting, but the Code Pink plans are the best!

Please, if any DUers attend, take lots and lots of photos! Also, if possible, take a lap top and let us know how it's going. Was it Adam Smith that did that last year?

P.S. If anyone from southern Oregon is going, please let me know.

[hussar]

35. Can you give directions please

or advise of a meeting area ?

[Pastiche423]

37. Meeting area

Columbia Park and N. Lombard 10 AM


Buses that you can take:

#75 St. Johns, stops at gathering point.

#40 St. Johns, stops at the Willamette Blvd end of the park. From
there, walk north through the park 'til you find the rally.

#1 Greeley and #4 Fessenden also run in the vicinity (several blocks
north of the park.)

Wherever you're coming from, if you log onto www.trimet.org and
click on their "trip planner," you can enter your address and the
place you want to go (N. Lombard & N. Woolsey), the time you want
to get there, and it will give you routes, transfers and times.

For those taking the #1 or #4, you can go to www.mapquest.com to find a map of the area, which can then help you find your way from the nearest bus stop to Columbia Park.

Please note that the Portland Police aren't very bright, and are notorious for causing severe traffic disruptions. Anyone who's participated in a Critical Mass ride knows that the cops are ten times worse about blocking off traffic than the bicyclists themselves.

Therefore, bus travel may experience significant delays or potential
re-routing. Hopefully (for the sake of N. Portland neighborhood
residents) public transit will be kept running smoothly.


Biking there:

For many people this will be a loooooong bike ride. However, it's the
most environmentally-friendly and dependable method. If you're
riding a bike, you _will_ be able to make it to the site, which can't be completely guaranteed for car and bus travelers.

To make it more fun for bicycle riders, and to encourage solidarity,
it's recommended that people meet to ride up in groups to the event.
Hopefully people will suggest more initial meeting points or join up
with others along the way. From talking to various people, locations
that have been suggested were to meet at Ladd's Circle in the heart
of Ladd's Addition at 9:30 am, the Citybikes Annex at SE 20th and
Ankeny (no time as yet), and the intersection of NE 15th and Broadway (no time as yet).

The best route for bicyclists to take would probably be to head north
on Interstate Avenue, take a left on N Portland Blvd, and then a right on N Willamette Blvd. This will safely take you to the protest site at Columbia Park, with bike lanes along this route. N Lombard is another option, but traffic is heavier and there are no bike lanes.

[NashVegas]

34. Wasn't it in Portland the Dam Broke?

I seem to recall that initially, public demonstrations against * were weakly attended - a couple hundred here and there - and/or poorly covered by the media. When 4 THOUSAND people showed up to march in Oregon, the media coudn't cover up the discontent any longer.

I can't wait to see what fresh hell will break loose, this time.

[stevedeshazer]

38. Bingo

With all respect to the demonstrations elsewhere in the US, A22 in Portland set the standard.

I see numbers ranging from 400 to 4,000 demonstrators. I assure you all it was much more than that.

Our city is not that large. We represent. Today, I'm proud to live here. Bring it on.