Posted By: BossE Stone

July 15, 2008

Many of you have probably heard about or seen clips of the librarian, Carol Kreck, who was kicked out of a McCain town hall meeting in Denver. (Just in case you haven’t click here.) This is, in and of its self, more than a bit concerning. However, more concerning is that this is not an isolated case.

Back in May, I attended an AFL-CIO event in Portland with a focus on McCain’s health care plan. The AFL-CIO had rented a room at the hotel where McCain was holding a fundraiser. They then invited Mr. McCain to speak to a group of working class folks about his health care plan.

The invitation was never answered, not even to say, “No, thank you.”

Just before the AFL-CIO event started, a representative from the hotel came into the room to let the organizers of the event know that they were not to attempt to talk to Senator McCain. Any attempt to go into the part of the hotel where the fundraiser was being held would result in arrest.

When the hotel representative was asked about who made the decision, he responded that he had been told this from McCain’s campaign staff.

One of the organizers of the event then asked to hear the news directly from someone from the McCain staff. The hotel employee left the room and retrieved a staffer for McCain. She promptly recanted the statement the hotel employee had given the event organizers: Any attempt to go into the area of the hotel where the McCain Fundraiser and to talk to Senator McCain would result in arrest.

So much for democracy and the free exchange of ideas. Oh! And that thing called the First Amendment.

I do not believe that the threat of arrest to the AFL-CIO event attendees or the ticketing and removal of Carol Kreck at these McCain events are special or isolated incidents. McCain is obviously scared of being called on his BS and wants anyone who will do that removed.

We cannot continue to allow these kinds of threats to our freedoms. Spread the word, and if McCain happens to be in your town, maybe take a video camera and see what happens.

Democracy depends on you and your actions.

PS- I heart the “two peas in a pod” costume that is in the background of the Carol Kreck video. I kept getting distracted by that guy and had to watch the video several times to catch what was going on.

Also, Rachel Maddow had a great take on the Kreck incident while hosting "Countdown" Here's the video of that: