[Mb-civic] Antiwar Protesters Arrested Near Bush Ranch - Washington Post

[William Swiggard]

Antiwar Protesters Arrested Near Bush Ranch
Ordinance Limits Parking, Camping

By Rosalind S. Helderman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, November 24, 2005; Page A02

CRAWFORD, Tex., Nov. 23 -- About a dozen antiwar protesters, including 
Daniel Ellsberg and the sister of Cindy Sheehan, were arrested Wednesday 
morning while camping on a roadside near President Bush's ranch in 
violation of a new county ordinance.

The group returned this week as Bush arrived at his Texas home to 
celebrate Thanksgiving with his family. They came in hopes of reigniting 
the international attention they attracted in August, when hundreds came 
to join Sheehan as she camped outside Bush's ranch for 26 days. Her son 
was killed in Iraq.

Since then, however, the antiwar movement has expanded beyond Sheehan 
and her protesters, focusing in recent weeks on Washington and the 
rising discontent in Congress. Protests in Crawford, so far, have been 
smaller than in August, when demonstrators from around the country came 
to the tiny Texas town where Bush spends his vacations.

At that time, Sheehan and her supporters represented the most pointed 
voices of the antiwar movement. They have been joined in recent weeks by 
leading Democratic politicians, including Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), 
who on Tuesday called on Bush to admit errors in how he has waged the 
war, and Rep. John P. Murtha (D-Pa.), a former Marine who has called for 
an immediate withdrawal of troops.

If Sheehan's supporters do not attract the same level of interest this 
time around, it will not be for lack of trying. Protesters have events 
planned for each day this week, including serving an Iraqi meal on 
Thanksgiving. Sheehan herself, who has not yet arrived in Crawford, is 
scheduled to lead a rally on Saturday.

After the August protests, McLennan County commissioners passed a new 
ordinance that prohibits parking and camping in the ditches along the 
winding two-lane roads leading to Bush's ranch.

The protesters have been invited by a local rancher to camp on his land, 
where they have erected a large white tent and hung a banner that says 
"No Pardon for Crawford's Turkey." But they have also challenged the 
constitutionality of the county's new rules. On Wednesday, a small group 
set up tents in the early morning hours on the small patch of public 
land that had been dubbed Camp Casey in August, after Sheehan's 
24-year-old son, a soldier.

McLennan County sheriff's deputies gave the protesters two warnings 
before arresting the group, including Ellsberg. A former Defense 
Department official, Ellsberg became well-known for leaking the 
"Pentagon Papers" to the news media in 1971. The documents showed that 
the United States was expanding its involvement in the Vietnam War.

Dave Jensen, 54, a former Marine and a protester who witnessed the 
arrests, said the crowd cheered as Ellsberg was taken away.

"The ordinance was very plainly meant to prevent people from protesting 
in front of Bush's ranch," he said. "We feel that's a First Amendment 
issue. It's intentionally designed to curtail freedom of speech and 
freedom of assembly."

Jensen, who said he had camped in Crawford in August as well, said the 
protesters believe that their efforts have helped trigger a serious 
reevaluation of the war effort.

The White House declined to comment on the arrests, though in response 
to Obama's remarks, communications director Nicolle Wallace said: 
"Elected leaders in Washington who do not support our policies in Iraq 
have every right to voice their dissent. They also have a responsibility 
to provide a credible alternative. The stakes are too high, and the 
national interest too important, for anything otherwise."

Bush arrived in Crawford on Tuesday and is scheduled to remain at the 
ranch with his family until Monday. The White House said their 
Thanksgiving meal will include roasted free-range turkey with herbed 
stuffing, chipotle-maple whipped sweet potatoes and Texas pecan pie.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/23/AR2005112302185.html
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