[GoneForNow]

Protester Sheehan Presses Clinton To Withdraw Support for War

By JACOB GERSHMAN - Staff Reporter of the Sun
September 19, 2005

War protester Cindy Sheehan came to New York last night with a blunt warning for Senator Clinton: End your support for the war in Iraq or else.
Visiting New York City for the first time since leaving her campsite outside President Bush's vacation ranch in Crawford, Texas, Ms. Sheehan told a packed audience in a Brooklyn church that Mrs. Clinton "knows the war is a lie" but because of her political ambitions refuses to voice any opposition.
Mrs. Clinton is "waiting for the best political moment to say" she opposes the war, Ms. Sheehan said during a 15-minute speech. "You say it or you're losing your job," she said, provoking a roar of approval from the audience. Mrs. Clinton, believed to be a possible presidential contender in 2008, has said she supports the war in Iraq and has pushed for a greater troop presence in the country.
In an interview after her speech, Ms. Sheehan said she has requested a meeting with Mrs. Clinton but has not gotten a reply. Mrs. Clinton's office was not immediately available for comment last night.
Ms. Sheehan, who has demanded a second face-to-face meeting with Mr. Bush to discuss the war, suggested that there was little the president could say at this point to appease her. She called his administration "reckless" and "insane" and said "maniacs" are running America.
She also seemed to broaden her stance against America's military presence in Iraq to an opposition to war in general, saying, "We want to make sure it never happens again." She said she was motivated not just by the grief caused by the death of her 24-year-old son Casey, a soldier killed in Baghdad in April 2004, but by an effort to save the world's children.
"The children of the world are not safe," she said. "We have to do it for them."
She also criticized the press for picking on her and said it has corrupt motives in its coverage. "If you look at who owns most of the mainstream media, they all profit off of this war. We have to stop making war profitable."
Ms. Sheehan spoke to about 300 people inside the sanctuary of the Civil War-era Lafayette Avenue Presbyterian Church, located on the corner of South Oxford Street and Lafayette Avenue in the heart of the Fort Greene neighborhood. The audience was a mixture of Brooklyn residents, anti-war protesters, and a handful of politicians, including City Council members David Yassky and Letitia James. Also in the audience was television personality Phil Donahue, who said he was "very, very impressed with this woman's courage." In an interview outside the sanctuary, he described Ms. Sheehan as a "lightening rod of an important effort to stop this immoral war." The reverend of the church, David Dyson, called Ms. Sheehan "one of the bravest women in the United States of America."
Arriving more than an hour late apparently because of traffic and bad directions, Ms. Sheehan stepped out of a white recreation vehicle and entered the church. An ecstatic audience had risen to its feet. As the Lafayette Inspirational Ensemble chanted "Ain't gonna study war no more," Ms. Sheehan sat down, crossed her legs, and slowly nodded to the choral music.
Ms. Sheehan's month-long vigil outside Mr. Bush's vacation ranch propelled her to the national stage as the symbolic face of an anti-war movement that had lost some of its force. Thousands of opponents of the war joined her at her "Camp Casey" in Texas, as did a large contingent of pro-war demonstrators who staged rallies in support of the Bush administration. As a grieving mother seeking answers, Ms. Sheehan has won sympathy from Americans who have reservations about Mr. Bush's handling of the war, but she has also alienated others, including families of other American soldiers killed in Iraq, who say a partisan political agenda has corrupted her message.
While her protest began as a simple demand to meet with the president, her criticisms of Mr. Bush have expanded beyond foreign policy. After touring parts of Louisiana last week, Ms. Sheehan wrote a letter posted on filmmaker Michael Moore's Web site in which she accused the federal government of evacuating people unnecessarily in the days after Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast. "George Bush needs to stop talking, admit the mistakes of his all around failed administration, pull our troops out of occupied New Orleans and Iraq, and excuse his self from power," she wrote.
Ms. Sheehan is to speak today at St. John the Divine in Manhattan, with much larger crowds expected to attend. Organized in part by the anti-war group United for Peace and Justice, her stop in New York is part of what is billed as "The Bring Them Home Now Tour," which concludes on September 21 when three buses traveling along regional routes converge in Washington, D.C., three days before an anti-war rally on the National Mall. Ms. Sheehan has said she plans to set up a vigil near the White House that will resemble the Crawford campsite.

[WarC]

"You say it or you're losing your job."

"George Bush needs to stop talking, admit the mistakes...pull our troops out of occupied New Orleans... and excuse his self from power."

Cindy Sheehan never ceases to amaze me. I never thought I'd hear a character that popular nationwide say the sort of plain dumb crap she says. I could get political comments more insightful from the Anarcho-Socialist kids thats romped around my high school...

[Stoner]

pull our troops out of occupied New Orleans

unbelievable.....yep, WarC, that was plain dumb crap.

[GoneForNow]

Isn't her 15 minutes up yet? Now that she has begun to attack Democrats lets see how long before they distance themselves from her. I also suspect you are now going to see the media start to portray her as a little "kooky". The liberal media does not take well to attacks on their favorite sons (daughters?).

[Mulderator]

Originally Posted by gbrumb

Isn't her 15 minutes up yet? Now that she has begun to attack Democrats lets see how long before they distance themselves from her. I also suspect you are now going to see the media start to portray her as a little "kooky". The liberal media does not take well to attacks on their favorite sons (daughters?).

Exactly what I was thinking. Cindy Sheehan just bit off the hand that feeds her!

Maybe she'll settle for a "face to face" with Bill Clinton!

[GoneForNow]

Originally Posted by Mulder

Maybe she'll settle for a "face to face" with Bill Clinton!

More like face to.........................well you know.

[Mulderator]

Originally Posted by gbrumb

More like face to.........................well you know.

Even Bill wouldn't sink that low!

[TooBad]

Originally Posted by Mulder

Even Bill wouldn't sink that low!

Yes he would!

[littlemar]

Her son has nothing to do with this anymore (if ever). I'm sick of listening to her speak for the parents of the military. My son is proud that he served his country and feels she is a disgrace to her son and now the country.

Now she feels she is on the same level as the President and the government. As long as she has those sheep following her she'll continue to have her 15 minutes of fame.

[alex_holker]

Originally Posted by Mulder

Exactly what I was thinking.

You are too kind - she'd be lucky to get away with "insane, with an overinflated sense of her own importance," in my opinion.

[bassetman]

Originally Posted by WarC

"You say it or you're losing your job."

"George Bush needs to stop talking, admit the mistakes...pull our troops out of occupied New Orleans... and excuse his self from power."

Cindy Sheehan never ceases to amaze me. I never thought I'd hear a character that popular nationwide say the sort of plain dumb crap she says. I could get political comments more insightful from the Anarcho-Socialist kids thats romped around my high school...

I did a Google news search for that and only found one hit, and it's a subscribe link.

Where did you see this?


Wait! You were talking about Cindy's comments and not responding to GB's Hilary remark?

[AcaCandy]

Hillary isn't going to crawl out of her hole to touch anything that hot

She has someone taking polls, you can BET ON IT.

[bassetman]

Originally Posted by AcaCandy

Hillary isn't going to crawl out of her hole to touch anything that hot

She has someone taking polls, you can BET ON IT.

Unfortunately this is a media circus for both sides!

[AcaCandy]

Arriving more than an hour late apparently because of traffic and bad directions,


Wonder who gave her the directions?


The reverend of the church, David Dyson,


You think?

[bassetman]

Originally Posted by AcaCandy

Hillary isn't going to crawl out of her hole to touch anything that hot

She has someone taking polls, you can BET ON IT.

Arriving more than an hour late apparently because of traffic and bad directions,


Wonder who gave her the directions?


The reverend of the church, David Dyson,


You think?

So is she not going to show, or did she?

You are confusing me Candy!