IPFS
Cindy Sheehan vs. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi - an interview with Ernest Hancock
Written by Ernest Hancock Subject: Politics: General ActivismI spoke to Cindy
Sheehan while she was at her campaign office Friday September
12th. She was kind enough to return my call requesting that we get
caught up on what’s been happening with her since
Crawford,
Texas’ first
“
Camp
Casey” in the summer of
2005.
Just a few weeks ago it was announced that she
would be 
on the ballot in
California as an independent congressional candidate against Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. Also running against
Speaker Pelosi is a token Republican woman candidate being used to raise money
for the Republican Party and a Libertarian
Candidate.
on the ballot in
California as an independent congressional candidate against Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. Also running against
Speaker Pelosi is a token Republican woman candidate being used to raise money
for the Republican Party and a Libertarian
Candidate.
But this article isn’t about her campaign for the US
Congress. It is about Cindy Sheehan’s journey as a grief
stricken mother of a soldier killed in
Iraq. Cindy was told in person by the
President of the
United
States that her son died for a “Noble Cause”
and from that moment on Cindy demanded to know what that noble cause was. Cindy
Sheehan influenced millions to ask the same question and helped to break through
the media’s defense shield in support of the expansion of the Empire. Cindy’s
efforts helped to open up the debate in
America about our role overseas and
many Americans added a few questions of their
own.
I wanted to take this opportunity to provide some
of my background covering Cindy over the years in an attempt to lend credibility
to some opinions I have formed over the years about American politics.
It was at the very end of 2004 or early 2005 that
I started to hear about the mother of a soldier killed in
Iraq that was
openly and forcefully opposing the Iraq War and demanding to know what was the
“Noble Cause” that her son died for. Cindy had met personally with President
Bush as part of a media event put on by the White House that failed to provide
the comfort she had hoped for.
I had been a radio talk show host and later a
producer since before the Iraq invasion in early 2003 (http://www.ernesthancock.com/archive/) and had just run as the Libertarian US Senate candidate
against John McCain in 2004, so I had been paying very close attention to not
only what was happening in Iraq and around the world but also how the first hand
accounts of individuals, “experts” and truly knowledgeable people were being
spun for consumption by the American public.
In late 2004 I became the producer for The Charles
Goyette Show that would soon move over to the new Air
America affiliate in
Phoenix, Az. Charles
Goyette was very keen on how the mother of an Iraq War
casualty could provide a voice for those trying to get the anti-war message into
the public debate. Years had passed without the breakthrough expected that would
result in having many questions answered by 'The Empire' in general and the Bush
Administration in particular.
After interviewing Cindy on the phone we knew the
impact that she would have. Soon after, Cindy would visit
Phoenix with her sister
DeeDee. They had created an organization called 'Gold Star Families for Peace' (Gold Stars
represent families that have lost a loved one in war) and Cindy was constantly
in demand as radio talk show guests from all across the political
spectrum.
Cindy's early rise in the Anti-War Movement made
it crystal clear what likely path she would be on. The NeoCon apologists in the
media would do their best to smear even a mother of a slain soldier to prevent
the asking of legitimate questions, the Democratic Party machine would use her
celebrity to elect more of their chosen lawmakers, and Cindy Sheehan would be
faced with many important decisions about how best to honor her son
Casey.
Early on Cindy
would write for the very libertarian website Lew Rockwell
where you can find over 3 dozen articles. Cindy demonstrated a clear mind that
had the capacity for rational thought and the ability to influence others into
asking the right questions. So I could see her as the target of many NeoCONed
supporters of the “War on Terror”. But Cindy's soft voice and mild manner lulled
her opposition into an expectation that 'Cindy Sheehan' could be dominated in
interviews,... she couldn't.
Cindy Sheehan was a very useful tool for many. I’m
sure that Cindy was a willing participant in an effort to end the Iraq War, but
she was also used unwittingly to further the interests of other’s interest that
she didn’t fully understand for quite some time. I never made an attempt to
discover Cindy Sheehan’s political philosophy or what she determined was the
proper role of government. I believe that she is opposed to war and has been an
effective activist in getting the issue debated much more than had she not been
available to be used as an effective tool against perpetual
war.
In person, Cindy is far more imposing than most
journalists expect. Cindy is at least a couple of inches over 6 feet tall and is
not afraid to go toe to toe & eyeball to eyeball with a
hostile reporter.
When the opposition is another parent trying to justify the death of a child by
supporting the Iraq War, or anyone else seeking rationalization for the grief
they are enduring, Cindy would ask to be excused and go off alone with the
individual for some private time. I saw this happen over and over in
Crawford,
Texas during the week I covered the protests
near Bush's home while he was there vacationing.
hostile reporter.
When the opposition is another parent trying to justify the death of a child by
supporting the Iraq War, or anyone else seeking rationalization for the grief
they are enduring, Cindy would ask to be excused and go off alone with the
individual for some private time. I saw this happen over and over in
Crawford,
Texas during the week I covered the protests
near Bush's home while he was there vacationing.
When the idea of “
Camp
Casey” was announced to the world, it was
clear to many what was happening on several levels. Cindy's insistence that
President Bush meet with her to explain what “Noble Cause was worth her son's
life”, it was obvious that this would resonate with many. So the media battle
was on.
In
Phoenix,
Arizona, 1010
KXXT at the time was the most successful affiliate of
the Air America network. The libertarian “Charles Goyette Show” was providing
the principled reasoning behind rational opposition to the wars we constantly
are finding ourselves in, and Bush's Iraq War and the “War on Terror”
specifically.
The fundamental understanding of what was going on
at all levels of American politics, and how the “WAR” was being used to oppress
us at every level of life, was beginning to sink into the individual minds of
the 'progressive' audience we helped to educate for 3 hours in the morning
M-F.
While a talk show host at the ClearChannel radio
station in
Phoenix, Charles Goyette had been ostracized by
NeoCONed Talk Radio for refusing to support the Iraq War. Charles took every
opportunity to make it clear why he knew better while informing the audience. So
when
Camp
Casey was announced in the
summer of 2005, half jokingly it was mentioned that we should send a station
representative to cover the event. I understood the importance of what was
happening and immediately volunteered.
Supported by the station manager, Bob Christy, the
entire radio station sprung into action. Our IT man Bily Foster immediately set
up www.CrawfordorBust.com and set up the means for me
to Audio Blog directly to the site using my cell phone. This was new technology
that was being used by activists covering stories in real time all over the
country. I would then upload photos from my digital camera to the site that Bily
would manage and place. Sales Reps. Mari Conner flew to Crawford for a few days
and I drove with all of the camping supplies. Mari and I shared a tent in a red ant
infested ditch for days and she would return again later with Bily and another
sales representative for the radio station,
Kim Macias, to camp out at the new location nearer
Bush’s ranch and cover events after I left.
A summary of the experience was
recorded when all of us returned home to share our thoughts on The Charles
Goyette Show - “Charles
Goyette conducts round table of KXXT Camp Casey on-site
staff” Mari was not there because she was seeing
her brother off to Iraq (another very interesting
story).
I share this information with you so that you
understand that I have some first hand experience covering the effect that Cindy
Sheehan had on the Anti-War movement in
America. But, I viewed the events
from a different perspective. I spent most of my time examining the coverage by
other media and the efforts of various organizations hoping to take advantage of
the situation. Every network was in Crawford with their satellite trucks, and
stages were constantly in use for the “live coverage from
Camp
Casey” by the most recognized cable news
networks. Everyday there was a schedule of activities and the press was very
appreciative of the planned affairs.
Almost immediately after arriving I began to see a
pattern. There was a lot of top down control and management of activity that
supporters were expected to support. Along with the 2-3 major planned events
“approved” by those in charge of the schedule for the press, there were at least
as many private events by other individuals and organizations that provided many
opportunities for coverage. Cindy did her best to accommodate everyone that she
could. Her time was in constant demand and many of her supporters worried about
her health as she spent so much time in the
Texas sun. But she was very energized by the
love and support of those around her. Even those that chose to counter protest
her being there were given one on one attention. Cindy is a very good activist
and shows no hesitation engaging another in
conversation.
The Crawford
Peace House was a small home close to the railroad track in
Crawford that was purchased earlier by another organization that knew it would
come in handy later whenever Bush came home to visit. I arrived earlier than
most and saw how this 900 Square Foot home was converted into a headquarters for
the effort. Equipment and supplies were constantly being delivered and there was
always a volunteer to make use of them. Within two days, one of the bedrooms had
room for many Bloggers from all over the progressive spectrum. Crawford was the
place to be if you were for “progressive change”.
Alternative media was also in attendance. Alex
Jones’ radio show and his video crew were on hand to provide their perspective
on things. Alex Jones and Charles Goyette had been guests on each other’s shows
so we knew each other by phone conversations. I was glad that Alex had come to witness
what was going on. Alex and I shared the perspective that the anti-war movement
was being heavily infiltrated by individuals and organizations with far more on
their agenda than ending the War in
Iraq. After Alex left I would provide
short daily updates for his audience from
Camp
Casey.
Only once I was publicly challenged for my
libertarian philosophy. I was defended by the main organizer in charge of the
Peace House. He was one of the oldest activists that clearly was supported by
others even higher up the progressive food chain. Likely he was active in the
60’s and certainly in the 70’s. He demonstrated a great understanding of
libertarianism and how a socialist society was perfectly fine with libertarians
and had even lived with libertarians in communes before. He went onto explain
how libertarians had no problem with socialism,… as long as it was not forced
onto individuals. It was during this conversation that someone made the comment,
“but if you don’t make people contribute then it won’t work”,… conversation
over.
After packing and ready to leave, I would find the
Peace House man helping to set up the new gathering location to get everyone out
of the ditches along the road. The new location was just outside Bush’s property
entrance on a piece of land donated by a local landowner that didn’t share
Bush’s politics.
I did my job, covered the facts, and did my best
to make sure that the radio audience was constantly updated with full coverage.
I did provide a ‘libertarian’ perspective on events but kept my opinions to
myself. At the end of my assignment I did give a final summary that included
some of my concerns for documentation on the site. And now I would like to
expand on those concerns for the education it provides us
all.
I insulated myself from Cindy’s personal life
(divorce, financial situation and even her personal grief) so as to focus on the
effect she was having with the American People and to clearly and as objectively
as possible witness the effect on the Olde’
Media.
But there was one exception,… August
14th 2005 in a closed room at the “Peace House” in
Crawford,
Texas, Cindy Sheehan sat down with me for an
interview that focused on her motivations and her perspective as a
Gold Star mother of the Iraq War. This 8 minute interview has never been heard
by anyone but Cindy and I. I’ve used only very small cuts from this short
interview for radio during the summer and fall of
2005.
The September 12th 2008 interview with
Cindy confirmed many of my observations about the Anti-War movement and how it
was high jacked.
Cindy Sheehan partnered a lot with Code Pink for
infrastructure. They did use Cindy to get a Democratic congress but Cindy is of
the opinion that Code Pink’s motivations were genuine and that they were of the
opinion that a Democratic Congress would end the Iraq War. The increasing number
of organizations that jumped onto Cindy’s coat tails leading up to the 2006
Elections was openly welcomed by Cindy. She had no experience to draw from and
didn’t understand how powerful she was due to the representation of a large
block of Americans that identified with her and her mission. Cindy made it clear
to me that her focus was ending the war. “During Crawford, and for a year after,
I was far too busy to keep track of actions inside the Anti-War movement. The
participants were so generous and enthusiastic, and the support from around the
world so overwhelming that I wouldn’t have believed any criticism of anyone at
the time.” Cindy shared these thoughts with me after I relayed some of the
observations I had during my time in Crawford.
In Crawford I was once again the “token
libertarian” in an ocean of “progressives” who saw the election of a Democratic
congress in 2006 as the only option to ending the war, and there was nothing
that could be said or done at the time to convince them that the Democrat and
Republican parties were the same entity. So unless asked a direct question, I
kept my opinion to myself until my daily morning segment on the radio show with
Charles Goyette. And even then I did my best not to be a “buzz kill” during a
time of great enthusiasm.
There was so much food donated that the immediate
need was for refrigerators. So immediately one of our advertisers, Associated
Appliance in
Phoenix, had shipped a very nice large
refrigerator. But after the expected arrival date had passed it was found out
that the
Texas shipping company would not deliver anything to anyone associated with the
protest of George Bush. So volunteers drove to
Austin to get it. This is but one of the
examples of how polarized the situation was. The philosophy, “you’re either fur
us, or a’gin us” was practiced by several Bush supporters in town. But I found
that for the most part the
Camp
Casey protesters were peacefully
tolerated. The local townspeople were more annoyed that Bush attracted so much
negative attention to their community than I think they were critical of the
protestor’s message.
On my second or third night there I was using the
WiFi connection in Crawford and heard from one of the drivers, that were
constantly shuttling people the 7 miles from 
Crawford’s “Peace House” out to
“Camp Casey”, that a man had chained a metal fence post to the back of his
pickup truck and drove along the shoulder of the road around Camp Casey where Arlington West activists had placed hundreds of
small white crosses with the names of killed Iraq Soldiers on them. I
immediately drove back to the campsites and took
photographs.
Crawford’s “Peace House” out to
“Camp Casey”, that a man had chained a metal fence post to the back of his
pickup truck and drove along the shoulder of the road around Camp Casey where Arlington West activists had placed hundreds of
small white crosses with the names of killed Iraq Soldiers on them. I
immediately drove back to the campsites and took
photographs.
Within a couple of days the crosses were repaired
and with hundreds of roses that were delivered by supporters, each cross had a
water bottle attached to it with a single rose in
it.
Only minutes after the pickup had run down the
crosses, police had arrested the man responsible. He was stopped by police for
speeding. Pieces of crosses were found in his truck’s undercarriage. Later it
was found out that he was a local officer in the Republican Party near
Waco,
Texas.
Strangely, it was this event and my coverage of it
that started me to wonder what was really going on behind the
scenes.
This was a headline story that was not going to be
contained (especially since I had immediately posted the photos http://crawfordorbust.com/2005_08_16_archive.html. But there were instructions to all of the bloggers by a
couple of young women (that would not tell me who they were) that the incident
was not to be blogged about by anyone using the Peace House WiFi . Most people
understood that they were there to follow orders and didn’t cause a fuss. Only a
couple of other older activists agreed to talk to me later to explain that it
was the opinion of some “influential people” that the ‘cross incident’ not be
exploited. WTF!!
Cindy just explained to me that, “MoveOn.org had hired Fenton
Communications and they were the ones trying to control the
entire event. Once it was clear that we couldn’t work with them I made my
opinion clear,… I fired them. MoveOn did their best to control branding with
signage and who could and could not participate. I was busy taking care of
myself and keeping Camp Casey on message to make too much of a fuss after I
fired Fenton Communications.”
Cindy went on to tell me that, “The last Sunday of
Camp
Casey I was visited by MoveOn.org to endorse an “out
of
Iraq eventually” bill. But because I
refused to give the Democrats the ‘out’ they were seeking MoveOn pulled all support after I helped make them
more powerful than they had ever been.”
Looking back she remembers, “You couldn’t say
Afghanistan was wrong, even
though I didn’t support the war in
Afghanistan either. This
‘understanding’ also came from the MoveOn
organization”
But I don’t think that the ‘controllers’ expected
the level of support shown for Camp
Casey from people all over the world. I
remember a large banquet tent put up by an event company that was used as an
outdoor cafeteria, and it was paid for by a supporter in
Italy.
There was a Vietnamese man that arrived one night
on a bus from
Los
Angeles that spoke no English. Somehow he came to the
attention of the local police that brought him to the Crawford Peace House
because all that they could understand was his desire to talk to George
Bush.
I knew that Bily Foster’s mother was Vietnamese
and that he might know of someone that could translate. Bily gave me the number
of someone he knew that could help. After the circumstances were explained to
the translator I called him and gave the phone to the man from
California. He had come
to
America after escaping
Viet Nam following the fall
of
Saigon. Ever since, he has worked with other
Vietnamese refugees in the kitchens of
Los Angeles restaurants. His unique
understanding of
America’s wars compelled him to seek
Bush out in an effort to share his perspective. I passed on the information and
made sure that he got something to eat and that was the last I heard of
him.
At the time I thought that Cindy understood the
various subtleties of the politics being played out around her much more than
she did. I was of the opinion that she knew she was being used by those with
motives different from hers, but that she was making use of the resources and
opportunities being provided her while making sure that the words coming out of
her mouth were hers. But she told me, “I was so filled with positive emotions
from the
Camp
Casey experience that I
could only see the good in everyone around me and was blind to any infiltration
of the anti-war movement. But after MoveOn’s attempt to get me to compromise the
message I was a bit more aware.”
Cindy told me of the building demand for her time
after
Camp
Casey, “Award ceremonies
seemed to be created so that an event could be organized for me to accept an
award while the various organizations would use my notoriety to build their
organization and raise money. All the while my own Gold Star Families for Peace
suffered for lack of attention.”
I ask Cindy when she decided to break with the
anti-war movement. “I never stopped being anti-war, but the movement was so
infiltrated with organizations and operatives with an agenda so different than
mine that I needed to make it clear that I was not part of what the “anti-war”
movement had evolved into”. I then pressed Cindy to share what was her epiphany.
“My epiphany was when the Democrats gave Bush more money for the war. So I left
the Democratic Party and it was then that I was attacked by those that were
really Democratic shills. But at the recent Democratic National Convention doing
TV the people that were there were very supportive of my stances,… even leaving
the Democratic Party.”
I was curious how Cindy knows who to work with now
that she has more experience. “When I challenged the Democrats for not
challenging the growth of the empire I went from their Hero to their Zero. I
feel like I have stayed true to my message and kept my integrity and the only
thing I did wrong was to trust too many people too quickly. I could trust people
with a common purpose to challenge the empire. But there was a powerful
influence from all directions to get more Democrats elected,… not peace. I was
in
Europe when this went down and I was broke.
After investing every penny from book sales, Casey’s insurance money and
speaking fees, I decided to stop and reevaluate my associations. Me, Tiffany
(assistant and now current campaign manager) and my sister just pulled back to
see what we could do to be more effective.”
I asked Cindy if she could evaluate the various
organizations in the anti-war movement of the past few years with a simple
ranking of good or bad. “Organizations that are controlled by the Democrat Party
abused the anti-war movement and the Democrat Party had these organizations make
excuses for them continuing the war. The local volunteers of organizations had
many great people that wanted the same thing that I did,… an end to war and an
end to the expansion of Empire. But, I definitely could see that at the national
level there were organizations that were focused on serving the interests of the
one party system that was ultimately controlled by the Military Industrial
Complex.”
Cindy had nice things to say about, “Veterans for
Peace, World Can’t
Wait, Code Pink, ANSWER, After Downing
Street, Gold Star Families for Peace. At the national
level she was very critical of many of the progressive websites and
organizations that she felt had always been part of the Democrat wing of the
‘Washington Party’. Cindy said, “Highly placed and powerful Democrats in general
are supportive of Empire. They act like something is wrong with me because I
challenge the system that they are supporting at a fundamental level. This has
exposed their true allegiances. They are now saying the same things about me
now, and even challenging my mental state, just as the Republican machine did,…
they are the same thing,… empire supporters.”
I had to stop the interview and call Cindy back on
a land line for a better connection. I called into her office where I could hear
a great deal of activity. Cindy had to move to a small office where we could
finish the interview without the distractions of a campaign that has just
started to hire campaign staff. I asked Cindy what she thought of her chances as
an independent candidate and of 3rd party challenges to the Empire in
general. “I totally freaking agree 100% with Dr. Paul’s (Ron Paul) effort to
promote 3rd party candidates for their anti-empire common ground. My
campaign as an independent places me on the ballot along with Nancy Pelosi
November 4th and since making the ballot we have been getting a lot
of support from the people.”
Cindy is taking on the new Speaker of the House,
Nancy Pelosi. Cindy told me why, “Pelosi is part of the establishment, so much
so that her husband attended Bohemian Grove this year (http://www.democraticwarrior.com/forum/showthread.php?p=280821). Everybody in
San
Francisco wants the War to End but the Olde’
Media has been effective in
convincing the Democratic Party voters that the Democratic leadership is
different than the Republicans. Both parties support the war and get their
orders from the Military Industrial Empire”.
I asked Cindy what was her new focus now that she
was free of controlling interest that had managed her efforts for so long. “My
controversial trips overseas have demonstrated my commitment to work on an
international level creating person to person contacts to stand up to the US
Empire, promote peace and understand the importance of resisting Empire.” Cindy
also explained the message from other countries that she hoped to share with the
American people. “It is important to make sure that the people in the
United
States understand just how detrimental our
policies are to people that don’t get a say in how our government treats
them.”
(I’m working on a story now that details how the Second Amendment issue is being used by Republican operatives in support of Empire. In particular how the RealID is being supported under the idea that it will allow for National Concealed Carry)
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