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Galindez quotes Iowa Occupiers: "'Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, January 1 - 3, we will chase the candidates and their Wall Street cronies around the state of Iowa, dogging their heels at all their black-tie dinners and staged media events, drowning out their empty rhetoric with the strong, clear message of the 99%: We are taking American democracy back! This election year, while the world's attention centers on Iowa, for once the loudest voice will be our voice, the voice of the People, the voice of the 99%.'"

Supporters of presidential hopeful U.S. Rep Ron Paul (R-TX) attempt to block Occupy Wall Street protesters who are disrupting a campaign event at the Iowa State Fairgrounds on Dec. 28, 2011 in Des Moines, Iowa. (photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Supporters of presidential hopeful U.S. Rep Ron Paul (R-TX) attempt to block Occupy Wall Street protesters who are disrupting a campaign event at the Iowa State Fairgrounds on Dec. 28, 2011 in Des Moines, Iowa. (photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)



Occupy Brings Life to the Iowa Caucus

By Scott Galindez, Reader Supported News

29 December 11

 

must start with a disclaimer: I am not in Des Moines, where I have spent the last few caucuses, but I am wishing I were there instead of laid up in a hotel room in Washington DC, trying to recover from bronchitis. I was thinking the other day what fun it would be to occupy the caucuses in Iowa this year. Can you imagine what it would be like if Iowans sympathetic to the Occupy movement all registered as Republicans and actually attended their caucus? You see, unlike the Democratic caucuses, the Republicans' are not usually that well attended. I would say that at the least Ron Paul could get a huge boost, from single digit to ... Wait, he is already leading the polls?

I was scanning the channels in my hotel room this afternoon, and to my surprise, there it was on C-SPAN: Occupy the Iowa Caucus. Around 250 people had gathered for a meeting on Locust Street in Des Moines (a city where only Obama has a campaign office). The Repugs seem to all have chosen West Des Moines, or the suburbs. Well, at least this thing won't be totally boring without the Deaniacs, Kucinich supporters, or Obama army of the past 12 years.

From what I am hearing, Ron Paul is the only one with a strong ground game in Iowa. The rest either are treating it like cramming for a final exam, or tried but could get nobody to follow.

I did hear one Occupier at the planning meeting for the Occupy the Caucus event say that he was going to attend his caucus. Too bad the Repugs don't operate under the same rules as the Dems. An organized effort at the Democratic caucus could really twist things in knots for a while. But as I understand the Republicans, they just go to their meeting and express their preference, count the votes, elect their delegates, and go home. I'm wondering why the networks are even there. It's just not good TV like watching a Kerry supporter try to convince a Kucinich supporter why John Kerry is better than Howard Dean. Well maybe that's only good TV for us political junkies.

Here is the call to action on the Occupy Des Moines web site:

 

For too long, the 99% have been silenced by Wall Street and greedy corporations while the 1% ruling elite have robbed us of our democracy, our dignity and our livelihood. But no longer. The people are awake, we are strong, and we are rising up to take back what they stole from us.

 

From December 26 until the Iowa Caucus on January 3, a convergence of American voices such as this country has never seen before will descend upon Des Moines. We are the 99%. And we will be heard. We're taking our demands for true democracy and economic justice directly to President Obama and the GOP candidates, to the banks, and to the media. They've ignored each of us as individuals, but they can't ignore us all.

Tuesday, December 27, it begins with a People's Caucus, a Caucus of the 99%. Together we will raise our voices and prepare to take our grievances into the streets, kicking off a week of trainings and teach-ins that will empower every member of the 99% to act in solidarity to break Wall Street's chokehold on our democracy.

Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, December 28 - 30, we'll change words into actions. President Obama and the other bought-and-paid-for candidates who give us the brush-off when we try to ask real questions will be forced to hear us as we converge upon their campaign headquarters. We will be loud. We will be determined. We will be heard.

Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, January 1 - 3, we will chase the candidates and their Wall Street cronies around the state of Iowa, dogging their heels at all their black-tie dinners and staged media events, drowning out their empty rhetoric with the strong, clear message of the 99%: We are taking American democracy back!

This election year, while the world's attention centers on Iowa, for once the loudest voice will be our voice, the voice of the People, the voice of the 99%.

- OccupyDSM

This sounds like a good time. I was wondering what Iowa was going to do without the Dems in town, but it appears the Occupy movement will be providing the back story. I'm guessing the networks are grateful - the only thing worse than spending the first week in January with Iowa Republicans is spending the month of August in Crawford, Texas, without thousands of protesters.

Update: The arrests have begun. About 75 Occupiers converged on Romney's campaign headquarters Wednesday afternoon, with 7 arrested for refusing to leave his property. Three more people were arrested about half an hour later for starting an occupation at a branch of Wells Fargo Bank.

Gingrich headquarters used a different tactic: they waited for Occupiers to arrive with coffee and doughnuts. Hmmm, that smacks of desperation, and also will draw the homeless and the police on a regular basis. I think a volunteer messed up and gave the coffee and doughnuts to the protesters and not the police, for whom the Gingrich finance team had budgeted them. But then again, Gingrich's finance team quit months ago, and he is struggling to get ads on the air in Iowa, so maybe he thinks he can get the Occupy vote.


Scott Galindez attended Syracuse University, where he first became politically active. The writings of El Salvador's slain archbishop Oscar Romero and the on-campus South Africa divestment movement converted him from a Reagan supporter to an activist for Peace and Justice. Over the years he has been influenced by the likes of Philip Berrigan, William Thomas, Mitch Snyder, Don White, Lisa Fithian, and Paul Wellstone. Scott met Marc Ash while organizing counterinaugural events after George W. Bush's first stolen election. Scott will be spending a year covering the presidential election from Iowa.

Reader Supported News is the Publication of Origin for this work. Permission to republish is freely granted with credit and a link back to Reader Supported News.

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