Opponents of the move to recall Gov. Gray Davis are asking their supporters
to intimidate signature gatherers and complain of harassment at stores where
recall petitions are circulating, stepping up the political battle taking
place in front of Wal-Marts and Home Depots across California.
In an e-mail message and Internet posting titled "How to Advocate Against
the Recall," Davis supporters were told, "It is OK to stand in front of
their table or approach potential signers before they do, or otherwise
inhibit their activity." The memo instructs people to say they are "offended
by being harassed" and file complaints with managers of stores.
"Remember, the longer you engage them, the fewer signatures they can
collect," said the memo distributed by Taxpayers Against the Governor's
Recall,
a union-funded group. The memo also includes a telephone hot line to report
the location of recall petition circulators.
The street-level effort to recall Davis has created passionate feelings on
both sides as Republican organizers make steady progress on the petition to
oust the Democratic governor. About 40 percent of the signatures needed to
force a recall election have been turned in so far. The deadline is Sept. 2.
Davis supporters say they are simply exercising their constitutional rights
when they confront recall circulators.
"If anyone is suggesting that speaking out against the recall -- exercising
their First Amendment rights to speak out in the presence of signature
gatherers -- is somehow illegal, I would seriously question that," said
Carroll Wills, spokesman for Taxpayers Against the Governor's Recall.
"People have the right to free speech. Supposedly that is what the petition
process is all about."
LAW COVERS THREATS, BRIBES
California election law makes it a crime to threaten petition gatherers with
violence or damage their property. It's also illegal to bribe petition
circulators to abandon their work.
Recall petition workers across the state said intense feelings about the
recall are prompting fights and verbal assaults. Some petition supervisors
say they were threatened from the start -- with a boycott by the major
signature- gathering companies if they handled the recall petition at all.
"I've been a coordinator for three years and collecting signatures for 11
years, and I've never seen anything like this," said Paula Wagner, 48, who
supervises about 50 petition gatherers in Orange County. "I was warned from
the very beginning that if I hooked up with this recall I was going to
alienate myself with other companies, and when this was over, what was I
going to do?"
Two petitions are being circulated regarding the recall. One is the
official, legally binding initiative that would force an election. The other
is a plebiscite that anyone can sign that expresses disdain for the recall.
Legions of independent contractors are being paid $1 a signature, in most
cases.
Tom Bader, coordinating the signature-gathering effort for the Rescue
California recall committee, said confrontations involving petition workers
in San Francisco were so frequent that he scaled back and concentrated his
efforts elsewhere, including San Diego, Riverside and Orange counties.
Recent figures from the secretary of state show that only 7 percent of the
recall signatures are coming from the Bay Area.
"These people are actually being told on the Internet to file false
complaints," Bader said about the memo. "The circulators have been
threatened all over the state that they are not going to work on any other
petition. Then there is the physical aspect of it."
Bader said a frequent tactic of recall opponents is to stand next to
circulators and talk loudly on their cell phones or thrust a "Who's Behind
the Recall" leaflet in front of people before they reach the recall
petition. People are hectored as they sign the petition, some circulators
said.
TACTIC TO DISTRACT WORKERS
The memo to Davis supporters twice instructs them to engage recall
circulators in conversation in order to distract them from their work. The
memo was posted on the Web site www.stoptherecall.com.
In a section titled "Take Action," the memo says: "Complain to the store
manager. Tell the manager you are a customer and you are offended by being
harassed as you enter their store. Tell the manager you will take your
business elsewhere."
Petition manager John Burkett, who has 100 people collecting signatures in
Riverside County, said his workers have been approached and offered more
money to work on the plebiscite. Recall petitions have been defaced by
people writing "Recall Bush Instead!" on them, he said.
"A few weeks ago," said petition circulator Gloria Anderson, 48, who was
working at a Home Depot in Redlands (Riverside County), "I had some guy walk
up and try to yank my sign down. He called me a Republican bitch. I'm not
even a Republican."
There have been numerous complaints as well about circulators misleading
people in order to get them to sign. Several people have complained to The
Chronicle that anti-recall workers are telling people their petition is to
"save schools and colleges." Other workers have been caught circulating both
petitions at once.
Wills, with the anti-recall effort, said anyone caught harassing circulators
or misleading people should be fired. The e-mail and Internet posting tells
supporters not to "provoke or get into a physical confrontation with
signature gatherers. We do not want you to be arrested. . . . If you like to
'mix it up,' it is OK to debate or argue."
OTHER SIDE COMPLAINS, TOO
In interviews, plebiscite workers say recall supporters have tried to push
them around as well.
Dustin Wefel, a 21-year-old anti-recall circulator, said he was hounded by a
"blocker" who ended up following him throughout the day, even standing
outside a Sacramento barbershop while he got a haircut. Another man
confronted him while he collected signatures outside a Ralph's grocery store
and grabbed his arm, he said.
"He said I was defrauding the people or lying to the people," said Wefel.
"He was just basically making a scene. He came up to the person who was
signing the board and said, 'Do you know what you're signing? It's against
the recall.' He said, 'I know it's against the recall. That is why I'm
signing.' It made him look real dumb."
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----
Internet posting by recall opponents
-- As you go about your daily routines (driving to and from work, shopping,
going to the movies, the doctor, etc.), keep your eyes open for recall
petitioners at all times.
-- The most important thing you can do is provide us feedback about where
and when signature gathering efforts are occurring. Call us . . .
Engage the Petition Collectors - If you see recall petitioners, here's what
to do:
-- Engage them in conversation; the longer they talk to you, the less time
they have to collect signatures; they have a limited period of time to
collect over 1 million signatures.
-- Ask what petitions they are carrying.
-- It is important to determine if they are only carrying the recall
petitions or if they also have the anti-recall petition and others.
-- If they tell you they have the "Save Our Teachers" or "Evaluate the
Recall Process" petition, ask them to show it to you.
-- Note: There is no "Save Our Teachers" petition. This is our anti-recall
petition. The signature collector is "double dipping." They are trying to
get people to sign both the recall and the anti-recall petitions so they can
make more money.
-- Remember, the longer you engage them, the fewer signatures they can
collect.
-- Do not attempt to provoke or get into a physical confrontation with
signature gatherers. We do not want you to be arrested.
Take Action
-- Complain to the store manager. Tell the manager you are a customer and
you are offended by being harassed as you enter their store. Tell the
manager you will take your business elsewhere.
-- Do not falsely sign a petition. This is against the law.
-- If you like to "mix it up," it is OK to debate or argue with the
signature gatherer.
-- Counter them with the anti-recall petition; it is OK to stand in front of
their table or approach potential signers before they do, or otherwise
inhibit their activity.
-- Distribute the "Who's Behind the Recall" leaflet.
-- Approach potential signers and ask them if they know who is behind the
recall: remind them that it is a bunch of right-wing conservative
Republicans, like Darrell Issa and Bill Simon, who can't win an election
fairly; they are trying to overturn a legal and fairly conducted election.
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2003/06/27/MN263113.DTL
--
--
Redbaiter
In the leftist's lexicon, the lowest of the low
We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts,
foreign ideas, alien philosophies and competitive values. For a nation that
is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market
is a nation that is afraid of its people.
-- President John F. Kennedy
This is the killer ain't it. Having your own tactics used against you. Fuck
that is fucking hilarious. And might I add ...fuck!
--
--
Redbaiter
In the leftist's lexicon, the lowest of the low
We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts,
foreign ideas, alien philosophies and competitive values. For a nation that
is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market
is a nation that is afraid of its people.
-- President John F. Kennedy
"Redbaiter" <don't@no-spam> wrote in message
news:3effb8e7@no-spam
> Opponents of the move to recall Gov. Gray Davis are asking their
supporters
> to intimidate signature gatherers and complain of harassment at stores
where
> recall petitions are circulating, stepping up the political battle taking
> place in front of Wal-Marts and Home Depots across California.
> In an e-mail message and Internet posting titled "How to Advocate Against
> the Recall," Davis supporters were told, "It is OK to stand in front of
> their table or approach potential signers before they do, or otherwise
> inhibit their activity." The memo instructs people to say they are
"offended
> by being harassed" and file complaints with managers of stores.
>
> "Remember, the longer you engage them, the fewer signatures they can
> collect," said the memo distributed by Taxpayers Against the Governor's
> Recall,
>
> a union-funded group. The memo also includes a telephone hot line to
report
> the location of recall petition circulators.
>
> The street-level effort to recall Davis has created passionate feelings on
> both sides as Republican organizers make steady progress on the petition
to
> oust the Democratic governor. About 40 percent of the signatures needed to
> force a recall election have been turned in so far. The deadline is Sept.
2.
>
> Davis supporters say they are simply exercising their constitutional
rights
> when they confront recall circulators.
>
> "If anyone is suggesting that speaking out against the recall --
exercising
> their First Amendment rights to speak out in the presence of signature
> gatherers -- is somehow illegal, I would seriously question that," said
> Carroll Wills, spokesman for Taxpayers Against the Governor's Recall.
> "People have the right to free speech. Supposedly that is what the
petition
> process is all about."
>
>
> LAW COVERS THREATS, BRIBES
> California election law makes it a crime to threaten petition gatherers
with
> violence or damage their property. It's also illegal to bribe petition
> circulators to abandon their work.
>
> Recall petition workers across the state said intense feelings about the
> recall are prompting fights and verbal assaults. Some petition supervisors
> say they were threatened from the start -- with a boycott by the major
> signature- gathering companies if they handled the recall petition at all.
>
> "I've been a coordinator for three years and collecting signatures for 11
> years, and I've never seen anything like this," said Paula Wagner, 48, who
> supervises about 50 petition gatherers in Orange County. "I was warned
from
> the very beginning that if I hooked up with this recall I was going to
> alienate myself with other companies, and when this was over, what was I
> going to do?"
>
> Two petitions are being circulated regarding the recall. One is the
> official, legally binding initiative that would force an election. The
other
> is a plebiscite that anyone can sign that expresses disdain for the
recall.
> Legions of independent contractors are being paid $1 a signature, in most
> cases.
>
> Tom Bader, coordinating the signature-gathering effort for the Rescue
> California recall committee, said confrontations involving petition
workers
> in San Francisco were so frequent that he scaled back and concentrated his
> efforts elsewhere, including San Diego, Riverside and Orange counties.
> Recent figures from the secretary of state show that only 7 percent of the
> recall signatures are coming from the Bay Area.
>
> "These people are actually being told on the Internet to file false
> complaints," Bader said about the memo. "The circulators have been
> threatened all over the state that they are not going to work on any other
> petition. Then there is the physical aspect of it."
>
> Bader said a frequent tactic of recall opponents is to stand next to
> circulators and talk loudly on their cell phones or thrust a "Who's Behind
> the Recall" leaflet in front of people before they reach the recall
> petition. People are hectored as they sign the petition, some circulators
> said.
>
>
> TACTIC TO DISTRACT WORKERS
> The memo to Davis supporters twice instructs them to engage recall
> circulators in conversation in order to distract them from their work. The
> memo was posted on the Web site www.stoptherecall.com.
>
> In a section titled "Take Action," the memo says: "Complain to the store
> manager. Tell the manager you are a customer and you are offended by being
> harassed as you enter their store. Tell the manager you will take your
> business elsewhere."
>
> Petition manager John Burkett, who has 100 people collecting signatures in
> Riverside County, said his workers have been approached and offered more
> money to work on the plebiscite. Recall petitions have been defaced by
> people writing "Recall Bush Instead!" on them, he said.
>
> "A few weeks ago," said petition circulator Gloria Anderson, 48, who was
> working at a Home Depot in Redlands (Riverside County), "I had some guy
walk
> up and try to yank my sign down. He called me a Republican bitch. I'm not
> even a Republican."
>
> There have been numerous complaints as well about circulators misleading
> people in order to get them to sign. Several people have complained to The
> Chronicle that anti-recall workers are telling people their petition is to
> "save schools and colleges." Other workers have been caught circulating
both
> petitions at once.
>
> Wills, with the anti-recall effort, said anyone caught harassing
circulators
> or misleading people should be fired. The e-mail and Internet posting
tells
> supporters not to "provoke or get into a physical confrontation with
> signature gatherers. We do not want you to be arrested. . . . If you like
to
> 'mix it up,' it is OK to debate or argue."
>
>
> OTHER SIDE COMPLAINS, TOO
> In interviews, plebiscite workers say recall supporters have tried to push
> them around as well.
>
> Dustin Wefel, a 21-year-old anti-recall circulator, said he was hounded by
a
> "blocker" who ended up following him throughout the day, even standing
> outside a Sacramento barbershop while he got a haircut. Another man
> confronted him while he collected signatures outside a Ralph's grocery
store
> and grabbed his arm, he said.
>
> "He said I was defrauding the people or lying to the people," said Wefel.
> "He was just basically making a scene. He came up to the person who was
> signing the board and said, 'Do you know what you're signing? It's against
> the recall.' He said, 'I know it's against the recall. That is why I'm
> signing.' It made him look real dumb."
>
>
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
--
> ----
> Internet posting by recall opponents
> -- As you go about your daily routines (driving to and from work,
shopping,
> going to the movies, the doctor, etc.), keep your eyes open for recall
> petitioners at all times.
>
> -- The most important thing you can do is provide us feedback about where
> and when signature gathering efforts are occurring. Call us . . .
>
> Engage the Petition Collectors - If you see recall petitioners, here's
what
> to do:
>
> -- Engage them in conversation; the longer they talk to you, the less time
> they have to collect signatures; they have a limited period of time to
> collect over 1 million signatures.
>
> -- Ask what petitions they are carrying.
>
> -- It is important to determine if they are only carrying the recall
> petitions or if they also have the anti-recall petition and others.
>
> -- If they tell you they have the "Save Our Teachers" or "Evaluate the
> Recall Process" petition, ask them to show it to you.
>
> -- Note: There is no "Save Our Teachers" petition. This is our anti-recall
> petition. The signature collector is "double dipping." They are trying to
> get people to sign both the recall and the anti-recall petitions so they
can
> make more money.
>
> -- Remember, the longer you engage them, the fewer signatures they can
> collect.
>
> -- Do not attempt to provoke or get into a physical confrontation with
> signature gatherers. We do not want you to be arrested.
>
> Take Action
>
> -- Complain to the store manager. Tell the manager you are a customer and
> you are offended by being harassed as you enter their store. Tell the
> manager you will take your business elsewhere.
>
> -- Do not falsely sign a petition. This is against the law.
>
> -- If you like to "mix it up," it is OK to debate or argue with the
> signature gatherer.
>
> -- Counter them with the anti-recall petition; it is OK to stand in front
of
> their table or approach potential signers before they do, or otherwise
> inhibit their activity.
>
> -- Distribute the "Who's Behind the Recall" leaflet.
>
> -- Approach potential signers and ask them if they know who is behind the
> recall: remind them that it is a bunch of right-wing conservative
> Republicans, like Darrell Issa and Bill Simon, who can't win an election
> fairly; they are trying to overturn a legal and fairly conducted election.
>
> http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2003/06/27/MN263113.DTL
> --
> --
> Redbaiter
> In the leftist's lexicon, the lowest of the low
>
> We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts,
> foreign ideas, alien philosophies and competitive values. For a nation
that
> is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open
market
> is a nation that is afraid of its people.
>
> -- President John F. Kennedy
>
>
>