Trampling the Constitution

This editorial from the Denver Post says a lot about the Bush Administration:

Despite the best efforts of the White House, the inevitable truth has emerged about the eviction of three local residents from a 2005 public forum with President Bush in Denver.

Notwithstanding the evasions and denials, it turns out it was a White House decision to remove three critics from a public appearance by President Bush even though they were there lawfully and hadn't caused any trouble.

This wanton trampling of free speech rights is a reprehensible example of a White House that will go to almost any length to blot out dissent. What's worse is that for almost two years, administration officials would not tell the truth on this matter.

Even after two of the victims, Leslie Weise and Alex Young, filed a federal lawsuit, officials equivocated, blaming local volunteers for the ejections.

Last week, a federal appeals court denied a motion to block depositions of those involved in the ouster. One of the local volunteers then said under oath that two then-White House staffers - Steve Atkiss and Jamie O'Keefe - ordered the removals.

Weise and Young arrived in a car whose anti-war bumper sticker said, "No More Blood for Oil." An aide to Sen. Wayne Allard felt this marked them as possible troublemakers at the event, in which President Bush discussed his Social Security proposals. The three were escorted to the door.

One of the administration officials involved in the ouster told The Post it was White House policy to exclude potentially disruptive guests from presidential appearances. Atkiss, who now works for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Customs and Border Protection agency, said: "If it became obvious and apparent somebody is there to create a fuss, there was an effort made to ensure that didn't happen."

It's one thing to eject hecklers who try to shout down speakers they disagree with, infringing on the rights of others who came to hear the message. It's another thing entirely to profile residents based on their bumper stickers or what others suspect about their politics. Assuredly, the so-called "Denver Three" disagreed with the president on many fronts. Describing themselves as progressives, they wore T-shirts under their jackets that said "No More Lies."

This incident is a measure of the arrogance of an administration that acknowledges almost no limits to its power or any accountability for its conduct. It's unacceptable in our democracy that people can be ousted from a public event without cause. The White House owes them an apology at the very least.