January 30, 2003
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Is the Tide Turning?
A BUZZFLASH NEWS ANALYSIS
Hundreds of protestors greeted Bush in Grand Rapids, Michigan, according to an Associated Press story. Yes, that's hundreds in the city that is home to the Gerald Ford Library, in short a rock-ribbed Republican area in Central Michigan.
The AP noted: "There were hundreds [of protestors] outside the hospital where he [Bush] visited with health care workers and a Medicare beneficiary behind closed doors, and hundreds more at several other intersections. They lined virtually the entire route from the hospital to the site of Bush's speech." ARTICLE LINK
Bush was in Michigan to tout a Medicare "reform" program lacking on details, but clearly intended to corral our seniors into managed [denied] care. "His proposal is really a benefit for HMOs," said Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
Grand Rapids is a small city and it is amazing that hundreds of protestors would take over the city and line the route of the presidential motorcade. Maybe something is happening out there.
Read to end of AP story (Yes, it's at the end of the story, but it's progress that they reported the protest at all.) ARTICLE LINK
CORRECTION and UPDATE
Grand Rapids was the homebase of Gerald Ford's old Congressional District. It is home to the Gerald Ford Museum. (The Gerald Ford Library is in Ann Arbor.)
By the way, the same day Bush visited Grand Rapids, the city's newspaper, The Grand Rapids Press, ran a story that was a fitting sign of the Bush legacy. The headline was "Senior Meals on Wheels rolls back services." The story noted:
"For
the first time in its history, Senior Meals on Wheels is cutting
back
services and placing new clients on a waiting list for home-delivered
meals.
On Tuesday, the organization announced it must scale back the meals and
close an undisclosed number of senior centers because of state budget
cuts, declining donations and rising demand." ARTICLE LINK
Ah yes, the George W. Bush legacy to our elderly!
By the way, amidst hundreds of anti-war protestors there were only a handful of people who showed up to support Bush.
A Grand Rapids radio station reported:
"Hundreds of demonstrators lined the street outside and chanted anti-war slogans. A smaller cluster stood on a nearby corner to show support.
"Let's Roll -- never forget 9/11," one sign said." ARTICLE LINK
The hundreds of protestors in Grand Rapids, in Midwestern freezing temperatures, should have been a major story in the mainstream press, but then again, so should have been the theft of election 2000.
A
BUZZFLASH NEWS ANALYSIS
