Donald Rumsfeld Loudly Harangued At White House Correspondents' Dinner (VIDEO)

This video has been making the rounds, but in case you haven't seen it, here's Donald Rumsfeld getting shouted at by Desiree Fairooz and Medea Benjamin of the ubiquitous protest organization known as Code Pink. I gather that the big takeaway is that, in Code Pink's estimation, Donald Rumsfeld is a "war criminal." But don't take my word for it! Maybe my impression is based in a flawed parsing of all this subtlety.

[WATCH.]

Naturally, I'm not a big fan of Donald Rumsfeld, or the Iraq War strategy, or the foreign policy -- if it can be called that -- that came out of the Bush White House. And, on principle, I'm sort of okay with messing around with the White House Correspondents' Dinner. Nevertheless, I find it hard to divine the value of Code Pink yelling at Rumsfeld in this setting. In the first place, there's the pointlessness: the Beltway press are fully on board with "looking forward, not backward," and preserving comity, and not troubling their pretty little minds with the hurtful thoughts of the people they cover going to jail. And I promise you, this yelling at Donald Rumsfeld will only harden their position in this regard. But more to the point, I've watched Code Pink shout at Al Gore, of all people, at Netroots Nation, of all places, as he was explaining his national environmental policy initiative, of all the things to shout down. When you basically go out and disrupt EVERYTHING, it's hard to know where you stand on ANYTHING.

So, yeah, I find this stuff relentlessly unimpressive, but I've also found that plenty of people object to me saying so. Just like the Tea Parties! I nevertheless believe that just as crisis demands we not abandon our principles, our response to crisis demands we at least attempt to preserve a measure of dignity. And with that, everyone can start, you know, TOTALLY YELLING AT ME.

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Comments

[yankhadenuf]

Here is the orignial full 1:56 video by Bearproductions:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDmRdfyAUio

[SueInCA]

Good for Code Pink, someone needs to speak out.......­..........­..firs they cam for the socialists and I did not speak out, because I was not a socialist.­..........­..........­........Th­en they came for me and there was no one left to speak for me.......... Pastor Martin Niemoller

[gjoh]

"So, yeah, I find this stuff relentlessly unimpressive, ..."

The problem with people like you is that you are quick to criticize but offer nothing as an alternative action.
What would YOU do? What do you think would be more effective? Even your pen is being used to crush the actions of others while you offer NOTHING.

They 're not protesting to IMPRESS you. They are expressing their disgust at something that we all should be screaming in the streets about. Of course you won't actually do anything until it's too late. I find that stuff relentlessly sad.

[nabilmarar]

who are the winners and losers of the Iraq war which Bush and Rumsfeld dtarted??
WINNERS: Iran, Israel, Kuwait
LOOSERS: IRAQ- Destroying the country and all systems and hundreds of thousands killed and hospitalised
USA - thousands kiled and hospitalised and billions lost in addition to loss of respect to the USA by all people of the world


BUSH AND RUMSFELD served the winners

[fishgirl26]

I think someone should follow him around and do that all the time!!!! Perhaps then Rumsfeld will learn what it's like to be "terrorized"

[Lisa Savage]

Public confrontation of war criminals by shouting at them is hardly the only thing CODEPINK gets up to. However...it is a key activity, and perhaps by now constitutes a PINK signature.

The effects of mass media on the general population are a foundation of the tolerance, even veneration, of the endless wars waged for the profit of the weapons industry. Addressing this is a key strategy of CODEPINK and like-minded groups.

Other routine actions for CODEPINK: visiting occupied countries to talk to women there about their situation, lobbying elected officials to stop funding endless wars, knitting and otherwise fabricating visual presentations of the anti-war message, networking with other social activists, and using conventional media outlets to get the message out.

Gandhi said: "First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, then you win." Based on the postings here, I'd say CODEPINK was rounding second base, headed for third.

[JessWonderin]

WONDERFUL . . .

This "greeting" should be SOP WHEREVER this war criminal "Christian crusader" appears . . . . .

[AbbieHoffman2]

Courageous women!

[wilray]

Donald Rumfeld is a war criminal. Unfortunately, Code Pink has an extremely confused agenda. They are against participating in war under any circumstances. So anyone who participates in war is a war criminal. Had they been in existence during World War 2, they would have simply let the holocaust happen. Of course, standing by and letting Hitler slaughter Europe makes sense to them. And yet they think they have a moral high ground over Donald Rumsfeld.

[PAposter]

War Criminal!

[mzrecycle]

It's clear that the Obama team and the AG will NEVER bring charges. I'm old enough to remember the Nixon fall. I really wanted him charged, but have to admit that when the gov't focuses on that, there are so many other things that can't be focused on. He got away, but in shame.
What Rumsfeld, Cheney and their ilk did is SO much worse that what Nixon did. It's hard for me to go there, but I can see that it's the "best" decision that they aren't prosecuted now in the U.S. (Whatever happened to the German charges against Rumsfeld?)
When OJ got off for murder, I hoped that as he went about his life that people would shout: MURDERER! at him everywhere. Unfortunately, there were more who asked for autographs. . .
So I'm very happy that Code Pink did that to Rumseld. I found it very satisfying. I just wish that more that one guy started clapping. What's with all those other people. They couldn't all be Republicans.

[Vixter]

No they weren't , I'm sure that they were just very embarrassed.

[lizr]

they were the MSM- a bunch of conformists who are totally concerned with what their peers think and under concerned about doing their jobs correctly, or history for that matter.

A bunch of superficial wooses.

[jeanniedean]

Someone below wrote: "If the government won't prosecute, then the people will."
Inspiring! And yes, Jason, Harassing Donald Rumsfeld is VERY important work. What does it accomplish? It annoys Donald Rumsfeld. While I'd prefer to see him in handcuffs and a straight-jacket, I'll settle for public harassment until we get a mandate...or a really good Marine.

What distinguishes code pink from the tea baggers? Facts. Obama is not a Haitian socialist, but Donald Rumsfeld actually IS a war criminal.

Great job, Linkins. You're always a good read, even when you're a poop.

[lizr]

agree w Jeannie.

NO WAY should DR be allowed to have a life.

After what he did to the Iraqis' lives.

[whitequeen96]

BRAVO to these women! This is how Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld and others should be greeted wherever they go. Shrill? Impolite? Foolish looking? I'm sorry, but surely even Miss Manners would say you have no obligation to be polite to bullies, monsters and war criminals. Thousands, maybe millions, died because of these men! These women are doing what duty calls for us to do, and I respect them!

[LiberalForever]

I enjoyed it. It was great to see the lying old t*rd screamed at and called what he truly is...a WAR Criminal. Loved it.

[Cogs]

We need a peoples choir to sing along whenever the war criminals show their faces in public. If we cannot prosecute Bush, Cheney,Rum­sfeld,Rice and the rest of the cabal; at the least we should shame them. History will judge us just as harshly as it will these tyrants if we do nothing.

[jadamind]

hee hee, love the guy who joined in clapping...
this is the best thing I've seen for awhile.
If the government doesn't prosecute them,
the public will.