| Bloody Hell...Condaleeza Rice attacked. |
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| Written by Melanie Morgan | |
| Thursday, 25 October 2007 | |
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Red and Pink in Washington ...Creepo Pinko's doing their thing again.
( Courtesy WashingtonTimes.com)
 Desiree Anita Ali-Fairooz, of the antiwar group Code Pink, accosted Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice yesterday before being dragged away by U.S. Capitol Police Rice sees red and Pink
By Andrea Billups and Jim McElhatton - A leader of the feminist antiwar group Code Pink opted for blood red yesterday when preying on Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in a brazen publicity stunt. The protest group staged its latest Capitol Hill outburst when one member rushed Miss Rice before a House hearing, wrapped her arms around the secretary and screamed "war criminal" as she displayed her red painted hands. Other Code Pink members held signs that read "Blood on Your Hands." "Out," ordered committee chairman, Rep. Tom Lantos, California Democrat. Capitol Hill police quickly grabbed Desiree Anita Ali-Fairooz of Los Angeles and arrested her along with four others. They screamed: "What are you doing? What are you doing?" as police handcuffed them and dragged them from the hearing room. Miss Ali-Fairooz, 51, smeared red paint from her hand on the wall as she was dragged out of the room, police said. Miss Rice maintained composure during the assault and the House Committee on Foreign Affairs hearing on U.S. Middle East policy proceeded. Founded in 2003 by a trio of social justice activists — Medea Benjamin, Jodie Evans and Gael Murphy — Code Pink has become a fixture in Washington, regularly disrupting high-profile congressional hearings, including September war-report hearings from Gen. David H. Petraeus, U.S. commander in Iraq. The group, which eschews the term "member" because anyone who wants to get involved can, is anti-President Bush, calling for his impeachment, and urges Congress to stop Iraq war funding. It also condemns military contractor Blackwater USA and has been a constant thorn in the side of Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, whose war votes drew the group's ire. Code Pink launched an 18-month "Listen Hillary" campaign against Mrs. Clinton after she did not support immediate troop withdrawal from Iraq. Their confrontational tactics and virulent opposition to the mission in Iraq has put Code Pink at odds with war veterans. A group of Iraq war veterans gathered Oct. 13 outside the group's headquarters in Northeast calling for their eviction from the house for violating zoning laws. They argued that the antiwar group operates a corporate lobbying practice in a single-family dwelling, which is zoned as a residential neighborhood on Capitol Hill. While the group says it is nonprofit and raises funds on its Web site to support its work, no tax filer named Code Pink could be found in a review of Internal Revenue Service nonprofit tax returns yesterday. It is identified as a program under the umbrella of a tax-exempt group in Malibu, Calif., called Environmentalism Through Inspiration and Nonviolent Action. For 2005, its most recently available tax return, the group reported $560,749 in revenue, none of which came from government sources. Environmentalism Through Inspiration and Nonviolent Action told the IRS that it worked on wetlands preservation around Los Angeles and "public education for peace and nonviolence." The group lists only three persons on its 2005 tax return: Andrew Beath, president and chief executive; Patricia McPherson, chief financial officer; and Jodie Evans, a Code Pink co-founder who served as a top aide to former California Gov. Jerry Brown, a Democrat. Federal campaign filings show that Miss Evans has donated more than $10,000 to Democratic causes since last year. She gave $2,300 in March to the presidential campaign of former Sen. John Edwards. She also donated $2,100 to the Progressive Patriot Fund, a political action committee for Democratic Sen. Russ Feingold of Wisconsin, and $3,300 to Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer of California. Capitol Police charged Miss Ali-Fairooz with disorderly conduct, defacing of government property and assault on a federal officer, said police spokeswoman Sgt. Kimberly Schneider. Lorie Perdue was charged with disorderly conduct along with a woman listed by police as "Jane Doe." Susan Benjamin and Paul Zulkowitz were both charged with unlawful conduct and disruption of Congress. |
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