Democratic Party Trying to Stop Free Speech

Update:  DailyKos readers:  lippythelion69 sought and received my permission to use this article.

The Berks County Democratic Party, under the leadership of Chair Tom Herman of SEIU, voted to stifle dissent, free speech and freedom of the press today.  Engineered by the Chairman of the Pennsylvania House Judiciary Committee, they passed a resolution forcing me to change the name of my local blog  or they will will sue me.

The local blog is written by three Democrats from Berks County and is called Berks Democrats.  A disclaimer sits on the masthead notifying readers it is in no way affiliated with the Democratic Party.  The very first article on the blog also specified and disclosed this information.  They don't have a legal leg to stand on, as exemplified by the President's failure to stop a website called GWBush.com.  Gee, if the President of the United States failed what makes Tom Caltagirone, John Ryan and Tom Herman think they can overturn settled and established internet case law and shut me down?

That's what this is really all about:  shutting down my local blog.  They don't like articles I've written about them.  They can't handle dissent and criticism so they decided to infringe my free speech and freedom of the press rights with a resolution threatening legal action.

What has become of the Democratic Party when it begins trying to stifle free speech rights?  I'd like an answer to this question from Pennsylvania Chair T.J. Rooney and Howard Dean.

This isn't just anyone doing this, it's the Chair of the Judiciary Committee, his Judiciary Committee Legal Counsel, and others.  These are all Democrats folks, chew on that for a few minutes then call the DNC (202-863-8000) and the Pennsylvania Democratic Party (717-920-8470) and ask them yourselves.

Update:  If you'd like to help defeat Tom Caltagirone, the Chair of the PA House Judiciary Committee, the man who singlehandedly kept Pennsylvania Democrats from electing a Dem Speaker of the House, go here to contribute to his opponent.

Comments

[Cynthia Baughman]

When I got to the meeting today I wondered what Tom Caltagirone & John Ryan were doing there. The last time I remember seeing them at a County Committee Meeting was back in the winter when they came to stifle any potential censure of Caltagirone for betraying the Democratic electorate by voting for Republican John Perzel for Speaker of the State Assembly. And then it all became clear. Today's meeting had a similar feel to that one--an orchestrated effort by the local political machine to shut down dissent.

I was shocked by the fact that many Committee People voted in favor of a resolution to demand a change of name for www.berksdemocrats.com, and threaten a lawsuit, and yet felt fine about admitting that they (a) never read the blog (b) do not use the internet, and (c) do not own or use a computer! Their ignorance about the internet, domain names, how search engines rank sites, etc. would be laughable were these folks not threatening legal action. Had anyone recorded their befuddled statements they could have posted them on You Tube along with the instant classic re-mix of Senator Ted Stevens "series of tubes" remarks. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EtOoQFa5ug8&mode=related&search=

Several of your critics were touting their credentials as lawyers, but hadn't bothered to research and present pertinent legal precedents regarding challenges to owners of domain names. At the very least, these complainants might have brought a laptop & projector, or even photocopies of screen capture, so that people could vote with minimal awareness of the disclaimer displayed on your home page, and a comparison of www.berksdemocrats.com (your blog) and www.berksdems.org (the County site). We had quite a few lawyers citing their credentials in an effort to intimidate the opposition, but they sure didn't act like lawyers (making no effort to present either the law, legal precedent, or evidence). If the County Committee takes legal action against your blog, I expect that the Committee will become a laughingstock during an important election cycle; any such effort will certainly divert time and energy from our campaigns.

John--you know that I admire a lot of your reporting and analysis but don't like some of your attacks on individuals. I am dismayed to see you vowing to step up attacks on "Bad Democrats" and shelve your reporting on our fall races and the Republican candidates. Living well is the best revenge—you will increase the reach and influence of your blogs by continuing to do what you do best—reporting and analysis of legitimate news. I hope that you will remember that you do have an audience beyond the Committee people who voted today to shut you down. It includes all of us of us who voted against this resolution today, as well as the rest of your readers.

[Melissa]

Very eloquently said, Cynthia.

Two wrongs don't make a right. If they are engaging in personal mudslinging, then it speaks volumes about their character. Don't allow yourself to get caught up in retaliation by stooping to that same level.

You are a very bright and talented man, John, and you can best utilize that talent to expose wrongdoing and compel positive changes without engaging in the personal stuff. :-)

[Kirk Wentzel]

Why shouldn't John any everyone else for that matter NOT be attacking Bad Democrat, Bad Repulicans, Bad Green Party members...just Bad politicians in general???Democrats are not saints (as demonstrated by this abhorrent attempt to intimidate a fellow Democrat. Fact is, if Mr. Caltagirone or his croonies can't stand a little criticism then they should get the hell out of politics. And all this coming for the head of Judiciary Committee. What sophistry!!

Why are the Berks Democrats supporting THIS kind of action against one of their own? I'm damn near ashamed to be a Democrat in this county. So much for ethics!!

[Cynthia Baughman]

Kirk--

I think you misunderstand me. I wasn't suggesting that John not attack Democrats--or Republicans--or Greens--or lazy non-voters, or whatever. I appreciate John's equal-opportunity contrarianism. I was referring to his suggestion (on his other blog) that he might put his attacks on Republicans on ice as payback to the local Democratic party.

The 21 member majority at Saturday's meeting is not the entire Democratic Party of Berks County. The 15 of us who voted against this resolution represent a sizable slice, and had this not been a stealth attack, I think the vote might have gone differently. The turnout at Saturday's meeting was very small (on a beautiful Saturday in August), and stacked with the Caltigirone posse who came to attack John. Had this attack on John been an agenda item announced in advance, I'm sure more of his supporters would have been at the meeting, and we would have been more prepared to defend his freedom of the press more effectively.

In fact, come to think of it--did we even have a quorum at this meeting? If only 36 votes were cast, I think that represents about 15% of the membership, and perhaps not the full quorum necessary for a binding vote of this type. John's the expert on these rules...John?

[John Morgan]

The presence of a quorum is irrelevant. Someone must question the presence of a quorum and then a count made to determine if one is present.

I allowed the vote to occur because I already have legal cause to sue the Committee. Having them sue me first allows me to file as a counterclaim.

It also gave me a huge story.

I did warn the Committee of the disclosure which shields me from legal liability and they chose to ignore that. I was under no obligation to stop them from running over a cliff behind Tom and Tom.

[Melissa]

"Had this attack on John been an agenda item announced in advance, I'm sure more of his supporters would have been at the meeting"

Is it typical for items to be tossed out there without prior notice? Or was this an obvious back door attack?

[DC]

I've delivered my resignation as committee person. If this is the kind of tactics, and bullying that is the mainstay of the party in this county, then count me the hell out.

I gave my comments at the meeting and I received both applause from those who knew that what I was saying was not only true, but the right thing to stand by and attempts by some to be shouted down and criticized, while I had the floor to speak on the matter, most of whom from what I could observe were of the camp of people who were leading the attack on John.

What galled me beyond no end, is that John Ryan had the guile to play down the freedom of speech issue, by trying to paint himself as not being concerned with the speech issue, but rather simply the asserted issue that John's blog was just too close a namesake to the county party's address and that regardless of disclaimer, felt was too dangerous.

I got news for ya, the real danger lies in the factions and the current power(s) that be behind the committee, within the committee, and what that is doing to the future of Democratic and democratic politics in the county.

It is an ugly rainy and sad day that I have to admit to feeling that I can no longer trust any political party or feel comfortable being part of any political party, because of the kinds of nonsense that pervades most or all of them, including the one I thought had the brains and the values to rise above this kind of nonsense.

It is like the old Dragnet show, the names have been changed to protect the innocent, but the crimes and the actions are sadly all too similar. If what John prints in his blog is what constitutes lies and falsities to some folks, y'all need to reexamine some foundational definitions.

If he got most or all of his stuff from court, public records, then either A) the records must be lying, B) the people who filed those reports with the court were lying (and that's juicy in its own right, yikes), or C) the people who are making the fuss over it don't like what it says.

Given how astute and how much time, effort, and intensity that John seems to put into his blogging and research, I would find it a bit hard to swallow at this point that he would just fir off anything as an assertion without having something credible to back it up.

What is more, I want people to be clear on this, John did not bring this whole issue up, John did not go and make hay about his blog, or about the name of it, or anything of that sort. No, it was brought up by others, who have been named in his blog, within posts on his blog, and have seen fit to not take ths issue up with him personally, but instead attempted to drag the entire county committee into the situation as some means of further justifying why those specific people have an axe to grind with John Morgan.

I expect the kind of nonsense I saw and took part in on Saturday to happen in the ranks of the GOP or other splinter, third party arenas, or elsewhere, but not within the party that claims to be the party of inclusion and the party that is best suited to defend and champion the core values and principles of this country.

I should've left the party after the fallout from the Speaker of the House/Caltigirone affair, but I thought maybe we could get beyond that and make some real progress. I was wrong and Saturday proved it to me, glaringly.

[John Morgan]

No rules were broken. It was brought up under new business. There was no warning though, other than the fact of the interesting contingent of Caltagirone people from the City Committee. That group was central to the operation.

[Melissa]

So these are a particular group of people who don't regularly attend but all happened to show up yesterday to argue this resolution for which no notice was given?

I'm sorry for all the questions, but I'm trying to understand what went down.

[John Morgan]

Yes, Melissa.

DC, thanks so much for your support, both here and at the meeting. I'm sorry we have Party leaders controlled by Tom Caltagirone and who are only concerned with maintaining their control of the Party instead of winning elections.

Tom C is only concerned with his power and his election and was willing to destroy the Berks County Democratic Committee and sacrifice this year's candidates to do so.

By resigning at least you shield yourself from liability from my countersuit. I'm shocked at the 21 Committee persons who are willing to put their assets at risk to keep Caltagirone in office. Any legal damages, costs and fees the Committee cannot pay will be legally assessed against the members, did you know that?

Did the lawyers explain that before asking you to put your homes on the line?

[dl]

Here is what I know - the lawyers in this town DON't use evidence, laws, the Constitution, case law or the truth. They perjure, they falsify documents, they don't send important orders and they "make mistakes" that eliminate your appeal rights. When your District Attorney REFUSES to investigate (let alone prosecute) the prevalent White Collar Crime in this County for 18 years, what you get is corruption and damage that is beyond out-of-control. That is what makes this place so pathetic. THEY ARE EXACTLY THE SAME AS BUSH, CHENEY, GONZALES, ROVE, ETC.

What we have in this town is a microcosm that is thriving off it's own stink. It has been feeding at its own table for so long it is fat, sloppy and stupid. They will, and have embraced any, and every, opportunity to personally profit off of others. They need a constant influx of victims. They have no remorse, they don't understand right and wrong. It is about control and they will stop at nothing to continue. They are scared, they have been caught. If they lose Baldwin, they lose their big insurance policy. They all work together, there are no political lines of distinction. Caltigirone has been integral to their means.

I would ask that no one who is ethical resign or walk away. It will take an enormous commitment and self-sacrifice to evict and clean-up the pollution that has been festering during the DAs reign. It is as if Bush had 18 years of Gonzales.

If you think you are decent, take a hard look. People don't hide or attack for no reason.

John is willing to put himself on the line for right, most people would rather look the other way.

[Kirk]

OK fair enough so then what I'm hearing is that the local party machinery has split into factions and nobody is actually working together. Is that correct? Because if it is, that seems like a recipe for defeat.

Meanwhile, John is under attack by the leaders of the local Democratic Party and I suspect this was just the first salvo. If they fail here they will start digging for anything they can find. So the obvious question is...is there anyway to remove or recall the leadership?

[John Morgan]

The people around Caltagirone will do and/or say anything to keep him in power. The stories about his conduct during elections are legendary.

They will say and do anything now to try to destroy me in order to question my integrity and believability. These are the exact same tactics the Bush White House uses.

[John Morgan]

Yes, the Chair can be recalled. It takes a 2/3 vote however and Caltagirone controls enough votes to prevent that.

There were committee people voting yesterday who don't even own computers and some who have no idea of internet law. They were there to vote the way they'd been told to vote. This is old fashioned machine politics.

Here's the irony: Caltagirone is also a Committee person and also could be personally liable for legal damages.

[DC]

Oh John, don't ya know...he'd just find some more contributors to help pay that potential bill probably, after all why ruin the publicly disclosed track record right? (said in utter sarcasm)

I'm kicking myself for not brining up a motion to table the original motion until the next meeting, so that things could be on a level playing field or more level anyway. Oh, well hindsight is better than 20/20

[John Morgan]

It's ok DC, a table motion wouldn't have passed.

[Dean Monahan]

I resigned long ago....had a little email tango with Rooney's gopher......it was basicly if you don't do as they say,your a bad Dem.....and was told it was people like me that bring our party down.......what a bunch of asses........fuck the Dem party in Berks.Tom Herman is a loser......

[Dean Monahan]

And any leg work or whatever you need John,im in.

[John V. Ryan]

John it is a shame you have not told people that you followed me into the men's room after losing the vote to tell me that the proper way to have handled this was for the Berks Democratic Party to have PAID YOU for the website name. So much for your 1st amendment rights. It's all about the money for you!
Long ago I realized that the price for our 1st amendment rights is to tolerate vile dribble.
John, my actions are my own, and I acted without consultation with anyone. I will always have the courage to meet people face to face and debate them in person to express my opinions. So continue your nasty attacks and do nothing to promote our real party interests.
This will be my first and last website comments and appearance. See you at the County Committee Meetings for continued discussions.

Yours truly,
John V. Ryan

[John Morgan]

First, I didn't follow you into the men's room. I had to get home to dog sit and had to use the facility first. You were coming out and I said "the proper way to do this would have been to come to me and offer to buy the name." I would NOT have sold it. Neither will I now.

The fact this was a blind sided attack and NO attempt was made to come to me with ANY concerns prior to the ambush proves it isn't about the name it's about vindictive retribution from your Boss Tom Caltagirone.

Let me be clear about this: I did not offer to sell the name. I said the proper conduct by you or your sockpuppet would have been to ask to buy it. It would not have been sold at any price. None of my domain names are for sale.

Now that I also own BerksCountyDemocrats.com I can aim that name at any website on the internet I choose. You made quite a fine bed for yourself Mr. Ryan.

The fact that name was still available proves your ineptitude. You know nothing about internet law. Go to the Electronic Frontier Foundation and do your homework FIRST next time.