With God as my witness, I thought turkeys could organize a rally. Even Glenn Beck. But as it turns out his plans may end up crashing to the ground.
For several months Beck has been promoting a rally in Washington, DC. It was originally announced as the launch party for his upcoming book, The Plan, a blueprint for the next 100 years in America. He later fundamentally transformed the event into a tribute to the military, although he stipulated that no funds would go to the designated charity until after his rally was paid for. Most recently he responded to protests that his event is on the same date, and at the same location as Martin Luther King’s “I have a Dream” speech, by asserting that he would be honoring Dr. King.
Well, never mind all of the alleged purposes of the rally. It seems it may not even take place. According to Bill Press, who contacted the National Park Service, Beck failed to secure a permit for his multiple-personality party:
“At this point, according to [Bill] Line [of the NPS], no final permit has been awarded for the August 28 event. The permit is still pending, and may not in fact be approved.”
Perhaps this isn’t an act of hysterical incompetence. Maybe Beck deliberately ignored the permit requirement to demonstrate his commitment to smaller government and deregulation. I can hear him now, wailing to the wind that “We don’t need no stinkin permit.” Who does the Park Service think they are granting permission to use these public grounds?
The Tea Bagger Bureaucrats aren’t having a very good week. A few days ago the Tea Party convention scheduled for mid-July in Las Vegas was postponed to an unspecified date in October. The reasons given were a fairly transparent basket of malarkey, as I observed here.
I guess we’ll just have to wait and see if Beck gets his permit and pulls off his shape-shifting affair. At least we know that he won’t be there alone, as some bona fide civil rights leaders are now pledging to hold counter demonstrations and have even announced another event on October 2nd, for which I am willing to bet they will have a permit.
The Park Service is generally averse to controversy, so I would be surprised if they end up denying Beck’s permit. However, they may reconsider if there is some reason to suspect the event might be provocative or if the organizers misrepresented it.
Perhaps we can help by calling the Park Service and pointing out the problem with the charity. Here’s their phone number: (202) 208-3818.
Sure a good thing that $400 a bagger fee wasn’t the reason for Sin City being cancelled. Maybe in a world of many a looming crises he could step it up a bit like a 78 year plan. Or 45? How about a 33 and a third plan that is long playing!
I strongly support a very large Human Rights Rally on
Martin Luther King Day to counter Beck’s attempted usurpation
of it! We must show the world that most Americans share
Martin Luther Kings vision of America – Not Glen Becks!
“At this point, no final permit has been awarded…The permit is still pending…”
And then we have your utterly misleading headline:
“Glenn Beck failed to secure a permit…”
You make it sound like Beck’s permit has been denied. That is a lie.
By the way, Bill Press thinks that Mike Malloy and Randi “Kill Bush” Rhodes don’t spew hatred on their shows. He sings their praises in his “Toxic Talk” book that is selling like used Yugos. Press’ credibility is nil.
Thanks for giving out the NPS number. I will be calling them to tell them to approve the permit request.
Oh c’mon. You read the words “failed to secure” (which is completely accurate since the permit has NOT been secured) as “denied” and then you accuse me of lying.
Sorry, but you can’t call me a liar simply because you don’t know what “secured” means.
Scott, the fact that Mike Malloy is a tool doesn’t diminish the hatred spewed daily on Beck, Hannity, Rush, Savage, Ingraham, et al. In my house we have a term for this kind of argument: YeahButYou
Yeah, I think it was Olbermann who talked to Bill Press about this last night. Press thought he’d probably get the permit but, even if he does, he isn’t going to be standing on the steps of the monument as he’s telling his fans.
Beck is simply doing his Morning Zoo self-promotion act here to milk his flock for a buck. Unlike you, I’m not out to get him banned. Let him practice his free speech. Next time perhaps someone I support will want to rally there too. I just wish the message would rise about the din of his loud demagoguery to the Beckerheads what a cynical fraud he’s pulling here.
If Beck, like his bud Hannity, is found to be mismanaging his charity funds I hope he’s held completely to account, unlike Sean, who still is stepping on the stones pretending he’s walking on water and getting away with it.
I’m not out to get him banned. I just want to mess with him, and make him follow the rules.
Is it possible that the Park Department was holding off giving him the permit in case someone who is really seeking to honor the memory of MLK wanted a permit to hold a rally there on that day?
Nah, prolly not.