A new name for an old group will be "sitting in" at the U.S. Capitol throughout the week. Democracy Spring claims they have signed up more than 1,000 people who are willing be arrested as part of the protest against money in politics.
Every few years, the same cabal of left-wing activists comes up with a clever re-brand for the same radical ideas.
During the Bush era, it was A.N.S.W.E.R. Then, it became Occupy Wall Street.
The latest iterations for the same cast of characters is "Democracy Spring."
Let's hope the left-wing activists can refrain from attacking anyone under their new name.
We will be on the ground at the Capitol throughout the week to bring you the latest from the protests and sit-ins.
UPDATE (12:09 p.m.): Townhall's Leigh Wolf and Justin Holcomb are reporting at the scene. Police are currently staged inside a bus in front of the Capitol ahead of the protesters' arrival from Union Station.
A crowd of roughly 1,000 people has assembled in front of Union Station, where they are preparing to move to the Capitol.
UPDATE (12:15): Code Pink has arrived.
UPDATE (12:45): Young Turks' Cenk Uygur sounded off on Hillary Clinton's campaign finances. "She likes money in politics," he said. He laughed when asked if the Democratic National Committee would ever back the Democracy Spring movement.
Activists chant messages reminiscent of Occupy Wall Street. "We are the 99 percent!"
UPDATE (1:16): Police are telling protesters to disperse. Democracy Spring activists are not happy at being told to move back to the street away from the Capitol.
UPDATE (2:00): Protesters have been arrested by police.
UPDATE (2:46):
Don't be fooled by this protest--it is anything but a grassroots movement. Ironically, the event was (at least partially) planned and funded by MoveOn.org, which is itself bankrolled by the very same billionaires the protesters claim to despise.
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It was clear from the moment we arrived that the event was carefully planned and executed political theater.
The police were already staged and waiting with zip tie handcuffs and large buses to transport protesters. The police, issuing warnings informing the protesters they would be arrested, seemed disinterested and procedural.
Unfortunately for law enforcement, they seem to have no choice but to play their part in the charade. Prior coordination with protest organizers is the best of three bad options. The alternatives to coordinating the time, place, and manner of arresting activists engaged in theater are to simply give them free reign to break the law, or to be unprepared and taken by surprise.
The concerning part of these events, and the reason I cover them, is that from time to time they're able to fool a lot of people into believing the lie.
Democracy Spring is a thin veneer for left-wing billionaires to build a large movement with much broader and damaging goals beyond campaign finance reform.
It's the sugar that helps the socialist medicine go down.
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