Bush Caught Defacing Flag -- Again -- tsk, tsk, tsk

[AtomicKitten]

photo at http://americablog.blogspot.com/

The Associated Press caught Bush defacing American flags in 2003. The Democrats need to offer an amendment to the "flag burning amendment" that says that writing on the flag is also illegal. Then let the Republicans decide if they're going to vote that George Bush defaced the flag, or whether they're going to defend defacing the flag. Either way, it will make for good theater. I see massive cardboard displays on the Senate floor with this picture blown up really large.

A US embassy staffer in Vienna writes AMERICAblog and says he did. Reportedly, a slew of conservative Republican Bush supporters wanted to get Bush's autograph on US flags. And Bush signed them. Right on the flags. Kind of ironic right before Senate Republicans force us to debate "flag burning," again, simply because they have no more ideas left.

Now, this is just a report from one reader, though it's a reader I've had extensive dealings with and he's been trustworthy before. So, can someone with the media traveling with the president look into this further?

Just FYI, but here's what the US Code says about what Bush reportedly did:

TITLE 4 > CHAPTER 1 > § 8

§ 8. Respect for flag

(g) The flag should never have placed upon it, nor on any part of it, nor attached to it any mark, insignia, letter, word, figure, design, picture, or drawing of any nature.

Then there is this (and this seems to apply on in DC, but still, that is where Mr. Bush lives):

TITLE 4 > CHAPTER 1 > § 3

§ 3. Use of flag for advertising purposes; mutilation of flag
Release date: 2006-03-20

Any person who, within the District of Columbia, in any manner, for exhibition or display, shall place or cause to be placed any word, figure, mark, picture, design, drawing, or any advertisement of any nature upon any flag, standard, colors, or ensign of the United States of America; or shall expose or cause to be exposed to public view any such flag, standard, colors, or ensign upon which shall have been printed, painted, or otherwise placed, or to which shall be attached, appended, affixed, or annexed any word, figure, mark, picture, design, or drawing, or any advertisement of any nature; or who, within the District of Columbia, shall manufacture, sell, expose for sale, or to public view, or give away or have in possession for sale, or to be given away or for use for any purpose, any article or substance being an article of merchandise, or a receptacle for merchandise or article or thing for carrying or transporting merchandise, upon which shall have been printed, painted, attached, or otherwise placed a representation of any such flag, standard, colors, or ensign, to advertise, call attention to, decorate, mark, or distinguish the article or substance on which so placed shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished by a fine not exceeding $100 or by imprisonment for not more than thirty days, or both, in the discretion of the court. The words “flag, standard, colors, or ensign”, as used herein, shall include any flag, standard, colors, ensign, or any picture or representation of either, or of any part or parts of either, made of any substance or represented on any substance, of any size evidently purporting to be either of said flag, standard, colors, or ensign of the United States of America or a picture or a representation of either, upon which shall be shown the colors, the stars and the stripes, in any number of either thereof, or of any part or parts of either, by which the average person seeing the same without deliberation may believe the same to represent the flag, colors, standard, or ensign of the United States of America.

http://americablog.blogspot.com/

[sakabatou]

1. Typical of repukes

[Minnesota Libra]

2. It shows how much he cares for our flag or what it stands for.........

....:patriot: :grr:

[skids]

3. Were they legally "flags" this time?

Last time the freepers sidestepped the issue because Shrub signed a "facsimile" of a flag, it being a facsimile because it was not in correct proportions. If these were bonified legal "flags" then it's not just disgraceful, like the last time, but actually a violation.

[AusGail]

4. As much as I detest Bush

isn't a flag just a piece of material. I realize it is symbolic of which country you come from but dont you think that patriotism contributes to causing wars?

[AusGail]

5. What I meant to say

TOO MUCH patriotism.

[LiberalFighter]

6. Material made in another country (China)

And the flag went through more abuse during the Revolution then it has now.

ie Sir Francis Scott Key's view of the flag still waving through all the bombing

[AusGail]

7. Thankyou for not leaving me out in the cold on this one

[AtomicKitten]

8. um, it's called uberpatriotism

and there's the irony
just pointing out more GOP hypocrisy

[radfringe]

9. if you look at one of those flags closely

you'll see he added a signing statement which allows him to deface the flag

ennywhooo - what's defacing a flag when you've spent the last 5 years cleaning your shoes with the constitution and wiping your butt with the Bill of Rights.

[Vidar]

10. LOL