This is kind of an ironic tale. Cindy Sheehan who became a big anti-war activst after her son died in Iraq was arrested a few hours ago at the Capitol before the State of the Union.
Sheehan, who was invited to attend the speech by Rep. Lynn Woolsey (news, bio, voting record), D-Calif., was charged with demonstrating in the Capitol building, said Capitol Police Sgt. Kimberly Schneider. The charge was later changed to unlawful conduct, Schneider said. Both charges are misdemeanors.
Sheehan was taken in handcuffs from the Capitol to police headquarters a few blocks away. Her case was processed as Bush spoke.
Schneider said Sheehan had worn a T-shirt with an anti-war slogan to the speech and covered it up until she took her seat. Police warned her that such displays were not allowed, but she did not respond, the spokeswoman said.
Police handcuffed Sheehan and removed her from the gallery before Bush arrived. Sheehan was to be released on her own recognizance, Schneider said.
“I’m proud that Cindy’s my guest tonight,” Woolsey said in an interview before the speech. “She has made a difference in the debate to bring our troops home from Iraq.” [source]
but this story is even more interesting…
First lady Laura Bush’s guests at her husband’s annual address to Congress certainly are diverse. One, in fact, isn’t even human.
Rex, a 5-year-old German shepherd, fits in with the other guests of Republicans and Democrats who have served in the Iraq war.
There, Rex sniffed out bombs. He’s been the subject of congressional legislation. He’s famous, and Wednesday night he was to be one of Mrs. Bush’s guests at the State of the Union speech.
How he landed such a coveted seatâ??actually a spot in the aisle labeled “Rex” on the official seating chartâ??is quite a tale.
His owner, Air Force Tech Sgt. Jamie Dana, awoke in a military hospital last summer badly injured by a bomb in Iraq and crying for her bomb-sniffing dog. Someone told her Rex was dead.
Later, Dana found out that wasn’t true. But it would take an act of Congress before she could take him home to Pennsylvania.
The Air Force had said it spent $18,000 training Rex and that, by statute, he needed to finish the remaining five years of his useful life before he could be adopted. Dana’s congressman, Rep. John Peterson, R-Pa., helped include an exception for Rex in an end-of-year defense bill. [source]
UPDATE: A message from Cindy Sheehan