As I suspected, provocateur Lauren Valle was not so innocent.
In an amazing videotape obtained by Redstate, Valle is shown rushing Rand Paul's car and shoving something into the window before it had come to a stop and again charging him as he exited the vehicle -- clearly provocative and threatening actions which should have alerted bystanders that she posed a danger.
This completely debunks the left-blogosphere's narrative that Valle was an innocent bystander who just happened to speak out against Paul when she was attacked by "Brownshirts."
Valle's deliberately provocative and hostile actions led to her being pulled away from Paul. This does not excuse the foot to the shoulders after the fact, but it does explain how the scuffle developed, contrary to the over-the-top narrative.
My instincts also tell me also that the criminal charges against the "stomper" will not stick because he will claim (as he has) that he viewed Valle as a threat to Paul, and that he was trying to keep her down until the police could arrive.
Update: The scenario is crystal clear in this video. Valle charges the car for the first time (at 0:25) and pushes something into the open front passenger window where Paul was seated, she was then pulled back by security, she circled around the rear of the vehicle and approached from the front as Paul was exiting the car, ran towards him again and was pulled away again (0:55). It is that second charge by her that led to her either tripping or being pulled to the ground, and the now famous foot to the upper back and shoulder to push her back down when she tried to get up.
We have seen these provocateurs before in the environmental and other left-wing movements and particularly in the anti-Israel movement. They are often young women who are ideologically driven to create a scene for the cameras. Unfortunately, these stunts sometimes create unintended consequences in a highly charged circumstance, as happened here.
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Q: Why does it remind me of RR getting out of a car, RFK walking through a kitchen, Gerald Ford vs Squeaky and what was the other woman's name or any of a number of other incidents?
ReplyDeleteA: Because rushing a car like that is either the act of an unhinged fan or a potential assassin and its hard to tell one from the other before the bullets fly.
I know you and Ann Althouse have some "history", but I think she has nailed it with this one:
ReplyDeleteYes, yes, I know there was that eye-catching "head stomping" to talk about yesterday...
... but that just highlights the lack of anything serious in the political news this week
She makes several points:
Point 7. And let me say one more thing to those who delighted in what they imagined was the political usefulness of the "stomping" incident. There is a big rally in Washington this weekend that will draw many thousands of persons. Within that throng of presumed liberals and lefties, there will be all sorts of characters, with their diverse problems and motivations. You don't know who will act up, what foolishly overstated signs they will carry, and what provocations will lead someone with clouded judgment or poor impulse control to do something that will look awful on video. That will happen 3 days before the election, leaving very little time to explain. If that happens, you will want to eat all the words you've been saying about the stomper.
I've read also that the guy had a back problem, which is why he used his foot to restrain her, any confirmation of that?
ReplyDeleteFor all we know, Joy Behar will be there and heaven only knows what foolishness and mayhem will ensue!
ReplyDeleteSomeone needs to put Krazy Glue in her lip gloss!
Well, the first time I saw the video I thunk, huh, the good ol' boy got a bit carried away there, didn't he. Yup. He did. Then I saw the video wherein the stompee rushed the car, and I thunk, huh, looks like the good citizens pulled a whackjob away from the car (see Spartan's comment preceding). Yup. They did. But ... the good ol' boys had her subdued, and The Stomper had no need of stomping. Nope. He didn't. I base that on 18 years of police service, so, hell, what do I know about reasonable use of force, being a Jackbooted Thug or whatever. As for The Stomper's ensuing stories ... yeah yeah yeah ... tell me another one, worse than the other one, and waltz me around again Willie. I heard enough during those 18 years to know self-serving BS when I hear it. Guess I won't serve on the jury, hmmmm?
ReplyDeleteTotally aside from the rushes and stomping incident, I find the extended chanting 'Rand Paul' a little creepy.
ReplyDeleteForgive me CatLover, but I have been all over the net and so far no one can prove "stomping". Would you point out where she was stomped on?
ReplyDeleteCatLover, when she rushed the car, she was simply pulled away, not subdued, because you can see her again at 0:55 emerging in front of the vehicle. I guess when she rushed RP the second time, that's when she got a bit rougher handling.
ReplyDeleteCatLover,
ReplyDeleteBut ... the good ol' boys had her subdued, and The Stomper had no need of stomping. Nope. He didn't. I base that on 18 years of police service, so, hell, what do I know about reasonable use of force, being a Jackbooted Thug or whatever.
Your 18 years of police service -- for which I thank you! -- makes you more expert at judging this, yes. But for exactly that reason, a civilian is more prone to misjudge; and in a tense situation, misjudging is going to be on the forceful side, not the restrained side.
I'm not excusing his behavior, since I don't have the bandwidth to view the video and judge for myself. I just expect you to be better prepared and have better judgment than a civilian in this situation. In many jurisdictions, police officers are held to higher standards precisely because they're assumed to know better.
If she had rushed the Presidential limousine and tried to stuff something through the open window, she would have been either shot dead by the Secret Service or treated a hell of a lot rougher than Paul's supporters did. Paul's supporters showed a hell of a lot of restraint in leaving her in any condition to walk away under her own power.
ReplyDeleteIt was the notorious Kung Fu Dragon foot hold.
ReplyDeleteInstant death if not done properly. The "lady" got off lightly.
WV: prenark - That you Cat Lover?
The crowd was shouting "Rand Paul" trying to drown out the demonstrators who were shouting (as I recall from the video) "We back Jack", Paul's opponent in the election.
ReplyDeleteJust to toot my own horn, I'm pretty sure I'm the first person to call it pretty darn close to right (from Althouse's first post yesterday morning):
ReplyDeletetim maguire said...
...But I'd like to see the altercation from the beginning. I can't help but notice she's got Rand Paul placards under her arm. Did she bring them as camouflage? Or did she tear them from attendees who struck back in self-defense? Notice, those are male voices shouting for the police--and therefore not the "victim".
It's a fair question. Somebody should be arrested, but this video does not make it absolutely clear who.
10/26/10 11:02 AM
Professor,
ReplyDeleteThey aren't interested in the truth or principle. if they were, they would notice that two women were assaulted that night, one from each side of the debate. I take on the hypocrisy of it all, here: http://patterico.com/2010/10/27/political-violence-is-an-indictment-against-the-cause-that-motivates-it-except-when-we-do-it/
It is that second charge by her that led to her either tripping or being pulled to the ground, and the now famous foot to the upper back and shoulder to push her back down when she tried to get up.
ReplyDeleteI'll buy that the woman instigated the incident and shares a large degree of the blame. And I'll buy that she was tripped as much as pulled to the ground. I don't buy the line that the guy pushed her back down as she tried to get up. She was down, all the way down, and she wasn't getting up. The guy had separation from her and was in a position to see this. There was no need for him to do anything at that point and it looks like he just took a free shot at her, one that caught her head twice to my eye and, given her position on the curb, she could have been hurt. I might share his politics, but I can't excuse that. He crossed the line and should be held accountable.
What strikes me most about the entire incident is what sensitive flowers we have all become, seeking to 'rise above it all' and display our civility. Tut-tuting the 'over-reaction', without even a seconds thought that with very few exceptions, anywhere else in the world, this woman, acting like a juvenile jackass, in what almost everyone readily agrees is an aggressive and what could easily have been a prelude to an act of violence, was not holding her woe is me pity party from an intensive care unit - if she'd even been able to, because dead little pinheads can't whine for youtube. The foot on the shoulder wouldn't have been on the shoulder, it would have been bouncing her vapid little head off the curbstone, with quite a bit more vigor than we witnessed in this incident. And it probably would not have been alone. Certainly, she and her defenders are completely oblivious to this, or completely take it either for granted (or most likely into account) when they dream up their 'look at me' theater of the ridiculous. I find it unfortunate that the man who was suckered into being the object of ridicule in this entirely staged incident will actually face legal consequence in addition to the derision and mocking he and likely his family have or will endure from this stunt. And here's hoping she likes the jail time she's facing in Louisiana for being a jackass down there, too.
ReplyDeleteRe: Young women, anti-Israel, causing a scene...
ReplyDelete...too bad Mr. Paul wasn't riding in a bulldozer.
"no one can prove stomping."
ReplyDeleteI took 2 frames from the video, the foot at its highest, and the foot at its lowest, and made a little mouse-over effect at http://www.timprofitt.com/ (hover over and then off the image on the front page to reveal the effect). There are 4 frames removed in the middle, so this represents 6 frames, or 1/5 of a second. I had to shift the second image a bit to account for camera movement. Ideally, I would account for the slightly clockwise motion, as well as a bit of an orbit around the scene, but this is a least somewhat illustrative.
It appears the foot moves about 8 to 10 inches, and Valle's head is definitely pushed down significantly during that time.
I don't know. I guess it depends what your definition of "stomp" is.
being restrained by a foot on the shoulder is not a 'stomping' and a shoulder is not a head.
ReplyDeletewhat will it take to put this characterization of the incident to rest ? a REAL head-stomping for comparison's sake ?
She did instigate the incident, and it looks like she wore a blonde wig, which is weird and cowardly, but this guy definitely put his foot on her neck/shoulder and stepped down violently on her while she was already restrained. Whether or not that should be considered stomping, it's excessive force. It's unncessary and inexcusable in any case, and it stemmed from anger and fear.
ReplyDeleteThis has been the narrative for this election year. A provocation, an inflammatory response caused by irrational fear, and a firestorm of controversy. This cycle has got to end.
So they're complaining that someone posing as a supporter of Paul - carrying a Paul sign - got handled roughly? They didn't even know she was a member of the opposition. Doesn't that take something away from their case that its motivated from hatred of an anti-Paul protester and show that they were just trying to protect him?
ReplyDeleteCutting to the chase here, this is the video on youtube of Squeaky Fromme's attempted assassination of Gerald Ford. She rushed him and was also dressed in a red outfit. Crazy woman in the seventies, Crazy woman in 2010.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=da668XwQLuY
I heard there were warrants issued for the men who tackled her. Go ahead arrest them. In their trial they should subpoena the local PD officers in charge of security and crowd control and ask them "Where were you guys?!"
Trust me, one video of Squeaky, a couple of videos of the violence by the left this year and last, and no jury is going to hold them responsible for what they did.
It is what it is.
So now it's ok for a guy to assault a woman if she is a political opponent? Is this what this country has come to? An Ivy League law professor is more concerned with the motives of the victim, whatever they may be, than with condemning the perpetrators of criminal violence. Welcome to Tea Party America...
ReplyDeleteHow about you grab the woman, pull her away from the car and be done. Was it really necessary to kick her while she was down? She was obviously subdued and under control. Here, let me drag you to the ground and keep kicking you in the face. That's real classy/
ReplyDelete