Protest Palin Visit Sept. 25! : Indybay

On September 25, Democrats and progressives in the San Francisco Bay Area will have a rare opportunity to show Sarah Palin and the Republicans exactly what we think of them. Between 11:30 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. that Thursday, Silicon Valley Republicans Tom and Stacey Siebel will host a fundraiser luncheon with Palin at their home in Woodside. The address is 3000 Portola Road, Woodside/Redwood City CA 94062 (see MapQuest, Google). Local Republicans will be shelling out a minimum of $1000 per person to attend the luncheon, and those who raise $50,000 or more will get a seat at the headtable and three photos with Palin. The California GOP lists Caitlin Ashlock (310-309-2101, cashlock@mccain08hq.com) as primary contact for those interested in attending.

The Bay Area is not friendly territory for Republicans, so it seems a little unlikely that McCain/Palin will be planning any protestable public events here. A fundraising event such as Palin's at the Siebel home Sept. 25 does provide an opportunity, however, to make the Republicans feel unwelcome and to draw some negative media attention to the McCain campaign. Tom Siebel, founder and CEO of Siebel Systems, is well-known as a Republican donor and fundraiser. His home is in a hilly, wooded part of San Mateo County about 30 miles south of San Francisco, Portola a rather narrow road along which demonstrators may form an "avenue of protest" to greet Palin and her donors as they arrive.

Bay Area Democrats and progressives should organize for this event and tell Sarah Palin to go back to Alaska.

Mark C. Eades