Photo taken Thursday morning of the Americans for Prosperity protesters.
An activist group founded/funded by the Koch brothers is holding a demonstration in Manhattan on Thursday to protest President Barack Obama’s economic policies and to stand up to the “Occupy Wall Street mob,” says their press release.
The group made up of "activists" from Americans for Prosperity are standing outside near Rockefeller Center as part of group’s "Failing Agenda Bus Tour," (That's one bus, by the way.) which is devoted to urging President Barack Obama to shun policies that increase the nation’s debt. Despite the group’s billionaire backers, the AFP describes itself as a "grass roots" organization. It claims to have more than 2 million supporters nationwide.
Americans for Prosperity is also launching a $25 million ad campaign in support of Mitt Romney’s presidential candidacy next week, according to the Huffington Post. Americans for Prosperity has already spent $15 million on ads attacking President Obama.
A spokesman for the group’s New Jersey chapter said the protest of the thirty protesters in attendance would serve as an opportunity to disavow Occupy Wall Street.
“The Occupy Wall Street crowd is nothing but a fringe element of malcontents bent on mayhem and destruction,”said Steve Lonegan, director of Americans for Prosperity’s New Jersey branch. “These are people who despise free enterprise. They are not attacking Wall Street. They are attacking the very freedoms that everyday Americans cherish to pursue their own dreams and succeed.”
Thursday morning Lonegan added "We used Occupy Wall Street to get our message out." I'm not certain what Lonegan meant by that, as I don't see any of the livestreamers who normally cover Occupy Wall Street on hand. The group does appear to have a camera with them, however, that should suffice for their stationary "protest."
You would think the Koch brothers at least would've purchased better signs for the group.
