WH Lawyers go after The Onion for unauthorized use of Prez Seal

[NAO]

Protecting the Presidential Seal. No Joke
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/24/business/24onion.html

excerpt:


You might have thought that the White House had enough on its plate late last month, what with its search for a new Supreme Court nominee, the continuing war in Iraq and the C.I.A. leak investigation. But it found time to add another item to its agenda - stopping The Onion, the satirical newspaper, from using the presidential seal...

"It has come to my attention that The Onion is using the presidential seal on its Web site," Grant M. Dixton, associate counsel to the president, wrote to The Onion on Sept. 28. (At the time, Mr. Dixton's office was also helping Mr. Bush find a Supreme Court nominee; days later his boss, Harriet E. Miers, was nominated.)

Citing the United States Code, Mr. Dixton wrote that the seal "is not to be used in connection with commercial ventures or products in any way that suggests presidential support or endorsement." Exceptions may be made, he noted, but The Onion had never applied for such an exception.

The Onion was amused. "I'm surprised the president deems it wise to spend taxpayer money for his lawyer to write letters to The Onion," Scott Dikkers, editor in chief, wrote to Mr. Dixton. He suggested the money be used instead for tax breaks for satirists.

full article at above link.

[wtmusic]

1. "in any way that suggests presidential support or endorsement."

If they don't see that this negates their case, they should.

Intimidation, pure and simple. Not a chance of making this stick.

[EFerrari]

2. bushistas going after The Onion?

:rofl:

[noahmijo]

3. Oh that's a GREAT idea piss off the writers of The Onion

Just imagine the headlines they're gonna have now....

[opihimoimoi]

4. Them BushBots just don't get it...do they??

Numb and Dumb...Damn.....Cronyism strikes once more...

[Bernardo de La Paz]

5. WH will lose. Wastes their time, makes them look dumbER. It Parody, duh!

[kurth]

6. Bush's presidential seal is not worth a spit

What a joke - what a waste of time. Don't they have things like "the nation's business" to take care of?

And you and I are paying these assholes for this??

[MaineDem]

7. I disagree with you...sort of

The seal is a symbol of an office I used to respect. I'm sure it will stand for something honorable again soon.

So I can't say it's not worth spit. It's the present occupant of the job who's disgraced it.

[zann725]

8. If he wasn't "legally" elected, it's NOT legitimate seal anyway.

n/t

[mucifer]

9. then governor repub tommy thompson

tried to sue the then small Onion paper back when it was only available in Madison Wisconsin and not online. They had a hilarious story about how thompson had declared the month "national masturbation month". The Onion won. :rofl: :woohoo: