Brooks Brothers riot

The Brooks Brothers riot was a demonstration by Republican congressional staffers at a meeting of election canvassers in Miami, Florida on November 19, 2000, organized for the purpose of bringing about the cancellation of a hand recount in which 10,750 ballots remain uncounted in the recount of the 2000 United States presidential election. The name refers to a traditional brand of suits associated with conservative business attire like that of the protesters. [Parry, Robert: [http://www.consortiumnews.com/2002/080502a.html "Bush's Conspiracy to Riot"] , The Consortium, August 5, 2002] The crowd was reported to have been directed by Congressman John E. Sweeney, [Lantigua, John: [http://archive.salon.com/politics/feature/2000/11/28/miami/ "Miami's rent-a-riot"] , Salon.com Politics, November 28, 2000] a Republican from New York.

This political act was orchestrated by the RNC as many of the protesters were flown in to participate. Many of the participants have gone on to pursue lucrative careers through political appointments.

In a Washington Post article [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/10/AR2007061001229_2.html?hpid=topnews] , it was reported that in 2005, one member of this riot, Garry Malphrus, was appointed to be an immigration judge by U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. Malphrus would later be elevated by U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey to the Board of Immigration Appeals. [ [http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2008/May/08-ag-483.html #08-483: Attorney General Mukasey Appoints Five New Members to the Board of Immigration Appeals (2008-05-30) ] ] Another participant, Joel Kaplan, eventually succeeded Karl Rove as Deputy White House Chief of Staff.

See also

*Florida election recount

References