It is an early version of a proposal for transporting thousands of delegates to and from Downtown St. Paul's Xcel Center, where the Convention is to be held, and includes maps, photos, and descriptions of potential bus formations. News reports portrayed the dissemination of information as a breach of convention security, intermingling sparse facts and fear-mongering hyperbole.

Asked to comment, Welcoming Committee spokesperson Jesse Helmsted said, “That document was and is a public document, produced in response to a Data Services Act request and accessible to anyone who asks for it. Anyone, even self-proclaimed journalists, could have brought this document to the attention of Twin Cities residents, as delegate transportation will certainly inconvenience all of us who live here. That so-called reporters would rather engage in fear-mongering and sensationalism than, say, tell the truth, only speaks to the dangers of trusting corporate media.”

The document in question, a scanned PDF of a print-out of a PowerPoint presentation called “GOP Express,” is one of many documents produced by the City of St. Paul in a lawsuit brought against them by groups planning an anti-war march for the first day of the Republican National Convention. The Welcoming Committee, an anarchist organizing body preparing for RNC protests, has positioned itself as a clearinghouse for convention-related information, and provides any and all relevant material through its website, www.NoRNC.org.

On Friday, July 5th, St. Paul Police dared the Welcoming Committee to use the document. “Go ahead, plan off that,” said Pete Panos, St. Paul Police spokesman. “That would be great for us.”

Helmsted responded, “Far out, Pete! We've been seeking endorsements of our Call to Crash the Convention, but the backing of the St. Paul Police Department is more than we'd dared to hope for. Now that we've got it, all bets are off.”

Contact: Jesse Helmsted, rncwcmedia (at) riseup.net