It seems Americans for Prosperity wants some more air time on Fox News for their staged and highly edited videos from the "right to work for less" protests in Lansing on Tuesday.

From a press release Thursday morning:

Grassroots activists, innocent bystanders, and coalition groups will gather on the south Capitol lawn today, Thursday, Dec. 13th, at 2:30 p.m., to denounce the endangerment, assault, and trampling on of their first amendment rights by union protestors. The group is demanding “justice” for the episode, which occurred on Tuesday around noon, in which union protestors tore down a tent even as people under the tent struggled to get out from underneath it.

“This goes beyond politics and even the issue of right-to-work,” said Scott Hagerstrom, state director of Americans for Prosperity-Michigan. “It wasn’t our tent; it was our first amendment rights that were trampled on by a mob of angry union protestors. We are calling on union leaders, Mayor Virg Bernero, and others to condemn this sort of violence and intimidation.”

The presser will feature compelling video footage of the event, and activists also hope to bring their tent back to the Capitol lawn for the news conference. Tarver will share his story.

No doubt some of the video footage (or all?) will be from the selectively edited video footage that was revealed by Fox News:

NYT:

"Unfortunately for Mr. Crowder, a look at the video broadcast on the Sean Hannity show appears to show quite clearly that he left out an important section of the footage when he put together his edit. A section of the Fox News broadcast preserved by the Web site Mediaite shows that Mr. Hannity’s producers at Fox News started the clip five seconds earlier than Mr. Crowder did. What the extra footage reveals is the man who punched Mr. Crowder being knocked to the ground seconds before and then getting up and taking a swing at the comedian."

Or perhaps they will show some of the also highly edited videos that show hot dog vendor Clinton Tarver when "racist union goons" (As Michelle Malkin calls them.) allegedly tear down the right wing group's tent.

As MLive reports, Mr. Tarver was in the wrong place at the wrong time:

A fixture on the local food scene was in the wrong place at the wrong time Tuesday: under the Americans for Prosperity tent on the lawn of the state Capitol when it collapsed, allegedly at the hands of pro-union protesters.

Clinton Tarver operates a popular hot dog stand at the corner of Michigan Avenue and Capitol Avenue, across from the state Capitol, from March to November each year.

In the off-season, he takes on catering work.

Tarver was set up under the Americans for Prosperity tent, his wife, Linda Lee Tarver, said Wednesday.

“Unfortunately, he got caught up in the mayhem yesterday,” she said.Tarver had been hired by the conservative, anti-union group to cater in the tent the group set up.

When the tent came down, allegedly at the hands of pro-union protesters, Tarver and his catering equipment were caught inside.

His cart was not on-site, Linda said.

(Emphasis mine)

No charges have been filed in Mr. Tarver's case or in Crowder's case, according to Michigan State Police:

Meanwhile, community members have rallied to support Tarver, raising more than $10,000 to replace his equipment and offset losses.

Michigan State Police Inspector Gene Adamczyk, whose agency policed Tuesday's massive demonstrations at and about the Capitol, said no formal complaint has been filed.

"Nobody has come to the State Police to file a complaint, whether it's the hot dog guy or whether it's the people who own the tent," he said. "We need someone to be a complainant, otherwise there's nothing we can do.

"The State Police would gladly take a report, but no one's come forward."

Adamczyk added a Fox News contributor who was punched by a protester also has not filed charges.

Some facts about Mr. Tarver, he happens to be a Republican who supported Mitt Romney, as noted in this article from Slate:

"Romney’s Saturday started off well. He was the star of the Ingham County Lincoln Day breakfast, an eggs-and-coffee-and-county-commissioner-placards affair in the dining room of a Lansing, Mich., country club. Before he spoke, Republicans heard “The Star-Spangled Banner” sung by the Old School Fellas, a zoot-suited amateur doo-wop group. “Mitt’s a good, Christian man like I am,” explained Clinton Tarver, wearing the reddest of the zoot suits."

Tarver also happens to be married to the Michigan Republican Party’s Ethnic Caucus Vice-Chair.

All just a big coincidence, no doubt!

During Tuesday's "right to work" protest in Lansing, Michigan, state troopers were witnessed and recorded using a baton on a senior citizen who was already knocked to the ground. Another officer had to step in to restrain the trooper from making further contact with baton.

What would have happened if the other officer hadn't restrained him?

Former U.S. Rep. Mark Schauer talks about his experience with the protestors outside the House chamber, including getting pepper sprayed himself.

According to Schauer:

"I think this rally speaks for itself. People are here to scream and holler and speak and make noise, trying to get the attention of Governor Snyder and the Republican legislature. Nothing else has worked. This is a peaceful demonstration where people are exercising their first amendment rights. No one was contacting the building, touching the building, endangering the building in any way. It's unfortunate that some of us were pepper sprayed. It was not necessary."

With no warning, or even a hint of an idea about why...about 20 seconds into this video you can see the riot police begin to spray pepper spray into the crowd of protesters:

Video streaming by Ustream

Update: 7:45pm EST: Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder has reportedly signed the controversial bill banning mandatory union membership Tuesday night. As anger escalated among the estimated 10,000 protesters in Lansing, police donning riot gear arrived with pepper spray, which was used on at least one activist. Police also arrested two demonstrators, and surrounded the Romney State Office Building.

A few photos, and I'll have much more later...

Civil disobedience inside the Capitol rotunda earlier Tuesday.

"Owned by Dick DeVos"

Update 9:20am:

Michigan Avenue, now...

Update 9am EST:

Snyder, GOP leaders to unveil right-to-work legislation plans at 11 am.

Inside the Capitol...

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An amazing crowd in Lansing right now, as the march to the State Capitol building is about to begin! I'm sure there are thousands, but I sure couldn't make a guess from here in the heart of it all beyond that. So many people from outside Michigan here to stand with us in solidarity -- it's truly touching -- thank-you all! A few notes before I'm off:

For anyone wishing to donate pizza to everyone protesting at the Michigan Capitol building, please contact Cottage Inn Pizza at (517) 267-9000 and they will see to it that your order is donated to the hungry, winter warriors.

Email from Progress Michigan (517-999-3646):

"We’re opening our office as a pit stop during the rally tomorrow. If you’re in town, join us at 115 W. Allegan, Floor 7 (above the Biggby), to get warm, grab some hot cocoa, recharge your phone, log onto free WI-FI, and make a quick bathroom break."

Details on the day's events here.

Will update either here on via Twitter @DianeSweet whenever possible.

Thousands of people gathered on the state Capitol lawn in Lansing Monday evening, to protest the treatment of two female lawmakers who were barred from speaking on the House floor last Thursday following an emotional debate over abortion.

They heard a recitation by the two lawmakers and others of The Vagina Monologues.

The performance, kicked off by the work’s author Eve Ensler who flew in from California for the occasion, was the culmination of five days of reaction to the decision by House Republican leaders to issue one-day revocations of the right of state Reps. Lisa Brown, D-West Bloomfield, and Barb Byrum, D-Onondaga , to speak on the House floor.

They said the discipline was in response to "incivility" displayed by the two representatives a day earlier during a debate over legislation to impose new restrictions on abortion clinics. Brown said she was punished for using the word vagina.

Welcoming the crowd, Brown said the legislation would “effectively overturn Roe v. Wade,” the 1972 U.S. Supreme Court decision which ended most state-level restrictions on abortion, and “turn back the clock to the 60s, when women were denied health care.”

Concluding her remarks during the House debate, Brown had said, “I’m flattered that you are all so interested in my vagina, but ‘no’ means ‘no.’”

Monday evening she said, “We shouldn’t be legislating vaginas, if you can’t say vagina.”

Via:

The play is a series of graphic tales - some funny, some violent - about vaginas. The author, Eve Ensler, said the protest setting at the capitol was a first for her show in its 16th year.

"This is a turning point moment," Ensler said. "This is a moment where we can turn this whole war on women in a whole other direction. And it's really important that we have her back and that we support her. And we let the world know this isn't going to be tolerated."

That's why thousands of Brown's supporters, young and old, attended the event. They wanted to make sure the next generation has a voice.

"She's going to change the world, and we gotta start somewhere," said Molly Kozlowski referring to her 2-year-old, who wore a "Viva Vagina" shirt and rainbow tutu. "She's going to be a strong, independent woman, and we're going to start here."

Women weren't the only ones speaking out about vaginas. There were plenty of men in the crowd supporting Representative Brown as well.

"We need to be honest talking about women's health issues, that it's not a dirty word," David Widmayer said. "This is not someone making a scene, this is how you have to talk about it if you're honestly going to talk about women's health in the legislature."

Ensler called on all women to participate in “One billion Rising,” on Feb. 14, 2013. On that day, she urged women to leave their jobs and their schools and go to the streets to dance.

“I want you to take over this place,” Ensler said. “I want you to dance for vaginas and life.”