How I Met Betsy de la Vega Before She Became Famous

This evening I am introducing Elizabeth (aka “Betsy”) de la Vega at New College in Santa Rosa. She is presenting the case against the Bush administration for its conspiracy to defraud the U.S., the subject of her book, United States v. Bush, et al.

I’ve posted this for those who are curious about how I got to know Betsy.

In December of 2004, Betsy contacted me in response to my effort to find attorneys from across the country to help with the Ohio Supreme Court case, Moss v. Bush, one of the legal challenges to Bush’s “win” in that state.

Not too long after Betsy’s initial contact, I started seeing articles by her at my favorite blog, www.tomdispatch.com. Each time I saw an article, I’d shoot Betsy an e-mail letting her know that I had read it.

Then the November 14, 2005 issue of the The Nation magazine cover article “The White House Criminal Conspiracy” by Elizabeth de la Vega convinced me that Betsy had become a major thorn in the Bush administration’s side.

The rest is recent history. This fall, Betsy sent me the press release announcing the release of her new book U.S. v. Bush, et al. I jumped into action, looking for speaking venues for her in the greater Bay Area.

Now Betsy is famous but just as down to earth as ever.