Wednesday 3/16 Election Fraud, Reform, & Updates Thread

[MelissaB]

In order to organize and document I thought it would be a good idea to have a daily thread to place items related to reform, fraud, protests, and other items. This also make it easier to "catch up" when we are away from the computer for a while.

Please help us. If you see something that isn't here post it with a link to the thread and a thanks to the author. Thanks to everyone who is helping with this project.

Link to the thread from yesterday: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x344047

[MelissaB]

1. (((URGENT))) request from HOWARD DEAN

Sometimes partisan politics gets overheated -- I know that as well as anyone. But when one party controls all three branches of government, and then seeks to change the fundamental principles and rules of our democracy, we need to talk about it soberly and seriously.

The Republican Senate leaders have decided to fundamentally alter the role of Congress -- they want to give George Bush unprecedented power to manipulate the legislative branch and the courts.

Today Harry Reid and the Democratic Senators asked us, the American people, to help them preserve the right of our elected representatives to speak their mind on the floor of the U.S. Senate.

We have to act. Sign this petition, which we will deliver to every U.S. Senator, asking them to protect the right to free speech in the Senate. If they don't, it is not only their voice that will be silenced -- it will be ours:

http://www.democrats.org/freespeech

Here are the facts: George Bush has appointed judges to lifetime positions at a better rate than any president in nearly three decades. More than 95% of his nominees have been approved. Only ten nominees have been refused -- all because they are unqualified and out of the mainstream.

But that's not enough. And on this issue, as on Social Security, it is becoming more and more obvious to everyone that the Republican leadership is out of touch with reality.

More Americans voted against George Bush than any sitting president in history. And that same day, across the country, the Democratic candidates for Senate received over 4 million more votes than Republicans.

Americans did not endorse the fringe agenda to dismantle Social Security. And they did not endorse dismantling the system of checks and balances that have served our country for over 200 years.

Please tell your Senator to stand up for free speech:

http://www.democrats.org/freespeech

This is not a partisan issue -- it is an American issue. And we all must act together in order to protect our democracy.

Thank you.


Governor Howard Dean, M.D.


Thanks to BigBearJohn here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x1662508

[dzika]

2. Video - Jon Stewart interviews author of Bad News, Tom Fenton - 3/15

Video - Jon Stewart interviews author of Bad News, Tom Fenton - 3/15

Video in Real Media format (7 minutes)

Related Videos:

CNN Reliable Sources interview with Tom Fenton - 3/6

Jon Stewart interviews author of On Bullshit - 3/14

[dzika]

3. Ken Schram Commentary: Bush Disguising Propaganda As News (with Video)

March 15, 2005

Ken Schram Commentary: Bush Disguising Propaganda As News

By Ken Schram

The government is sending out news
packages to TV stations touting how
great things are going, and they're
being aired with no attribution!

Watch Quicktime Video


SEATTLE - Former President Clinton used them.

President Bush is using them even more.

They're called "video news releases."

Actually, they're propaganda pieces disguised as news.

Written, produced and packaged by the Bush Administration, these little gems tout what the government is doing, and how great things are going.

The General Accounting Office calls them "illegal covert propaganda", but the Justice Department has come out and said, nope, they're just fine.

I think the practice is an abomination.

But that's not the worst part.

more here

[dzika]

4. Bush, Schwarzenegger criticised over propaganda video 'news' clips

March 16, 2005

Bush, Schwarzenegger criticised over propaganda video 'news' clips

By Andrew Gumbel

Los Angeles: The Bush administration has produced news look-alike propaganda clips and successfully persuaded television news stations to air them uncritically.

As many as 20 government departments have produced fake news that stations relayed as though they had produced the segments themselves, the New York Times reported.

In California, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is at the centre of a growing controversy over the use of public funds to make pseudo-journalistic films touting controversial policies and passing them to local television news stations, which have aired them without comment.

Both the Bush and Schwarzenegger administrations have gone so far as to script introductory lines for the news anchor to read out.

The phenomenon, known to its detractors as "covert propaganda" and to its advocates as the harmless business of putting out video news releases, is deeply troubling in a country that prides itself on the independence and "objectivity" of the Fourth Estate.

The controversy consists of two distinct parts: the questionable legality of the officials' actions, which have been challenged by congressional and legislative oversight committees, and the questionable ethics of television news directors who permit the segments to air without so much as a balancing comment from government critics.

more here

[dzika]

5. WA House passes election reform package, including mandatory mail ballots

From kgw.com:
March 16, 2005

WA House passes election reform package, including mandatory mail ballots

By RACHEL LA CORTE / Associated Press

All-mail elections would be mandatory in the state of Washington under a bill that passed the House on Tuesday as part of its election reform package.

The state Senate had already passed a bill that makes it easier for counties to switch to all-mail elections, but the House, which originally had the same language, went a step further. An amended version of the bill mandates that the entire state switch to absentee voting by 2008. The measure passed on a 58-38 vote after vigorous debate.

Proponents say that in a state where about 70 percent of voters already vote by mail, it doesn't make sense for counties to spend money to rent poll sites, pay poll workers or worry about hundreds of voting machines.

"It saves money," said Rep. Sam Hunt, D-Olympia. "It gives a verifiable signature, it gives a statewide ballot that all appears the same, and county auditors overwhelming support vote by mail."

more here

[dzika]

6. San Diego mayoral race fallout promotes election change

March 15, 2005

San Diego mayoral race fallout promotes election change

By DON THOMPSON, Associated Press Writer

About 5,500 San Diego write-in votes were tossed out in November's tight mayoral election because the voters forgot to color in a little bubble on their ballot.

State lawmakers took the first step Tuesday to change election law to require that voters' intent be honored where possible.

The bill by Assemblyman Juan Vargas, D-San Diego, was approved by the Assembly elections committee, 4-1, after election officials rejected 5,551 write-in votes for San Diego mayoral candidate Donna Frye. His bill would require officials to count write-in votes if it is clear a voter intended to vote for a particular candidate but didn't fully comply with voting instructions.

Frye lost because too many voters wrote in her name but neglected to also darken an optical-scan bubble next to the write-in blank on the ballot.

Meanwhile, a bill that would link the nation's four most populous states in a pact to change the way electoral votes are counted in presidential elections fell a single vote short in the same committee.

The author, Assemblyman Bill Maze, R-Visalia, plans to try again at a future committee hearing.

His bill would eliminate California's winner-take-all system of distributing Electoral College votes, dividing them instead among presidential candidates based on their share of the popular vote.

more here

[dzika]

7. Lawsuits likely over Georgia vote ID bill

March 16, 2005

Lawsuits likely over Georgia vote ID bill

By NANCY BADERTSCHER, CARLOS CAMPOS
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

A top official of the American Civil Liberties Union said Tuesday he expects voting rights groups to file suit if the General Assembly passes legislation requiring voters to show photo identification at the polls.

"There's utterly no justification for it, and I think there's a good argument to be made that it violates federal law," said Laughlin McDonald, director of the ACLU's Voting Rights Project.

Chris Riggall, spokesman for Democratic Secretary of State Cathy Cox, said Tuesday that passage of the legislation could give Georgia "the most restrictive voter ID law in the nation."

Seven states currently require photo IDs, but Georgia would be the first state not to allow a fallback plan, such as an affidavit or provisional ballot, Riggall said.

"And it begs the question, what problem are we solving?" Riggall said. "Out of the hundreds of election fraud matters before the Election Board in the last nine years, we can't recall a single one that involved a person falsely identifying themselves as another registered voter."

Last Friday, the Republican-led House and Senate gave preliminary approval to separate measures — House Bill 244 and Senate Bill 84 — requiring photo IDs that GOP leaders said would cut down on voter fraud. But the bills sparked a walkout of Democrats from the House and Senate. They argued the requirement effectively would deny the right to vote to some minority, poor and elderly voters and would be a throwback to the days of the poll tax.

more here

[dzika]

8. Tackling Arnold

March 16, 2005

Tackling Arnold

By Harold Meyerson

Angelides looks like a nerd. Gangly and elongated, earnest in manner, liberal in politics, he is in almost every way the polar opposite of the current governor of California -- whom, Angelides announced yesterday, he is seeking to replace in next year's gubernatorial election.

Angelides's declaration came as no surprise. California's treasurer since 1999, Angelides has been the only leading Democrat to oppose Arnold Schwarzenegger at every turn. When Schwarzenegger went to the voters last year with a bond measure to finance some of the state's deficit -- not a bond for schools or parks, mind you, but for current deficit spending -- Angelides stood virtually alone in opposing it. The measure passed, but as a result of Schwarzenegger's unyielding opposition to restoring the top tax rate on California's wealthy, the state's budget is still billions of dollars in the red.

This year Arnold's budget does contain a few revenue enhancers. He's targeted for elimination a property tax and rent relief program for the elderly, blind and disabled. "What he doesn't do is ask one sacrifice from any of us who have done well financially," Angelides said in an interview yesterday after declaring his candidacy in San Francisco.

Angelides has done well financially, though hardly on the scale of a global mega-franchise such as Arnold. A home builder and developer, he erected "new urbanist" communities that located basic amenities within walking distance of homes -- energy-efficient homes, of course. In and out of office, Angelides has been the socially responsible capitalist par excellence.

more here

[dzika]

9. Hyde Reportedly Considering Retiring at End of Term

March 16, 2005

Hyde Reportedly Considering Retiring at End of Term

By Dana Milbank and Amy Argetsinger

Rep. Henry J. Hyde has been in
the House since 1975 and has
chaired two committees.

House Republicans are widely expecting Rep. Henry J. Hyde of Illinois to retire at the end of this term, ending one of the longest runs in the House of Representatives and shrinking the minority of GOP lawmakers who remember life in the minority.

The Chicago Sun-Times reported yesterday that Hyde, chairman of the International Relations Committee, would announce his retirement "in a few weeks." The paper didn't name its sources, and Hyde's aides said he has not made up his mind.

But House Republicans say Hyde, who came to Congress in 1975 and is the fourth-longest-serving from the GOP in the chamber, is more likely than not to retire. He will be 81 next month and has a bad back. "My body can't cash the checks my mind writes," he is fond of saying. (The chairman is evidently a fan of the film "Top Gun," which made famous the line "Son, your ego is writing checks your body can't cash.")

Also, because of House GOP rules term-limiting its committee chairmen, Hyde is about to lose his chairmanship, which would leave the elder statesman as a backbencher after years of leading the Judiciary or International Relations committees. It was as Judiciary Committee chairman that Hyde earned fame because of his leadership of the impeachment of President Bill Clinton. Hyde, an old-fashioned Midwestern Republican, took his impeachment role with reluctance, becoming an unlikely conservative icon.

A third factor making another campaign unattractive: Hyde's suburban Chicago district has become more Democratic, and his victory margins have been shrinking since the impeachment proceedings.

more here

[dzika]

10. Kaine to Launch Virginia Gubernatorial Run Today

March 16, 2005

Kaine to Launch Virginia Gubernatorial Run Today
Democrat Focuses on Property Tax Relief, Transportation, Education

By Michael D. Shear and Chris L. Jenkins

Lt. Gov. Timothy M. Kaine prepares to
embark on a barnstorming tour.
He said he wants to slow the rise in real
estate taxes.


RICHMOND -- Lt. Gov. Timothy M. Kaine will formally announce his candidacy for governor Wednesday with a call for homeowner tax relief and a promise to improve the state's transportation system, promote excellence in education and maintain discipline in the state budget.

Kaine -- a lawyer and the son of an ironworker -- said in an interview that he wants to slow the dramatic increase in real estate taxes that can wreak havoc on the budgets of middle-class families.

"We've got five very practical and concrete things we can do that we think are going to cut homeowners' taxes," he said, although he declined to provide details before he begins a tour of the state Wednesday. "You do it by adjustment to the relationship between state and local government. And you do it by dealing with the property tax head on."

Kaine (D) is scheduled to begin the barnstorming tour at Big Stone Gap in southwest Virginia, where he will appear with his father-in-law and political mentor, former Republican governor A. Linwood Holton. He will travel by plane to Roanoke, Herndon, Norfolk and Richmond. Gov. Mark R. Warner (D) is scheduled to join him in Northern Virginia.

more here

[dzika]

11. Viewer Beware

March 16, 2005

Viewer Beware

WHAT DOES Jon Stewart of "The Daily Show" have in common with the Bush administration? They're both unabashed about putting out fake news. The Bush administration's version consists of video news releases -- government-produced, government-funded spots packaged to look and sound like regular television reports, complete with fake news reporters signing off from Washington. These are intended to be, and often are, aired by local television stations without any indication that the government is behind them. The Government Accountability Office found this kind of phony news to be impermissible "covert propaganda." It warned the government last month that such prepackaged news stories must be accompanied by a "clear disclosure to the television viewing audience" of the government's involvement. The Bush administration is now instructing its officials to ignore the GAO -- which is where (in addition to the question of comedic content) the administration and Mr. Stewart diverge. He wants you to know his news is phony.

Although this administration apparently isn't the first to use video news releases, it seems more enamored of them than its predecessors. For example: A spot commissioned by the Transportation Security Administration lauds "another success" in the Bush administration's "drive to strengthen aviation security," which the "reporter" describes as "one of the most remarkable campaigns in aviation history."

It's humiliating that local news stations, however short-staffed and desperate for footage, would allow themselves to be used this way. Indeed, as the New York Times reported Sunday, some have even lopped off government attribution when it was included or pretended the government reporter was one of their own. Even so, it's disingenuous for administration officials to blame the stations, given that many releases are crafted precisely to disguise their government origin.

This technique is both illegal and unwise. As a legal matter, the prepackaged news releases run afoul of the prohibition on the use of government funds for domestic "propaganda." The administration's interpretation -- it's okay to hide the source as long as the spot is "purely informational" -- is untenable: Highlighting some "facts" and leaving out others can be even more persuasive than outright advocacy, which is why the administration chose this device. More important, this kind of propaganda masquerading as news is a deceitful way for a democratic government to do business; fake journalists paid by the government to deliver its version of news are as disturbing as real commentators paid by the government to tout its views. White House press secretary Scott McClellan defended the video news releases on Monday as "an informational tool to provide factual information to the American people." Nice sentiment, but why, exactly, wouldn't the administration want to let the people in on one of the most salient facts: who, really, is doing the talking?

source

[dzika]

12. GEORGE W. BUSH’S BLURRED VISION FOR AMERICA

From uruknet.info:
March 16, 2005

GEORGE W. BUSH’S BLURRED VISION FOR AMERICA

The only thing more frightening than George W. Bush having a blurred vision for America, is that he might actually be seeing things clearly.

A TvNewsLIES Diagnosis

DOMESTIC BLUR


1. George Bush believes that he can control the will of the people by controlling the airwaves < http://tvnewslies.org/html/lapdog_press.html >. That’s most probably what Karl Rove learned form Slobodon Milosevic. The Serbian dictator knew that 90% of his people relied on TV or radio for their news. He understood that the people who voted for him didn’t read the newspapers, so he concentrated on controlling the airwaves.
What George Bush does not see through his foggy vision is that Americans are beginning to see through the manipulation of the corporate media and are turning to the Internet for information < http://tvnewslies.org/html/news_sources.html > in greater numbers than ever. It’s a slow process, but alternative news is reaching more and more Americans, who are slowly beginning to realize that their interests have been totally omitted from the Bush agenda, and are searching for real news in order to make informed choices.

2. George Bush believes he can disguise destructive programs by giving them clever names. .Surely, every good citizen wants No Child Left Behind, and is in favor of Clear Skies and Healthy Forests < http://tvnewslies.org/html/the_environment.html >. Never mind that educational programs are now more under funded than ever, and that millions of children are left behind. Never mind that the skies are filled with more and more pollutants to save money for huge corporations. Never mind that thinning the forests is an environmental disaster. What matters is that it sounds so good. Heck, didn’t Operation Iraqi Freedom have a good run? What doesn’t filter through the blur is that George Bush has the worst environmental record of any president in history, - and manages to sell himself as a protector of the people. What doesn’t filter through is that George Bush has not created a single domestic program that benefits the average American, and that he doesn’t really care.

3. George Bush believes that most Americans believe that he is great leader < http://tvnewslies.org/html/bush_an_historic_leader.html >. Taking the nation to war was priority number one, and George Bush rallied a frightened and misled nation behind him as he invaded Iraq. His blurred self deception after 9/11 convinced George Bush that he could set out to reshape the world with impunity. In the aftermath of the attacks, Bush became the most feared and most hated American leader, ever, in a world cowed by the military dominance of the US. In the years of his presidency, Americans are far worse off than every before. Yet, in his blurred world, despite the falling numbers, George Bush really believes that the large majority of Americans strongly approve of him and his policies. Not so. Not so.

4. George Bush believes that most Americans want to live in a country dominated by fundamentalist religious beliefs. He doesn’t understand that most Americans consider their religious beliefs to be personal and outside the realm of governmental interference. He doesn’t understand that most Americans want women to have control over their own reproductive systems. He doesn’t understand that most Americans believe that gays and lesbians must have their rights protected, not restricted by the government. He doesn’t understand that most Americans know how to change the channel on their TV sets, and don’t need a return to the censorship days of the 1950’s. In his blurred world, George Bush wants to reshape the Supreme Court into an ideological tool. He doesn’t understand that the American people will not allow that to happen if they can help it. He just doesn’t understand.

more here

[dzika]

13. Truth Is, Bush's Propaganda Hurts the U.S.

March 16, 2005

Truth Is, Bush's Propaganda Hurts the U.S.

ANDRÉS MARTINEZ

When I was growing up in Mexico, we subscribed to the local Chihuahua newspaper and a Mexico City paper whose arrival around lunchtime was a much-anticipated treat — it had a far better sports section. My exposure to U.S. news in that pre-Internet, pre-satellite-TV era was intermittent, mostly by way of the El Paso Times and Time magazine.

If my worldview had been entirely shaped by media, I would have believed that one of the two countries separated by the Rio Grande was a mess, a total basket case, and the other a prosperous democracy envied around the world. But I would have gotten it backward.

It was Mexico's TV and newspapers, tightly controlled by the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, that trumpeted the wonders of the nation's democracy, economic progress and social cohesion. Candor seemed to seep only into those treasured sports pages.

American media, by contrast, were brimming with woe. You would have thought it was only a matter of days before the U.S. would disintegrate.

Two decades later, it's troubling to see Washington emulating the PRI's media strategy, and it's especially troubling to those of us who have lived in other countries and always admired the distinctive candor of public discourse in this country.

more here

[dzika]

14. Fake news makes foul government

March 16, 2005

Fake news makes foul government

Clarence Page

WASHINGTON -- Jon Stewart's satirical "The Daily Show" on Comedy Central likes to call itself "No. 1 in fake news." Team Bush seems determined to challenge the show for the title--with our tax dollars.

In memos sent last week to federal agency heads, the Bush White House rejected a Government Accountability Office ruling that it is illegal for federal agencies to feed TV stations prepackaged "news stories" that do not disclose the government's role in producing them.

Fake-news stories, called "video news releases" in the public relations industry, are a huge business. The PR trade produces thousands a year, mostly for corporate clients. Designed to resemble independently reported news stories, these video news releases can be broadcast without editing and, to their everlasting shame, some TV stations have chosen to run them without identifying their government source.

All White House administrations use public funds to push their agendas, but they should make a decent effort to inform the public as to where the hype is coming from. Then voters can decide whether they think the money is well spent. But when TV stations put stories on the air without announcing that the stories are government-produced, the stations become megaphones for government propaganda.

Three times in recent months the Government Accountability Office ruled that the made-for-TV stories from the Department of Health and Human Services about the Medicare drug benefit and from the Office of National Drug Control Policy for the administration's anti-drug campaign violate federal laws against such covert propaganda. But the Bush administration's latest memos, first reported Sunday by the New York Times, absolve the fake stories where there is "no advocacy of a particular viewpoint" in "the legitimate provision of information" concerning government programs.

more here

[MelissaB]

15. Email from: "Wellstone Action!"

Dear Melissa,

You are invited to participate in Wellstone Action’s National Civic Dialogue on Social Security to be held April 19, 2005.

As the debate about Social Security heats up, the progressive movement has a unique opportunity to organize on this major national issue and hand the White House a serious defeat. On Tuesday, April 19th, Wellstone Action members and friends will discuss ways to create powerful values-based messages on Social Security and how to move those messages into the public arena.

We need your help! Here is what we are looking for:

Facilitators. We need hundreds of fired-up progressive activists to take the lead in organizing a dialogue in their communities. We will give you all the tools you need to succeed as a facilitator (click here to see the great resources on our website). Please consider becoming a part of our national civic dialogue team of facilitators. It’s a one-time commitment and will not take more than a few hours of your time. All you need to do is confirm a location and fill out our online facilitators sign up form. We ask that you nail down your location and register your meeting online by Thursday, March 31st.
Participants. If you are interested in being a part of this day but are not able to host a meeting in your area, you can still be involved as a participant. We will begin online participant registration the first week of April, so mark your calendars now and save the date Tuesday, April 19th!
Based on the huge success of our last Civic Dialogue Project (over 5,000 people participated in 600 meetings around the country), we know these community gatherings can form a force for progressive change. Please join us on April 19th!

Thanks,
Wellstone Action!
www.wellstone.org

[MelissaB]

16. Email from Gov. Howard Dean: Protect Free Speech in the Senate: Sign the p

Dear Melissa,

Sometimes partisan politics gets overheated -- I know that as well as anyone. But when one party controls all three branches of government, and then seeks to change the fundamental principles and rules of our democracy, we need to talk about it soberly and seriously.

The Republican Senate leaders have decided to fundamentally alter the role of Congress -- they want to give George Bush unprecedented power to manipulate the legislative branch and the courts.

Today Harry Reid and the Democratic Senators asked us, the American people, to help them preserve the right of our elected representatives to speak their mind on the floor of the U.S. Senate.

We have to act. Sign this petition, which we will deliver to every U.S. Senator, asking them to protect the right to free speech in the Senate. If they don't, it is not only their voice that will be silenced -- it will be ours:

http://www.democrats.org/freespeech

Here are the facts: George Bush has appointed judges to lifetime positions at a better rate than any president in nearly three decades. More than 95% of his nominees have been approved. Only ten nominees have been refused -- all because they are unqualified and out of the mainstream.

But that's not enough. And on this issue, as on Social Security, it is becoming more and more obvious to everyone that the Republican leadership is out of touch with reality.

More Americans voted against George Bush than any sitting president in history. And that same day, across the country, the Democratic candidates for Senate received over 4 million more votes than Republicans.

Americans did not endorse the fringe agenda to dismantle Social Security. And they did not endorse dismantling the system of checks and balances that have served our country for over 200 years.

Please tell your Senator to stand up for free speech:

http://www.democrats.org/freespeech

This is not a partisan issue -- it is an American issue. And we all must act together in order to protect our democracy.

Thank you.


Governor Howard Dean, M.D.

[dzika]

17. New county voting system required by 2006

March 16, 2005

New county voting system required by 2006
'Sanctity of vote' important in search for replacement system

By James Faulk

EUREKA -- Humboldt County over the next few months will have to decide which new voting system it will choose to fulfill state and federal requirements.

Then county leaders will have to figure out how to pay for storage and associated costs to implement that new system.

The Board of Supervisors heard a report Tuesday from the County Clerk-Recorder Carolyn Crnich and Elections Officer Lindsey McWilliams on the upcoming requirements under both state and federal election law.

The federal Help America Vote Act, signed into law in 2002, requires that every polling place have an accessible voting system. At this point, the most likely options are touch screen voting systems. The act also mandates that every polling place be made accessible to people with disabilities, so improvements will have to be made to many of the county's polling spots.

Under new state guidelines, any touch screen system must have an Accessible Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail.

more here

[dzika]

18. A Master Morality

March 16, 2005

A Master Morality
Bush, Inc., is an enterprise operating of, by and for the privileged stockholders; as such, it is an embodiment of what Friedrich Nietzsche called a “master morality.”

By Ernest Partridge

[The Master] regards himself as a determiner of values; he does not require to be approved of; he passes the judgment: ‘What is injurious to me is injurious in itself;’ he knows that it is he himself only who confers honor on things; he is a creator of values. He honors whatever he recognizes in himself: such morality is self-glorification. “ : – Friedrich Nietzsche – Beyond Good and Evil


George Bush has said that he wants to run the government like a business. He has achieved his objective, for although Bush was allegedly “elected” as President of all the people, Bush, Inc. is in effect, less a government than it is a vast holding company. The firm’s executive officers are Bush, Cheney, and the Bush Cabinet. The Board of Directors are the Republican Party and the GOP Congressional leadership. The stockholders are the contributors to the Republican campaigns. The “accounts receivable” to the firm are the federal tax revenues from 280 million American citizens, who receive, in return, poor if any government services. Finally, the product of Bush, Inc., is regulatory relief, legislation, and government contracts, all designed to benefit the stockholders.

In almost all instances the dividends to the stockholders are generated and “the product” is delivered at the expense of those who produce the national wealth – the vast majority of our fellow citizens.

The American public is persuaded to tolerate this racket by a mass-media owned and controlled by the Bush, Inc. stockholders. As ultimate insurance, the officers and directors of the firm can not be voted out of office, because the public’s votes are counted and compiled by unauditable machines manufactured and secretly coded by stockholders of the firm. The corporate media, of course, refuses to investigate and publicize this outrage, and dismisses all citizens who raise this issue as “conspiracy theorists.”

To appreciate the force of this analogy, one need only contemplate a broad range of policies proposed by the Bush Administration, and the legislation enacted by his Republican allies in the Congress: one discovers that these policies and legislative acts are all designed to further enhance the wealth and power of the “stockholders” – elites who “own” the Republican party, and hence the White House and the Congress.

In sum, Bush, Inc., is an enterprise operating of, by and for the privileged stockholders; as such, it is an embodiment of what Friedrich Nietzsche called a “master morality.”

more here

[dzika]

19. Is Bush gunning for the media?

From decaturdailydemocrat.com:
March 16, 2005

Is Bush gunning for the media?

By DAVID SHAW
The Los Angeles Times

Cyberspace is increasingly our culture's primary hotbed for interesting, provocative theories - many of them as paranoid as they are provocative. One of the most interesting and provocative (and paranoid) of those espoused in recent weeks argues that the Bush administration has embarked upon a systematic campaign to ``decertify'' the professional media corps, ``to strip them of their traditional influence in national affairs,'' to eradicate the very idea that they have a ``legitimate role to play in our politics,'' according to Jay Rosen, professor of journalism at New York University and creator-author of the Pressthink.com Web site (www.journalism.nyu.edu/pubzone/weblogs/pressthink).

Although Rosen first began writing about this theory in September, it didn't begin to gain critical mass in cyberspace until March 2, when Eric Boehlert vigorously advanced the debate on Salon.com.

Like Rosen, Boehlert made clear that he was talking about far more than White House attempts to manage the news or to go over the heads of the press corps, directly to the people - something every administration tries to do. No, Boehlert said, ``Recent headlines about paid-off pundits, video press releases disguised as news telecasts and the remarkable press access granted to a right-wing pseudo-journalist working under a phony name have led some to conclude that the White House is not simply aggressively managing the news but is out to sabotage the press corps from within, to undermine the integrity and reputation of journalism itself.''

The Bush administration, Boehlert contends, ``is actually trying to permanently weaken the press. ... Weakening the press weakens an institution that's structurally an adversary of the White House. And if the press loses its credibility, that eliminates agreed-upon facts - the commonly accepted information that is central to public debate.''

Every occupant of the White House has done battle with the media, but Bush is more media-averse than any president in history. Bush had fewer solo news conferences in his first term than any president since William Howard Taft, and certainly the examples Boehlert cites amount to a propagandistic subversion of the free press.

more here

[dzika]

20. CA Bill would limit election official's political role, donations

March 16, 2005

CA Bill would limit election official's political role, donations

By DON THOMPSON, Associated Press Writer

The secretary of state couldn't endorse other candidates or ballot measures or serve as an officer in a political party or organization, under a bill advanced Wednesday by the Senate elections committee.

The bill by Sen. Debra Bowen, D-Redondo Beach, who is seeking the top elections office next year, would also bar contributions from makers of ballot counting equipment or software.

Bowen, who chairs the elections committee, helped derail a proposal by Sen. Jeff Denham, R-Salinas, to make the office nonpartisan, similar to the state's superintendent of public instruction.

The debate came as the Senate Rules Committee endorsed Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's nomination of former Republican Sen. Bruce McPherson to replace Democratic Secretary of State Kevin Shelley, who left office March 4 amid several investigations. McPherson's nomination will stand if neither chamber rejects the appointment by June 3.

The rejection of Denham's proposal marks the second time in two days that efforts to make the office nonpartisan failed in legislative committees. An effort by Assemblyman Joe Canciamilla, D-Pittsburg, was rejected in his chamber Tuesday. He and Denham said they may try again at future committee hearings.

more here

[dzika]

21. Social Security misinformation common on Fox's Special Report

March 16, 2005

Social Security misinformation common on Fox's Special Report

Watch this video clip:

• Quicktime
  
• Windows Media

Members of the "Fox News All-Star Panel" propagated two pieces of Social Security misinformation that have become increasingly common among the network's pundits. On the March 15 edition of Special Report with Brit Hume, National Public Radio national political correspondent Mara Liasson falsely suggested that private accounts "might do something to help the solvency" of Social Security, and Weekly Standard executive editor Fred Barnes erroneously claimed that Social Security will be "insolvent" in 2018.

Media Matters for America has documented three instances in the last six weeks (here, here, and here) of Fox News pundits wrongly suggesting that President Bush's proposed private accounts would address Social Security's solvency problem, as Liasson did on March 15. In fact, even the White House has admitted that private accounts would do nothing to address Social Security's long-term revenue shortfall, and President Bush said at a March 16 press conference that "(p)ersonal accounts do not solve the issue" of solvency. Indeed, as Media Matters has explained, diverting payroll tax dollars into private accounts without cutting benefits would actually exacerbate the solvency problem. Social Security's chief actuary recently informed the White House that under Bush's proposal to let workers divert a portion of payroll taxes into private accounts, "(a)nnual cash-flow deficits (negative annual balances) appear in 2012, or six years earlier than under current law," as The Wall Street Journal reported on February 8.

Barnes's false claim that Social Security will be "insolvent" in 2018 is also popular on Fox News (here and here). As Media Matters has noted, 2018 is the year the Social Security trustees project that benefit payouts will begin to exceed payroll tax revenues, at which point the program will have to begin tapping into the trust fund to meet benefit obligations. But the system will be neither insolvent nor bankrupt. It is projected to pay out full benefits until 2042, according to the trustees, or 2052, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.

From the March 15 edition of Special Report with Brit Hume:

LIASSON: The question is what are you going to do to fix the solvency? And that is actually the debate that we haven't been having. We've been having a big heated debate about private accounts, which might do something to help the solvency problem. But certainly they're not going to be the big fix for it.

(...)

BARNES: They've been shamed into agreeing that something needs to be done now. The year is not 2042, either. It's 2018. That is the year -- and actually, one of the trustees of Social Security said the other day 2017; that is the year when Social Security brings in less than it's paying out. ... That's when it becomes basically -- not bankrupt, but insolvent. So something does have to be done now.

more here

[MelissaB]

22. Judiciary Committee quashes Democrats’ effort to demand credentialing info

JUDICIARY VOTES DOWN GANNON INQUIRY, 21-10

Judiciary Committee quashes Democrats’ effort to demand credentialing info on ‘Gannon’
The House Judiciary Committee voted against adopting a resolution demanding Bush agencies turn over all credentialing information related to James D. Guckert 21-10, the discredited conservative reporter and prostitute who wrote under the nom de guerre “Jeff Gannon.” Rep. John Conyers (D-MI), the ranking Democrat on the committee, said the resolution was imperative to ensuring that the line between reporters and activists remains clear. “If we don’t investigate this matter thoroughly,” Conyers said, “where and when will be draw the line? I plead with my committee members in the Judiciary to support this very plain but necessary .”
F. James Sensenbrenner, chairman of the committee, said he felt that “the Administration, in my opinion, has substantially investigated this matter.” “The Secret Service has determined that Mr Guckert did not pose a danger to the President or his family,” Sensenbrenner said.

Sensenbrenner outlined his opposition to the measure in terms of not wanting to interfere with “competing investigations” by the Administration he said were already underway. “I would reiterate the fact that the Administration has substantially complied with the request for information,” the Wisconsin Republican said. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee said the matter demanded an investigation.

It “cries out for a House investigation,” she said. “I frankly believe that this is no less serious than my colleagues thought the Clinton investigation was to them.” Jackson Lee said Gannon had engaged in a possible “penetration of the White House.” Voting in favor of the resolution were: (All Democrats) Rep. Conyers Rep. Berman Rep. Scott Rep. Watt Rep. Jackson-Lee Rep. Waters Rep. Meehan Rep. Schiff Rep. Sanchez Rep. Van Hollen

Voting Against: (All Republicans) Rep. Sensenbrenner Rep. Coble Rep. (Lamar) Smith Rep. Gallegly Rep. Goodlatte Rep. Chabot Rep. Lungren Rep. Jenkins Rep. Cannon Rep. Bachus Rep. Inglis Rep. Hostettler Rep. Green Rep. Keller Rep. Issa Rep. Flake Rep. Pence Rep. Forbes Rep. King Rep. Franks Rep. Gohmert Not present: Democrats: Rep. Boucher Rep. Nadler Rep. Lofgren Rep. Delahunt Rep. Wexler Rep. Weiner Rep. (Adam) Smith Republicans: Rep. Hyde Rep. Feeney

http://rawstory.com/news/2005/index.php?p=184

Thanks to cal04 here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x1318348

[dzika]

23. COBB CALLS ON VOTING COMPANIES TO OPEN MACHINES & RECORDS FOR PUBLIC INSPE

March 16, 2005

COBB CALLS ON VOTING COMPANIES TO OPEN MACHINES & RECORDS FOR PUBLIC INSPECTION

NEWS RELEASE

For immediate release: March 16, 2005
Contact: Blair Bobier, Media Director at 541.929.5755

2004 Green Presidential Candidate Sends Letter to Nine Voting Machine Companies


Saying that "public involvement and oversight in the voting process is essential," 2004 Green Party presidential candidate David Cobb today sent letters to the heads of the nine major voting machine companies in the U.S. demanding "accountability and transparency."

"As an American citizen and a recent presidential candidate, I want to have faith in the vote counting process. Unfortunately, with more than 50,000 documented instances of irregularities in the past election, I am unable to trust either the vote counting process or its results without an open, accountable and independent method of public verification," Cobb wrote in his letter.

In his letter, Cobb said that a number of steps "must be taken immediately to restore faith in our elections and the winners that they produce. These steps must include: having a paper ballot for each vote cast, independent analysis of voting machine software and hardware, open software source code, no contributions from voting companies to candidates for public office, no networking of machines and the public dissemination of all relevant voting data and documents."

These specific demands have been endorsed by a number of voting rights organizations including Velvet Revolution and by Congressman John Conyers.

To send an email message to the voting machine companies in support of electoral transparency and accountability, go to www.velvetrevolution.us .

For more information on electoral reform and the status of litigation concerning the Ohio and New Mexico presidential recounts, visit www.votecobb.org . The website for the national Green Party is www.gp.org .

from an email

[dzika]

24. trusting the media

From Sisyphus Shrugged:
March 16, 2005

trusting the media

things to look for when you're trying to figure out if what you're watching is real news or illegal use of government funds for partisan political advertisements masquerading as news:

1. is it about a Bush administration policy that's not too popular with the people it's supposed to serve?

2. is it much more positive than the facts support?

3. do the facts actually appear in the story?

4. is it, say on Fox* or ABC?

Punk'd.

Do you like the news better now that your taxes are paying for it? Trust it more?

It's not just Democrats that aren't important enough to have access to the accurate information they need to advise and consent on the government they're paying for any more. It's all taxpayers.

Conspiracy to keep you poor and stupid, anyone?

Values voters, please note.

*Of course, it's far harder to tell with Fox, 'cause that's the kind of 'news' they produce anyway (and how bad does a fully-funded conservative propaganda 'news' operation have to be before Howie Kurtz notices?)

source

[dzika]

25. Voting solution worse than the problem

March 16, 2005

Voting solution worse than the problem

At Issue: Republican Rick Keene's effort to eliminate voter fraud.

Our Opinion: While laudable, the effort to keeping voting safe and secure also imposes burdens on our freedoms.

It's hard to fault Assemblyman Rick Keene of Chico for trying to eliminate voter fraud.

But if his method of doing so also inhibits voter turnout, that's an even bigger problem than the one Keene is trying to solve. Keene is struck by the fact that a person can vote without even having to show identification. A person can show up at a polling place, give his or her name and address, sign a document and receive a ballot. Simple as that.

But say Jane Doe from 1234 Main St. shows up twice on Election Day first an impostor, then the real one. There's no way to discount that first ballot because it has already been deposited with the others. Keene also fears that people who want to defraud the system can cast ballots, he said in a press release, "in the name of dead people, by felons, or by illegal immigrants."

Keene introduced Assembly Bill 1006, which proposed that voters must present identification and proof of residency when they go to the polls.

Other states have taken such measures, but it always causes a partisan fight. Democrats charge that Republicans just want to make it tougher on people who might vote Democratic including younger, poorer voters who might move around a lot, or might not even have a home, and would have trouble showing proof of residency.

Randall Stone, vice chairman of the Butte County Democratic Central Committee, called Keene's bill "a regression to the restrictive voting rules in the South of 50 years ago." That's an exaggeration. Nobody is suggesting literacy tests for voters. But we understand the Democrats' concerns. Having a home or permanent residence shouldn't be a requirement for voting.

more here

[dzika]

26. Ohio Recount bill: pay the entire cost

March 16, 2005

Ohio Recount bill: pay the entire cost

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Candidates wanting an election recount not required by state law would need deep pockets under a bill being debated in a House committee.

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Kevin DeWine, would change a variety of state election rules, including the current cost of $10 per precinct for candidates wanting a recount in races where the state does not mandate one. The bill would require the candidate or party that requested it to pay the full cost of recounting the votes unless the recount changes the outcome of the election.

...
"It very well may have prevented the recount from happening. It seems like a very anti-democratic move," Bonifaz said. "Recounts are critical for ensuring that every citizen's vote is counted."

Rep. Steve Driehaus, a Cincinnati Democrat, said he's concerned about the cost of recounts to counties but that there are times when a request for a non-mandatory recount is legitimate.

"We do appreciate the fact that if one is going to ask for a recount, there has to be substance behind that and they have to bear a certain portion of the cost. However, we don't want to make recounts so prohibitively expensive that someone with a legitimate concern can't move forward with a recount," Driehaus said.

Driehaus, a member of the House Elections and Ethics Committee, which is holding hearings on the bill, said Democrats are offering a compromise that would fix a $20 per-precinct-fee and add more precincts to a recount in its initial stages.

more here

[Wilms]

27. Federal election monitors note a few problems in L.A.’s election last week

Federal election monitors note a few problems in L.A.’s election last week
by JEFFREY ANDERSON LA Weekly 16 March 2005

Los Angeles’ well-documented failure to make elections accessible for immigrant voters prompted a visit from the U.S. Department of Justice to monitor last Tuesday’s city election. Among the complaints heard by the Civil Rights Division: lack of bilingual assistance, late poll openings and poorly trained or rude poll workers.

The monitors informed the city clerk of their intent to review procedures for Election Day, during which 384,489 of 1.47 million registered voters cast a ballot — a 26 percent turnout, down from 33 percent in the 2001 primary election. Alberto Ruisanchez, a Justice Department attorney, met with community representatives in the 9th Council District afterward to hear their grievances, which included poll workers’ requests for identification and failure to instruct Spanish-speaking voters on how to cast a provisional ballot. A Justice Department investigation is under way.

http://www.votersunite.org/article.asp?id=5010

[Wilms]

28. First Circuit Requests Rehearing on Puerto Rico Presidential Vote Case

First Circuit Requests Rehearing on Puerto Rico Presidential Vote Case

March 16th, 2005

On March 15, the First Circuit, which includes Puerto Rico, ordered a rehearing in Igartua v United States, 04-2186. The plaintiffs insist that the U.S. Constitution, as well as international treaties signed by the U.S., requires the United States to let Puerto Rican citizens vote for president. The Puerto Rican plaintiffs had lost the case on October 14, 2004, by a vote of 2-1. Now the entire First Circuit will rehear the case.

The order setting up the rehearing wants the attorneys to address the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Inter-American Democratic Charter of the Organization of American States, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The United States signed all three agreements, and pledged not to discriminate against any group of adult citizens in voting.

-no more-

http://ballot-access.org/2005/03/16/first-circuit-requests-rehearing-on-puerto-rico-presidential-vote-case/

[Wilms]

29. Maine Bill Passes Committee Unanimously

Maine Bill Passes Committee Unanimously
March 14th, 2005

On March 14, Maine LD329 passed the Legal & Veterans Affairs Committee unanimously. Since the bill passed unanimously, it is likely to pass on the floors of both houses (in Maine, committees include members of both houses, so the bill has no more committees to pass).

LD329 makes it easier for a party to get and remain on the ballot. Current law says a party can remain on the ballot if it polled 5% for the office at the top of the ticket, in either of the last two elections. The bill keeps that provision in place, but adds an alternative, that the party has registration equal to 1% of the state total. If the party attains or keeps that registration, it need not worry about meeting the vote test.

http://ballot-access.org/2005/03/14/maine-bill-passes-committee-unanimously/

[Wilms]

30. Not seeing the same picture

Not seeing the same picture

Opinion Dan Carpenter Indianapolis Star March 16, 2005

Bill Crawford has been winning elections for 33 years as a state representative, and he says he can't recall an instance where anybody tried to vote as somebody he wasn't.

So why in 2005 is there a bill in the Indiana General Assembly to require a photo ID to vote?

The Republicans, who want it, say it's to protect the integrity of the ballot box.

Crawford, who's a black Democrat, says it's to suppress the black Democratic vote.

-snip/more-

http://www.votersunite.org/article.asp?id=5005