Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News Tuesday 9/12/06

[Melissa G]

Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News Tuesday 9/12/06


Nearly six in 10 Americans see lobbyist Jack Abramoff's plea deal
as a sign of widespread corruption in Washington. (ABCNEWS.com)

All members welcome and encouraged to participate.

Please post Election Reform, Fraud, & Related News on this thread.

If you can:

1. Post stories and announcements you find on the web.

2. Post stories using the "Election Fraud and Reform News Sources" listed here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x371233

3. Re-post stories and announcements you find on DU, providing a link to the original thread with thanks to the Original Poster, too.

4. Start a discussion thread by re-posting a story you see on this thread.



If you want to know how post "News Banners" or other images, go here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=203&topic_id=371233#371391




Please "Recommend" for the Greatest Page (it's the link just below).

[Kurovski]

1. K&R!

You're gettin' right to it, woman!:-)

Edit: Where are my manners? Thank you!

[FogerRox]

3. Knr #3, thank you.

[Melissa G]

2. Poll: Majorities See Widespread Corruption

Poll: Majorities See Widespread Corruption



Analysis by JON COHEN and GARY LANGER


Nearly six in 10 Americans see lobbyist Jack Abramoff's plea deal as a sign of widespread corruption in Washington. (ABCNEWS.com)
Jan. 9, 2006 — Nearly six in 10 Americans see lobbyist Jack Abramoff's plea deal as a sign of widespread corruption in Washington, and a majority supports legislation that, if enacted, would end political lobbying as it's currently practiced.

The political fallout of the still-evolving case is unclear — at this stage, neither party holds an advantage in perceptions of its ethics and honesty. But there could be benefit in getting in front on reform: A whopping nine in 10 Americans across the political spectrum favor banning lobbyists from giving members of Congress anything of value.

http://www.abcnews.go.com/Politics/PollVault/story?id=1487942

[Melissa G]

4. 'Blogosphere' spurs government oversight

Take a bow internet activists!!!





'Blogosphere' spurs government oversight



A loose coalition of groups published a list of "pork barrel" projects in a House Appropriations bill. Sunlight Foundation uses Google Maps on its website to show where each project is located.




By Richard Wolf, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — When watchdog groups that monitor federal spending wanted more information on 1,800 "pork barrel" projects buried in a House appropriations bill, they listed them on the Internet and asked readers to dig deeper. Within days, details began pouring in.

The same thing happened when Porkbusters.org enlisted readers of its website to find out which senator had blocked legislation that would create an online database of federal grants and contracts. One by one, senators were eliminated until Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, and Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., were uncovered.

The two episodes illustrate the latest trend in government oversight: More light is being thrown on Congress, not just by the media and public interest groups, but in the "blogosphere" where Internet users meet.

snip
Citizens got involved last year when blogger Josh Marshall, publisher of TPM Muckraker, urged readers to find out which House Republicans voted in closed caucus to let indicted lawmakers keep their leadership posts. After a public outcry, Republicans reversed the vote. As a result, Texas' Tom DeLay had to step down as majority leader last year after being indicted on campaign finance charges.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2006-09-11-blogs-find-pork_x.htm

[Melissa G]

5. Let Them Eat Candy: Of War Criminals, Enablers, and the Decreasing Signifi

Let Them Eat Candy: Of War Criminals, Enablers, and the Decreasing Significance of We the People
By Jason Miller

Al-Jazeerah, September 12, 2006



Author's Note:

Inspired by Bush's recent visit to Kansas City (where I live) to stump for US Senator Jim Talent, I wrote about our diminishing liberties under the Bush administration, Bush's impunity as a war criminal, the illusory "participatory democracy" in the United States (which I argue has actually been a plutocracy to varying degrees from the beginning), my personal experiences with the police and the "free speech zone" at the Bush protest, the plutocracy residing in KC, Jim Talent's abysmal record representing We the People, my conversation with Janice Matthews (the executive director of 9/11 Truthout.org) and the impending 10/5 World Can't Wait employee and consumer mass boycott.

snip
Bush’s and Talent’s host, candy magnate Scott Ward, is one such denizen of Kansas City’s “Gold Coast”. Brothers Scott and Tom Ward inherited and share controlling interest in the privately held Russell Stover, Inc. Russell Stover is the third largest candy manufacturer in the United States, lagging behind only Mars and Hershey’s. With 4500 employees and an estimated $450 million in sales in 2005, Russell Stover co-presidents Scott and Tom Ward wield far more power and influence than the 99% of We the People who comprise the “lower classes”.

snip
What was the truly urgent aspect of Bush’s agenda in visiting the “Candy Man” to stump for Republican Senator Jim Talent’s re-election? To evade impeachment and possible prosecution for his numerous violations of domestic and international law, Bush needs a Republican majority in Congress. Nixon and Clinton both faced impeachment proceedings for committing far less egregious crimes than Bush has. Clearly, partisan politics trump the “lesser considerations” of legality and morality, even in “one nation, under God… with liberty and justice for all.”

snip
Jim Talent, another Bush enabler, is the consummate crusader for the “rights” of corporations and the wealthy to engage in rapacious behaviors. His campaign contributors include Jack Abramoff, Tom Delay’s ARMPAC, and three major tobacco companies. An examination of Talent’s voting record in Congress clearly demonstrates that he is neither representing nor serving the interests of a majority of We the People.

http://www.aljazeerah.info/Opinion%20editorials/2006%20Opinion%20Editorials/September/12%20o/Let%20Them%20Eat%20Candy%20Of%20War%20Criminals,%20Enablers,%20and%20the%20Decreasing%20Significance%20of%20We%20the%20People%20By%20Jason%20Miller.htm

[Melissa G]

6. Clash fears for Mexico celebrations

Clash fears for Mexico celebrations
By Chris Aspin

September 12, 2006 12:00


PRESIDENT Vicente Fox is determined to lead Mexico's independence celebrations on Friday, setting up a possible clash with leftist political foes who have taken over the capital's main square.

Mr Fox will give the traditional cry of independence, known as the "grito," from a balcony of the national palace that overlooks the Zocalo square, his spokesman said.

snip
But supporters of leftist leader Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador have set up a sprawling tent village in the square and hold daily rallies to press the former Mexico City mayor's contention that widespread fraud robbed him of victory in the July presidential vote.

Lopez Obrador has called for even more supporters to gather at the Zocalo on Friday. With Lopez Obrador saying Mr Fox is part of the fraud that led his party's candidate, Felipe Calderon, to victory, Mr Fox is at least likely to be heckled.

http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,20397399-5001028,00.html

[bleever]

7. Count me in. K&R.

:thumbsup:

[Melissa G]

8. Probe of Veco, lawmakers led by Justice Dept.

http://www.adn.com/news/politics/veco/story/8182180p-8075108c.html

Probe of Veco, lawmakers led by Justice Dept.

By RICHARD MAUER
Anchorage Daily News

Published: September 11, 2006
Last Modified: September 11, 2006 at 07:30 PM


WASHINGTON -- The federal influence-buying case that erupted with fury 10 days ago with searches of a half-dozen Alaska legislative offices is being managed independently of the Alaska U.S. Attorney's office, a U.S. Justice Department official said Monday.


“The whole office is recused,” Justice Department spokesman Bryan Sierra said.

Instead, the wide-ranging investigation is being overseen by attorneys from the Justice Department’s Public Integrity Section in Washington, Sierra said.

The Public Integrity Section has about 25 attorneys, a team that often lives out of suitcases in pursuit of corruption cases as far away as Guam. They’ve prosecuted petty thefts by sheriff’s deputies, the massive frauds of Enron and the high-profile corruption case of Jack Abramoff.

http://www.adn.com/news/politics/veco/story/8182180p-8075108c.html

[Melissa G]

9. IslandVoters hit the polls for primaries

IslandVoters hit the polls for primaries
BY RICK BRAND AND BRYAN VIRASAMI
Newsday Staff Writers

September 11, 2006, 11:24 PM EDT


New York voters go to the polls in primaries Tuesday to decide Democratic candidates for governor, U.S. senator and attorney general, while Republicans will pick their U.S. Senate candidate.

snip
In the primary for governor, Thomas Suozzi, the Nassau county executive, is looking to upset Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, the Democratic designee.

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, who has supported the Iraq war effort but criticized Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, is seeking re-election, facing an underfinanced bid by anti-Iraq-war activist Jonathan Tasini.

More suspenseful is the Democratic primary battle for attorney general, pitting Andrew Cuomo, the former U.S. Housing secretary, against Mark Green, the city's former public advocate, and Sean Patrick Maloney, a lawyer.

snip

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/longisland/ny-usrepu0912,0,4195665.story?coll=ny-linews-headlines

[Melissa G]

10. Judge: Board of Elections broke law

Judge: Board of Elections broke law

BY JENNIFER FERRIS : The Herald-Sun
[e-mail]
Sep 11, 2006 : 7:08 pm ET

PITTSBORO -- The Chatham County Board of Elections broke the law when it held unannounced meetings and refused to turn over minutes of those meetings to the public, a Superior Court judge ruled Monday.

snip
But while Judge John Smith ruled the board had, in fact, been in the wrong, he said it had not done so intentionally.

"There was no intent to violate the law," said Smith. "They acted in good faith based on a misapplication of the law. There have been clear violations of open meetings law."
snip

Lothrop's complaint originated with meetings regarding the choice of new voting machines in Chatham County. She claimed several meetings were held illegally or without proper notice and she was denied access to the minutes from those meetings.

http://www.heraldsun.com/chatham/13-768772.html

[Melissa G]

11. Voting shouldn't require a heroic act of patience

The Christian Science Monitor



Voting shouldn't require a heroic act of patience
By Alexander S. Belenky and Richard C. Larson

CAMBRIDGE, MASS. – Of all the issues that decide federal elections, the length of lines at polling stations shouldn't be one of them. Yet, as egregious as that would be, they may. And as implausible as that would be, nobody seems to care. After two straight close presidential elections, the 2006 midterms and the 2008 election are likely to be nail-biters, too. This means that the integrity of the election process matters more than ever.
Is there cause for concern? Yes. Consider the 2000 presidential election. George W. Bush won the presidency by a margin of just 537 votes in Florida. Assume (optimistically) that all the voters were properly registered and marked their preferred candidate, and that no voting machines malfunctioned. Even then, if only 538 Floridians who came to the precincts did not vote due to the widely reported long lines, the election outcome would be in doubt.

In the Monitor
Tuesday, 09/12/06



In the 2004 election, fewer than 119,000 Ohio votes decided the outcome. Bipartisan accounts suggest that in Columbus, an average of 21 would-be voters per precinct were discouraged by reported waits of four hours or more. If this rate of discouragement held in all 12 of the most populated Ohio counties, with 6,560 precincts - where official tallies show John Kerry won a majority of votes - the result might have been different.

Certainly, long voter lines might have discouraged more Bush voters in each election, narrowing his victories in each case. But we'll never know.

Election queues mostly form when the number of voting machines and support personnel are insufficient to handle swiftly the voters entering the polling station. Culprits include statistical underestimation, incompetence, equipment malfunction, and voter inexperience, especially in dealing with new machines. But deliberate manipulation may also be a factor.

Certain voting precincts can be intentionally "understaffed" with voting machines and personnel. Creating queues can be a potent weapon of partisan election authorities for suppressing votes believed to favor the other party. Among possible abuses that compromise elections, this tactic is difficult to detect, much less to prove. As there are no "exit polls" of voters who gave up because of long lines, red flags aren't raised, and stealth disenfranchisement is a real possibility.

http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0912/p09s01-coop.html

[Melissa G]

12. Md. primary sets stage for radical change

Md. primary sets stage for radical change
Icon Schaefer faces tight race, 32 compete for open Senate seat
MSNBC Political Calendar

Updated: 2:48 p.m. CT Sept 11, 2006
ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Democrats and Republicans will choose nominees for hundreds of state, federal and county offices Tuesday in an election that will decide the political future of a Maryland political icon, Comptroller William Donald Schaefer, and set the stage for what could be a radical change in the Maryland political landscape.

Schaefer won his first election 55 years ago and has spent a lifetime in politics. But the 84-year-old comptroller's standing with voters has plummeted since the 2002 election, and he headed into election day involved in what appeared to be a tight battle with two Democratic opponents - Anne Arundel County Executive Janet Owens and state Delegate Peter Franchot from Montgomery County.

snip
A rare open seat in the U.S. Senate drew a crowd of 18 Democrats and 14 Republicans with a handful of them running active campaigns.

The primary was mostly a warmup for Lt. Gov. Michael Steele, a consensus choice of state and snipTwo Democrats - Douglas Gansler of Montgomery County and Stuart Simms of Baltimore - vied for the right to face off with Republican Scott Rolle, who was unopposed, in the race for attorney general in November.

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/14787613/,

[rumpel]

13. GA: Two Georgia lawmakers urging lawsuits against Voting Rights Act

The Telegraph

BEN EVANS
Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Two Georgia Republicans who spearheaded opposition to this year's extension of the Voting Rights Act are encouraging local governments to sue for "bailout" from a major provision of the law that applies mostly to the South.

Reps. Lynn Westmoreland and Charlie Norwood are urging cities and counties to take advantage of language in the law allowing jurisdictions to sue in U.S. District Court in Washington to be exempted from a requirement that they get federal approval before changing voting procedures.

If denied, the jurisdictions would be in a good position to challenge the law's constitutionality, the lawmakers say. So the lawsuits would likely lay the groundwork or be filed in conjunction with broader constitutional challenges.

Westmoreland of Grantville and Norwood of Augusta led a fight earlier this year to block a 25-year extension of the landmark civil rights law. Arguing that it unfairly singles out Southern states, they specifically targeted the Section 5 provision requiring jurisdictions with histories of discrimination to get federal "pre-clearance" before making changes that could affect minority voting, such as moving polling sites or shifting electoral districts.

http://www.macon.com/mld/macon/news/politics/15493320.htm

[rumpel]

14. GUAM: Senatorial candidates file court petition

Pacific Daily News

By Steve Limtiaco
Pacific Daily News
[e-mail]

Two candidates in the Sept. 2 Primary Election yesterday challenged the election results in the Superior Court of Guam, saying the election violated the Constitutional and Organic Act rights of voters and also broke local law.

Democrat senatorial candidates Robert Benavente and Trini Torres, represented by attorney Thomas Fisher, filed a petition in the Superior Court of Guam late yesterday afternoon, asking the court to void the election results and conduct a new Primary Election or allow all candidates in the Primary Election to move on to the Nov. 7 General Election.

Among other things, the petition claims that Democratic legislative candidates and Republican candidates were treated differently because Republicans were not required to participate in the primary and automatically advanced to the general election. The Republican primary was canceled because there were only 13 Republican candidates and the purpose of the primary was to cull the number of candidates to 15. Democrats fielded 21 legislative candidates, which means the six with the fewest votes will not advance to the general election.

The petition alleges several mistakes in the election process, including the use of ballots that allowed for the error of crossover voting, affecting at least 1,990 voters. "This error thus affected the races of the Primary Election, most noticeably the Democratic Legislature candidates contest," the petition states.

http://www.guampdn.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060912/NEWS01/609120303/1002

[rumpel]

NC: Voters will cast ballots in Starling/LaRoque race

Goldsboro News Argus

Voters in four eastern Wayne County precincts can go to the polls Tuesday to help decide who will be the Republican candidate for the District 10 seat in the state House of Representatives in November.

Polls will open at 6:30 a.m. and close at 7:30 p.m.

Wayne voters can cast ballots at Spring Creek, New Hope Friends Church, Dudley Fire Station and Indian Springs Fire Station. All Greene County polling places will be open and those Lenoir precincts included in the district.

The vote is a repeat of the May primary ordered by the state Board of Elections after voting problems in Lenoir disallowed the result that gave Willie Ray Starling a narrow victory over incumbent Rep. Stephen LaRoque.

Voters eligible to cast ballots Tuesday must be registered Republicans or unaffiliated voters who did not vote a Democratic ballot in May.

Early one-stop voting started two weeks ago.

http://www.newsargus.com/news/archives/2006/09/11/voters_will_cast_ballots_in_starlinglaroque_race/index.shtml

[rumpel]

15. NC: Voters will cast ballots in Starling/LaRoque race

Goldsboro News Argus

Voters in four eastern Wayne County precincts can go to the polls Tuesday to help decide who will be the Republican candidate for the District 10 seat in the state House of Representatives in November.

Polls will open at 6:30 a.m. and close at 7:30 p.m.

Wayne voters can cast ballots at Spring Creek, New Hope Friends Church, Dudley Fire Station and Indian Springs Fire Station. All Greene County polling places will be open and those Lenoir precincts included in the district.

The vote is a repeat of the May primary ordered by the state Board of Elections after voting problems in Lenoir disallowed the result that gave Willie Ray Starling a narrow victory over incumbent Rep. Stephen LaRoque.

Voters eligible to cast ballots Tuesday must be registered Republicans or unaffiliated voters who did not vote a Democratic ballot in May.

Early one-stop voting started two weeks ago.

http://www.newsargus.com/news/archives/2006/09/11/voters_will_cast_ballots_in_starlinglaroque_race/index.shtml

how did this dupe happen... grrr

[rumpel]

16. OH: Fixing the elections

Monday, September 11, 2006
A panel that investigated the myriad problems of the May primary elections in Cuyahoga County recommended hundreds of ways to fix the problems. What follows are a handful of the recommendations and the status of the improvements.

Recommendation: Form a temporary, high-quality team to clean up thousands of incomplete, duplicate and error-filled voter registration records.

Status: This will not happen before November. But the board will write a plan to make it happen.

Recommendation: Put a numbered seal over the modem access doors on voting machines to block tampering. If seals are disturbed, machines should be quarantined for an investigation.

Status: This will be done.

Recommendation: Put a numbered bar code on each of the thousands of the keys that the board has to open the touch-screen machines, then track who has each key.

Status: This will not happen by November. The board will look into doing it in the future.

Recommendation: Overhaul how poll workers are chosen and trained to make sure that people staffing election places are competent.

Status: The board last week appointed the well-regarded Jane Platten to oversee poll worker recruitment and training.

http://www.cleveland.com/election/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/isele/1157974256301730.xml&coll=2

[rumpel]

17. OH: How do you do a recount without a printout?

Some election printers left no backup data
Monday, September 11, 2006
Joan Mazzolini
Plain Dealer Reporter
Paper printouts in Cuyahoga County's election machines are supposed to be backup records if someone disputes vote tallies on the electronic memory cards.

But what happens in a recount if the printer malfunctions or - as happened last May - election workers load paper incorrectly, leaving machines without a paper record?

The Ohio secretary of state's office says the solution is to print out the vote tallies from the memory cards to create a new paper record.

Some election printers left no backup data
Monday, September 11, 2006
Joan Mazzolini
Plain Dealer Reporter
Paper printouts in Cuyahoga County's election machines are supposed to be backup records if someone disputes vote tallies on the electronic memory cards.

But what happens in a recount if the printer malfunctions or - as happened last May - election workers load paper incorrectly, leaving machines without a paper record?

The Ohio secretary of state's office says the solution is to print out the vote tallies from the memory cards to create a new paper record.

http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/cuyahoga/1157963570205760.xml&coll=2

[rumpel]

18. GA: Push under way to move voting elsewhere

09/11/06

By CHARLOTTE PERKINS

Journal Staff Writer

If you’ve gone into one of Houston County’s public schools in recent years, you know that you can’t just walk right down the hall. You’ve got to stop at the principal’s office and explain your business, and you probably won’t be turned loose to wander through the building after that.

Even a newspaper reporter stopping by gets a quick security check.

“It’s not that I don’t trust you. I just need to check this out.”

The principal calls the central office.

It makes sense. The people in the front office want control over who’s coming in the building and why.

There’s just one day that they don’t have that control, and that’s election day if a school is a designated polling place.

Voters, while they must identify themselves before voting, don’t get stopped at the front door, and in some schools, they have to walk through the building’s main halls and central meeting areas to get to a gymnasium where gym classes won’t be held for the day.

http://news.mywebpal.com/partners/963/public/news746301.html

[rumpel]

19. IL: Trial begins in Secretary of State corruption case

HOI (abc) News Online

By Ian Schwartz
Posted: Monday, September 11, 2006 at 5:54 PM

PEORIA -- Republican candidate for Secretary of State Dan Rutherford blasted the Secretary of State Jesse White’s administration Monday for hiring a corrupt employee.

Former Secretary of State Agency Director Cecil Turner was in court Monday for corruption charges involving a six-year-old payroll scam.

Turner is a convicted felon and Rutherford said this current trial is happening because White's administration was asleep at the wheel.

Rutherford went on to say this all could have been avoided, but in 2000, White did not allow internal corruption investigations of his cabinet.

http://www.hoinews.com/news/news_story.aspx?id=16775

[rumpel]

RI: The Herald's guide to the 2006 primaries

The Brown Daily Herald

Issue date: 9/11/06 Section: Metro

Students who are 18 years of age and have been registered to vote in Rhode Island for at least 30 days are eligible to vote in tomorrow's primary elections. Registered Democrats and Republicans are eligible to vote only in the primary for their party. Unaffiliated voters can vote in either primary and retain their independent status by signing a disaffiliation form after they vote. The state has 365,658 independent voters, 236,665 Democrats and 68,874 Republicans, according to the secretary of state's office. About 1,000 Brown students are registered to vote - not including those who choose to register at off-campus addresses other than their University addresses at 75 Waterman St. There are no primaries this fall for governor, general treasurer and attorney general.

U.S. Senate Democratic Primary

Carl Sheeler
Carl Sheeler, a veteran of the U.S. Marines and father of five, has centered his campaign on strong opposition to the war in Iraq and those who support it. Though his anti-war message has resonated with many Rhode Islanders, Sheeler has had difficulty competing with Whitehouse's widespread media campaign.

Sheeler, who identifies himself as an "outspoken, 1970s-style Democrat" and is a former Republican, first drew attention with his call for President George W. Bush's impeachment on Feb. 1.

"If we as men and women are expected to obey the law of our land (so should our president)," Sheeler said.

Sheeler said the United States should pull out of Iraq as soon as possible.

http://www.browndailyherald.com/media/storage/paper472/news/2006/09/11/Metro/The-Heralds.Guide.To.The.2006.Primaries-2265372.shtml?norewrite200609120339&sourcedomain=www.browndailyherald.com

[rumpel]

20. RI: The Herald's guide to the 2006 primaries

The Brown Daily Herald

Issue date: 9/11/06 Section: Metro

Students who are 18 years of age and have been registered to vote in Rhode Island for at least 30 days are eligible to vote in tomorrow's primary elections. Registered Democrats and Republicans are eligible to vote only in the primary for their party. Unaffiliated voters can vote in either primary and retain their independent status by signing a disaffiliation form after they vote. The state has 365,658 independent voters, 236,665 Democrats and 68,874 Republicans, according to the secretary of state's office. About 1,000 Brown students are registered to vote - not including those who choose to register at off-campus addresses other than their University addresses at 75 Waterman St. There are no primaries this fall for governor, general treasurer and attorney general.

U.S. Senate Democratic Primary

Carl Sheeler
Carl Sheeler, a veteran of the U.S. Marines and father of five, has centered his campaign on strong opposition to the war in Iraq and those who support it. Though his anti-war message has resonated with many Rhode Islanders, Sheeler has had difficulty competing with Whitehouse's widespread media campaign.

Sheeler, who identifies himself as an "outspoken, 1970s-style Democrat" and is a former Republican, first drew attention with his call for President George W. Bush's impeachment on Feb. 1.

"If we as men and women are expected to obey the law of our land (so should our president)," Sheeler said.

Sheeler said the United States should pull out of Iraq as soon as possible.

http://www.browndailyherald.com/media/storage/paper472/news/2006/09/11/Metro/The-Heralds.Guide.To.The.2006.Primaries-2265372.shtml?norewrite200609120339&sourcedomain=www.browndailyherald.com

another one - browser acting up :shrug:

[rumpel]

21. SeattlePI: Even Bushes afraid of Katherine Harris

Tuesday, September 12, 2006

By MARGARET CARLSON
GUEST COLUMNIST

Hold the chads. There's no need for a recount.

Rep. Katherine Harris, last seen presiding over the vote recount as Florida's secretary of state in 2000, captured the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate last week over two little-known challengers.

No one is unhappier about that victory than Harris' former best friends in the Bush family and the Republican Party who tried their best to push her out of the race.

It's likely that Harris will take a big shellacking in November, letting the Democrats keep the seat of first-term Sen. Bill Nelson.

While Harris was a lifesaver for the Republicans in 2000, she's a lightning rod now, not to mention "erratic" and "emotional" -- synonyms for bonkers, which is how her former staff describes her on the record. "Tantrums. Minor things cause her to blow," Glenn Hodas said to the Miami Herald after he quit her campaign. "She doesn't take advice. Micromanaging to the nth degree."

That description is a long way from adjectives like brainy, glamorous and impartial thrown around six years ago by Republican leaders when Harris figured in the making of the president. In the state where the 2000 presidential race would be decided, Republicans had the top state election official, who also had been chairwoman of the presidential campaign, and who owed her job to Gov. Jeb Bush. Has there ever been a more perfect political storm?

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/284685_carlson12.html

[freedomfries]

22. K & R

[Kurovski]

25. LOL!

Sweet.

[Melissa G]

23. Thank you, Rumpel for the help! and thanks for the K&Rs to all

my good friends who keep an eye on these threads!:toast:

[Algorem]

24. OH- Carole King stumping for Sherrod Brown

<"Give Sherrod Brown your vote," she urged. "And, please God, may it count.">

http://www.springfieldnewssun.com/n/content/oh/story/news/local/2006/09/11/sns091206caroleking.html

Senate candidate Sherrod Brown has got a friend. Her name is Carole King...

A resident of rural Idaho for the past 20 years, King touched on such topics as health insurance, and spoke out against mega-farms.

King, 64, was slated to make four days worth of stops across rural Ohio on behalf of Brown, who was not in attendance Monday...



Hughes for America
Hope and determination in Ohio

http://americaabroad.tpmcafe.com/blog/joseph_hughes/2006/sep/11/hope_and_determination_in_ohio

By Joseph Hughes | bio

This past Saturday, Casey and I had the pleasure and privilege of attending the opening of our local Ohio Democratic Party office. While the featured speaker for the event was Ohio's next U.S. Senator, Sherrod Brown, it was also an afternoon of excitement about the entire Ohio Democratic ticket. An afternoon of hope for the future. An afternoon of optimism about Democratic chances to both take back Congress and turn Ohio blue. And it was an afternoon of determination, not only to picture a better tomorrow, but also to work harder - and smarter - than ever to do something about it.

From the moment we approached the Cleveland Heights office on a beautiful Saturday afternoon, we knew it was going to be a big day. Parking was scarce, as the lot for the building was completely full. Plus, you couldn't miss the office, as signs for every conceivable Ohio Democratic candidate festooned the exterior (and, of course, the interior). As we signed in, Casey and I immediately ventured to the back of the building, where we were excited to see a room jam-packed with fellow Democrats. I'm not talking 10 or 15 like-minded individuals. I'm talking nearly 100 - in a room more suited for half that. And that was long before the official program began. We were inspired already.

Lining the walls - other than the appropriate signs and decorations - were sign-up sheets. Canvassing. Phone banking. The crucial GOTV legwork that will no doubt drive the Democratic push this fall. But unlike my similar office visits prior to the 2004 election, I noticed an office abuzz with action. The sheets filled up fast. Casey and I signed up for a massive, statewide phone banking set for early October. Contrast that with the fall of 2004, when I signed up at my local office to volunteer, but was never called. When I attended Camp Wellstone in Cleveland earlier this year, one of our instructors asked the group if we had volunteered in 2004. Every hand shot up. She then asked if we had had a positive experience trying to volunteer. Far fewer hands rose. Saturday was different. It looks like two years has made a world of difference.

Something else stood out from Saturday's event, something that was readily apparent the moment we entered the crowded meeting room. The Republican Party can lie all they want about their so-called "big tent", but when you want to talk about diversity, you're going to be talking about the Democratic Party. Saturday, I saw individuals of all ethnicities. Of all economic backgrounds. Of all ages. Of all constituencies. College Democrats were there. Nurses were there. Veterans were there. A teacher brought some of her students there. Current candidates joined former candidates. You name it, they were there. Men and women, gathered together, talking about change and working to actually be the change. Contrast this with a regional Republican National Committee meeting I walked through last year. Then, I didn't spot any African Americans or other minorities - only white men and very few women - until I had passed the room and caught a lone African American man entering a meeting room. He was a server, arriving with a tray of food. To say the least, that's not our party. It sure wasn't Saturday...