Drinking the ACORN Kool-Aid: How Cries of Voter Fraud Cover Up GOP Elections Theft
Virtually the entire mainstream electronic media drank ACORN Kool-Aid this month brewed up by the Republican National Committee. Almost no one seriously challenged John McCain's comical assertions that ACORN, a grassroots voter registration group, "is now on the verge of maybe perpetrating one of the greatest frauds in voter history in this country, maybe destroying the fabric of democracy."
While the Republicans had the distracted media searching for links between Obama and ACORN, RNC operatives were busily completing one of the most massive voter suppression and purging efforts in American history, stealing hundreds of thousands of Democratic votes across the embattled swing states and striving to arrange chaos and endless lines at the voting booths next week.
First the facts about ACORN. Months ago, we obtained, as part of our investigation for Rolling Stone magazine, the Republican's list the GOP alleged were the very worst cases of vote and registration fraud by ACORN and similar groups. We went through the names the GOP asserted were "obviously, undeniably and clearly fraudulent" voter registrations.
First, there was Melissa Tais, a dubious ACORN registrant. Her two voter registration forms show, admittedly, suspiciously different signatures. Republicans suggested Melissa was part of a massive fraud to allow Democrats to vote twice.
They were wrong. Ms. Tais, a Cerrillos, New Mexico, waitress, told us she had signed one form on a table and one form holding the paper in her hand. Hence, a second, wobbly signature.
Then there was Patricia White, who Republicans claimed was a fictitious voter. When we filmed her at home in Albuquerque, she seemed real enough.
And so on, through the entire GOP list -- not one fraud. And these were their best cases out of the five million "illegal voters" who Republican leaders claim have infiltrated America's voting rolls.
The overblown histrionics about ACORN do not surprise those of us who have been watching the RNC's election manipulation antics. For eight years White House operatives have been trying to gin up press stories about voter fraud. David Iglesias of New Mexico was one of seven U.S. Attorneys fired by the White House for their refusal to bring voter fraud prosecutions. "We took over 100 complaints," from the GOP, he told us, "We investigated for almost 2 years, I didn't find one prosecutable voter fraud case in the entire state of New Mexico."
Iglesias, a McCain supporter, has, for the first time, leveled a new and serious charge: Despite finding none of the 200 voters guilty, he says the White House nevertheless ordered him to illegally prosecute baseless cases against innocent citizens, just to gin up voter fraud publicity. His refusal, he says, cost him his job. "They were looking for politicized -- for improperly politicized US attorneys to file bogus voter fraud cases."
Certainly ACORN collected some bad signatures. But despite McCain's claims, now morphed into media theology, none of ACORN's actions will have any impact on any election. ACORN hired 13,000 canvassers to register new voters. A small number of these workers defrauded ACORN by handing in phony registration forms using names they had invented (e.g. Mickey Mouse), or copied from phone books. In one case ACORN canvassers used cigarettes to bribe a homeless man, now a Fox News regular, to register 17 times. None of these activities constituted voter fraud. It is no crime to register 17 times; only the final registration counts. His multiple registrations would not allow the tobacco lover to vote 17 times. Nor is there any evidence the phone book registrants will cast multiple ballots.
Finally, the removal by GOP officials of hundreds of thousands of legitimate voters from voting rolls over the past year provides ACORN with a sound rationale for obtaining new registrations, even from voters who believe they are already registered.
ACORN took pains to screen its registrations and cull out those it considered dubious. However, federal laws make it a felony for voter registration groups like ACORN to discard registrations even when it believes them fraudulent. So ACORN flagged the forms it considered doubtful and handed them in to the registry. Ironically, it was those flagged forms -- the fruits of ACORN's diligence -- that have been flogged by Republicans as their best evidence of widespread election fraud.
Voter fraud is a phantom according to Lorraine Minnite, an expert on voting crime at Columbia University. Only 24 cases of federal voter fraud have been uncovered between 2002 and 2005 despite massive government efforts devoted to uncovering evidence of a voter fraud crime wave.
The GOP is ginning up hysteria about non-existent vote fraud by Democrats in order to distract the press from its own campaign to disenfranchise millions of American voters.
The Republicans have created an obstacle course of barriers designed to suppress the vote, purge tens of thousands of Democratic voters from voting rolls, create mayhem and delay at voting venues on Election Day, and stop millions of votes from being counted this election cycle.
Jailed GOP activist Jack Abramoff and his fellow convict, Congressman Bob Ney, wrote the most sinister provisions of the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) which Congress passed in 2002 creating a series of diabolically cunning new voting impediments. HAVA, for example, allows state voting officials to purge tens of thousands of voters from the polls using algorithms and voter ID requirements that disproportionately disenfranchise black, Hispanic and minority voters, and other Democratic demographics including senior citizens and young people.
In 2004, highly organized GOP tacticians helped disenfranchise no less than 2.7 million American voters. Almost a million of them were African Americans. The The Federal Elections Commission has found black voters were nine times more likely to have their votes discarded than white voters and that over one-third of the million provisional ballots cast in 2004 -- ballots handed disproportionately to African Americans -- were never counted but simply thrown into dumpsters.
In a technique known as "caging" RNC operatives send millions of first class letters to black voters across the country marked 'do not forward.' Republican operatives armed with lists then invade black precincts on Election Day to challenge those voters whose letters were returned to the RNC because the voter was not home when the mail arrived. That tactic deliberately targeted black students on vacation in August, homeless men and soldiers posted overseas. "Caging" is resurrecting Old Dixie's Jim Crow procedures designed to rid the lists of black voters and create long lines in black precincts.
In this election, new HAVA mandates permit voting officials to precisely match registration form information with the voter's driver's license and other government records. While it may sound reasonable, in practice, any change, even a dropped hyphen, is cause for eliminating the voter from the rolls. Since 2004, Colorado's Republican Secretaries of State have purged one out of every five voters from the rolls. The current Secretary of State, Mike Coffman, a Republican also running for office, recently purged an additional 37,000 voters and discarded 6,400 new voter registrations -- overwhelmingly Democratic -- based upon an obscure technical mistake that Coffman's office encouraged voters to make in the first place.
The GOP "anti-fraud" campaign resulted in one in nine New Mexico Democratic voters finding their names had disappeared from voter roles during this year's caucus.
Despite a recent Supreme Court decision upholding Ohio's refusal to disenfranchise 200,000 legitimate voters based on this absurd demand to "match" voter names to databases, White House operatives are still fighting to purge these names from the rolls. President George Bush last week personally asked his Attorney General Mike Mukasey to renew Republican efforts to disenfranchise these voters.
Contrary to Mr. McCain's assertions, the real threat to democracy is from the GOP itself. ACORN has served as a good distraction from Republican efforts to steal the vote from hundreds of thousands of legitimate voters, a genuine threat that has received almost no media attention.
They're stealing your vote, but you can steal it back. Here are some steps you should take to protect your vote. First, avoid the November 4th minefield. Voters, wherever possible, should vote early and in person. Where feasible, avoid mailing in your ballot, many are rejected for flimsy reasons, and first time voters in many states must include a photocopy of ID. However, if you have a mail-in ballot, don't throw it away. Follow directions, use the correct postage (that's an error that cost a hundred thousand votes last time) and, if possible, walk it in to your elections office.
At the polling station, should you find yourself one of the 2.7 million purged, or your ID rejected, then do your best to resist a "provisional" ballot--one third of which are not counted. Return with proper ID, or call 1-866-OUR VOTE for legal assistance. And never just walk away discouraged. That's just what they want you to do.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Greg Palast are authors of an investigation of vote suppression in the current Rolling Stone, and a comic book voter guide, "Steal Back Your Vote," both available for download at StealBackYourVote.org.
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Wow! So much outrage against the repubs' dirty tactics that clearly and overwhelmingly disenfranchises dem voters. I agree, we should be outraged. However, what about the outrage against the dems that have sat on their hands all this time? One would think that there would have been subpoenas, indictments, and trials. Instead it is just now that all this voter suppression is getting their attention. Ask yourselves why so late, and then give me the real answer 'cuz I cannot explain it.
Free but oh so valuable advice: Round up these disenfranchised voters, call both the US and international media, and all march, accompanied by dem officials AND attorneys, to the polls. Pity the repub fool that tries to deny a legitimate voter his/her right to vote! This must be done NOW!
It is not "just now." In case you haven't researched the 2004 Ohio problems, there were several actions for which Federal courts found Kenneth Blackwell, then Ohio Secretary of State AND concurrently Bush's campaign co-chair (how's that for a recipe for disaster?) guilty of illegal acts. Read Kennedy's earlier Rolling Stone article about this fraud at:
http://www
The problem is that when you have Republican state election officials, there is really little that can be done because by the time the courts have deemed their actions illegal, the election is over. We need bi-partisan, balanced election commissions in each state so that these abuses stop. Notice, too, that there are few instances in which these voter suppression activities negatively impact Republicans. This is one reason the entire party is anathema to me. They cry foul about voter registration fraud, which very rarely translates into VOTING fraud, but purge rolls, intimidate voters, and place too few voting booths in heavily Democratic precincts to make voting as difficult as they can for the other party.
I've just forwarded the phone number provided for disenfrachised voters to my friends. I hope they pass the information on. Forewarned is Forearmed. I hate to see the GOP get away with this again.
I'm a Rolling Stone subscriber and I was immediately struck when I read the Kennedy-Palast piece last week. Their reportage is no doubt honest, but I got into a serious funk to be reminded about the 2000 and 2004 races and the way the Republicans 'Won' them. My 19-year-old son is voting for the first time and is an avid Obama fan. When I read the piece I wondered how I'd explain it to him if McCain 'eked out' a "Victory!" I dreaded the thought of James being in tears or wanting to go out and smash something because of the wrong that had just happened. I truly hope I have to experience none of that, and that Barack Obama can prevail and move quietly into the White House in January.
When Kennedy assured us that "The Fix is In" we should all resolve to get our elections 'Returned to the People' where they belong! Not on TV!! Not in the 'Private Sector!' The Federal Government MUST Wrestle the Election Process AWAY from the "ENTERTAINMENT" Business!!
Brick
+1 for second paragraph
The real fraud is these election machines. Notice that they are conveniently put in the battleground states. They will make sure that McCain takes Florida and probably Pennsylvania unless Obama gets an overwhelming majority to turn out for him. Mark my words, Florida and Pennsylvania will go to McCain. When it happens, remember the machines.
It isn't who votes that matters, it is who COUNTS the votes that matters. - Joseph Stalin
OMG, I am just freakin. This is our worst nightmare. We all need to go to the polls to aid those who are being turned away.
McCain must have forgotten that the greatest voter fraud ever perpetrated upon the US of A was in 2000 when the supreme court of the United States selected Bush president. Then voter fraud was again perpetrated in 2004 when the Ohio Sec of State fixed the Ohio election and Kerry, a fellow Skull and Bonesman to GWBush, GHWBush and Prescott Bush didn't press the issue.
Girl, can you provide links to proof of fraud? I have found lots of allegations about fraud from both parties, but little proof. Thx!
Read a newspaper. If you don't know that the SCOTUS effectively selected Bush in 2000 by stopping Florida's recount, that's your issue. I shouldn't have to say "Google it."
http://vid
Republicans in Ohio are now trying to suppress Democratic
To get a perspective on voter fraud click on the link below. It is a video featuring Clint Curtis, a computer programmer who testified before Congress in 2004 on how he created a program to "flip votes" in the voting machines for a Republican lobbyist. He also describes how this type of program could explain the great differences between the exit poles and the voting results in Ohio in the 2004 election. It is a chilling clip and warning to all concerned about having their votes count. To view it, go to:
http://vid
Don you are right. All legal votes should count. The question is how do we fix our current corruption? Both sides seem to like the current system; in a close race it gives each side an excuse to cry FRAUD. My solution this cycle is to encourage everyone I know to vote out all incumbents. The D.C. crowd needs to learn that serving as an elected representative is a privilige, not a long term career. If we can get enough newbies in, the next step would be term limits for congress. Say two senate terms and four to six congressional terms. Career politicians have proven to be bad for this country.
Democracy Now, Amy Goodman did an interview this week with someone, can't remember his name re. the same voter fraud in Ohio and I think Florid. There's also a book, DVD included with proof of Republican voter fraud.
washington
Mark Jacoby, another GOP was arrested approx. 2 weeks ago in LA for voter registration fraud by getting Californians to sign what they thought was a petition for stricter sentences for child molesters, instead they unwittingly changed their party preference to Republican which they reported to the State and City Officials. Other States are now investigating him.
Those are just a few examples of Republicans' treasonous, illegal, undemocratic criminal acts against Americans. Wake up Republicans, your party is not about country first, but about winning no matter what.
This piece of investigative journalism should be available everywhere, and read by everyone.
Suppose the miscreants that failed to hoodwink ACORN were GOP operatives?
I am very concerned about this very serious problem.
My hope rests on two things;
- The capable hands of Senator Obama’s campaign legion of attorneys and
- The legion of voters committed to install Senator Obama as President of the United States of America.
On November 4th vote for Senator Obama.
Let’s rid American politics of GOP miscreants.
Obama/Biden ‘08’
No. That's not it.
DON'T WAIT UNTIL THE 4TH!!!!
DO.NOT.WAI
IF YOU HAVE EARLY VOTING:
VOTE.NOW.
VOTE.NOW
VOTE.NOW.
I think we should have trained Obama volunteers standby the voting lines to help answer some of the voter questions and make sure voters are doing it right.
I think we should have trained McCain volunteers standby the voting line to help answer some of the voter questions and make sure voters are doing in right.
Coming from Western Europe, this whole talk about "registration drives", "disenfranchisement of voters", fake or non fake forms, charges and counter-charges, seems crazy in the 21st century.
1. If a voter is capable or cares enough to make it to the polling station to vote, he/she certainly must be capable enough to fill in and mail a simple registration form himself or go fill it out at an official site with officials helping him/her to do it.
2. Any organization that wants to promote voter registration should use the money/resources to advertise or distribute information on how to register, where to register, where to vote, or clear any misunderstandings regarding what things may or may not disqualify you from voting.
3. Make a national registry, that prohibits the possibility of non-existent voters, voting in multiply states , verification of current residency against income tax returns, driver licenses etc. Of course it should all be protected by some federal privacy act that prohibits any other federal or state agencies from using the information on anything other than voting issues.
4. they should be (by federal law) enough polling stations in any area or town , enough to guarantee easy access and a speedy process on election day. No 3 hour lines, 3 hour drives, confusion etc
And if I may add, make voting a more unified nation-wide 3 or 4 day (eg Saturday-Tuesday ) process instead of a hodge-podge of time frames..
You're right about all of that, friend! Trouble is, no matter how "legal" and practical a system sounds, when bona fide American Lawyers are tasked with making a mockery of it all by contriving ways around it, ANY system can be manipulated! ANY System! A traditional American Trait in American Governance has always been TRUST! That is, until the Republicans realized that they couldn't maintain control without winning elections, and they couldn't WIN Elections unless they Cheated!! This much is abundantly clear!
Citizens shouldn't have to Expect 'gotcha' catches in Election Forms. I believe that this mentality is their mindset when they walk into the Voting Booth. And when they walk out and find out that their vote 'might not' have counted, they also find out they can't 'Un-do' it!
Yes, we need Nation Wide Uniformity in all Our election matters! And maybe after another Republican Theft we can finally get one!
Brick
It seems to me that looking into ACORN & Baracks involvement with it might be an appropriate action.
after all, we don't want to elect someone who is involved in bad stuff.
OMNISCIENT1
Obama has no connection with ACORN other than representing them in a lawsuit against the State of Illinois with the DOJ coming on board as co-plaintiff to defend the motor voter law passed by the Federal Government which Illinois refused to obey. For his work on that case, which he won, he was name Legal Eagle of the Year in 1995, I think it was.
He never worked for them, nor did he do volunteer work for them. He did not contribute monies to them, but to a charitable organizaton which in turn donated money to ACORN.
You're and others like you are grasping at straws to excuse and condone the criminal activities of the Republicans Party. ENOUGH ALREADY!!!! CHEATING IS CHEATING!!!
Outrageous!!
My question is, why is Iglesias voting for McCain?
Your question should read: "Why is Iglesias still a Republican?"
Why is it that no one has questioned if some of the volunteers were not really volunteering for the Republican party to smear ACORN plus Obama, of course?
I have been wondering this myself. If anyone raised the question, it hasn't been reported anywhere I've seen. It was a favorite dirty trick during the Nixon campaign-using plants to infiltrate their opponents's campaign to wreak all kinds of havoc. And since some of the names were so absurd as to be obviously bogus, it almost seems that it had to be deliberately intended to be found out.
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