Election Shenanigans and Theft

It probably will not be a huge surprise to many people that on November 4th many people will be turned away at the polls because of voter registration errors. Every election there is a story of corruption in the voting process where people are either waiting in line for hours to vote, ballot boxes magically disappear, or people are told you name is not on the registration list. Outrage ensues from one political party or the other based on demographics and which way any one area tends to vote favorably.

In a perfect world all votes would be counted but there is always someone, or some political faction trying to swing the vote count in one candidate or the others favor. Nothing enrages true political junkies more than seeing an election hijacked by underhanded shenanigans. Needless to say, there is always going to be someone that will try and steal votes away from the people based on their own personal ideology and desire to have their candidate win the election. The more votes stolen, the better is their thought process when committing this despicable act. Over at the New York Times they have this to say on 8,000 votes nearly stolen…

Sorry, I Can’t Find Your Name

Before Mississippi’s March presidential primary, one county election official improperly removed more than 8,000 voters from the eligible-voter rolls, including a Republican Congressional candidate. Fortunately, the secretary of state’s office learned of the purge in time and restored the voters.

It’s disturbing that a single official (who acted after mailings to voters were returned) could come so close to disenfranchising thousands of voters. But voting rolls, which are maintained by local election officials, are one of the weakest links in American democracy and problems are growing.

Snip (from voting list)

For this election, voters need to be prepared to fight for their right to cast a ballot. They should try to confirm before Nov. 4 that they are on the rolls — something that in many states can be done on a secretary of state or board of elections Web site. If their state permits it, they should vote early. Any voter who finds that their name has disappeared from the rolls will then have time to challenge mistakes.

If voters find on Election Day that their names are not on the rolls, they should contact a voters’ rights group like Election Protection, at 1-866-OUR-VOTE, or a political campaign, which can advocate for them. They should not, except as a last resort, cast a provisional ballot, since it is less likely to be counted. - New York Times


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Take the time to make sure your vote will count and make sure your registration is still valid or has in fact been added to the rolls of eligible voters. Don’t think for a minute that vote theft can not happen in your happy go lucky part of the world and that this sort of crime does not happen in your city or town. Now more than ever it is very important to make sure that your vote is cast and counted on November 4th.

Papamoka

Who or What is Acorn?

If you happen to be a political junkie like me you had your last Presidential debate fix for 2008. It was an interesting debate where it was nice to see that they let the animated version of John McCain participate. I would just be guessing if I said the batteries in the Robot John McCain must have been still charging or that maybe the campaign had it repossessed for non-payment on facts?

One of the topics raised against Obama by McCain during the debate was ACORN, and how he was fearful for our democracy. I know what ACORN is but I’m pretty sure the average voter does not. McCain didn’t explain it either. Just another key word to throw at the wall of doubts painted with a nice hue of bovine defecation.

Over at MSNBC and Rachel Maddow she has this piece on it…

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It’s a little bit clearer who or what ACORN is other than radical terrorist squirrels. Now it is a little bit clearer to me why John McCain is going after ACORN, they register people to vote. Poor people, minimum wage people, people without a voice. That seems to be consistent with Republican strategy over the years to suppress the vote over the past decade or more.

If you really want to know who ACORN is then you can visit their website and become more informed. This is what the President of ACORN had to say about John McCain’s attack on her organization in its entirety. Click on the title below to go directly to the ACORN website…

ACORN Responds to Senator McCain’s Desperate Attack
October 15, 2008

Maude Hurd, ACORN’s National President, issued the following statement in response to Senator McCain’s attack:

"We appreciate that Senator McCain's effort to stir up the Republican base by attacking a community organization working to increase public participation in our democratic process. However, these attacks reflect an increasingly panicked candidate; unfortunately the Senator McCain we saw tonight is very different than the Senator McCain who stood shoulder to shoulder with ACORN at a February 20, 2006 immigration reform event

It is clear for us to see that John McCain was for ACORN before he was against ACORN; he was for reform before he was against reform; and he was a maverick before he became erratic. What is really going here is that Senator McCain and his allies are part of a coordinated effort to engage in what appears to be an unprecedented effort to suppress voter turnout. Repeating a lie doesn't make it true, and the McCain campaign has resorted to the worst type of deceptions in regards to ACORN."

The Facts:

ACORN has helped 1.3 million citizens from all parties and all walks of life apply for voter registration.

In most states, ACORN is required by law to turn in every voter registration card - even in cases where the cards are not valid.

It is ACORN that has reported almost all of the issues regarding voter registration cards.
Invalid voter registration cards do NOT constitute voter fraud. Even RNC General Counsel Sean Cairncross has recently acknowledged he is not aware of a single improper vote cast as a result of bad cards submitted in the course of an organized voter registration effort.

ACORN hired 13,000 field workers to register people to vote. In any endeavor of this size, some people will engaged in inappropriate conduct. ACORN has a zero tolerance policy and terminated any field workers caught engaging in questionable activity. At the end of the day, as ACORN is paying these people to register voters, it is ACORN that is defrauded.

ACORN’s Fight Back Thursday:

Tomorrow, at 11:00 am EST, ACORN will be convening a conference call unveiling a pointed critique to Senator McCain’s outlandish assertion that ACORN was responsible for the housing crisis:

Thursday, October 16th: ACORN Call on ACORN Critique of McCain on Housing/Financial Crisis:
Call in #: 800-247-5110, pass code 8388

I hope this clears up who, or what is ACORN for you. And yes it was ACORN that reported the questionable voter registrations to appropriate authorities in each state.

Papamoka

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Obama Really Wins Nevada

Popular vote aside, Obama won Nevada by one delegate to the Democrat convention. Popular vote aside, the message of Obama and hope lives on in Nevada. Hillary will get all the headlines but the truth of the matter is that the real decision of the voters is based on the delegates to the convention so Hillary Clinton’s win is not really a win. Somebody call Bill Clinton and tell him that he is about to get slapped upside the head again by the wife.

The Tsunami wave of Obama is coming to fruition all across America and it can not be stopped. His message is clear and his points are not about looking at the past but at the future of America and the outlying folks in Nevada voted for a new future in our nation. That future is full of hope and of brighter days to come that are not filled with isolationist ideology and war mongering. Out in suburbs of the big cities of Nevada they saw the difference and voted for change. Out in the suburbs is the key words there. Regular people, not millionaires, not people even making a hundred thousand dollars a year. Obama has the heart beat of the people at the bottom of the economy that always look to hope and that is someone running for President that believes that we can be saved from the plight that is corporate America’s intolerance of us. Nevada voted for hope and in that message Obama won Nevada at the convention with more delegates than Hillary Clinton.

Over at the Washington Post they have this breakdown of the Nevada election results…

Clinton and Romney Win in Nevada
By Chris Cillizza
washingtonpost.com staff writer

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton beat Sen. Barack Obama in the popular vote in the Nevada Democratic caucuses today, while former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney prevailed earlier in the Nevada Republican caucuses.

With 97 percent of the vote counted, Clinton led with 51 percent to 45 percent for Obama (Ill.). Former senator John Edwards trailed far behind with four percent. However, although Clinton captured the popular vote, Obama edged her out for delegates at stake, taking 13 to her 12, according to an Associated Presss analysis.

"I guess this is how the West was won," Clinton told cheering supporters in Las Vegas. The popular victory was her second straight, coming after an upset win in the New Hampshire primary.

The disparity between the raw vote total and the delegate apportionment is centered on the fact that Obama beat Clinton in the state's sparsely-populated northern reaches and more rural areas -- a statewide showing that left him with a narrow delegate victory if not a popular majority.

"We came from over 25 points behind to win more national convention delegates than Hillary Clinton because we performed well all across the state, including rural areas where Democrats have traditionally struggled," said Obama spokesman Bill Burton. -Washington Post

Some people wonder if America is ready for an African American President and I wonder if we are ready for another eight years of another Clinton disgrace series of real legislation subdued by controversy from the first Clinton Presidency revisited. When the Clinton’s claim in deceptive words to be the first African American President I shudder at the disgrace that they propose on African Amrican’s. As a white man I can not see through the eyes of any African American and I can not say that racism is dead in America because it is not. Racism is born out of misunderstanding and hate passed down from generation to generation. Even in New England where the bluest of blue states are it is ignorance rather than knowledge that prevails. If you were blind and listened to the messages of all of the candidates not knowing if one is Black or the other is a Woman you would see the true difference.

A good friend of mine is slowly going blind, my heart felt prayers are with him and his family every single night. I beg God above that he would have his vision back because he is not of the opinion that America should be divided racially but united simply as Americans. And yet in his heart and soul I know him as a friend that would give his vision and life if he could erase the ignorance that is race relations between all people that are the melting pot of America. His heart is genuine and his soul pure of thought.

I would give my own life to find hope in America and I am not living the life of any African American, and I am not going blind.

Vision is sometimes found in the heart and not your eyes. Hope is never in the form of a question, it is a matter of belief. That is the question you need to ask when you cast your vote in the primaries.

Papamoka

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