Why Count the Vote 2004

The various recount and other efforts underway, the efforts that might be mounted, and the calls for investigations into voting irregularities, don't need much justification. If fraud and suppression happened, and we have no doubt the GOPers engaged in both, these crimes against democracy must be exposed. That doesn't guarantee it won't happen again, but unless these efforts and techniques are exposed, they most certainly will be used again, starting with the next election.

But what about this 2004 election? Some argue that the votes that might be recovered won't be enough to change the outcome. But the above argument then pertains: do it for next time, show that people are serious about this.

Others argue that even if there are just enough votes to give Kerry a narrow electoral vote victory, Bush's popular vote majority would cripple a Kerry presidency so badly that it wouldn't be worth it to win.

But Bush's own 2000 selection as President belies that argument, even if you eliminate from consideration the 9-11 moment that transformed his presidency.

Suppose by some improbable series of events, enough votes appeared in Ohio to give Kerry a narrow electoral college victory before the election of Bush becomes official. Suppose nothing else changes, and President Kerry was inaugurated with both houses of Congress firmly GOPer, and Bush retaining a smaller popular vote plurality.

Of course there would be contention, and Kerry would face a hostile Congress and a divided electorate. But he would have one overwhelming advantage. He would be President of the United States. Congress would have to react to him. It would be up to Kerry to realistically push for the most important legislation, and to introduce and fight for legislation that at least would provoke a public political debate, even if it had little chance of being passed by this Congress. Another House and a third of the Senate is elected in two years.

Kerry would find the sources of his power in how he handled the presidency. Our European allies would embrace him and lend their support in the world, so he could reach out to countries in the Middle East. He would use his personal diplomatic knowledge and skills, with the power of the presidency supporting him, to change the calculus for Iraq and our other pressing international problems. With his support of science and technology and understanding of their economic role, he would change the international economic relationship of the U.S.

Kerry would appoint a new cabinet, which in itself would change government and its relationship to corporate special interests. Once Bobby Kennedy Jr. at EPA starts making headlines, the media and the political opposition will have to deal with those issues openly, with their feet kept firmly in the fire by the bloggers and hopefully by environmental organizations that have learned they can’t go to sleep when a Democrat is in office.

And even a politically handicapped President Kerry would be the one appointing Supreme Court justices. The fights would be ugly, and the best candidates might not get in, but neither would the kind of justices and judges we're apt to get from Bush in the next four years.

So we don't buy that the presidency isn't worth winning in this unusual way. It worked for Bush. The Rabid Right would probably be more ferocious and certainly more underhanded in its frenzy to cripple the Kerry presidency, than the opposition to Bush was, but it would still be worth it. It was always a reason that Kerry was the right candidate. He's taken fire before. He can handle it.

Then Kerry would have what we believe gave Bush his principal advantage: four years to make his case, and the power of incumbency in a time of danger. Kerry had a few months, maybe a few weeks of the national attention, which is not very thorough in the short run. And even so, Kerry was gaining in the last months, the last weeks, days and hours. That's one reason repeating the same message over and over works. Apart from giving the groupfeel faithful their talking points, it's a substitute for thought and careful attention for overburdened people trying to limit the time they devote to politics to scanning headlines. Once the electorate got to know President Kerry, and saw what he is about, they could render a better informed verdict in 2008.

We played by the rules in 2000, even if the GOPers cheated in Florida and manipulated the rules with unfair and borderline legal maneuvers in the courts, including the Supreme Court decision making Bush president rendered by Republican partisans with conflicts of interest up the wazoo.

Well, if enough votes exist in Ohio and/or elsewhere exist to make Kerry President, we say do it--- end the immoral war in Iraq as gracefully as possible, prevent the immoral war against Iran now being planned, get America respected in the world again, get a meaningful debate started on a new alternative energy industrial revolution, on global heating, on health care. Things that aren't going to happen with GW in the White House.

Count the Vote 2004

John Kerry' strongly worded support yesterday for efforts to count the votes in the 2004 election may have lacked specifics on what he and his lawyers are going to do, but he's one of the principals involved, so it means something.

This also means something: a statement by the most prestiguous and eldest nonpartisan organization associated with the U.S. electoral process, the League of Women Voters:

"The League of Women Voters is deeply concerned about voting irregularities in the 2004 election. The appropriate officials must fully investigate these concerns through open and public processes. Election officials should look into problems quickly and thoroughly and fix what proves to be wrong. Transparency and a willingness to look into potential problems will strengthen voter confidence and ultimately improve our electoral system.
"It is important to ensure that every properly cast ballot is counted and to make improvements for future elections. Attention must be given to inadequate polling place procedures, problematic voting machines, voter registration system failures, casting and counting of provisional ballots, and absentee voting issues. "

Suppress the Vote 2004

Ohio is turning out to be the Florida of 2004, or it would be, except that Florida is also the Florida of 2004. There are all kinds of irregularities at issue in both states as well as other states. In Ohio, it's wrongly counted or uncounted or wrongly discarded punch-card ballots, e-ballot chicanery, provisional ballots, and the list goes on. It includes suppression of votes by various means, many of which are detailed in testimony just taken in Ohio. These are the accounts of real voters describing what they experienced.

The Free Press -- Independent News Media - Campaign 2004

And let us give our own welcome to the blogosphere to our Canadian cousin Lemmuel, and his new blog:

let me be perfectly clear

Thanks to Skippy the Bush Kangaroo for saying hello to us on his prestiguous blog, which also has a lovely anecdote about the Bush twins in New York City:

skippy the bush kangaroo

The Kerry Message

Today John Kerry issued an email and video statement with three strong messages: first, count the votes in this election (indicating that until this is done, the outcome is still not known); second, stay strong and united in the fight against Bush conservative takeover and in support of values; third, on the first day of the next session of Congress, Senator John Kerry will introduce legislation to guarantee health care for all American children. He asks that the people become the cosponsors of this bill, and attaches a petition that will be part of the bill. The link to sign it is:
Protect Every Child

The timing is apt. Just as a trial balloon floats around indicating the Bushies plans to eliminate business deductions for employee health insurance, potentially more devastating than a huge new tax on working people, Kerry has chosen expanding health care as his issue. Though we at American Dash will not benefit directly, and we are among those millions of Americans who lost health insurance on Bush's watch, we fully support this effort, and have already signed up.

Just as heartening is the call to make certain that an honest vote is once again the most sacred element in the American political canon.

"Regardless of the outcome of this election, once all the votes are counted -- and they will be counted -- we will continue to challenge this administration. This is not a time for Democrats to retreat and accommodate extremists on critical principles -- it is a time to stand firm.

'I will fight for a national standard for federal elections that has both transparency and accountability in our voting system. It's unacceptable in the United States that people still don't have full confidence in the integrity of the voting process. I ask you to join me in this cause.'

'And we must fight not only against George Bush's extreme policies -- we must also uphold our own values. This is why on the first day Congress is in session next year, I will introduce a bill to provide every child in America with health insurance. And, with your help, that legislation will be accompanied by the support of hundreds of thousands of Americans."

Jeb's Job

Gee, you think Jeb got a little rattled when he needed the help of daddy's Supreme Court Justices to deliver his state to his little brother last time? This time, evidence mounts that its more than crayfish smelling up the state of Florida. A Berkeley team says electronic voting discrepancies, all oddly favoring Bush, were very likely intentional. (That is, the chance they are accidental is less than 0.1%) They've called for investigation. I say, call for a damn recount.

Here's the skinny:

Berkeley Media Relations

Governator For Hire

Just as the "Amend for Arnold" movement gets started, to amend the U.S. Constitution so Arnold and other foreign-borns can become President, the San Francisco Chronicle reveals that the Governator, elected as Not a Politician who would sweep away special interest influence (accusing Gray Davis of paying more attention to raising money than to governing) , has been milking those interests for big bucks for his campaign war chest, while bravely supporting everything they want. It's a pretty damning set of opening paragraphs:

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, after campaigning as a reformer who would cast special interests out of the Capitol, smashed every fund-raising record in his first year in office with a $26.6 million haul that doubled the amount raised by former Gov. Gray Davis in his first year.

The vast majority of the money came from special interests deeply vested in the outcome of legislative and regulatory decisions in Sacramento, including financial companies, auto dealers and manufacturers and health care concerns. In some cases, the governor, who took office a year ago today, has taken positions that benefited his contributors.

For much of the year, Schwarzenegger used a legal loophole to raise sums greater than a state law's $21,200 limit. And in recent weeks, as a deadline approached to close that loophole, Schwarzenegger stepped up his acceptance of those donations, raking in individual contributions as high as $500,000. "

Here's the full story, by Christian Berthelsen:
Governor sets money-raising record / $26.6 million in his first year -- most of it from special interests

The Moral Hypocracy Continued

Thanks to the Blessed Bush's re-kinging, the Right Wing Reverend Tom DeLay enthused, "We're going to be able to lead this country in the direction we've been dreaming of for years. We're going to put God back in the public square."

Well, hallelujah. But on his way to the public square, God might want to stop at Congress and do a little smiting. Seems the House Republicans have hastily revised their rules so that their Leader can still serve even if he or she has been indicted for a crime (although, come on now, we are talking about a very specific he). Like for instance, numerous violations of several laws in connection with redistricting a swath of Texas to make sure that the GOPers held on to their majority in the 04 alleged elections, engineered by House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, for which indictments are rumored to be forthcoming, naming the Right Wing Reverend himself, Tom DeLay.

So the folks who benefit from DeLay's alleged crimes have voted to make sure there are no consequences for their benefactor. Gimme that old time religion!

And hey, Crusaders, besides total war with Democrats and any judges the GOPers don't control, let's get ready for Iran!

The PR Purge

The next member of the Bush cabinet to resign is rumored to be Tom Ridge, Viceroy of Homeland Security, and at the moment his replacement is expected to be even worse, if that's possible. Many see the trend of "moderate" and outsiders being replaced by Rabid Rightist Bush insiders as a consolidation of power. Sure is, but there's a particular intent to it. Loyalty over substance, Yes Sir over presenting unspun fact and alternatives, that's all part of it, but there is this additional effect of the end of massively bad PR generated by the likes of a Richard Clarke or Paul O'Neill.

So no more high profile books from inside the Bush administration that show him to be fixated on Iraq or essentially silly, wily but thin-skinned, devoid of anything approaching curiosity or a sincerely inquiring mind, and dumb as a Texas fence post. The Secretaries of the cabinet will be more like secretaries, taking dictation from the dictators in the White House, which are apt to be Dickhead Cheney and Darth Rove, while GW looks forward to a second term of more faith-based initiatives and more naps and vacations at the ranch.

They've still got a semi-loose cannon in Rumsfeld, but he's useful to draw fire from the White House, especially as Iraq becomes a definitively bloody nightmare. Besides, all these Bush guys got their start with Nixon or Reagan or Bush the First. It's time to start grooming the next generation of subverters of democracy. A stint in the dubya White House should be very helpful.

Recount in Ohio, Challenge in Florida

Word is that the Green and Libertarian candidates have raised the money necessary for an Ohio recount. The media discussions of voting fraud already ongoing will likely mushroom now, if they are ever going to. Meanwhile, the Black Box Voting inquiry into Florida has begun, and so far it isn't pretty. In fact, it's pretty scary. Here's a blow by blow account:
Democratic Underground Forums - Volusia County election records just got put on lockdown

Extreme... or Cautionary?

We call the Bush regime Fascism Lite, which could be defined as fascism with a smirk. Extreme? Bobby Kennedy Jr. doesn't think so, he's been talking about corporate-government fascism, even like on C-Span. And blogger Orcinus makes a careful case for pseudo-fascism.

This link below is the link to the blog; we don't know how to do site to site transport, but we can get you on the ship. The full argument is cataloged at the October 31, 2004 post. But more recent posts elaborate, telling us what we wearily knew would happen: the rabid right is more extreme than ever: arrogantly intolerant, power-mad and vicious, inspiring new waves of hate crimes.

Orcinus

party favors

We've avoided the usual TV and print pundits because of the inevitable trashing Kerry and his campaign would be taking. Who needs the noise. But it is a somewhat dangerous time for Democrats, and we see it in the ascension of Harry Reid to Senate leader. Reid is a conservative Mormon from Utah, and he's the guy who the Dems will depend on to lead the inevitable fight against Bush Supreme Court nominees. He's not pro-choice. He's a legislative technician and a party loyalist, and that seems to be his perceived value, apart from sheer seniority.

At the same time, John Kerry himself is surprising some observers by not moving to France, and not even taking a day off. He convened congressional "party leaders" for a strategy session. He has to keep the elected Democrats from falling into their usual stupor, quaking that if they don't support Bush they won't get reelected. Apart from the demonstrable fact that unless Tom DeLay happens to redistrict their states, incumbency rules for both parties, there is the matter of backbone and the reality that while soul-searching is always a good thing, and improvement in communicating values and positions and what's at stake would be nice, the task is to keep faith with the base and expand from there. People didn't follow Kerry at considerable cost to themselves because they liked his neckties.

Kerry is said to be backing Tom Vilsack of Iowa for DNC chair, while there is considerable support for Howard Dean. While we'd like to see Dean as a prominent Democratic voice in the next several years, the job would limit his political choices. We're not crazy about Vilsack, so somebody associated with Dean and his Internet campaign could be better. The DNC is mostly fundraising organization at this point, but maybe somebody with creative ideas and a public face can transform the job. That would be Dean most probably.

We're not insider enough to say---we don't really know much about Vilsack except that he seems dull---but a Dem swing to the right would be lethal. We aren't talking about politics as usual. There is way too much at stake. There may be nothing anyone can do but voice their opposition strongly, to halt America's slide into one disaster after another, taking the western world with it. But we've got to do at least that much.

Do it now

"The time is now for voters from all states that used electronic voting machines to request an audit of results and a manual recount of ballots if possible."

The Telegraph Online

Welcome to Fascism Lite, the New Brew From Bush

"With the will of the people at my back," GW Bush began his first press conference after the election (which must have been, what, his fourth or fifth press conferences as president?) Though he owes his apparent election to some hundred thousand possibly stolen votes in Ohio, he's got a mandate, and he's going to rub our noses in it. Why is it a mandate? Like every other "truth" of the Bush administration, because he says so. Repeatedly. Repeat it enough times, it becomes true. That in a nutshell is the Bush Doctrine.

So that's how we're reportedly getting Condi Rice, known incompetent and liar, as Secretary of State. That's how we're getting a politicized CIA, with non-political veteran public servants dropping like flies.

That's why more and more power is being given to Cheney and Darth Rove. (So much for those wimpy calls for Bush to recognize the need for 'unity' by including moderates and even Democrats. Ha ha ha, let's all sing Kumbaya, as the GOPers like to say when anything like working together comes up. )

That why when Iran and the UN announce a deal whereby Iran gives up its nuclear program---seemingly good news for the world---the Bushies are pissed. Now they're going to have to invent another excuse to invade Iran.

That's why they waited until after the election to accelerate the useless slaughter and devastation in Iraq. Where there is martial law until their "election."

It's why the purge is on in Washington, and why they're frantically trying to bury the CIA's independent report naming names for 9-11 mistakes.

Welcome to Fascism Lite, the new brew from Bush.

---Theron Dash

No Powell Wow

Secretary of State Colin Powell has resigned, finally, when it doesn't mean anything. If he's smart he'll lay low for the next three years, cultivate his children charities and stay completely away from foreign policy, lest he commit a slipup. Then he can see if the American public is as amnesiac on Iraq as it seems to be on most everything, and if there is any moderate GOP base left.

Right now it's fair to say that his once promising political career is in shambles. Here's a pretty balanced assessment of his tenure.
World Peace Herald

But we will always remember him as the one man who could have stopped the U.S. from invading Iraq, and he didn't. He continued to disgrace himself by supporting that war and its conduct, leaving him morally compromised, perhaps beyond repair.

Also in the news today, first reports on a man---reportedly Islamic---who set himself on fire in front of the White House. Less publicized was the suicide at Ground Zero in NYC by a man said to be in despair at Bush's apparent re-election. There were probably more such desperate acts that completely escaped national attention.

Among the many scandals involved in this immoral Iraq war is the dishonest reporting of casualities, and the complete blackout on even gathering information on Iraqi deaths and injuries. Again the moral degradation of this administration is matched only by the moral cowardice of the American media.

---Theron Dash

Entering Exit Polls


Those of us who were Kerry supporters and saw the early exit poll data on election day were elated. It confirmed observations and intuitions about the final week and weekend of the campaign. But then we were told we just didn't know how to read exit polls, that
they measured only early voting, and gave a false picture of the voting as a whole.

But now reports are growing that the exit polls were more consistent even later in the day, and that a lot of people were taking them seriously. Bush viceroy Karen Hughes reportedly told Bush that he was going to lose in a landslide. Bush supporter (and former Clinton supporter) politico Dick Morris is on record saying the only possible explanation for the large discrepancy between exit polls and votes registered is fraud on a massive scale.

Now comes this scholarly study that asserts the odds against the exit poll discrepancies with announced results in Ohio, Florida and PA being accidental ware 250 million to one.
t r u t h o u t - Steven F. Freeman | The Unexplained Exit Poll Discrepancy

Many of those now trying to get recounts and start investigations are looking to make sure that if fraud like this occurred, it is stopped before the next election. But thanks in part to the Internet, things are moving so quickly that it is conceivable, though barely, that if massive fraud is found, this election could be overturned before the electoral college officially votes in December, certifying the reelection of GW Bush.