Block the Vote by Bobby Kennedy, Jr. & Greg Palast

Election Protection: The Dark Side and the Light

The Dark Side:

First, you need to know...

There is a major difference between Election Fraud and Voter Fraud.

Election Fraud is a broad term for the manipulation of election results – away from the choice of the majority of eligible voters.

Voter Fraud is the term for voting and/or registering to vote by people ineligible to vote, such as non-citizens, non-residents, those with fictional identification, and, in some states, felons.

Election Fraud can alter the vote tally by tens of thousands of votes, and when carefully targeted, can alter the results of the Presidential Election and the control of Congress.

Voter Fraud is extremely rare, and has little or no effect on results.

Election Fraud is accomplished by
1. Altering votes
2. Not counting votes
3. Limiting votes

Voter Fraud has been an excuse to enact election laws and encourage policies which accomplish #3 on the previous list, “limiting votes”, particularly in low-income and urban areas.

Voter Fraud was only raised as an issue after the 2004 election, to distract from the multiple instances of Election Fraud reported in Ohio. Voter Fraud is continually highlighted since March 2005 by the self-proclaimed expert, Thor Hearne of the brand new “American Center For Voting Rights”, who turned out to be the General Counsel for Bush/Cheney 2004 (Google Thor Hearne +bradblog to open your eyes).

* * * * * * *

The Light:

To learn more about Election Protection, Vote Suppression, and other election issues:

http://www.freepress.org/econf/ Sponsoring a free online Election Protection Conference, September 26-28th. Also go to www.freepress.org for more articles and books on election problems and excellent coverage of what happened in 2004.

www.stealbackyourvote.org Greg Palast and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. investigate current efforts by the RNC. An illustrated voter guide should be available for free distribution within the next two weeks, as well as a documentary film.

www.novoterleftbehind.net Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and Democrats for America’s Future join to EXPOSE, SPOT & REPORT Election Theft. Also has a Candidate Pledge: “I pledge that I will make sure that every vote is counted and that I will contest any evidence of theft or other voter suppression.”

www.Bradblog.com The most determined, dedicated and effective blogger, a hero to many working on election protection, Brad Friedman, is the best single source for information on voting issues. Brad is also the co-founder of http://www.velvetrevolution.us/electionstrikeforce/ and
http://www.standingforvoters.org/, where candidates on all levels can sign on to this pledge:

“I,_____________ , pledge to use my candidacy, whenever feasible, to advance the preservation of democracy. I will officially challenge the results of the election as provided by law if the combination of election conditions, incident reports, and announced election results calls into question the reliability of the vote count. I will wait until all valid votes are counted and all serious challenges resolved before declaring victory or conceding defeat.”

Finally, www.markcrispinmiller.blogspot.com is the site of NYU Professor Mark Crispin Miller, author of Fooled Again about the 2004 election and, most recently, Loser Take All. He is an excellent speaker and a diligent advocate for voters.

Bobby Kennedy, Jr. and Greg Palast launch STEAL BACK YOUR VOTE

Two of my very favorite truth-seekers in the world are hard at work to stop another election from being stolen again -- and (Glory Be!!) they also know that, as deadly serious as this is, we desperately need to laugh as we rescue our tattered Democracy.

Here's their announcement:

Investigative journalist Greg Palast and voting rights attorney Robert F. Kennedy Jr. have just released an investigative comic book voter guide “Steal Back Your Vote.” it lays out 6 ways they’re trying to steal the 2008 election… And the seven ways you can steal it back, in a 24 page downloadable graphic guide. It’s non-partisan, it’s humorous, it’s heroic, it’s helpful.

Illustrated by graphic gonzos Ted Rall, Lukas Ketner and Troubletown’s Lloyd Dangle, the “Steal Back Your Vote” guide gives you the no poop scoop on the tricks that can overturn the November vote. For example, did you know that the state of Colorado has purged 1 out of 5 voters? What about Jacksonville-based military personnel, fighting to bring democracy to the Middle East but relieved of their voting rights in Florida? And let’s not get started on the 10 Indiana nuns forced to break the voting habit.

When you go to bed tonight, can you answer this question: do you know where your registration is? Find out how your vote is being stolen, and how you can steal it back, by downloading the guide here: www.stealbackyourvote.org.

We encourage you to add an excerpt, and consider using the banners and links found at: http://www.stealbackyourvote.com/please-link-to-us/

Bobby Kennedy, Jr. Launches NoVoterLeftBehind.net

On August 29, 2008, NoVoterLeftBehind.net was born. While it was created by a team of Democrats, the purpose is to count every vote.

You can click on screen shot of website to go there, learn more, and volunteer.

His Daddy would be proud...

A Call for Democrats to Honor Stephanie Tubbs Jones by Spotlighting January 6, 2005

Last week’s death of Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones should have meant so much to every American. Unfortunately, her greatest gift to American citizens and Democracy was largely ignored in the eulogies and obituaries of the mainstream press. It is no wonder, since acknowledging her gift would also reveal their failure to tell us the story when it happened.

Even sadder, Democrats, too, have shied away from acknowledging the Congresswoman’s significance, because then they would have to face their greatest failure AND greatest vulnerability for the 2008 election.

Still, here we are in the week of the Democratic Convention, and the tragedy of Stephanie Tubbs Jones leaving us while still young must surely warrant a dedicated moment of Honor before the world, and this timing gives Democrats – who should be sick of having their votes and elected offices stolen – the opportunity to shine a light on that glorious day, January 6th, 2005, when Congresswoman Tubbs Jones dared to stand up before the joint session of Congress to challenge the Ohio electoral vote count from the November 2004 election.
"Mr. Vice-President, I seek to object to the electoral votes of the State of Ohio."

Unlike 2000, when Vice President Al Gore had to dismiss the challenges raised by many Representatives -- because no Senator was willing to provide the necessary signature -- this time Senator Barbara Boxer rose alongside the Congresswoman. And in that moment, according to one of the few functioning journalists of the time, Bob Fitrakis of the Columbia Free Press, the Voting Rights movement was born.

Congresswoman Tubbs Jones continued, speaking to the House (my emphasis):

I’m duty-bound to follow the law and apply the law to the facts as I find them, and it is on behalf of those millions of Americans who believe in and value our Democratic process, and the right to vote, that I put forth this objection today. If they’re willing to stand at polls for countless hours in the rain as many did in Ohio, then I should surely stand up for them here in the halls of Congress.

This objection does not have at its root the hope or even the hint of overturning the victory of the president, but it is a necessary, timely, and appropriate opportunity to review and remedy the most precious process in our democracy. I raise this objection neither to put the nation in the turmoil of a proposed overturned election, nor to provide cannon fodder or partisan demagoguery for my fellow members of Congress. I raise this objection because I am convinced that we as a body must conduct a formal and legitimate debate about election irregularities. I raise this objection to debate the process, and protect the integrity of the true will of the people.

With this action that day, the report written by Congressman John Conyers, Jr. and the House Judiciary Committee Democratic Staff, based on the hearings they held in Ohio throughout December 2004, entitled Preserving Democracy: What Went Wrong in Ohio, was entered into the Congressional Record.

Still, the Voting Rights movement has been mostly an internet movement, and to this day, the most important issue facing us this November is still largely unknown to most Americans. It is not Iraq (or Afghanistan, or Iran, or now Russia), nor the Economy, nor Healthcare – no, not even Global Warming.

It is Election Theft, as demonstrated so clearly in Ohio in 2004 (see report above).

While it is not a partisan issue, per se, because ultimately all sides lose if we forfeit the value of the vote, the evidence indicates the beneficiary of voting machine errors, voter intimidation tactics, voter registration list purging, etc., has consistently been Republican candidates, from Bush/Cheney in 2004 to Congressman Brian Bilbray in San Diego County in 2006. Karl Rove's RNC operatives, and their corporate partners, have been very busy and very effective. And the more they get away with, the harder it will be to stop this corruption of the one tool that gives Americans Hope - their vote.

Yet, despite evidence brought forward by courageous election officials and Secretaries of State, computer scientists, data experts, citizen activists, and a few remaining investigative journalists and communicators, such as Mark Crispin Miller, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Greg Palast, Brad Friedman, Stephen Rosenfeld, Dan Rather, and Bob Fitrakis and Harvey Wasserman, most Americans have no idea how frightening real the problem of election theft is.

Why? Because the Democrats themselves have failed to demand fair and accurate elections. This is where they are, as accused, weak on National Defense.

You see, National Defense is not about weapons aimed at other countries. It’s not about wiretaps aimed at citizens.

National Defense needs to be about BRIGHT LIGHTS aimed at the treacherous actions of partisan operatives to manipulate election results.

National Defense should be about BROADCAST MICROPHONES aimed at those who have investigated, and those who have witnessed, and those who have been turned away when they tried to vote.

So, if the Democratic Convention this week has a goal of putting Barack Obama in the White House, then those Democratic leaders who stand before the world need to be willing to say:

We will not let this election be stolen. Our votes will be counted accurately. We now know what has happened before, and this time we won’t be intimidated into conceding.

Stephanie Tubbs Jones told Bob Fitrakis in a 2005 interview:

Here I was placed. I’m the only African American member of Congress in the state of Ohio. I’m in a position to raise the issue. If I don’t, then God’s gonna say, "Why would I put you there if you didn’t have -- if you didn’t do it?"

So, Senator Clinton, you can do this. You can shake the rafters by honoring your dear friend and outspoken supporter, Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones. This could be the greatest gift you give all Americans, the sign that you are a true leader.

Kennedys all, come forward. You know the truth. One of your own, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has already stood up, and so should the rest of the family - what a powerful statement.

Senator Biden, we know you have the chutzpah and we love you for it. Demonstrate it immediately and it will make a difference.

Barack Obama, you must address this boldly, now, in this venue, because you are very much at risk to be the next failure, and that would break the hearts of all who have been newly encouraged. From Hope to utter devastated cynicism, because you would not do what our late Congresswoman showed up must be done. As you can do.

I call on all of you to speak up.

And I call on all of you readers to contact Senator Clinton, the Kennedys, Senator Biden and Senator Barack Obama, and tell them it is time to stop the Republican destruction of Democracy by declaring that you will not tolerate Election Theft, you will not accept manipulated results, and you will demand Election Justice.

When you doubt that this issue is serious, then watch the movie Uncounted by Dale Earnhardt, go to a screening of Stealing American: Vote by Vote by Dorothy Fadiman, read Loser Take All, listen to podcasts from Voice of the Voters, and go to www.BradBlog.com and www.GregPalast.com.

Then speak up.

Friday Questions for Diane, June 6, 2008

Regarding Senator Clinton as Obama’s veep, I would like to shine a light on the McCain campaign’s hiring of Timothy Griffin. Mr. Griffin was one of those chosen to replace the fired U.S. Attorneys – he was the one known as “Karl Rove’s assistant” and he was specifically put in Arkansas, the better to dig up Clinton dirt. He also resigned suddenly on the day investigative reporter Greg Palast turned over Griffin’s emails from the RNC full of voter caging lists to House Judiciary Chairman John Conyers, Jr.
Isn’t it clear that Rove is drooling over the concept of Clinton ruining the Obama ticket?

Here's someone who could further energize Obama's ticket and would fit in perfectly with his announced intention to not accept lobbyist money: ROBERT F. KENNEDY, JR.

That would be a powerful and deeply satisfying Democratic ticket.

Clinton's Blind Eye to Voters

So, Hillary claims a victory in Pennsylvania. Who could have predicted that?

Maybe Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.

"I’m not saying anything bad about my candidate but I– it is funny at New Hampshire that all the ones that were hand-counted went for Obama and all the ones that were machine counted went for Hillary."

That was Bobby talking to Bill McKibben on the March 8, 2008 broadcast of Ring of Fire Radio (approximately half way in).

Dear Bobby, he couldn’t keep down the ironic chuckles as his endorsee’s primary successes and his knowledge of methods of election theft were irrefutably dancing in front of him.

I’ve been paying attention to RFK Jr. ever since I read his Crimes Against Nature in 2004. With approximately 20 books on Bush under my belt leading up to that election, it was Bobby’s book that was the answer to NPR’s question, "What is the most important book to read before the 2004 Presidential Election?"

Bobby is a brilliant, funny, fearless and passionate speaker. Did you see him at Live Earth last year?

He would be one hell of a great endorser.

If his heart was in it.

But Hillary’s silence on the real voting issues that have been rampant in every state’s primary must give Bobby pause.

The fact that the world has suffered great consequences from the illegitimate certifications of the last two Presidential elections for George W. Bush and his psychologically unhealthy teammates – should be inspiration for legitimate candidates seeking election to demand that voters get to vote and get to have their votes counted.

In each and every primary.

Not just the ones where Senator Clinton won delegates by dishonorably campaigning after an agreement was made that the candidates would not do so.

Senator Clinton’s pretense to care for the voters who deserve to have their votes counted is revealed as rather selective by her silence on the continuous problems that have occurred in every state primary.

Starting with New Hampshire, problems with confusing new voter ID laws irregularly and sometimes illegally enforced, improperly trained poll workers, registered voters missing from lists, shortages of staff and machines and ballots, long lines, voter intimidation, and the stubborn clinging to voting machines that have long since proven to be hackable, unreliable, and unverifiable have resulted in people not voting, votes not counted at all, and incorrect and unverifiable vote tallies across the nation.

But Hillary Clinton has said nothing about any of that.

Perhaps it is, as Bobby suggests, that often the results of the these problems seem to help her get delegates.

Nor does she mention Rush Limbaugh’s Operation Chaos – his urging Republicans to vote in Democratic primaries, even if it means they have to switch affiliation, and vote strongly for Senator Clinton.

Is this how she wants to win? Doesn’t she realize that the Republican have a reason to want Hillary to win?

Consider this: Remember that U.S. Attorney firing scandal? Remember that one of the replacements for U.S. Attorneys who weren’t cooperating with the Bush/Cheney/Rove agenda was a "friend of Karl Rove’s" (always a dangerous sign)? A little man named Tim Griffin was put in place as U.S. Attorney – where?

In Arkansas. Why Arkansas? Because that’s where he can research the history of Hillary Clinton.

Would he have done such a thing? Oh, yeah. As Greg Palast points out, it was Mr. Griffin who was behind the emails of caging lists sent out in 2004 - a detestable method of purging registration lists of tens of thousands of voters, voters who appeared to live in low-income, urban areas, homeless shelters, and military bases.

Griffin was sent to Arkansas for a reason. Republicans want Hillary for a reason. And those reasons are slimy – and do not bode well for, uh, democracy, America, the world, etc.

And Bobby knows this. I can’t imagine his endorsement is sitting well for him. It’s certainly not the subject of any of those impassioned speeches he’s so good at.

As Bobby said to Bill McKibben back in March, when Bill noted that in his town in Vermont where paper ballots were used Obama was popular, winning 175 to 68:

"He’s popular any place where they count the votes by hand."

Know Bush Fact #39

Based on the belief that the truth shall set you free:


Recently on National Public Radio, Neal Conan asked the listeners which book was the single, most essential book one should read before the election. Having highlighted and bent pages on 18 of them – 12 finished and 6 partially read – I had some opinions on this subject.

Time was I’d say Molly Ivins & Lou Dubose’s Bushwhacked to get to the heart of the matter; or I’d say Craig Unger’s House of Bush House of Saud to get a clear picture of the Saudi/Middle East/U.S. historical perspective – important and easy to read.

Then I heard Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. on NPR twice in one day, and I was horrified at what I learned. I immediately had to find his book, Crimes Against Nature: How George W. Bush and His Corporate Pals Are Plundering the Country and Hijacking Our Democracy.

Despite RFK, Jr.’s strong Democratic roots, his decades of service in environmental law have always benefitted Republicans and Democrats alike. We are all still organisms that must consume air, water and food in order to live, and to love, and to create families, and to prosper.

But these days, Bobby, Jr., as Senior Attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council (and one of Time Magazine’s “Heroes for the Planet”), is moved to raise his voice at this time because American citizens are so unaware of the complete reversal of environmental protection that has occurred under George Bush, intentionally hidden in programs cynically named “Clear Skies” and “Healthy Forests”.

“George W. Bush will go down in history as America’s worst environmental president.”

So begins the December 2003 Rolling Stone Magazine article that grew into Kennedy’s Crimes Against Nature..

Even while most of us don’t know about Bush’s historical significance regarding our environment, the Energy, Chemical, and Industrial Farm leaders know. More to the point, they set a goal, put out the money, and got what they paid for – Bush Cheney 2000.

George W. Bush: While Governor of Texas, Bush conferred with Alcoa, Exxon, Shell, Amoco, Enron, & Dow Chemical – and their $1.5 million in campaign gifts – and state laws changed accordingly.

Companies in Texas were authorized to monitor their own nasty pollution on a voluntary basis. As long as they reported their mistakes... and promised to clean up – there would be no fines, no public disclosure and no government follow up.

Dick Cheney: It turns out Cheney wasn’t just the CEO of Halliburton between his White House assignments. He was also fundamental in developing and promoting “Wise Use” – a pseudo-practical way of perceiving the earth as something to “use wisely” – which applies cost/benefit analysis (short-term money-making) to decide how best to use up the planet.

Remember how Cheney protected the privacy of the meetings he held within days of hitting the White House -- with Enron and other energy leaders -- all the way to the Supreme Court, where his friend of 30 years, Antonin Scalia, backed him up in his secret schemes?

What went on behind those doors was betrayal – the corporations that control those utilities we have come to rely on, without which we cannot function, went to the White House with detailed wish lists. It was payback time, and their wishes – for greater profits, less restrictions, and more accessibility to the goodies of the land – took priority over the well being of the people – those fools who must be kept foolish – who believe their leader and pay more; who believe and shop; who believe and attack those who don’t believe.

So we are supposed to stand loyal, while the Vice President is fighting tooth and nail to keep knowledge away from us. Shouldn’t that make us curious? Would we walk away from a child fiercely defending the door of his closet? Wouldn’t we know that we’d better get a look?

That’s why distractions were so important.

However, the inevitable effect of this mis-prioritizing is hitting us where we are most vulnerable – our children.

Asthma, from increased particulates in the air, is now the most common childhood disease, with death rates increasing steadily, regardless of improvements in treatment.

At the same time, one out of every six American women has so much mercury in her womb that her children are at risk for autism, blindness, mental retardation and heart, liver and kidney disease.

In August, the EPA announced that all fish in 19 states are now unsafe to eat because of mercury contamination, as well as at least some of the fish in 48 states are now unsafe to eat. Actually, the only two states where they’re considered “safe” are Alaska and Wyoming, where Republican legislatures wouldn’t pay to test the fish.

The greatest source of the polluting particulates in the air, as well as the mercury in our water and fish are the 1,100 older coal-burning plants that have failed to make improvements to meet new standards. Clinton’s administration had initiated serious investigations and prosecutions against the 70 worst of these plants. Then Bush arrived.

This is an industry that donated $48 million to President Bush and the Republican Party in the 2000 cycle and has given $58 million since.

One of the first things that Bush did when he came into office was to order the Justice Department to drop those lawsuits.

The Justice Department lawyer said that this had never happened before in American history, where a president accepts money from industries targeted for investigation and prosecution, and then orders the justice department to drop those investigations once he gets into office. There were 70 utilities involved here and, according to the EPA, just the criminal exceedences from those 70 plants killed 5,500 Americans every year.

Then the administration rewrote the Clean Air Act, gutting the New Source rule, which means those plants will be able to discharge ozone and particulates forever.

-- Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., October 7, 2004, Mother Jones Magazine

They got their ticket, all right.

Please understand that the above is merely an example of the multitude of appointments and regulation rollbacks that Bush has ordered, with unusual diligence, selling out the natural resources we depend on – not just for recreational activities and tree-hugging – but for our survival, while we’ve been looking elsewhere.

Bush’s accompanying mislead is “torte reform.” Given the mercury poisoning in 48 states and the thousands of children asthmatically gasping – for starters – perhaps Bush’s push to put caps on damage awards isn’t really about the cost of health insurance. It’s a lot more likely that he is seeking to nip-in-the-bud the trillions of dollars the polluting companies should pay if their disdain for their victims is revealed.

Perhaps the entire country should be suing Bush himself, for the destructive poisons he’s unleashed upon us.

There’d be nothing frivolous about such lawsuits. Not if we have to witness our children and grandchildren struggling to breathe, struggling to think, struggling to live.

Clearly, this has nothing to do with Republican vs. Democrat. Quite the contrary. RFK, Jr. laments:

“While claiming to embrace its values, the Bush administration has stolen the soul of the Republican party. The president and his cronies have taken the conserve out of the conservative.”

Again, so much for Homeland Security and the Bush Cheney motto – “Building Safety.” Take a few minutes to explain this to a Security Mom you know.

To verify/research, Google “Bush +New Source Review” or “Bush +Kennedy, Jr.”