Uh huh. Well this oughtta help things, then…
Reached for comment, Kerry communications ferret Howard Wolfson told FOXNews’ Linda Vester: “So? Bush can’t even say ‘nuclear’ right! He says nu-cu-lar! And Iraqi children DIED! Chimpychimpychimpy smirksmirksmirk!”
Christ. Who could vote for a candidate run by such pathetic dime store Machiavellians…?
It’s coming from both parties. There are reports of both Dems and Reps allegedly shredding registration, etc. However, I try to take everything found on Drudge with a grain of salt. If this can be confirmed as factual, it will be intersting to watch the fallout/fallguy.
The Democrats want to change the tone in Washington
How about a nice F-sharp? That constant E-flat has gotten kind of tiresome.
Whose idear was this?
Frankly, this whole election cycle has been a nine month bagpipe solo. Wake me up when it’s time to vote, wouldja?
I’m calling for a constitutional amendment mandating the death penalty for vote fraud.
Unless you think that’s not strict enough, of course.
A Bush/Cheney yard sign in my neigborhood was vandalized 2 nights ago…
The former party of free speech and liberalization is now exhibiting all the behaviors of a spoiled child. Not very becoming.
BLIMP BLIMP BLIMP BLIMP!
ELIZABETH EDWARDS ON ABC RADIO: “She’s [Lynne Cheney]overreacted to this and treated it as if it’s shameful to have this discussion. I think that’s a very sad state of affairs… I think that it indicates a certain degree of shame with respect to her daughter’s sexual preferences… It makes me really sad that that’s Lynne’s response.”
Suppose Bush had said: “Senator Edwards wife, who is both a lawyer and a dirgible . . . .”
Senator Edwards might react with a little shame too.
[Jeff, please get spellcheck. Dirigible is a very hard word to spell.]
There are reports of both Dems and Reps allegedly shredding registration, etc.
No, there is ONE report of a Republican-funded registration drive shredding registrations. There are DOZENS of reports of Democrat-funded/friendly registration drives submitting fraudulent registrations.
Then there’s the city of Milwaukee asking for more than twice as many ballots as there are voting-age people in the city…
Rob
Symantics aside, I was only pointing out that tampering of some manner does occur on both sides. There are people, be they democrat or republican, that want “their” politician to be in office so badly, that they’re willing to compromise their ethics and the value of the democratic process itself.
Stagolee –
Which is why I want them ALL killed, without respect to party affiliation.
There have always been, and there will always be, rogue elements on every side who are wiling to break the law and the public trust for a short term gain. I think the death penalty should be available as a potential sentence to act as a deterrent.
Alas, contempt for the voters and the processes of democracy have been institutionalized by the Democratic National Committee. It’s not just this manual. It’s the constant repetition of the lies of a million black voters being disenfranchised in 2000. It’s the assemblage of teams of lawyers now to be prepared to challenge votes in close districts.
Goodwill and trust in the electoral process are just two more things that people are only going to learn to appreciate after they are gone.
I’d like to echo a sentiment that Kathy brought up recently: Please don’t insult Machiavelli so. And yes, I know you wrote a heterodox paper on the subject yadda yadda yadda.
This is news? Joshu Micah Marshall has been screaming ‘voter intimidation’ at regular intervals like the clock chime for years now. It’s been pretty obvious this was their strategy.
This voter fraud business has to be taken more seriously: every time a fraudulent vote is cast, someone else is getting disenfranshised.
Wasn’t it Susan Estrich that promised right after the Republican convention something along the lines of “dirty pool is now fair game”? [Aw, hell, I don’t remember the exact quote, or even if I’m attributing it right.] Anyway, this seems to fit into that statement nicely.
Dimestore Machiavelians, indeed. Nicolo wouldn’t have advised anything so amature as telegraphing your dirty tricks.
“There have always been, and there will always be, rogue elements on every side who are wiling to break the law and the public trust for a short term gain.”
While this is certainly true, what makes the shredding of voter registrations a little more significant is that the operation was RNC-funded.
Jeff, you’re one of the more intelligent bloggers around. I recommend you have a look at the actual document (http://www.drudgereport.com/dnc.jpg) instead of Drudge’s interpretation of it. It advises Democrats to take pre-emptive action against voter fraud, and as a result would actually make both sides more vigilant and thus reduce voter fraud.
What it is NOT about is accusing the other side of made-up stuff that never happened, much as Drudge would like it to have said that.
David S. Lott,
“Suppose Bush had said: “Senator Edwards wife, who is both a lawyer and a dirgible . . . .â€Â
Senator Edwards might react with a little shame too.
Is calling a lesbian a lesbian when it is relevant to the question at hand the same as taking an unrelated swipe at someone for being overweight? You’d have to have grown up in a mighty homophobic environment to equate the two.
actually I have close gay relatives and many gay friends and cherish them all
obesity is also genetic–at least in many cases
my point–and I did make it gracelessly on purpose–is that focusing on the personal charactaristics of a relative is tasteless no matter what the charactaristic is.
your reaction proves the point.
Ms. Edwards is clairvoyant however since she apparently can discern the intimate emotions of another human being from afar. Actually I’m sure she’s a decent person and regrets what she said–if only she would say so.
Murph, to be blunt: you’re absolutely wrong. The first point in the DNC ‘manual’ does ask that people be on the lookout for voter intimidation. But the second point? The second point says this:
It then goes on to detail how to get minority leaders in front of cameras to decry these fictious voting irregularities.
How do you possibly read this as anything but the DNC asking their local representatives to make shit up and then scream about it? Unless English is not your first language, but even if it is, point #2 is crystal clear: assume the RNC is going to commit voter intimidation and scream about it before anything happens.
That’s not going to fix voter fraud; that IS voter fraud.
Murph, I have not and do not excuse criminal behavior by anyone. Why are you trying to?
Voter intimidation can occur before election day and on election day. Hence the opening line of this one page of the manual that we have seen: “If no signs of intimidation techniques have emerged yet launch a pre-emptive strike.”
The pre-emptive strike that they’re talking about in the manual is one of raising awareness to either prevent something from happening (such as the newspaper warning they mention) or to be able to go after it more effectively if it does happen.
When you wrote “It then goes on to detail how to get minority leaders in front of cameras to decry these fictious voting irregularities.” you are clearly distorting what is actually in the manual. There is no mention or implication of anything needing to be invented, quite the contrary. The manual talks about reviewing tactics used in the past (and hence real) and denouncing potential tactics to discourage voters from voting. Warning about a potential incident in the future is not the same as screaming about something fictitious. If a politician warns us that the risk of a terrorist attack is very high, do you complain that he is talking about something fictitious? Hardly.
BTW, under what law is screaming about voter intimidation that then doesn’t happen voter fraud?
(Incidentally, does Drudge have access to this one single page? It would be interesting to see the rest of it to put all this into context. )
A number of folks are suddenly attempting to spin away the “premptive strike” and Kerry’s remarks about Mary Cheney. Those intenal polls must be reeling.
charles austin,
Murph, I have not and do not excuse criminal behavior by anyone. Why are you trying to?
Where am I trying to?
corvan,
“A number of folks are suddenly attempting to spin away the “premptive strike†and Kerry’s remarks about Mary Cheney. Those intenal polls must be reeling.”
I thought it was the other way around, trivial talking points suddenly being spun into center stage so we don’t have to talk about anything substantial.
Apparently, Kerry calling Cheney’s daughter a lesbian is a Big Deal today; when Alan Keyes called her a selfish hedonist, neither her parents nor anybody else who claims to be outraged today gave a hoot.
Stagolee,
You know you can’t shout moral equivalency anymore. We don’t have to rely on the MSM for our news, so we actually like know what’s going on.
Republicans aren’t perpetrating voter fraud on the massive scale as Democrats for a couple of very good reasons. 1. Republicans don’t control the inner cities which have been in the vise-like grip of the left for neigh on to a hundred years now, and 2. The MSM will jump on any Republican misdeeds, no matter ho0w minor and unintended with two feet.
In fact, this year the Democrats and their comrades in the media are preparing a protest in advance. Getting the signs printed and distributed, organizing the buses to pick up the spontaneous rioters, etc.
Oh, boy! Our very first obtuse, DNC-talking-point spewing troll. I’ll feed him, take him for walks, and even groom him, but I am NOT cleaning up after him.
The MSM will jump on any Republican misdeeds, no matter ho0w minor and unintended with two feet.
Yep. You have an accusation—from a disgruntled ex-employee—of “hundreds” of registrations shredded, but absolutely no evidence that it happened. Heck, there is evidence AGAINST it, such as the office in question working in a 20% Democrat area and handing in 20% Democrat registrations.
On the other hand, you have the City of Milwaukee asking for 900,000+ ballots for a population of 430,000 or so…
Which one gets coverage? Which one gets the left in an uproar?
Which do you think is more likely to result in fraud?
Murph, you’re clearly not an idiot, so how can you state that, “the pre-emptive strike that they’re talking about in the manual is one of raising awareness”?
The direct quote again:
“If no signs of intimidation techniques have emerged yet, launch a pre-emptive strike.”
So without any indication of issues, without any knowledge of actual intimidation or fraud, the DNC is asking their workers to allege “pre-emptively” that there are problems and to get minority leaders in front of cameras for same. That’s not “raising awareness”, that’s out-and-out lying.
In the past, Murph has gone out to the bar and had a few drinks. Therefore, I’d like to call a press conference now and accuse him of drunk driving, because hey – it might happen. Just raising awareness is all.
Bill,
“the DNC is asking their workers to allege “pre-emptively†that there are problems”
Where do they do this?
Yep, judging from the reaction we’re getting here, Kerry’s internal polling has gone to Hell in a hand basket.
Murph, if you read the full text of the DNC document and come to the conclusion that they’re simply trying to be good citizens and ensure fair elections using these tactics, then we truly have nothing to talk about.
1. I am under no illusion that they’re doing this out of the goodness of their hearts, instead of simply as part of a strategy to win. A part of the result of this is that it will make everyone more aware, which will also make it more difficult for Democrats to cheat. While that may not be the primary goal of this strategy, it is a small part of its effect.
2. There is nothing in the document that suggests taking illegal action or making stuff up that didn’t happen, as Drudge would like to have us believe.