"Conspiring against the voters": 12/31/05 NY Times Editorial

[freedomfries]

EDITORIAL: Conspiring Against the Voters
Published: December 31, 2005
President Bush has announced four nominees for the Federal Election Commission, moving to keep the policing of campaign abuses firmly in the hands of party wheel horses.
...
The most objectionable nominee is Hans von Spakovsky ... reported to have been involved in the manoeuvering to overrule the career specialists who warned that the Texas gerrymandering orchestrated by Representative Tom DeLay violated minority voting rights. Senators need the opportunity to delve into that, as well as reports of Mr. von Spakovsky's involvement in such voting rights abuses as the purging of voter rolls in Florida in the 2000 elections.
...
No link available, but check this ER thread:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x406897

[Warren Stupidity]

1. Oh but wait

I thought that the whoremedia had dismissed all talk of election fraud as tinfoil hat nonsense from the loon-a-left. Now they are telling me that asshat is stuffing the FEC with dubious party hacks already suspected of election fraud chicanery. Gosh, one of my fondest hopes for '06 is that the whoremedia can at least keep its story straight for at a week or two. It is so difficult reconciling the obvious bullshit on a daily basis. It is embarassing. It is like living in a two bit tin horn dictatorship. Hey, wait a minute, maybe we are living in a two bit tin horn dictatorship.

[MichiganVote]

2. This rag has -0- credibility with me anymore

[0007]

5. About -10 right now with me.

[rman]

12. which media do have credibility with you?

[MichiganVote]

15. I'm an equal opportunity skeptic for them all and usually rely on an

amalgram of investigative reports from various sources from which to make up my mind. The NYT has effectively gone over the edge what with J. Miller and retaining the story of the wire taps. I doubt they are the only paper to have withheld this info. Seems reasonable that other papers or news media have done or are doing the same. Nevertheless, this is info. that should have been released b/f the election as I believe it had a direct bearing on people's freedom of choice. This is not the first admin. to petition and receive a break from the press. It is the first that I am aware of, however, to do it during an election. Given all we know about this admin. I find that pretty damning.


edit/spelling

[freedomfries]

16. amen to that MichiganVote

Schizophrenics are the only readers the NY Times caters to consistently these days!

[rman]

17. Of course it's damning, but the NYT is hardly the only one

covering things up.
Most things are covered up so well you never hear about it in the MSM.
For instance, genocide in East Timor supported by the West (that's us).

That doesn't make it ok for the NYT to withhold information from us - but it doesn't seem right to me to vilify the NYT to the exception of other outlets.

[MichiganVote]

18. Hold your horses there sunshine---to have expressed a preference

based on factual information that the NYT themselves released hardly a vilification proves. You no like my point of view? Fine. Then buy the paper, dagnabit, and shut up about it. The NYT made a poor choice and they know it. Consider the silence, it is now as deep as the shit they are in.

[rman]

19. I do like your point of view regarding the NYT,

it's the way i see all the MSM.

I figured that since you don't like what the NYT is doing, you might also not like what the rest of the MSM is doing.

[freedomfries]

20. The San Diego Union-Tribune

Bush election panel selection draws fire
By Todd J. Gillman
THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS

December 17, 2005
WASHINGTON – In a move that inflamed minority activists and Democrats, President Bush yesterday named a Justice Department lawyer who played a pivotal role in the Texas redistricting fight to the Federal Election Commission.

Hans von Spakovsky was one of the political appointees involved in approving the Texas congressional redistricting plan. A memo leaked two weeks ago showed that decision came despite unanimous objections from career lawyers in the civil rights division who found the Texas remap violated minority rights.

"People who do the political dirty work of this administration get promoted," said Rolando Rios, regional counsel for the League of United Latin American Citizens, which intends to try to block his Senate confirmation. "We're very concerned when you appoint somebody to the FEC who has absolutely no sensitivity to the voting rights of minorities. . . . That's outrageous."

White House officials defended the nomination.

"The president believes that he will take a fair and accurate view of the federal regulations and also the role that the agency plays in rule making," said White House spokeswoman Erin Healy.

The FEC regulates campaign finance.

Von Spakovsky served as vice chairman of the Fulton County, Ga., election board in Atlanta. Bush's first attorney general, John Ashcroft, brought him to the Justice Department, where he serves as a top lawyer in the Civil Rights Division.

"He has a strong judicial background and knowledge in a number of issues related to federal election law," Healy said.

Even before von Spakovsky came to the Justice Department, Democrats vilified him for his work on the board of the Voting Integrity Project. Critics say the anti-vote fraud group, founded by conservative activists, tried to purge black voters from the Florida voter rolls before the 2000 presidential campaign with a list of purported felons that included thousands of innocent people.

"His whole career has been based on attempting to undermine the voting rights of average Americans, and especially minority voters," said Gerry Hebert, a lawyer for Texas Democrats who has met with von Spakovsky. "It's probably good for minority voters that he is out of the Justice Department and away from Voting Rights Act enforcement, but it's bad for America and it's certainly bad for people interested in campaign finance reform.

[MichiganVote]

22. Another example of fair and balanced---Not!

[MichiganVote]

21. Depends. All of them are twisted and have been since Reagan

or more appropriately, since the time mega media was permitted. It's a huge business, news, and they make big, big , bucks despite their moaning to the contrary. I'm not a conspiracy nut about it b/c I think its patently obvious that so long as they make their money, there's no reason to suppose they give a shit who is in office. The entertainment factor, the eulogizing, the news "analysts", the rise of the Hannity, O'Reilly, programming etc. I feel are just bad for Americans. They, in particular, seem to propagate hate and derision that is more lethal to the critical thinking of people throughout the country. If these types ever truly got a foothold on a global level, our civilization is truly at risk.

I prefer to practice the philosophy of 'live and let live'. For the most part I think that the least partisan and most factual information is to be found through news agencies outside the US. I frequent many overseas sites just for that reason.

Journalists themselves have a very hard row to hoe given the present demands to both suppress and express timely and accurate news. Politicians contribute to most of the news today precisely b/c they provide it, edited, to news services who scoop it up, fill their pages or air waves and walk away not having spent s dime to get it. Such a deal.

[xchrom]

3. bushco and repukes in genral have no shame in their game

when it comes to going after what they want.

they aren't subtle and don't bother to be.

they see what they want and they go for it.

it's one of the things that amuses me about the centrist,moderate/liberal debate -- when you consider how extreme the repukes are -- what are you cmpromising with?

[freedomfries]

4. stop, read the title of the editorial carefully and think!

This is a complete turnabout on the part of the NY Times. After all the noise about tinfoilhatters and conspiracy theorists, finally an article about warning the public against a GOP party activist actually "conspiring against the voters."
This is momentous.

[xchrom]

6. yes, i know.

i was changing the focus a bit.

but as far as the nyt doing a ''turnabout'' -- well that's for now -- what happens next:shrug:
they are a faithfully corporate entity in their perspective -- even as they rebel occasionally.

[freedomfries]

7. kick

Happy New Year election activists! We ARE the people, we ARE the voters, it's US against the vote thieves, it's up to US to reclaim OUR franchise!

[cosmicdot]

8. line to the editorial

December 31, 2005

Editorial

Conspiring Against the Voters

President Bush has announced four nominees for the Federal Election Commission, moving to keep the policing of campaign abuses firmly in the hands of party wheel horses. The timing of the announcement - the president waited until the Senate had gone home - is likely to allow the nominees to avoid the full hearing and confirmation process needed to evaluate them properly.

~snip~

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/31/opinion/31sat3.html

[freedomfries]

9. thanks cosmicdot!

[tsuki]

10. Sounds like Tammanny Hall to me.

[rman]

11. Election fraud = conspiracy to violate the election code

(and actual violation of the election code of course).

I don't get people who believe election fraud took place but do not believe 'grand conspiracies' exist.

Surely stealing a national election is not a minor issue.

[freedomfries]

13. Let's make 2006 a Happy New Year and

Stop that guy! He's a outrage to democracy!
Back December 16. 2005:
Bradblog: "Voter Integrity" activist at the Federal Election Commission?
http://www.bradblog.com/archives/00002171.htm
Wapo:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/16/AR2005121601717.html

[freedomfries]

14. Thanks suneshinekathy!

On Thu Dec 22, 2005 sunshinekathy wrote:
I used http://senate.gov and wrote my senator:

Hans von Spakovsky is a long-time
activist in keeping people away from the polls. His
ideas led to the notorious purge of Florida's voting
rolls before the 2000 election in which thousands of
mostly-eligible, and mostly-minority voters were removed from the voting lists. Von Spakovsky also was a partisan volunteer for Bush in the Florida recount. There is no way he should be
on the FEC due to his stance against voter rights.

http://senate.gov

Thanks suneshinekathy and how about your first cut-and-paste of the year for democracy?


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