The Cost of a GOP Myth (Voter Fraud)

[CatWoman]

If Attorney General Alberto Gonzales clings to his job much longer, he may end up as the only remaining employee of the Justice Department. By resigning on Monday, Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty joined Gonzales's chief of staff, D. Kyle Sampson; the department's White House liaison, Monica Goodling; and Justice official Michael Battle, who oversaw the dismissal of federal prosecutors, on the list of Gonzalesites who've left the building. At this point, the number of U.S. attorneys dismissed for political reasons still exceeds the number of Justice officials who've left because of their involvement in dismissing those attorneys or dissembling about it, but the ratio is tightening.

By now, it's abundantly clear that a number of the U.S. attorneys whom Gonzales's minions sent packing didn't live up to Karl Rove's expectations in one crucial particular: They had failed to ring up convictions, or even mount prosecutions, for voter fraud. As Dan Eggen and Amy Goldstein reported in Monday's Post, five of the 12 federal prosecutors either sacked or considered for sacking last year had been singled out by Rove and other administration officials for nonperformance on voter fraud. Amazingly, all five came from states -- Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, Washington and Wisconsin -- where Republicans were embroiled in tight election contests.

With the home office in Washington breathing down their necks, why did these experienced prosecutors fail to bring voter fraud indictments? The crime, after all, had become a major Justice Department concern. Starting in 2002, Justice required every U.S. attorney to designate a district election officer, whose job it would be to end this epidemic of electoral fraud. These officers' attendance was required at annual training seminars, where they were taught how to investigate, prosecute and convict fraudulent voters. The statutes were adequate; the investigators were primed, well funded and raring to go.

And nothing happened. For the simple reason that when it comes to voter fraud in America, there's no there there. Voter fraud is a myth -- not an urban or rural myth, as such, but a Republican one.


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/15/AR2007051501874.html?nav=rss_opinion/columns

[underpants]

1. Printing for later reading

:hi:

[CatWoman]

4. Hi, UP

:hi:

it's very good and recommended reading :)

[underpants]

5. Excellent article-thinkprogress has more on this

http://thinkprogress.org/2007/05/16/voter-fraud-study/

[bleever]

2. Hoist by his own petard.

May this be Rove's ultimate legacy.

[fasttense]

3. Is IMPEACHMENT on the table now?

It is clear that the crazy king george systematical used the DOJ as a tool to steal our elections. He allowed Rove and Gonzales to prevent minorities and liberals from voting and used caging list. Both actions are against the law. Not to mention he subverted justice by not investigating repuke crime.