Sanders camp suspicious of Microsoft’s influence in Iowa Caucus--Sets up Own System

[KoKo]

Sanders camp suspicious of Microsoft’s influence in Iowa Caucus
01/27/16 06:05 PM—Updated 01/28/16 12:09 PM
By Alex Seitz-Wald

DES MOINES, Iowa – The campaign of Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders is raising questions about the involvement of Microsoft in the Iowa Caucuses, now just days away, and has built a independent system to check the official results.

For the first time this year, Microsoft partnered with the Iowa Democratic and Republican Parties to provide a technology platform with which the parties will run their caucuses. The software giant created separate mobile apps for each party, which officials at hundreds of caucuses across the state will use to report out results from individual precincts to party headquarters for tabulation.

The arrangement has aroused the suspicions of aides to Sanders, whose regularly warns that corporate power and the billionaire class are trying to hijack democracy. Pete D’Alessandro, who is running the Iowa portion of Sanders’ campaign, questioned the motives of the major multinational corporation in an interview with MSNBC: “You’d have to ask yourself why they’d want to give something like that away for free.”

The Sanders campaign has built their own reporting system to check the results from the official Microsoft-backed app. It has trained its precinct captain on using the app, which is designed to be as user friendly as possible, and the campaign will also staff a hotline system as further redundancy.

http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/sanders-campaign-suspicious-corporate-influence-iowa-caucus

[Agnosticsherbet]

1. Paranoia strikes deep

Into your heart it will creep...

[tk2kewl]

4. and for good reason

[Snotcicles]

95. In these times distrust is a must. nt

[reformist2]

96. Why on earth do we need *any* voting technology to count caucus votes???

We're talking a few thousand votes here. I'm pretty sure we know how to count votes without any help from corporate America.

[Snotcicles]

99. I don't think "help" is what they had in mind. nt

[SusanCalvin]

103. Bingo. nt

[CorporatistNation]

109. Being From Florida And Having Contested An Election For Congress...

Bernie's Team is RIGHT ON POINT here... Why is there a need for electronic tabulators. Are pens and pencils paper counts obsolete and then communicated by phone or email by the precinct managers? I see no need for risking the possibility or... more importantly PROBABILITY for computerized "massaging" of results. I REPEAT... NO FUCKING NEED FOR IT!

Was there a need for Microsoft involvement 8 years ago or 12 or 16? NOOOOOOO !!!

This is a last line of defense for those who support THE CORPORATIST SHILL candidate to push her over the hump in Iowa! THAT IS IT! I say old way is the safest and least susceptible to fraud... LAST MiNUTE interjection of this technological "three card monte" is UNACCEPTABLE! Same goes for the Republican side... THE CHIPS MUST BE ALLOWED TO FALL WHERE THEY MAY! K AND R!

[frylock]

8. Right, just like with Hillary's private mail server..

paranoia the destroyer.

[PatrynXX]

43. more like the other way around

He brought it up. suppose you hated Acorn. they aren't around anymore because they brought it up.

[SCantiGOP]

57. Paranoia strikes deep.....

Exactly what I was thinking as I scrolled down to see the first comment

[CorkySt.Clair]

9. This will be the new meme if Bernie loses Iowa.

[frylock]

11. Bernie isn't losing Iowa.

[ananda]

13. Sanders is a go in Iowa!

Good!

[frylock]

15. Just one of many he'll rack up.

[PatrynXX]

45. albeit I take a double take

for those rooting for Hillary and then you ask them what channel they watch (and this is for a close friend of moms) she watches Faux ... double take. So I guess there are Hillary supporters out there that only watch Faux which I guess makes sense. Can't pay attention to reality if your just watching that entertainment only channell.

[Stuckinthebush]

19. Yep

That and "the mainstream media was against him and never covered him!"

Great tinfoil hat stuff.

[workinclasszero]

21. Yup...saw it here first

If he wins it will be forgotten and any Hillary fan will be a dirty rotten *** for thinkin it though.

[questionseverything]

12. computers only tell ya what the last programmer told them to tell you...

The Pac-Man hack onto the Sequoia/Dominion voting machine was revealed this week. It was accomplished without breaking any of the "tamper-evident" seals that voting machine companies and election officials claim are used to ensure nobody can physically hack into them without being discovered.

"We received the machine with the original tamper-evident seals intact," the hackers from Princeton and University of Michigan report. "The software can be replaced without breaking any of these seals, simply by removing screws and opening the case."

http://www.bradblog.com/?p=7998

[FreakinDJ]

14. A major benefactor of the TPP

He is on very solid ground not trusting them

[Gene Debs]

23. And for good reason. If the Clinton camp and the DNC would collude to rig the debates, why

wouldn't they try to rig the Iowa results? I wouldn't put ANYTHING past Hillary Clinton or her squadrons of flunkies.

[Ilsa]

76. I wouldn't put anything past DWS. nt

[Gene Debs]

112. I regard her as being under the "flunkies" umbrella.

[peace13]

30. Too late for paranoia..

Stolen elections are real. You only have to revisit Ohio to know that!

[jen63]

69. I was just gonna say

to tell us Ohioans how paranoid we are; ffs!

[SusanCalvin]

104. Yep.

I'm happy this appears to be on team Bernie's radar.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

35. Are you saying elections don't get tampered with? nt

[reformist2]

97. Only in other countries. To think it happens here is paranoia. To think Dems might do it is insanity

*sarcasm*

[bluestateguy]

49. I thought DU was past its voting machines conspiracy era of the mid 2000's

Maybe not yet.

[mhatrw]

74. Yeah. Why can't we just get past the idea than corrupt corporations count our votes

however they feel like counting them?

[bluestateguy]

77. You can make every accusation you want, but you have to prove your assertions with real evidence

nt

[Fawke Em]

81. We can't because the large corporations who count the votes say the information

we'd need to prove it is proprietary.

But, the info we have been able to gather shows that it is rigged.

Here's but one example charged by a professional mathematician (and not some crackpot): http://www.occupydemocrats.com/kansas-mathematician-states-voting-machines-are-rigging-elections-need-audit/

[LanternWaste]

80. Until we get verifiable election results across the board, there will always be concern

Until we get verifiable election results across the board, there will always be concern. it seems either irrational or simply half-witted to think otherwise.

[hobbit709]

50. considering how well other M$ systems stay secure, I wouldn't trust them either.

Been troubleshooting and fixing Windoze problems for 25 years.

[ohnoyoudidnt]

55. If you aren't paranoid about these things, you aren't paying attention. nt

[LanternWaste]

78. I often call simple concern 'paranoia' as well if it serves my biases better!

I often call simple concern 'paranoia' as well if it serves my biases better!

[tk2kewl]

2. Microsoft's system took a hit in the AFC championship game last weekend

Microsoft's Surface takes a hit during NFL playoff game

http://www.cnet.com/news/microsofts-surface-takes-a-hit-during-nfl-playoff-game/

New England's part of the system failed for a portion of the game

[PeoViejo]

26. Not exactly the most difficult OS to break.

Someone likely typed Control-Alt-Delete.

[99th_Monkey]

3. A very smart move by Team Bernie. Ever since we stopped doing exit polls,

because they were too "unreliable" (translation: they revealed election fraud no one
wanted to deal with or address), we're had no way to detect election fraud ... isn't
Microsoft a big Hillary-backer?

[SusanCalvin]

105. The fact that exit polls are no longer done

Is enough evidence for me of election fraud going on.

[99th_Monkey]

107. Yep. They're the "gold standard" acid-test internationally to detect election fraud.

but in the 'great USA' oopsie... TMI .. suddenly the M$M has no interest in them.

[cascadiance]

5. Wouldn't surprise me if he wanted an open source solution. Microsoft likes H-1B Visas!

and he's the Democratic candidate that doesn't.

They probably don't like that he's also heavily against TPP and other free trade deals when a good portion of Microsoft's work force has been shipped overseas in recent years.

[nolabels]

65. And it makes sense why there would be pleading to the banks for waiting for the Iowa results

People who think cheating is a way to run ones life always have this certain type of plot. It is plot to get over this one big obstacle by trickery, then after that, in their minds and their plans, everything will be smooth sailing and nobody will know.

Sounds all too familiar to me

[jillan]

6. Go Bernie! After Gore in Fla; Kerry in Ohio & many other questionable outcomes...

I am thrilled that we *finally* have a candidate that is going to be PROACTIVE on our bs voting systems.

[Zorra]

7. Expect Anonymous will be watching as well.

[2pooped2pop]

22. I hope so.

[dorkzilla]

39. I should think they would be...

I know there are quite a few on reddit, and reddit has a huge Bernie base.

Also, how fucking funny is it that some “Democrats” who were concerned about electronic voting and the ability to hack/manipulate those systems are now calling Bernie “paranoid”. Fucking amazing.

[onecaliberal]

47. All republican talking points, never thought I'd see this. It is sad as hell.

[Fawke Em]

83. Um, with the exception of Rand Paul, the charges of vote tampering via electronic machines

has mostly been the purview of Democrats. Gore in Florida and then Kerry in Ohio, for example.

Not sure how any of what the poster said is a "Republican Talking Point."

FWIW, I work in data security and have solid information that it's pretty easy to stand outside the polling place and hack the system via WiFi. You just put a sniffer on it.

Trust me, if you can hack into a large corporation with the money to spend on data security, you can hack a government-run polling place because government has been starved of the necessary funds to invest in this type of security.

Some hacking techniques.

[onecaliberal]

84. I was replying to this post, not the OP!

Also, how fucking funny is it that some “Democrats” who were concerned about electronic voting and the ability to hack/manipulate those systems are now calling Bernie “paranoid”. Fucking amazing.

[Fawke Em]

85. Oh, my apologies!

And, I agree with this: "how fucking funny is it that some “Democrats” who were concerned about electronic voting and the ability to hack/manipulate those systems are now calling Bernie “paranoid”. "

It's not paranoid when we know it's happened before!

[onecaliberal]

110. Exactly!

[d_legendary1]

64. I remember Ohio and Florida

I wouldn't put it past a corporation to manipulate the results in their favor. But I am surprised that a number of "Democrats" in this site are calling for paranoia on Bernie's behalf. I wonder if they would question the results if Bernie won. You know, Bill Gates being a "liberal" and all.

[dorkzilla]

70. Exactly my point

I can’t believe how quickly our self-proclaimed Democratic colleagues on this site, who were justifiably freaked out and vigilant about the states you mentioned, are now scoffing at Bernie’s pragmatism. I clearly remember us all here on election night 2012 gasping about how Rove refused to believe that Ohio went to Obama then the collective “HURRAH” that it appeared Anonymous may have outfoxed him (pun intended).

But now we are the tin hat brigade. Got it.

[d_legendary1]

113. You're not alone

Many of us have been designated for a while

[Kermitt Gribble]

114. Seems to be a pattern with Hillary supporters here.

They were concerned about election fraud, now they're not. They were for single payer, now they're not.

[ypsfonos]

10. You're not paranoid

if people really are out to get you

[Sheepshank]

16. Apparently there is some track record for on going paranoia

Last edited Thu Jan 28, 2016, 04:47 PM - Edit history (1)

...I find that pretty rich coming from the campaign that steals data from other campaigns

[Spitfire of ATJ]

18. You mean how Camp Hillary mass mailed Bernie's donors?

[retrowire]

20. Yeah, good thing Bernie got in major trouble

oh wait...

[frylock]

58. Where are the charges?

[Sheepshank]

66. Bernie is extremely lucky there isn't any...even after publically admitting the theft n/t

[frylock]

71. Has nothing to do with luck. No charges, no crime.

I do, however, hope that the lawsuit is still moving forward.

[Sheepshank]

73. sure...you just go with that standard

[frylock]

75. Will do.

[Fawke Em]

86. I don't even think it's still under investigation.

NGP VAN was negligent for dropping the firewall, the Sanders team discovered it while doing a regular search (remember, the firewall was dropped mid-morning when people were working with the system), they reported it, the guy who did the searches was fired and the firewall was restored.

I think it's a moot point, now.

[frylock]

88. But what about the lawsuit filed by the Sanders campaign?

Have they retracted?

[justgamma]

17. Can't really get by with anything in Iowa.

There is no secret ballot. Every Bernie or Hillary supporter will know how many votes they get and will be checking the reported results by precinct. They will know if the numbers are off.

[mikehiggins]

25. Maybeso, but WHO would we complain to if there is more fraud than even we expect?

The Iowa Democratic Party? The media? Who?

[Fawke Em]

24. I was in the car when Thom Hartmann read this article.

I literally started clapping and yelling.

It's about time one of our candidates started challenging the way we count our ballots. It's been racked with fraud for a couple of decades now.

[bkkyosemite]

27. Exactly my thoughts..they don't want Bernie ...they will try to rig.

[still_one]

28. Ask the campaign that stole confidential Clinton data

Strange they decided not to pursue their lawsuit against the DNC. Wonder what they found out internally that they don't want public

[sabrina 1]

38. YEs, we're still waiting to find out why a guy who worked for the vendor, was rec'd to

Sanders by the DNC ended up 'stealing' data. Have you seen the results of the investigation yet? Me neither. And because of that Bernie is very wise to do this.

Thanks for reminding me of that possible plant in his campaign. I am going to look around and see where that investigation stands. I know DWS quickly retracted her actions when she learned of the lawsuit filed by Sanders. What on earth were they afraid of? I am so glad that lawsuit is going forward.

This is the kind of leadership the Dem party needed when two elections were stolen. Great judgement on Bernie's part.

[onecaliberal]

48. Ask the campaign who hired the DBA. Old republican talking point.

[frylock]

59. That is a pretty serious claim. Were there charges filed? Arrests made?

Linkys?

[winter is coming]

29. If Microsoft is on the up-and-up, they shouldn't have a problem with this. n/t

[kracer20]

42. Even if they weren't

They will be now, knowing that the counting is being watched.

[SusanCalvin]

106. And that is the point! nt

[KingFlorez]

31. I guess Sanders will have his own numbers

You can't lose if you make up your own numbers!

This is preparation for a loss and a lawsuit to dispute the results.

[sabrina 1]

36. And Hillary wlll have a Giant Corps'. As we know, 'we count the votes' worked out

well for Corps. No major Corp should be in any way involved in our elections. Btw, since when did the Left begin to support Corporations with so much to gain or lose by our elections, being INVOLVED in them?

[Duval]

32. They are very smart to do this! Thanks, KoKo.

[Rafale]

33. Wise choice Sen Sanders

Your concern is NOT misplaced.

And as long as everyone is concerned with corp liability, why is their no liability for all of Microsoft's negligent software that can be easily backdoor'ed by a child? Our privacy, identity, and financial well being can be completely stolen and destroyed and everyone is okay with that situation. WTF? Waivers of liability on other products so central to the well being of the nation do not get a free pass like Microsoft. That's got to end. People have to stop being so passive and uninterested in the well being of society and their own families.

[sabrina 1]

34. Good for them, damn right to be suspicious.

[Agnosticsherbet]

37. By Microsoft? No. If Sanders looses it will be because he did not have the organization to win

in Iowa. And that will be his fault.

[elias49]

54. IDK. I've heard nothing but positive things about his organization.

I've heard and read numerous reports that it's very professional. As a matter of fact, it's been said that he may have a superior organization out west because of the Clinton camp's presumption of an early victory.
You decide.

[Agnosticsherbet]

60. I was not saying his organization is negative, only that it may not be sufficient for the job.

In 2008, Obama's incredible organization, especially in Caucasus states, gave him an unbeatable advantage.

From my experience with Caucasus, ground game is what gets people to the polls. If Sanders doesn't win, he did not build an organization or develop he contacts that gave him he win.

In New Hampshire, I think he will win. I'd bet, it will be his appeal to independents in that state that provides the margin of victory. That appeal, however will not work in the vast majority of states.

[Fawke Em]

87. I think anticipating that a large corporation with skin in the election game MIGHT

rig an election and creating your own software to double-check that corporation's numbers is pretty "sufficient."

FWIW, the campaign is also hiring vans to take students who live in other parts of Iowa from their college or university to their home voting place to spread out the delegates. If you understand how the Dems count the votes in Iowa, that plan makes total sense.

And, Redditers who support Bernie have also created a phone app so they can request a ride-share to get people to and from the polls, so even the "satellite campaign" is on the ball.

[Agnosticsherbet]

108. If Sander's should lose, it will be a failure of his organization,

Not some dark conspiracy.

[frylock]

61. Good thing he's going to win this.

Who will be at fault when Hillary gets blown out?

[Agnosticsherbet]

63. Clinton's organization, of course.

[Dr Hobbitstein]

40. So much tinfoil.

[PatrynXX]

41. Well considering Windows 10 is in perpetual state of Beta

It's not exactly free. It fried my Dell, but I guess they saw this ahead of time so I stuck my 2 drive system in another similar laptop and it acts like I installed it on the HP. like they learned from ubuntu's stunt. I've run on the same install (upgraded over time of course ) of ubuntu for near 8 yrs. on the same drive. Have run it on various laptops to check if the laptop runs. and next idiot at a MCSE certified repair shop that calls my motherboard a logic board is gonna get clocked. (thats what motherboards are called in Apple's X_X) Turned out the idiots had dropped something on my keyboard , ruined the keyboard and dislodged a memory simm card. Thus it wouldn't boot. Never could check to see what was wrong with the drive. in the end I had to use a restore program for corrupted systems. $50 I'd pay $50 a year for it. but never let my drives for OS get bigger than 250 gb.

[nolabels]

67. Thanks for that information too

That gift that just keeps on giving microsoft

[workinclasszero]

44. Hey....

Bernie can put the guys on it that broke into the DNC's DB!

[NastyRiffraff]

46. This sounds a lot like lowered expectations

Bernie loses = computer fraud.

The constant paranoia is getting old and tired.

[EdwardBernays]

51. Hillary ALSO is doing this

Cmon people. Click the link.

[frylock]

62. That's asking a bit much, isn't it?

[firebrand80]

92. Fuck that, I don't even read beyond thread titles nt

[treestar]

94. It just says Hillary has a back up

The rest of the article is about the Sander's camp being "suspicious" and saying things like this:

The arrangement has aroused the suspicions of aides to Sanders, who regularly warn that corporate power and the billionaire class are trying to hijack democracy. Pete D’Alessandro, who is running the Iowa portion of Sanders’ campaign, questioned the motives of the major multinational corporation in an interview with MSNBC: “You’d have to ask yourself why they’d want to give something like that away for free.”

Other Sanders aides noted that Microsoft employees have donated several hundred thousand dollars to Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton over her career, and questioned why the Iowa Democratic Party didn’t partner with a software company based in Iowa.

vs.

Independent reporting systems like the one Sanders’ campaign built are not uncommon. Clinton’s campaign is also preparing its own backup reporting system involving an app and telephone hotline component, according to a campaign aide.

So it's not equal in tone. That's the only mention of HRC's and there's nothing about it being because she does not trust Microsoft because it is a big corporation.

[EdwardBernays]

98. Are you kidding?

Yes the article is about Sanders camp's concern that a company that's raised money for his opponent is also counting the votes.

But.

It doesn't say she has a "backup".

It says

Clinton’s campaign is also preparing its own backup reporting system involving an app and telephone hotline component, according to a campaign aide.

"Backup reporting system". Involving an app and a telephone hotline.

Thats exactly what Sanders camp is doing and what lots of politicians do.

The author just played up the most salacious angle to get people like yourself to click the link.

[treestar]

100. No, it's still not the same thing

The paranoia feature is not there so dismissing the outlandish nature of that because Hillary has a similar thing going is invalid.

[EdwardBernays]

101. You are missing the point completely

The paranoid thing isn't a paranoid thing.

Both campaigns are behaving the same.

One has the extra incentive that the corporation counting the votes has donated to one candidate in the race and not the other.

But the framing of the article is just that, framing.

It's just click bait. You fell for it.

[frylock]

102. The paranoia feature is a narrative cooked up by Hillary Supporter.

A figment of the imagination.

[Faux pas]

52. K N R

[EdwardBernays]

53. From the link

Clinton’s campaign is also preparing its own backup reporting system involving an app and telephone hotline component, according to a campaign aide.

Sooooo paranoid.

[left-of-center2012]

56. Corporate America says "Trust me".

Or was that Hillary?

[hrmjustin]

68. Getting the excuses ready for the coming Iowa loss.

Pathetic!

[mhatrw]

72. I love the response of the Hillbots. If you don't trust us and our corporations

not to cheat in our own favor, you are a CONSPIRACY THEORIST!

I have news for all of you Hillbots. Expecting political and business entities to act in their own favor wherever and whenever possible is just plain common sense. Since when do political and business entities act fairly when they can get away with acting in their own favor?

[treestar]

91. that's a very high level of distrust

says more like maybe you operate that way?

What interest does even Microsoft have in risking getting caught cheating? You're assuming everyone is a cheater. Everyone is dishonest as soon as there is any money to be made.

[mhatrw]

111. No, everybody is 100% fair and honest! That's why all people should let dictators

count the landslides for themselves.

[CharlotteVale]

79. Good. DNC/Clinton cannot be trusted. On anything.

[treestar]

82. Simply ridiculous

with that kind of attitude, there is no one they can work with.

We aren't going back to an agrarian society. Heck, we'd have to go back to pre-money society.

[Z_California]

89. If it's so ridiculous

Why is the Clinton campaign doing it too?

[treestar]

90. The Clinton campaign distrusts Microsoft too?

[KoKo]

115. Kick because Hillary Campaign's John Podesta mentioned using the Ap on MSNBC

When reporter asked if it was going to be used to direct O'Mally supporters over to Hillary at the caucuses. He replied that was what good campaigns do.