Files show talks on 'vote caging'

[Lochloosa]

Source: By J. Taylor Rushing, Capital Bureau Chief

Internal city memos show the issue of Republican "vote caging" efforts in Jacksonville's African-American neighborhoods was discussed in the weeks before the 2004 election, contradicting recent claims by former Duval County Republican leader Mike Hightower - the Bush-Cheney campaign's local chairman at the time.

Snip

Hightower, in a Times-Union interview last month, said the controversial voter suppression tactic of "caging" was never raised in daily meetings hosted by former Duval County Supervisor of Elections Bill Scheu, and he had never heard "of that expression or that practice." Hightower said last week he stands by those recollections.

City officials have disputed that, saying Scheu's daily pre-election meetings with local Republicans, Democrats and African-American community leaders repeatedly included the topic. The city also released attendance records showing Hightower was present.

Snip

Hightower, however, stuck by his denial.

Read more: http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/070807/met_183045410.shtml

[LiberalFighter]

1. Why the hell would anyone return mail from a political party?

"Vote caging" has a long history in politics. In one such procedure, a campaign will send out postcards to a particular group of addresses with instructions to return the mail. The campaign then creates a database of addresses that did not return the postcards and challenges the right of anyone registered at those addresses who attempts to vote on Election Day. The effect often dissuades turnout. The tactic is legal, but not if voters are targeted by race.

I'm not going to bother mailing back a piece of mail even if I don't have to pay for it.

[Maribelle]

2. My thoughts are the the US Post Office does it for free ...

returns undeliverable mail, especially when they are required to by their republican masters.



All agencies have been corrupted by Bush.

[Orsino]

3. It never occurred to me to wonder...

...who's in charge of the private Postal Service, and for whom they might do favors.

[alfredo]

4. As a retired mail carrier: We have a class of mail that clearly states

"DO NOT FORWARD.." If that person on the address line of the mail cannot receive the mail, we have to return it. the sender chooses this option.

Read this:

http://www.missouristate.edu/postal/P-att1.htm the seventh one down. That's how the GOP did it. They found out what black soldiers were deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan and sent the mail to their state side post or home address. They did the same to students who live on campus, not at home.

[PSPS]

5. "controversial" voter suppression tactic?

It's not "controversial," it's illegal. I suppose the Florida Times Union would call murder a "controversial life-ending tactic."

The RNC signed a consent decree directing them to stop this illegal behavior over twenty years ago.

[abq e streeter]

9. MSM use of the word ccontroversial

This is off of the original subject, but when you mocked the MSM's use of "controversial" in this story, it reminded me of how I've been saying that Hitler would probably be referred to as a "controversial conservative" if he were around now.

[BrainGlutton]

11. Unfortunately, it's ILLEGAL but not CRIMINAL.

That is, I've reviewed the Voting Rights Act, and I can find nothing about criminal penalties for violation.

As for the RNC consent decree: In the new paperback edition of "Armed Madhouse," in the new afterword/last chapter, Palast stated the consent decree applied only to the NATIONAL RNC and they got around it by having this dirty work done by the STATE organizations.

[Usrename]

12. RFK jr says these guys are criminals and should be locked up.

snip>

Voting rights attorney Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has called for prison time for the new US Attorney for Arkansas, Timothy Griffin and investigation of Griffin’s former boss, Karl Rove, chief political advisor to President Bush.

“Timothy Griffin,” said Kennedy,”who is the new US attorney in Arkansas, was actually the mastermind behind the voter fraud efforts by the Bush Administration to disenfranchise over a million voters through ‘caging’ techniques - which are illegal.”

snip>

http://www.gregpalast.com/rfk-rove-and-roves-brain-should-be-in-jail-not-in-office/

I agree, here's what looks like the statute that defines the jail terms:

TITLE 42 > CHAPTER 20 > SUBCHAPTER I-A > § 1973j

§ 1973j. Civil and criminal sanctions


How Current is This?

(a) Depriving or attempting to deprive persons of secured rights
Whoever shall deprive or attempt to deprive any person of any right secured by section 1973, 1973a, 1973b, 1973c, 1973e, or 1973h of this title or shall violate section 1973i (a) of this title, shall be fined not more than $5,000, or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.
(b) Destroying, defacing, mutilating, or altering ballots or official voting records
Whoever, within a year following an election in a political subdivision in which an examiner has been appointed
(1) destroys, defaces, mutilates, or otherwise alters the marking of a paper ballot which has been cast in such election, or
(2) alters any official record of voting in such election tabulated from a voting machine or otherwise, shall be fined not more than $5,000, or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.
(c) Conspiring to violate or interfere with secured rights
Whoever conspires to violate the provisions of subsection (a) or (b) of this section, or interferes with any right secured by section 1973, 1973a, 1973b, 1973c, 1973e, 1973h, or 1973i (a) of this title shall be fined not more than $5,000, or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.
(d) Civil action by Attorney General for preventive relief; injunctive and other relief
Whenever any person has engaged or there are reasonable grounds to believe that any person is about to engage in any act or practice prohibited by section 1973, 1973a, 1973b, 1973c, 1973e, 1973h, 1973i, or subsection (b) of this section, the Attorney General may institute for the United States, or in the name of the United States, an action for preventive relief, including an application for a temporary or permanent injunction, restraining order, or other order, and including an order directed to the State and State or local election officials to require them
(1) to permit persons listed under subchapters I–A to I–C of this chapter to vote and
(2) to count such votes.
(e) Proceeding by Attorney General to enforce the counting of ballots of registered and eligible persons who are prevented from voting
Whenever in any political subdivision in which there are examiners appointed pursuant to subchapters I–A to I–C of this chapter any persons allege to such an examiner within forty-eight hours after the closing of the polls that notwithstanding
(1) their listing under subchapters I–A to I–C of this chapter or registration by an appropriate election official and
(2) their eligibility to vote, they have not been permitted to vote in such election, the examiner shall forthwith notify the Attorney General if such allegations in his opinion appear to be well founded. Upon receipt of such notification, the Attorney General may forthwith file with the district court an application for an order providing for the marking, casting, and counting of the ballots of such persons and requiring the inclusion of their votes in the total vote before the results of such election shall be deemed final and any force or effect given thereto. The district court shall hear and determine such matters immediately after the filing of such application. The remedy provided in this subsection shall not preclude any remedy available under State or Federal law.
(f) Jurisdiction of district courts; exhaustion of administrative or other remedies unnecessary
The district courts of the United States shall have jurisdiction of proceedings instituted pursuant to this section and shall exercise the same without regard to whether a person asserting rights under the provisions of subchapters I–A to I–C of this chapter shall have exhausted any administrative or other remedies that may be provided by law.

http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/uscode42/usc_sec_42_00001973---j000-.html

I have to add, the way I read the statute, it's not important whether or not these individuals were targeted by race. That is not really the question when enforcing the Voter Rights Act. I think the Act is in effect whenever the end result is discrimination, whether the intent to target them was there or not.

[williesgirl]

6. When is someone going to put these crooks in jail? recommended

[brentspeak]

7. "The tactic is legal, but not if voters are targeted by race."

Why is vote-caging allowed to be legal under any circumstances? Have there been any significant court challenges to this voter-suppression scam?

[AtLiberty]

8. Hmm...

"The tactic is legal, but not if voters are targeted by race."

But not if targeted by...say...political affiliation?

[L. Coyote]

10. The HUUUGGE Question is: "Did the Republicams cage FL voters in 2000?"

Did illegal Republican activity alter American history, using racism to deprive Al Gore of his rightful victory?

Did FL voter caging in 2000 give us a separate history, with 9-11, the War on Iraq, Ohio vote-switching in 2004, etc?

And this too, all the Bush scandals: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x899312