Amy Goodman (Democracy Now) on vote recounts (9:42am EDT)

[Bozita]

David Cobb is on.

http://www.kpfa.org/cgi-bin/gen-mpegurl.m3u?server=aud-one.kpfa.org&port=8000&mount=icy_0&file=dummy.m3u

[berner59]

1. report back....

Would love to know details...

[Bozita]

2. Cobb says Kerry has $50mil reserved for recounts

Cobb wants to see some offense from Kerry.

Kerry concession "stunned" Cobb and friends. Called it "huge strategic mistake."

Pleading for dollars at:

www.votecobb.com

[babylonsister]

3. I heard yesterday

Kerry's reserve will be used for '08 should he decide to try again. Believe it was on CNN (Crossfire perhaps?).

[JudyM]

6. That's outrageous. If that's why he's laying low we should storm his

senate office and demand that he spend OUR money on this election, right now.

On edit... I'm going to see if I can reverse the donation I gave to Kerry's campaign in the final week, in response to a series of requests from Edwards, Gore, Mary Beth, etc. I donated on belief that it'd be used to support an active inquiry into/fight for making every vote count. I'm going to contact my credit card company now. If I get it back, it's going to BBV.

[G_j]

9. if that is true, it is really not fair

and would be incredibly selfish.
But can anyone verify this?

[htuttle]

11. Not sure it's something that can be verified at this point

It's more like an option open to him. IIRC, Any candidate is technically allowed to transfer campaign funds from one campaign to a future one.

All that can be verified right now is: A) He has tens of millions in campaign funds left unspent and B) He hasn't spent any money on recounts and C) He is allowed to reuse campaign funds from this election in a future one.

[G_j]

14. Well I hope that is not what he is thinking

a snip from my post in another thread:

Kucinich (my candidate) and the other candidates supported Kerry after he was chosen.
If Kerry used the reserve in '08, doesn't that mean he would be using it to run against other Dem candidates in the primaries? I don't think that is what many of the donors had in mind.

[Verve]

7. Wow! David Cobb is refreshingly articulate after

hearing Jeff Fisher last night. I went to bed feeling disheartened after hearing a disjointed account about voting fraud. However, this morning, David Cobb expressed explicit concerns about all of the Ohio voting complaints (nothing that isn't on D.U.-long lines in urban areas, machine glitches that went to Bush and thousands of individual voting stories that are being reported, etc. etc.) He reported that he doesn't know if his recount is going to change the outcome of this election but that all of the voting irregularities need to be exposed. He then later said that "we don't really know who won the election". He was also especially harsh about John Kerry's silence on voting fraud. He compared Kerry's inaction to what is going on in Fallujah.

[JudyM]

8. Is it time for DUers to get a petition together to send to Kerry?

[Verve]

10. Good suggestion! You should post it on another thread.

[a new day]

4. If Kerry remains silent, I'm quitting the Democratic Party

Iworked like hell for all Democrats this year, but if the top of the ticket abandons us all like this, there is no soul to the organization.

[Justyce]

5. Not me, I won't abandon

the only party that seems to be able to accomplish anything in this country regarding the economy, peace, jobs, environment, etc., because of one man's actions (though I must say I'm still a Kerry supporter regardless of how he decides to handle this - I think he's a good man who would've done great things given the chance.) I would love to be an "independent" rather than a dem if the truth be told, but when reality dictates that the only ones who stand a chance to win are dem & repub, then I of course will back the Dems, no question about it.

[a new day]

12. When the campaign sends out a letter like this

Then acts as they have, so far, they don't deserve a thing. The following appeal, in retrospect, is as fradulent as the election.





Please contribute to our GELAC fund -- pledge that the mistakes of 2000 will NEVER be repeated.





Dear Robert,
Right now I need all of you to join me and make a pledge: the mistakes of the 2000 election will NEVER be repeated again. The day after the election, as the recount began, Al Gore's campaign was already outgunned, outmanned, and outmatched -- we learned one lesson: be prepared. With the race so close in so many states, we need to be prepared for any possibility -- and that means being ready for any recounts.
The Federal Election Commission has just granted our request to raise funds now to cover recount expenses. Your contribution to Kerry-Edwards 2004 GELAC (General Election Legal and Accounting Compliance fund) will provide the resources to make sure we are prepared to win any post Election Day battles.
Make a contribution to our GELAC fund today:
https://contribute.johnkerry.com
Our GELAC fund also pays for the administrative costs at the campaign -- by paying for these expenses with GELAC funds, the campaign is able to spend more of its limited public funds on critical campaign expenses such as media, candidate travel, and direct contact with voters.
Make our public funds more valuable and make sure we are prepared for any possible recount.
https://contribute.johnkerry.com
Thank you,
Mary Beth Cahill
Campaign Manager






Paid for by Kerry-Edwards 2004 General Election Legal and Accounting Compliance Fund.








We apologize if you received this message in error. Click here to unsubscribe from our mailing list.

Contributions or gifts to Kerry-Edwards 2004 General Election Legal and Accounting Compliance Fund are not deductible for federal income tax purposes. Federal law requires us to use our best efforts to collect and report the name, mailing address, occupation and name of employer of individuals whose contributions exceed $200 in an election cycle.

Contributions to the Kerry-Edwards 2004 General Election Legal and Accounting Compliance Fund will be used solely for legal and accounting services to ensure compliance with Federal law. Federal law prohibits private contributions to the candidates' general election account.

Kerry-Edwards 2004, P.O. Box 34640, Washington DC, 20043, U.S.A.

[JudyM]

13. Exactly. See my post above - I'm asking for my donation back.